Is Your Pet Psychic?

Many pet owners will tell you that their pet is "special" in one way or another. This is a photo of my Rottweiler, Nadja. And yes, she is special to me. We all love our furry friends endlessly.

However, many pet owners believe that their pets are special in more ways than one.

As a pet owner, I am sure that many of you have witnessed strange coincidences or occurrences relating to your pets. Even more so, occurrences where your pets related to YOU in some strange, almost "sixth sense" sort of way.

For instance, does your pet stand at the door awaiting your arrival prior to you arriving at home? Can your pet tell if you or someone in your family isn't feeling well? Does your pet have the ability to locate you great distances from home? Does your pet see things that you do not?

Many pet owners may answer yes to one or more of those questions.

Animals can also seem to sense earth or weather related matters such as storms, hurricanes, earthquakes, and the like - prior to the event.

I picked up this excerpt from Yahoo! today, "In 1975, the city of Haicheng was evacuated days in advance of an earthquake based on the behavior of dogs and cats. An estimated 150,000 lives were saved. Stories like these lead many to believe that animals have some kind of sixth sense."

Psychic probably isn't a good word for this, though. My opinion is that it's more of a primal instinct - heightened senses relating to survival - that date back to the dawn of time.

Strange though, how many of us can accept that as fact - when relating it to our pets - but not when relating it to ourselves as humans. We are essentially an animal after all. Yet many cannot accept the fact that we, too, may have heightened senses relating to our loved ones, children, experiences, etc. But that's another story. . . .

In recent years many, including scientists, have taken note of animal behaviors relating to the sixth sense they seem to possess. And there have been some incredible stories surrounding that topic. Some of which include:

• Private James Brown of the 1st North Staffordshire Regiment when he was sent to join the Great War in France in August 1914. On September 27th, he received a letter from his wife notifying him that his terrier, Prince, had gone missing. But James already knew this. . .for the dog had joined him in the trenches days previous to receiving the letter. Prince traveled over 200 miles, crossed the English Channel, carried on another 60 miles through the battlefields to Jame's front line position at Armentieres.
• In February of 2005, a Jack Russell by the name of PJ located his owner at a rehabilitation center after an accident. The dog traveled some 9 miles and was located by a worker who took the dog to the owner's office within the rehabilitation center where she was receiving treatment. The dog had never been there before, but when entering the office, went straight to the owner's empty chair and sat down.
• A beagle named Belle was trained to recognize seizure symptoms. Upon her owner entering into one - Belle dialed 911 and provided rescue for her owner.
• A Golden Retriever named Toby saved his owner's life when she began choking on a piece of apple. Toby never received any training relating to this matter. He witnessed his owner in distress and attempting to dislodge the apple from her throat. When she was unsuccessful, Toby sprang into action taking matters into his own paws. He pushed her over and began jumping up and down on her chest - dislodging the apple and saving her life.
• Bear, a Labrador Retriever, appeared from nowhere and jerked his owner out from under an automobile that he had been repairing that was up on jacks. Moments later, the vehicle fell from the jacks and landed where Bear's owners head had been. Bear saved his owners life.

And I, myself, have had similar experiences with my own pets and our attachment to one another. For instance, my cat seems to follow something around the room intently on occasion. Even going so far as to jump down onto the floor, pursuing whatever it is he sees, with great intent. What does he see? That I don't know. But here's an interesting read titled: Animals and Ghosts.

A chow chow I had named Taz, would go to the door approximately 10 minutes prior to my husband's arrival home from work each day. No matter what the time was - be it later or earlier than normal. I could tell when he was coming home each and every time.

After Taz's passing, I adopted Nadja, pictured above. About 2-3 weeks after her arrival in her new home, one evening she got up from a deep sleep and went straight to the area in the living room where my chow chow, Taz, spent most of his days.

She zeroed in on something and began barking and growling - all the hair in the middle of her back raised. She spooked me. Then, she immediately went down into a pounce position, playfully wagging her stubby tail, and jumping up and down as if interacting with something.

Nothing was there and it ceased as quickly as it began and she then returned to her slumber at the other end of the living room.

She performed the same actions approximately 3 weeks later at my camp - and in the chow chow's preferred place of rest up there. The actions went much the same as they did the first time - barking and growling - then into a pounce position. Others witnessed the behavior and it left us all wondering.

And very recently, I experienced a strong connection emanating from myself regarding my Nadja. About two months ago, I was at a flea market near my camp with Nadja. Rather than taking my usual route back to camp, I went through the nearest small town up there.

Why did I do this? Well, something told me that I needed to know where the vet's office was. I had a premonition that my Nadja was going to be hit by a car. I went through the town, located the vet's office, and then went on my way to camp.

Approximately 2 hours later, while cutting grass near the roadside, my Nadja was hit by a passing motorist. Three cars stopped and a woman was the first to approach me. The first thing she said to me was, "Do you know where the vet's office is in Brookville?" This was the office that I located some 2 hours previous - prior to returning to camp. Thankfully, my Nadja was OK.

Do our pet's have a sixth sense connection to their owners and their environments? Do we, as owners, have a sixth sense connection to our loved ones and our pets?

Psychologist Michael Fox of Washington University has studied cats in particular. One of his cases regarded a vet who left his cat behind and moved some 2500 miles away. Only to have his cat, some six months later, walk right into his new home.

A scientist by the name of Rupert Sheldrake believe that living beings have morphic fields or invisible vibrations which surround living things. He believes that the interconnection between thoughts and energies can affect our pets. In essence, animals can pick up on the energies and/or thoughts that we are transmitting. They mimic our behavior and tune into our thoughts.

Parapsychologist, J. B. Rhine wrote: "The number of reported cases on animal ESP is large enough to suggest that animals can somehow be affected by circumstances they could not be aware of by any sensory sign and which one would suppose they could hardly understand in human terms."

So is your pet psychic? Here's a fun test to find out. You be the judge.

Has your pet saved your life? Has your pet sensed danger prior to it actually happening? Does your pet see things that you do not? Is your pet aware of your arrival home prior to you returning?

I invite you to share your stories. Please comment and tell us of your paranormal experiences with your furry friends.