Dogs acting weird
 

My dogs, a 4yo Australian Shepherd X and a 9mo purebred golden lab are acting very oddly today :shrug:

Pacing between doors, barking at every little sound (even sounds they're used to, like the boiler kicking in and out) despite neither of them being barkers normally, and generally being funny with each other (normally they spend half the morning curled up sleeping, today, they don't want to be in the same room with each other).

My Aussie just freaked me out further by growling (that deep, low, in her chest growl, not an overt snappish growl) at the WALL, then heading for the mud room, and her mat, looking over her shoulder like she was in trouble.

She wants out, then she stands on the back step staring off into the distance -- but it's not the same direction every time -- first she was staring towards town (east) and then towards the south. Just now, it was south-west, towards our closest neighbor. I thought they might be hearing something going on at the CFB, which is about 20 miles northwest of us, but she's not looking in that direction.

She won't settle, and the little one is just acting freaky, wanting in and then out, then in and out.... and leaning into my leg and hiding his muzzle against me if I stand still.

I checked the weather forecast, and there is supposed to be light snow, but nothing we haven't had a lot of lately. I'm really wondering what they're sensing that I'm not. The Aussie seems to be in full "protection" mode, but there doesn't seem to be anything out there.

Santa is coming!!!!!!

Is an earthquake possible where you are? Even remotely?

someone sneaking around the place?

I don't think so, Angie -- we're pretty much at the geographical centre of the continent, and I don't believe there ever HAS been an earthquake here -- at least, not in recorded history.

Tracy, I don't think you can have an earthquake there either, you're on the part of the continent called the Canadian Shield and that's a solid plate of basalt beneath you. Must be something else is up with your dogs, maybe you should look to the sky as we're having a full moon today, tomorrow and Wednesday.

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There is suppose to be a full eclipse of the moon in the morning between 1am and 4am, for the first time in over 400 years. Maybe that has something to do with it.

Our dogs were like that last night and this morning. When Iwent out this morning I could see there were places that had been marked by a male dog or a coyote. All 3 of our dogs are female so the markings weren't theirs.

Deb
in wi

We live on the prairie -- no way anyone could hide, and if they were close enough to hide in or around the outbuildings or in the shelterbelt, Lucy would be out there like a shot. She's pretty good at letting me know when there are people around, and that isn't how she's acting today.

There have been MANY eclipses in that time period.

What makes THIS one unique is that it's occurring on the Winter Solstice, which last happened about 1638

It will be total between 1 and 3 AM

My dogs are acting weird today too, really restless and they wont settle

Our dogs are their usual selves, but then we're near the southern end of the north American continent from where you are.

Has your dog been exposed to bats, coyotes, or anything else that could carry rabies? Had his shots? Once saw a rabid dog, and it was extremely creepy.

Could there be other animals nearby, maybe near your house or outbuildings that aren't normally around, perhaps driven in by cold weather? Maybe your dog is reacting to an animal it isn't familiar with?

Maybe spirits of some sort? Couldn't hurt to invoke the name of Jesus Christ and banish whatever might be present.

There's an animal out there that scares the %&# out of them. My dog does the same exact thing when there's a bobcat outside somewhere in the area. She wants out, but when I let her out, she's scared and wants back in. Don't let them out for any length of time and whatever it is out there will eventually leave.....

"It's Santa!

It's Santa!

He's bringing us stuff!"

You're in western NYS, aren't you? Quite a distance from me. But that's it exactly -- they won't settle, and Lucy is being more than her usual protective self. She doesn't like me being outside, either -- tried to get between me and the door when I went out earlier, and was whining, totally not aggressive, but obviously didn't want me out there. She followed me to the barn, though, and was her usual self out there, patrolling the pens. She was in a pretty big hurry to get back to the house, though, and looked off toward the SW again before coming in.

They're both up to date on all their shots, and haven't been unsupervised long enough to get into any trouble with the local wildlife.

Maybe, but they'd have to be pretty well hidden, as we're pretty much on the bald prairie out here. Normally, when there is an animal around that she knows isn't supposed to be here, she goes straight for it -- skunk, muskrats, porcupine, whatever -- and stands back from it and barks until I come. This is different, like she doesn't know what is bothering her.

Just weird. Maybe it is the coming eclipse -- or the weather, I don't know. But she's sure freaking me out.

Entirely possible, Oggie!! She smells REINDEER!!!

I agree, full moon and the creatures the full moon pulls forth , by me that would be coyotes.

Another weird thing -- we taught her to say "please" when she wants something. She comes up to you, sits down and brings a paw up and paws the air. That means "please".

She's been coming to me all day and saying "please".

That would creep me out :eek:

would she be able to "show me" if you asked her? follow her to where she wants you to go?

Tried that, Angie. Typically, you say "what do you want?" and she'll lead you to the bin where we keep her treats, or if it's meal time, she'll go to her dish. If she needs to go out, she'll go to the door. This time, she just keeps saying "please", or paces.

I'm wondering if she's not feeling well. Wrex, the lab, is asleep on their mat right now, so I'm wondering if he was reacting to her this morning with his restlessness. I'm keeping a close eye on her, but her nose is cool and wet, and she ate her breakfast okay, had her normal morning "constitutional", so I don't know quite what it would be.

My dogs have been "wired for sound" for 3 days, I have been blaming it on the cold snap, but it really IS getting out-of-hand!

The female who lives inside is doing exactly what you're describing: wanting OUT, but full of nerves when I take her OUT and scooting for the door!

The 3 boys who live outside are barking and fussing at every little thing.

It's making ME nervous and paranoid, which can't be helping......

OMG, all 3 of mine!!! Now IO am starting to get wierded out.

Is she defecating and urinating freely? Could she have an impacted bowel or bladder problems? Just trying to figure out what could be causing her distress. If she keeps saying 'please, she wants you to understand something. Will she let you comfort her?

Are your kids ok?

Hope everything is ok. It's terrible when your pups can't tell you in words what's wrong.

All processes seem to be working properly, although when she squats to pee, she's still on "full alert", if you know what I mean -- ears cocked and looking around. She did her normal "morning" routine this morning, so no worries there.

She'll let me cuddle her for a minute or two, snuffles my ear (her version of a kiss) and then goes back to pacing. She's whined at the door a few times, went out and stood looking to the SW. Right now, she's standing in the kitchen with her chin on the windowsill looking out. She's been there for about five minutes, and hasn't hardly moved. Every little noise -- the kids moving around upstairs, the washing machine changing cycles -- has her barking.

She's been drinking fine, and ate her breakfast without a problem. I gave them each a treat a while ago, and she ate it, wagged her butt (she's naturally docked, and when she wags her "tail", her whole backside wiggles), then went back to her pacing.

The kids are fine. Youngest has the sniffles today, but it's not slowing him down any.

My 3 are acting REALLY strange. And it IS because Santa is coming. Shep is acting the strangest..I think because he is older he has more practice of knowing Santa. :)

What is located to the SW of you? Your barn or another building? Big tree? Another farm? Power plant? Large city? Missle silo or otehr gvmt. installation? Woods? If she keeps looking in that direction I'd be (and I'm sure you already are) wondering what lay in that direction.

When you go outside, can you hear anything in the distance, or is there wind or other noise that would interfere with what you can hear? I'm wondering if she is hearing a person or another animal in distress? Any strange smells?

Geeze, now I'm worried, and I'm not even up there...

That is creepy. Dogs sense stuff...any possible tornadoes, hurricanes, etc?

Now that I think about it, my son said he couldn't sleep because our dog was whining all night, which she never does.

.................She maybe experiencing some kind of internal pain that keeps her in constant motion , I'd take her too the vet ! , fordy:cowboy:

My son said the same thing.

I heard George Bush is spraying Chem Trails of MSG in your area

I would have to agree that something is out there that has her disturbed, the only other thing I can think of, is this..are any of your family epileptic, some dogs can sense the onset of seizures.

But I would really think wild animal since she is so skittish about outdoors

Any chance you can put her on a leash and walk with her in the direction that has her alarmed, to see what her reaction is? There is probably something out there she's hearing that is out of your hearing range.

I think I read in one of your early posts that at one point she was alarmed at a certain direction, then a second direction, now this is the third direction? It could be that she was trying to get her bearings on where the sound was coming from outside, and it was hard to tell from indoors... or whatever animal/person/thing is out there, it could have circled your property and then headed to the SW, so that's the location she stopped at...

My main concern would be that she doesn't want YOU outside. So whatever is out there has her spooked. Perhaps a smell she isn't familiar with... or someone giving off bad vibes? Whatever the case, I'd rethink the idea to take a walk with her in the direction that she is bothered by. Any chance you could take a ride in the car in that direction, with both you and her securely locked inside?

Any chance you might have a big cat or a bear around. From what I understand they both are inclined to make a circuit for several days in a row, probably be about the same time of day. Do you have chickens or an other easy prey type critters that would draw a cat. Several years ago my aussie/shelty cross was restless about the same time in the evening several times. The outside border collie, who NEVER wanted to come in the house was at the back door. Heard a few days later that people were seeing a mountain lion/cougar in the area. All the years I'd lived here I had never heard of any big cats around. I don't think the dogs knew what it was but knew it was trouble and acted just like your describing you dogs behavior. Are they still acting strangely?

Well its the full moon, winter solstice and lunar eclipse all rolled into one

http://www.almanac.com/content/sky-watch-december-2010

December's full moon is also called the Wolf Moon, so who knows what the dogs are feeling. They'll probably settle down after tomorrow.

Maybe the dog is hearing the crackle and pop of northern lights and getting zapped by electrical brush discharge. Our dogs used to hate that sound and the accompanying electric shocks on their hair.

http://www.----interesting.com/the-sound-of-the-aurora

Oh darn, that link won't work, the forum edited out the 'darn' word in the address.

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She finally settled after DH got home. She's sleeping at my feet right now -- no napping today, as she's used to, so I think she's tired out from all that pacing :)

I called my neighbor to the SW -- closest neighbor we have and a mile away. She said nothing was going on that she knew about, so who knows? Beyond that neighbor, about a mile further on, is a marsh, so it might have been something over there, but I don't know.

I poked around the property a bit today, no tracks or anything, so I don't think it was a critter. Yes, we have livestock that might draw predators, but no tracks that I could find, so :shrug:

I'll keep an eye on her this evening -- she ate her dinner like normal, went out and did her business after dinner, and we'll see how she reacts at bedtime, but whatever it was appears to have passed.

I bet she's worn out from fretting all day. Maybe she'll sleep well and tomorrow will be free of whatever was bothering her today. She sounds like a very good girl.

Are there any solar flares coming? Mabey the poles are about to shift? :)