
Stories exist of nursing home pets that stay beside patients who are about to die. Horses have alerted their owners that there is a problem with a fellow herd member. It seems possible that animals could have a sixth sense – detecting information that even doctors and advanced technologies cannot.
Adopting Humans
Humans adopt animals and animals have been known to adopt other animals. Simply being around a pet has been shown to help lower blood pressure because the act of petting an animal is soothing. Other activities like caring for and walking a dog, are also beneficial. Sometimes, animals adopt humans that seem to be in need of comfort.
A Cat's Sixth Sense
Oscar, a therapy cat in a Providence, Rhode Island nursing home, has curled up next to more than 25 patients and waited with them until they passed away. Sometimes he has given the nursing home staff enough time to notify the patient's family so that loved ones can say goodbye. He usually arrives at a patient's side two-to-twelve hours before death.
How does Oscar know? Some in the medical community guess that he is smelling and sensing:
- Chemicals that are released when someone is dying
- Body temperature
- Behavioral pattern of the staff
Equine Support System
Horses are herd animals, so it is no surprise that they work together in times of crisis. Over the past five years or so, the four horses my family owned were categorized as "seniors," all aged between 25 and 35.
Joe, our 35-year-old Quarter Horse, was put down after he lost the ability to stand. Herd member Bomber went to the gate to "alert" the human members of the family that there was a problem. The other horses waited with Joe and urged him to get up; they understood the importance of standing. After Joe's death, the remaining three horses stood by his body as if having a funeral. Perhaps it was to show Savvy, the pony, that he had passed away and had not been sold. (Savvy suffered from separation anxiety when Joe was missing.) After the burial, there were no problems.
The second horse to be put down was Savvy at age 30. He was suffering from equine recurrent uveitis, or "moon blindness" – a painful eye condition. When the day came for him to be put down, another herd member, Bob, whinnied at the gate until someone came outside (Bob never whinnies). Both horses waited near him and again stood by his body.
So, do you think animals can sense when death is near? Do you have a story to share?
Resources:
https://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/25/health/webmd/main3097899.shtml
https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6919063.stm
https://vi.sualize.us/view/0ab870d1d6782e00a89e23bd47420f0a/ (cat image)
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