Agree ohm that it most likely is due to nerve damage but the downstream neural pathways the led from the sensory neurons to areas like the amygdala (for emotional pairing) could also be damaged. Meaning the “scent” stimulus pathway and other areas where the scent memory had been established should theoretically still be there or could also be damaged and although it would not be as strong due to not being “used” for years since injury occurred it still is possible to re-establish “smell”, and new ones at that, after repair.

I find it interesting that Goose can “think” about the scent of vanilla (eg.) but the emotion of the smell isn’t there. Ohm, could this be damage to the amygdala or hippocampus downstream from the primary, sensory neurons or some other downstream neural cluster where the “memory” of “smell” used to reside?

My Neuroscience hat is dusty so forgive me if I am remembering these learning pathways incorrectly- no pun intended.