Aren't dogs supposed to anticipate earthquakes, etc?

BarbV

BarbV

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We had an earthquake today - the epicenter was about 60 km away from Ottawa. Registered 5.0 and lasted about 30 seconds.

When I called home to see how things were, I asked Ryan if the dogs seemed aware that something was going to happen before the quake struck. He said no, but when it did strike, the dogs went ape! Well, duh! They're Shelties!

But then his final comments was: Maybe our dogs are just plain stupid!!

What do you all think about dogs and the theory of their extra-sensory perception???
 
Don't know about Shelties, but my border collie/golen retriever cross alerted us to the tornado in Barrie in 1985.
 
In 2006,while living at the rental house just up the road.We had a huge center room of this house,and this is where Earnhardt would nest down at night on his bed.

I was alone,as Brian was working.All of a sudden,Earnhardt starts barking,like he's never barked before.I wake up out of a sound sleep,and I go to the center of the house to make my way to the kitchen.

As I pass Earnhardt I actually grabbed his coller,to give him a good "hush",just as my hands laid on his collar,the house shook.

It shook so hard,I had cracks in my guest room,and dishes rumbled.I had never been so scared in my life. I immediately called Brian at work,he said they felt it at the plant also.

That following week,we had two more,and we were alerted each time before the actual rumble.Come to find out,we live 13 miles from the epicenters.And this whole area of sandhills,is right on a fault line.

So yes,I can attest to the fact,we were alerted.
 
Here in San Diego we have been getting them frequently - my two furkids totally ignore them. When we got the 7.2 "Easter Quake" only Katie lifted her head, looked around, then plopped down and went right back to her busy schedule of dozing. Laddie didn't even move. I'm beginning to think nothing bothers these two.
 
Well this is what wikipedia says :)

Animal behavior reports are often ambiguous and not consistently observed. In folklore, some animals have been identified as being more able to predict earthquakes than others, especially dogs, cats, chickens, horses, toads and other smaller animals.

It has been postulated that the reported animal behavior before an earthquake is simply their response to an increase in low-frequency electromagnetic signals. [citation needed] The University of Colorado has demonstrated that electromagnetic activity can be generated by the fracturing of crystalline rock. Such activity occurs in fault lines before earthquakes. According to one study, electromagnetic sensors yield statistically valid results in predicting earthquakes.[17]

In Italy, findings from 2009 suggest that toads are able to detect pre-seismic cues
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My personal opinion would be that given the right set of events that dogs could predict an earthquake. But not every earthquake is going to provide these optimal events.

It's the post earthquake stuff that I'd be worried about with dogs. I mean how can you possibly keep them in the house after an earthquake happens? Hundreds of hot-dog vendors are going to have dropped their food on the ground and it will take milliseconds for any dog to realize it's snack time!
 
We weren't home when the quake was felt in Pittsburgh (not as strong as in Ottawa but it did register) so I have no idea how Edan and CJ reacted. I would have liked to have been here to observe that.

Perhaps, like people, some breeds of dogs are more in tune with things than others?
 
Silaria said:
We weren't home when the quake was felt in Pittsburgh (not as strong as in Ottawa but it did register) so I have no idea how Edan and CJ reacted. I would have liked to have been here to observe that.

Perhaps, like people, some breeds of dogs are more in tune with things than others?
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Apparently this quake, that originated along the fault line in my city, extended as far as Michigan. That's alot of miles.

It has something to do with the structure of the fault line itself, and the Canadian Shield, yadda, yadda.

But that is a huge distance for an earthquake to travel.
 
Cleveland woke me when the one hit Atlanta in 2003, about 3 minutes before it actually shook. He started whimpering and nosing me off the bed and pulling on my nightshirt. All of a sudden I felt it and as it hit, he dove under the bed........without me!
 
I don't think Arkansas has had an earthquake for many moons. :uhoh:

Fluff is scared of thunderstorms though, espeically the thunder. The last time we had a big storm come through (you may have heard about all the people that got killed in Pine Bluff, Arkansas due to the mudslides caused by the rain) Fluffy was whining all day long. That was a bad day for a lot of people. One man came through my line at work and said he went to 15 funerals in one week from all the people that passed away. Very sad. :no:


I would also like to think I would have been alerted when my air conditioner in the living room fell out. :rolleyes2: Thanks, Smudge.
 
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