When the owner passed away will pets follow too?

Question

My aunt had a pet dog(black in color, fierce in appearance) however after my aunt passed away, my mum told me the dog keep howling during the night which "maybe" he might seen my aunt spirit or he missed her.(rumors said dogs have six sense)

After 3 - 5days he passed away.Hes a healthy dog so its weird if hes sick or something which i doubt it.

So i hope can someone share their views or experience and will other pets have the same emotion as dogs do?such as cat or others?Thanks

Answer 1

Dogs have a very strong bond with their human loved ones, and many believe they know when we have passed on. It is quite possible your Aunt's dog died of a broken heart. How old was the dog? If the dog was older, and had been with your Aunt since he was a puppy, it is more than likely the dog was devastated.
Sad, but this is seen everyday in the shelters when people bring their pets in and leave them.
Cats are more independent, and although they too feel grief, they are less likely to be as broken hearted and can more easily find happiness with another family.

Answer 2

My grandmothers dog would sit at the door everyday for along time and wait for her to come home. Eventually he stopped but has lived 1 1/2 years so far past her death. He is only 9 years old though. How old was your aunts dog. It may have just been his time too. It could be a "broken heart though" whenever one of my dogs passes away the other one follows suit within a month no matter the age or health so I had to start adopting like age dogs so I didn't loose an 8 yr. old dog.

Answer 3

My cousin died in a car crash on her way to college one morning. Her dog howled at the very minute the crash happened. Her dog was very quiet and never even barked but she knew. Somehow she knew. The dog died shortly after that. She refused to eat or have anything to do with anyone and died. It's sad but true, dogs feel emotional pain much like humans do maybe more since their love is unconditional.

Bottom line - love those around you because you never know when their time is going to come.

I'm sorry your aunt passed away.

Answer 4

Sorry to hear about your aunt and the dog. Some animals who are very attached to their owners will become depressed when something like that happens. It may have been that the dog was so depressed that he refused to eat. I had two dogs once and when one of them died (of old age) the other one literally went into a depressive state and refused to eat. I do believe that animals have a sixth sense although it has never been proven.

Answer 5

Yes, I've heard of dogs grieving to death. I've also known my own dog to suddenly howl in the middle of the night, and the next day find out that a death had occurred. I've never heard of other animals doing that, but it's quite possible.

Answer 6

I have a relative who was very close to a parrot and when she died so did the parrot couple months after..So yes pets do miss there love ones just as much as you would if someone u love dies. My cousin got married and left her pet behind couple of months after pet dies. I think they all have that bond with there owner and they never really remain the same after that close one dies.

Answer 7

I've heard the same kind of story about the howling all night. I don't know that the pet dies, but the pet "knows".

Answer 8

the dog pined for your aunt. I once had two ferrets and one died. The other ferret stopped eating and died. This was because he was pinning for his friend. Maybe the dog stopped eating or something because the dog didn't just die.

Answer 9

Pets can grieve themselves to death if they were with one owner for a long time. They are just like humans in their emotions...