How Do Dogs Feel About Dead Animals?
Most of us don’t like the idea of seeing a dead animal.
After all, we’re taught to respect the sanctity of life.
But, can a dog feel compassion for a dead animal?
Well, it depends on the kind of dog you have.
Some dogs can recognize the remains of deceased friends and family members.
Some dogs can even show grief over the loss of a friend.
However, it’s important to note that dogs can’t express grief.
They can’t cry or show any outward signs of sadness.
While they may look sad, they won’t actually display any emotion.
This is particularly true if the dead animal was a pet that the dog loved.
In addition, a dog can’t mourn a dead animal.
This is different than mourning the loss of a companion.
Mourners usually express sorrow by crying and displaying other emotions.
A dog, however, will never shed tears over the death of a pet. Instead, it will act indifferent.
Dogs can’t express sympathy, so they won’t actively avoid the corpse.
However, they will probably remain close to it for a short period of time.
If you’ve lost a beloved pet, you may find that your dog shows signs of grief.
You may even find that he tries to comfort you.
Most dogs don’t show any emotional reaction.
And, if you lose a pet, most dogs will eventually move on.
Can a Dog Tell When Another Dog is Dying?
Let’s start this discussion with a related question: Can dogs detect illness in other dogs? The answer here is yes. Dogs use their powerful sense of smell to identify signs of illness in other dogs as well as humans. Scientists are now training disease detection dogs to sniff out people with a wide range of illnesses.
If you’ve ever heard of support dogs alerting people when a seizure is coming, you’ve already heard of this working. Research has proven that what those dogs are picking up on is something in the sweat of a person about to have or in the throes of a seizure.
The same process applies to other illnesses. A dog may not know specifically what is wrong with another dog, but they can detect the scent of chemicals associated with illness. Dogs spend a lot of time sniffing one another and inspecting feces of other canines because they’re assessing their health, wellbeing, and latest meal.
So, what happens when another dog is dying? Dogs can likely detect scents of illness. They may notice lumps, wounds, and other outer signs of injury or illness. Dogs can also pick up on changes in the dog’s activity level and behavior that may signal they’re dying. For instance, a dog may notice that another dog doesn’t want to play, won’t get up and move, or isn’t responding to their licks and touches.
At this point, we’ve established that dogs can pick up on signs of illness in other dogs. They can also pick up signs that a dog is dying. What’s unclear is whether dogs understand death and know that another dog is in that process.
Most likely, dogs understand that another dog is seriously injured or suffering a serious illness. They pick up on scents associated with illness and know that the other dog isn’t moving, making eye contact, or otherwise showing signs of life. They know that something is wrong, but they may not have complete understanding that the dog is going to pass away and no longer run alongside them.
Do Dogs Know When They’re Going to Die?
We might think we know whats going on in a dogs mind simply because of the way they return our affection—or slather us with theirs! Scientists continue to be fascinated by the possibilities to enhance our relationship with our canine companions, and theres interesting research on the subject.
For example, in a detailed article for the Dana Foundation, neuroscientist Gregory Berns, author of What Its Like to Be a Dog, pointed out that while some dogs are more eager to play fetch, others are not. Does that mean they dont understand the cue—or understand but just dont want to play? Berns writes, “Its all too tempting to project a human explanation onto the dog, to anthropomorphize. We must be careful in generalizing about dog findings, as there is no such thing as a generic dog. Just like there isnt a generic human.” Since dogs cant speak, Berns says, their behavior tells us a lot about what theyre feeling.
Haylee Bergeland, CPDT-KA, CBCC-KA, RBT, is the founder and executive director of the Iowa Human-Animal Bond Society and Daily Paws health and behavior expert. She says its tough to know how much a dog understands or is feeling near the end of their life, but some behaviors might be more apparent. “Many dogs appear to be more clingy or attached, following you around consistently and remaining close,” Bergeland says. “Other dogs seem to distance themselves and want to be alone more than they normally would.”
Shes also noticed some dogs whining and barking more, along with moments of almost hyperactivity, “then suddenly becoming quiet and still—as if they have a desire to expend some energy, have a bit more fun, but just cant quite do it.”
Other researchers and veterinarians rely on “citizen science”, which is a collaborative effort between the general public and professional scientists to study the natural world, to determine how dogs know theyre dying. Naturally, as in-tuned as we are to our pups needs, this leads us to believe they comprehend whats happening to them.
Credit: Bigandt_Photography / Getty
Can Dogs Tell When They Are Dying? How Can You Know?
Any pet lover will tell you: its excruciating to watch your adorable furball friends suffer, especially when they might be ready to cross the rainbow bridge. But do dogs know theyre going to die? This is an existential question we struggle with as humans, too, and we dont have all the answers for ourselves, much less our canine buddies.
Still, there are clues to what dogs might be aware of and, more importantly, what we need to notice in the layers of their whole being to understand how we can help if theyre close to passing away.