Canine 'suicides'

This is interesting, and very strange. I wonder what the cause of this could be, as 6 dogs doing the same thing appears a bit much for them to just be accidentally falling off.

Anyone hear anything else about it?

On a wet and windy winter's day on the west coast of Scotland, the ancient borough of Dumbarton can appear bleak and depressing. The once fashionable and prosperous ship-building centre is now little more than a suburb of Glasgow and, it appears, even some of the dogs have lost the will to live.

Animal behaviourists are concerned at an apparent spate of canine "suicides" in the town after at least five dogs are said to have thrown themselves from an historic bridge in the past six months.

In the once landscaped grounds of Overtoun House - a country mansion built in 1863 with ornate religious symbolism and the words "Fear God and keep His commandments" carved into its walls - the bridge is fast becoming known as "rover's leap".

Following a rash of unexplained incidents in which family pets have leapt to their deaths from the parapet of the bridge, animal welfare experts are warning owners to keep their dogs on a tight leash.

"Dogs do not commit suicide. They have a strong fight or flight response," said Doreen Graham of the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. "The incidents at the bridge are of very great concern to us because we would like to understand why they are happening."

In the latest incident, a woman was shocked to see her dog suddenly vault over the parapet and plunge 40ft to its death for no apparent reason.

More

That is too eerie, parrhesia.
I would have thought dogs wouldn't do hari kiri.

However, one of my mother's old dogs was moved up north to live with my sister. That dog loooooved my mom. And the dog was very nuerotic.
My mom was no longer around. My sister SWEARS the dog ran in front of their car intentionally. Dunno

[edit on 6-3-2005 by DontTreadOnMe]

Interesting article, I know Glasgow is meant to be depressing, but THAT depressing, next we will hear of budgies hanging themselves on their perches...

Still tidies up the dog population....

Does anyone know of any reports in nature of animals commiting suicide (besides the these Glasgow canines)?

Originally posted by DontTreadOnMe


However, one of my mother's old dogs was moved up north to live with my sister. That dog loooooved my mom. And the dog was very nuerotic.
My mom was no longer around. My sister SWEARS the dog ran in front of their car intentionally. Dunno

A similar thing happened after my Grandma died, DTOM. He was hit by a car the day after her funeral. They loved eachother so much... she'd leave the radio on for him when she left, buy him cheeseburgers from mcdonalds whenever she went by one... Though I can say he ran in front of the car, it's not the first time I've heard of situations like the one you mention and my own experience.
It's very strange.

I've been there, it is one of the most depressing places on earth for many people. I happen to like the rain and the fog and the dreary landscape though...Being scottish helps.

As to the dogs though...

I think probably the first one to jump was a female in heat who thought she smelled a cheeseburger. The other five were following her scent.

Maybe it's like the cows in South Park Cow Days. The dogs are trying to tell us something...

Like, just because I lick my own genitals doesn't mean I don't have feelings!

Originally posted by WyrdeOne

I think probably the first one to jump was a female in heat who thought she smelled a cheeseburger. The other five were following her scent.

Like, just because I lick my own genitals doesn't mean I don't have feelings!

All joking aside, I'm really curious about what's going on there.
Im not sure if suicide is the appropriate term to use for it, because it implies a lot more than we attribute to dogs, normally.

The lady in the article says they've a strong fight or flight response.... are they running from something? If so, what could it be that would generate that kind of response?

Do the dogs really know or have the ability to know that they will die if they jump from this 40 foot bridge...this isn't a challenge saying they don't know but a question asking if they do.

Originally posted by UnMature
Do the dogs really know or have the ability to know that they will die if they jump from this 40 foot bridge...this isn't a challenge saying they don't know but a question asking if they do.

Well,t hat's sort of what I meant when I said suicide may not be the best way to describe what's happening. However, if they're from the area, they're no doubt familiar with the bridge, and perhaps its height. I've seen many dogs hesitate when confronted with significant heights.

They are dogs and not Lemmings right? How funny, after reading the description of the place, I'm sure I would take the high dive with Rover to.

A lot of people get depressed but only a few, relativley speaking, kill themselves. There is no way that six dogs from a community would get depressed to the point where they would kill themselves. If a dog is willing to fight to the death for food/territory/its owner then I doubt it would take its own life.

Dogs have excellent judgement when it comes to deciding whether or not a distance is too great to jump. It's possible that these six animals were simply deficient in that way.

It's also possible that there is some sort of color quality to the area that makes it hard to discern the distance. For example, if there are subtle variations in the landscape that would make it hard for their vision to detect the slope, they might mistake it for a bridge or a small distance.

It's also possible the dogs were simply insane. Animals go insane all the time, I've seen it myself on several occasions.

Also, all animals are capable of suicide. It's not usually this spectacular, but dogs do kill themselves every day. When they get old and frail they stop eating and find a quiet spot to lay down and die. One of my dogs got to be 17 before she went down to the river and went to sleep among the reeds. Most wild animals exhibit similar behavior.

Still, this doesn't seem to fit. The bridge has been the source of some ghost activity has it not? Is it possible that a ghost is calling the dogs? I know dogs are supposedly very sensitive to ghosts, maybe we're seeing some supporting evidence of that in this case.

It's an interesting story, and it seems the house has an interesting history too...

www.timesonline.co.uk...

The bridge, over a tributary of the Clyde, lies within the grounds of Overtoun House, an A-listed baronial building currently run as a Christian centre. It was the scene of a family tragedy in 1994 when Kevin Moy threw his two-week-old son to his death believing him to be the Antichrist.

www.scottishchristian.com..." target="_blank" class="postlink">...And apparently "Local historians describe it as a place where angels and gargoyles are said to keep company."

Here's the bridge:



And here's the house:



The house has been taken over by American evangelist Pastor Bob Hill and turned into the "Christian Center for Hope and Healing" after lying empty for ten years. There's more pics and general history on their site: www.overtounhouse.com...

Glasgow isn't that That depressing by the way! At least not the city center... though I do prefer Edinburgh.

Very strange about the dogs, I've never ever heard of any animal or beast besides a lemming to do this.

argo.panoramix.net.pl...


Looks nice to me

Originally posted by parrhesia
Anyone hear anything else about it?

Yep. We had a thread on this last week.
Not sure which forum. Science I think.

Edited to add - okay, I'm back. It was in Science
www.abovetopsecret.com...

[edit on 3/7/2005 by FlyersFan]

Originally posted by kegs
Glasgow isn't that That depressing by the way!
At least not the city center... though I do prefer Edinburgh.

www.paranormal-britain.co.uk...

I just recently read this book. Scared the bejeezes out of me.
Ever been here?