What is going on with your pets?

Not sure where to post this topic, but since it's Earth related I'm going with this forum.

Many of us with pets know our animals have a sixth sense, for lack of a better term. They know when someone is coming to the house before the bell rings, they may have unusual behavior before a storm, an earthquake, a full moon.

So, I'm wondering (in light of all the crazy news of 2011) what are your pets doing these days? And where are you located?

For me, I've noticed my cats are much jumpier than usual. The slightest noise will send them flying, tails fluffed, eyes huge, scrambling frantically for a hiding place. Nothing more than me dropping a spoon will set them off, and this is new for them. Majority of time they are fine - napping, eating, purring and loving - but this extra jittery behavior just has me wondering. Its been going on for about 4 months. I'm in the northeast US.

This is not scientific, just a question based on my own belief in animal sensitivity to our earth. And a few articles for fun:

Can animals predict earthquakes?
earthquake.usgs.gov...
The earliest reference we have to unusual animal behavior prior to a significant earthquake is from Greece in 373 BC. Rats, weasels, snakes, and centipedes reportedly left their homes and headed for safety several days before a destructive earthquake. Anecdotal evidence abounds of animals, fish, birds, reptiles, and insects exhibiting strange behavior anywhere from weeks to seconds before an earthquake.

Did animals sense the tsunami was coming?
news.nationalgeographic.com...
"Earthquakes bring vibrational changes on land and in water while storms cause electromagnetic changes in the atmosphere," he said. "Some animals have acute sense of hearing and smell that allow them to determine something coming towards them long before humans might know that something is there."

My dog is sleeping atm. When it's not sleeping it usually will poop and then eat it if im not there to stop the insanity!

Crazy dog

See my thread Dog is freaking out,i know exactly what you mean,really abnormal behavior in a animal who doesn't usually act strange

See my thread Dog is freaking out,i know exactly what you mean,really abnormal behavior in a animal who doesn't usually act strange

I don't know if it has anything to do with anything, but I've been finding little clumps of dog hair from excess shedding lately...
perhaps that's from over-grooming?? i dunnoooo!

Sorry double post

You know it's funny you ask. I have a cat, and a dog. Neither of them are remarkable in any way at all. I have noticed over the course of the last year or so that the cat (17 years old) has started meowing all the time. She used to be quiet as heck and never really came downstairs unless she was hungry. I really didn't think too much about it other than it was a pain in the butt. She insists on climbing on the counters and meowing constantly. No she's not in pain, and appears to be in excellent health. She eats like a pig. The difference is noticeable. She is also extremely skiddish lately.
My dog also has recently started barking at what appears to be nothing. He'll come inside after doing his business, and sometimes, not always, his back is up. He doesn't really act too differently, but he never ever got mad, so when he does now (his back up) it is noticeable.

My cat has always been crazy. If she acted normal then I would worry!

Originally posted by ns9504

For me, I've noticed my cats are much jumpier than usual. The slightest noise will send them flying, tails fluffed, eyes huge, scrambling frantically for a hiding place. Nothing more than me dropping a spoon will set them off, and this is new for them. Majority of time they are fine - napping, eating, purring and loving - but this extra jittery behavior just has me wondering. Its been going on for about 4 months. I'm in the northeast US.

I'm in the northeast, too and have a wee herd of cats. The two fluffy ones (just under a year old) have been the way yours are and a third shorthair (brother of large fluffy one) keeps screeching and has suddenly been trying to get to the tops of the windows "heading for high ground" my daughter called it.

Funny as hell to watch him swinging on the curtains with an Oh s**t expression, but it's hella annoying at 2am. Because it's like he gets up there and forgets how to get down.

My theory: cats are jsut plain bizarre. And I think the mother of all mine is from Arcturus.

Castlemadeofsand? If your cat saw you take your pic as a self pic? Could you blame that cat for trying to learn how to laff? Just Sayin.

Soon, not to be sick and demented but soon, just maybe, just maybe... our pets will be droping/going, too.
I really hope not though, for that will be a sad day for me and all of us...

Originally posted by niceguybob
Castlemadeofsand? If your cat saw you take your pic as a self pic? Could you blame that cat for trying to learn how to laff? Just Sayin.

Hahaha! That avatar is what happens when you don't think outside the box. You get stuck inside it, naked and lonely!

Thank you for bringing this question to light. I am new to ATS so have not yet reached my quota for commenting in order to start my own thread. I have been aware of this site for a few years but felt compelled to add my two cents upon all of the mass animal deaths (like many, I know). I was silently begging for someone to start this topic, for every thread I would go into, here and there a random person would add how their animals were acting out of character. Though I haven't noticed anything with my own two dogs and cat (they're quite needy but I don't think anymore than usual) here in PA, I was starting to notice more and more frequency in the posts about house pets. I hope more people start paying attention to their little (or not so little) guys at home. If we trust them to protect us from the big bad guys outside, we should trust their animal instincts of survival. My name's Kyra and I'm sure you will be hearing more and more from me!

First animal, the cat. She's fairly normal but has taken to sleeping on the floor at night rather than the bed.

Fish all seem normal, however,

the BIRDS. When theres been big quakes around the Pacific (Im in Australia) they usually go nuts for an hour or so. I have 4 aviaries spread around the house so its not one bird seeing another go nuts & reacting.

About 0100 AEST today my cockatiels went nuts. They were flapping around on the aqiary floor for no apparent reason. I picked one up & put her (she's still a baby) on the top perch. For the next 20 minutes both of them would not calm down, flapping & climbing all around the sides of the aviary. They never do this. The baby kept looking at me like she does when she wants to come out. I got her out & she just sat on me not doing anything, she just wanted to be safe with me. Whenever I tried she would not go into the cage & I had to pick her up over the back & wings to place her in there.

They have done similar before, but never this desperate climbing around the front, back & sides, & that late at night they never want contact, just sleep & usually give a warning bite to leave them alone. No idea whats doing it but I do know they all pick up on quakes.

Also a mates dog some 3000km away was acting odd a month ago. Nearly blind, deaf, but it was running in circles, barking at the sky & constantly pis#*ing itself. All this was apparently FAR from normal for it. From here, there is some wierd pet actions happening.

I live in Saskatchewan, 53rd parallel. My 19 year old cat is starting to want more attention than ever, but is hating the dogs. She used to like the dogs and hate attention. Could be senility setting in though, 19 is getting up there. Her eyes and hearing are very good and she hunts in the summer, so I guess the mind is the first thing to go.

My Shihtzu attacks my golden Lab now and again, but I left alone a part of him that the Lab is without. It works well, the Lab will never attack back, thankfully. He just goes and hides with hurt feelings. If I go out and have to leave the Shihtzu home, I have to separate the Shepherd Cross, because I'm afraid she might accidentally hurt the Shihtzu if he goes at her - she's part coyote, so I have to be careful.

That said, my Shepherd/Coy cross has always been afraid of storms, or any wind. Lately if there's even a breeze, she's scared and pacing, which is when the Shihtzu takes advantage and attacks, silly little 10 pound thing.
She has always been a brilliant dog, smarter than most. Last night it was windy, she was pacing around when I was trying to sleep and I told her that if she got up one more time, I was kicking her out of the bedroom for the night. She stayed quiet after that.

It makes me wonder what is it about the wind, or even breezes? What is she expecting? I often feel like she knows something is coming in the wind, but just doesn't know when.
We've had her since a pup, and have never lived anywhere unusually windy.
Other than the wind, she's fearless and tough.

Okay, yeah, this is wild. We have a dog and a cat. Both of them withing the past 5 days or so have been acting as though they snorted caffeine! The dog, she's almost always barking or growling when she's in our basement. . .and our cat, who loved to be outside for days on end, is suddenly scared to go out the door. And if he does, it's for a second or so before he comes running full speed right back in. We're in KY.

We have a 14 month old Alaskan Malamute cross husky and he has been restless as hell lately. He is currently sleeping outside and its frosty here. He refuses to come into the warm. Been like it for about 3 weeks.

Thank you to OP for alerting me to this thread!

I had mentioned some interesting behavior from my 3 kitties in another thread, and the OP directed me here. Forgive me for copying and pasting my post in the other thread. I'm feeling lazy at the moment. LOL

Additionally, I had dinner with a friend prior to stopping at the store, and we were discussing how our pets have been appearing more "needy" or "clingy" lately. She has a dog, I have 3 cats. My cats have always been loving and attentive... however in the past couple weeks, all 3 have become my shadows. No matter where I go in the house, they follow and are within 2 or 3 feet of me. Which has included interrupting their normal sleeping patterns.

Meaning, in the past, if they are curled up in bed or on the couch and I walk by, I'm lucky if I get a head lifted in acknowledgement. Now, if they are asleep and I go into any other room, they are immediately up and following me.

Their food and water dishes are full. Trust me, that was the first thing I checked. LOL

I have a German shepherd and they are pretty tuned in to whats going on around them. My dog is still acting normal so nothing to report from Nebraska.

My dog has done nothing of of the norm besides bark at nothing once or it could have been barking at someone walking outside I didnt see. Other then that normal as ever and I am in North Dakota. At the farm we have the cats have been acting normal as well getting mice doing their day to day. Hangin on the porch waiting for food etc.