Did your Dog/pet sense your impending Labor?

[ambertwogood]

I've noticed in the last 2-3 days that my chi/minpin mix has been acting very weird. Totally unlike her normal self. She normally favours my SO, always wanting to be by him if she is wanting to be close to someone. He normally goes to bed before me and the entire time we've had her she normally tucks in with him when she lays down. Even on the occasions that we lay down together she would always curl up with him. I thought it was probably BC he puts off more body heat, lol, BC she stays cold. Here in the past few days she is literally glued to my hip. She stays up with me now, she sleeps curled up next to my belly at night, ivenoticed her laying her head on my leg or bump and just looking up at me with this worried/concerned/sad look in her eyes ( she's never just laid her head on me before, she constantly follows me around just staring, even to the bathroom and if I close the door without her being in she whines and scratches until I let her in. She insists on sitting on my lap, laying under my bump, or Nuzzled next to my neck 24/7. I've also noticed that she has gotten a lot more protective and always seems to be on edge/alert. If someone touches my belly, even SO, she growls and tries to remove their hand. And she has started barking at everything! Which is NOT normal for her. She also gets really anxious if she knows I'm leaving and tries to run out the door to go with me which she never did before. The other thing she's started doing is if she laying under my bump and SO tries to move her she growls and will go immediately back to where she was laying. I've also started noticing that she keeps (TMI) trying to smell my crotch, bump, and even my breasts sometimes. It just all really out of character for her and honestly starting to freak me out little bit... Lol. Its like she knows something we don't. I found out a couple days previous to the beginning of her odd behaviour that I was dialated to 1 and beginning to efface. Plus the past couple days I've been getting these weird cramps that start as an ache in my low back and then radiate to my sides.....not really painful, but enough so to notice and think maybe I should take some Tylenol, but then they go away....

Has anyone else experienced this? What ended up happenening? Did you go into labour? His long after they began acting weird? I've done some research on Google and apparently women's pets doing this right previous to labour is pretty common.....it sure is pretty interesting to say the very least.

 

[Kalabear]

I'm not sure about labor as I never went into it with my first but my min pin got so weird before/when we found out we were pregnant both times....the second time around she was one of the clues for me to test!
I believe they can! But not sure if it's scientifically proven.

How far along are you?

 

[ambertwogood]

I'm almost 36 weeks. She's been around for majority of the pregnancy and has just now started acting this way. It is very odd. Oh, she also when we first got her towards the beginning of the pregnancy, had a phantom pregnancy of her own. So much so, that I actually thought we have purchased a pregnant dog! The vet said that female dogs have been known to experience phantom pregnancies during their owners real pregnancies.... How weird?

I would think that it is reasonable to say they probably do pick up on something. I mean they use dogs to sniff out drugs, some dogs have alerted people to an impending seizure, and have even been known to alert people to sicknesses such as cancer and diabetes! They even have dogs trained to sniff out cancer. So I would say its highly possible that they could be sensitive enough to pick up on a slight hormonal change that we ourselves our completely oblivious to.

 

[Anana]

I don't think my dog sensed labour but in the very early stages of labour she was glued to me. I lay on my bed to ease the pain and she jumped right up by my head which is really out of the norm for her and was staring at me really intently just as my water broke. I think dogs can definitely sense things that humans can't and they are experts at their human's behaviour so I wouldn't be surprised if your dog is picking up on your labour. It doesn't sound strange to me at all. They are amazing creatures!

 

[Angel1990x]

You do not get that treatment with a cat, i can tell you that!!

My cat has been avoiding me like the plague ... she used to be just a lap cat n very loving, now she spends all her time with my OH and stay faaaar away from me, she usually sits on the opposite sofa staring at me but if i get up and go towards her she'll back away alittle ... i dont know if she can sense whats about to happen ... maybe she can, shes due to have some kittens herself soon enough, but last time she has a litter she wanted me by her side all the time ...

I like to believe our pets have a idea of whats going on ... its kinda sweet ... u less you have a cat!! xx

 

[ambertwogood]

Haha, about the cat stuff. I've had lots of cats throughout the years and they definitely can be fickle. My dog, Ella Belle, is child all the time and my SO would put her inside his hoodie or shirt to warm her up. Well, she liked this so much that she now demands to be let into your clothing, lol, is will actually nose the edge of your shirt and dig at it to get in. Its insane. I noticed last night as she was sleeping away under my shirt that she all the sudden literally bolted out from under my shirt and sat on SO's lap on the other end of the couch.immediately following her running away I got a contraction, then when it eased up she came back and laid down, then again same thing. My contractions lasted for maybe a 30 main period then subsided but she did the bolting and coming back thing the entire time, it was like she could sense them coming and couldn't get away fast enough, lol.

 

[Monzter79]

I've worked with animals- dogs specifically- for over a decade. I am fascinated by them still!

Your dog does not live in the same sensory world as you. They live in your world, but make no mistake- their experience is COMPLETELY different than how you experience your surroundings.

They share all the senses that we have- but most of them are developed FAR beyond what we could imagine. It's doggy super-powers! LOL

They don't all share the same heightened senses. A sight-hound generally has keener eyesight than a scent-hound for example, and their abilities are varied regardless of breed. Some dogs are super smellers. Some are super hearers. Some are super feelers (of storms, seismic activity, seizures etc).

Domestic dogs have co-evolved with human beings, for a LONG LONG time. If you think for a second that they don't know what's up- you couldn't be more wrong. They might not totally "get it" (though some do)- but they KNOW something is up.

They can smell you. They know where you've been, who you've seen, what you've eaten, if your stressed, if your fearful, if your injured.

Their hearing is incredible too. They are aware of your breath, your heartbeat... Some dogs may even be able to hear the baby's heartbeat from the womb!

They can taste you! Think the only thing they taste when they lick your hand is what you had for lunch?? Nope- you're telling them a story.

How they interpret all of this intel varies by the dog. How they feel about what they're "getting" is dependent on their personality too.

They might be keenly aware that you're in labor- but how they respond depends on the dog. Some might just be like "Yeah whateves, people having babies- blah blah blah." Others may get stressed, protective, or excited. But I have NO DOUBTS what-so-ever that they sense the changes, and likely do so long before we do.

Pretty cool stuff!!!

 

[x Helen x]

Animals definitely have a sense for these things. I had a home birth on Thursday night / Friday morning and one of my cats refused to leave my side the entire time. He followed me around everywhere in the earlier stages and when I went in the pool he sat right next to it on a chair and refused to move, just stared at me the entire time (lol!!). Interestingly he doesn't leave the baby's side now either, he sits next to or under the moses basket all day long keeping guard!

 

[MrsPoodle]

I don't have a dog but my cat who normally isn't bothered about me proper started loving me in the early days, then went off me again and now he is back to being my stalker again. I think they do have sixth senses, but I would hope that you're not going into labour before 36 weeks, it's not even full term!

 

[ambertwogood]

I don't have a dog but my cat who normally isn't bothered about me proper started loving me in the early days, then went off me again and now he is back to being my stalker again. I think they do have sixth senses, but I would hope that you're not going into labour before 36 weeks, it's not even full term!

Yes I know, that's why its been so concerning. But I'm quickly approaching 36 weeks, so hopefully I'll make it to 37 at least. She definitely knows knows something is going on though. She keeps getting stranger and stranger, lol, by the day....