Pets and the Supernatural

Have you ever had an experience where your dog starts barking and growling at what looks like nothing at all? Have you ever heard of this happening to one of your friends or family members? Have you ever seen other animals, perhaps wild ones, act erratically at certain times of the day or night? While scientific evidence of animals being able to sense supernatural activity is inconclusive, anecdotal evidence would suggest that animals can, in fact, see or sense ghosts.

In her 2009 book, Tails of the Afterlife, Peggy Schmidt details several stories of dogs and their owners who have experienced actions they cannot explain, save for the presence of the paranormal.

This collection of stories is not only eerie and enough to get your spine tingling, they are also true. What accounts for dogs' heightened sense of the strange and ghostly? Some say that, because dogs are able to hear and smell better than most other animals, they are more likely to detect a change in their surroundings.

Others believe that, since dogs are social animals and were, at one point, bread to protect their owners, they may be more likely to react to a paranormal entity in order to signal or warn their human counterparts. Whatever the reason, many dog owners report irregular behavior that can be attributed to a haunted house or room.

While dogs are by far the most sensitive to supernatural activity, or are by far most likely to vocally warn of a change in the atmosphere, cats are also very sensitive to changes in electromagnetic activity - a change in which can signal a ghostly presence - though they may be more likely to hide rather than make noise or otherwise warn their owners.

Cats may also sit and watch something move across a room that you cannot see with your human eyes. As far as wild animals go, you may notice that birds start chirping uncontrollably or begin to fly in crazy patterns at certain times of the night. This can signal the presence of ghosts.

If you have not experienced this yourself, but want to learn more, The Haunted is a television series on Animal Planet that shows the accounts of real people with pets who have sensed paranormal activity.

On the show, you will first see interviews with the family or inhabitants of a house that is believed to be haunted. They will always talk about how their pet had started acting strangely upon moving into the house, and then they will detail other strange things that happened that could only be attributed to a haunting.

Then, a team of ghost hunters comes into the house and you see their footage as they look for an explanation.

Whether you believe it is due to paranormal activity or not, if your pet starts to act differently than normal, you should definitely consult a veterinarian. They are the only ones that can truly diagnose what is going on.

Before you freak yourself out thinking your house has an unwelcome resident, talk to your vet and see if there could be another cause. If you have recently moved, it can take your pet some time to get used to the new noises and surroundings.

If the behavior continues and you suspect an otherworldly culprit, though, there are plenty of books and websites to consult.