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Dog grief????

2K views 14 replies 6 participants last post by  Bonnie&Clyde 
#1 ·
We live on 4 acres...totally fenced. The entire outer perimeter is fenced, then there is an inner perimeter fence which goes around our house and my dads. The idea was to keep any livestock in the pasture areas away from our yards and front doors - lol. There is a gate across the driveway which leaves an interior ring of fencing around the houses, secured at the driveway by the gate for our domestic animals - namely Bonnie and Clyde. So, they are out and about enjoying the day and the horrific happens. Our neighbor, Seth, came down the dirt road by our driveway. Bonnie and Clyde go into protection/alert mode. Seth then turned onto the main paved road and his dog - which he let roam free (sore subject with me) ran toward his truck and under it, so he ran over his dog inadvertently. Both Bonnie and Clyde are near our gate and 'witness' the entire incident, as did I since I had opened the door to quiet them down. I yelled for my husband to come see if he could help Seth while I grabbed the leashes to get our dogs back to the house.

Here is where my question comes in. Bonnie and Clyde both walk on leashes like champs, even as young as they are, falling in beside me as we walk. Bonnie was beside herself, she was crying and trying to pull me back to the gate...going as far as crossing in front of me to block my forward motion. Axel (the neighbor's dog) didn't make it due to the internal injuries. Since then Bonnie has whimpered and cried - something she never does - and is glued to me.

Is it possible for a GSD to have witnessed this, the hit as well as Axel yelping and crawling out of the road, and be grieving for a dog she never has even met?

It seems so far out there to me, but she is a very sad dog tonight. :frown2:
 
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#2 ·
More likely she is feeding off your grief and sad agitation over the whole incident. The reaction during the initial incident was likely her wanting to investigate the primal cry of pain from Axel. Now she just knows one of her humans is upset and it upsets her. Just my opinion.

I do believe dogs do grieve heavily for those they know and love, be it animal or human.
 
#3 ·
She's even hesitant to walk down the driveway to the gate....she stops about 1/2 way, then will continue on with me, but won't hang around. She immediately turns and goes back toward the house.

Clyde isn't acting the same way. He's just his happy go lucky self.
 
#5 ·
Axel's pain filled yelp and your yelling for help probably just has her spooked and made her fearful. Give her some time and try not to make a big deal of it. She'll get over it. Clyde will help her as he isn't fazed by any of this. They will go out and play and she will forget where she is and it will be all good I suspect.
 
#9 ·
I think his wife may have let the dog out to go to the bathroom too soon after he left. They are a very young couple. We've talked to him before, and my husband did again today, about fencing....a very secure fence...before getting a new dog. He was highly upset today, so I think he may have learned from their mistake. Time will tell. Hopefully we can mentor and mold them in some way.

We walked every inch of our fence before getting Bonnie and Clyde to make sure it was as secure as we could possibly get it, and still walk it very often to make sure we don't have one that wants to fashion themselves as a digger. They don't know any better as to what's on the other side of the fence, so it's our duty to keep them safe, healthy and happy.

I've lost a few dogs, all to old age or an un-treatable condition. It's hard enough to know you are doing the right thing. I don't ever want to loose one to something that is preventable and will do everything in my power to prevent it.
 
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#6 ·
This is a pretty different thing, but I had stayed at a hospice house for about two weeks when my mother was dying. My dog was with me the whole time. When my mother still could regain consciousness my dog would go to her bedside and wag while she petted her. Once she never woke up again my dog would still sometimes go to her bedside and sort of check.

I left for a walk in the woods with the dog to clear my head, and my mother passed while we were gone. When I came back into the room, the dog knew immediately and she was freaked out. She did not want to go anywhere near the body. She was not herself. She went and laid in the corner and wouldn't move. We had to wait a little bit for the funeral home to come and take the body. The dog couldn't wait to get out of there.

They know stuff. Who knows what kind of odors that injured dog released from its body when it was hit.
 
#8 ·
So awesome that you tend to your dogs like that. They do feed of our emotions too but I think much goes on in their minds as well. If they see that you are OK and relaxed, that will help them too. I am sorry for your neighbor. No one wants to go through that. Some dogs are just farm dogs and have to think for themselves to survive physically, but it doesn't mean that they have a bad live necessarily.
 
#13 ·
I'm glad your dog Bonnie is feeling better it's amazing what dogs get sense and smell. When our bella passed away our chihuahua climbed on top of her body and just layed there it looked like he was trying to keep her body warm. He had never done anything like that before and we had to take him off her he would not leave her. I really feel awful for your neighbors that had to be a terrible experience it is good you are there for them.
 
#14 ·
Some good friends of mine had a small breed dog and no fence. He often went with them and stayed in the car, and when they would get home, they would let him out at the mailbox because he liked to sniff and mark all the way down the driveway.

One fated time, and he was not a young dog anymore, they had done this for years....something went wrong and he went under the tires when they started down the driveway and they killed him.

As for your neighbor, I think a pie is a great idea but I wouldn't be trying to give any advice about dogs just now. If they ever act like they want to get another one, maybe you could then just say "would you like any help putting up a fence?"

Southerners have been letting their dogs roam for generations. Likely these folks saw their folks doing it, and so on, for generations.

Everybody's dogs roamed but mine where I used to live in florida, and every so often there would be a dead dog in the ditch. It was just par for the course.
 
#15 ·
You are right, we see dogs roaming all the time, even stopping numerous times to wait for them to get out of the road.

The sad part is he had talked to my husband about a week ago asking about our fence, post spacing etc etc. He was planning on fencing. I've seen their dog out numerous times staying by their house. He just decided to chase after his owner yesterday.

He mentioned the fence yesterday and my husband simply said 'if you need any help with one, let us know' That's all we'll say about it unless they decide to replace Axel in the future. Like I said, their good folks, and like you said, doing like country folk have done forever.
 
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