# Havanese 6th sense



## micki2much (Feb 8, 2007)

OK all - hubby and I just got home from dinner where we discovered that we both noticed something very strange and never discussed it before tonight. I said that I would come home and post so that we could see if any other have owner has had the same experience.

Seamus, our 2 y/o hav has always been drawn to any "boo-boo's" within our human family. He will sniff and sniff and not leave it alone. Alsways something we said "thank you Shea-Shea" for but never gave much attention to. Well many of you know we just lost our lab, what you may not know is that it was a Brain tumor that surfaced suddenly and had taken him in less than 1 week. We thought, no other simptoms..seemed perfect until the horrible night filled with seizures. Well we now think differently...we both noticed but did not connect that Seamus had been "sniffing" Ozzie for a couple of months prior. It started slowly and progressed until it was sooo bad hubby remined me that I was saying to Seamus "FOR GOD SAKE, WILL YOU LEAVE HIM ALONE!!!" He had his nose PRESSED to Ozzie at all times. I had forgotten or did not put 2 & 2 together until hubby said it. 

Our question, has any other person here had an experience similar??? Was this a sixth sense or something else. We have heard of dogs "sensing" an illness or disease. Do you think this is what it is and if so is it within the breed? Thanks all - Michelle


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## Lina (Apr 26, 2007)

Michelle, I have heard that dogs can definitely sense or smell disease. I've also heard many times that when their owner becomes pregnant, dogs tend to become protective and more gentle towards that person. It's all very speculative, but I do think that animals must have some sort of sense of this though I don't think it's necessarily some super sense, more like how observant they are and possibly some sort of smell we can't pick up on. I don't think this is only with this breed, though... I've seen the same thing in cats.

More than anything I believe it's like a revolutionary thing. Dogs (and cats) have been domesticated for thousands of years and they have had to learn to pick up on when we're sick or one of their pack members is sick or, for example, when a woman is pregnant - thus adding to their pack number - because they are dependent on that pack for survival... it's a revolutionary need. Any minor changes in behavior, I believe, can be very obvious to them. They probably don't know what exactly is wrong, only that SOMETHING is wrong.

There was this really awesome program on Discovery the other day - I can't remember the name of it - about dogs and how they have learned to read our every day signals because they depend on these signals for their survival. One example they showed is they did this experiment on Chimps where they had two covered cups. They showed the chimp a treat and put it under one of the cups. The chimp would then have to choose a cup and it would, of course, choose the one with the treat. They did the same experiment with the cups but did NOT show the chimp the treat beforehand. Instead, they would look at the chimp and then look at the cup and point then look back at the chimp. What happened? The chimp did NOT choose the correct cup. It didn't understand the human behavior of "pointing." They repeated the same exact experiment but using dogs and 88% of the time the dogs chose the correct cup. All this to say that dogs have learned to read human cues and to understand what we mean. And I do think this applies to more subliminal clues as well and ones that not even we can understand but that they do.

LOL, that was long, but I do think it's a very interesting idea!


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## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

Michelle,
This is something that has happened with dogs of all breeds. They are able to smell something different in some sicknesses. There have been studies of it, and (I'm interested in cancer treatments) someone was doing experiments a year or so ago, training dogs to "alert" to bladder-cancer cells in people. They were having some success with it. You know that service dogs can alert their people to epilepsy seizures ahead of time, and diabetics, too. It has to do with chemicals or hormone smells that are given off. 

I don't think ALL dogs do this, but it isn't too uncommon, either.

If your dog ever started sniffing me consistently and persistently, you'd better believe I'd head in to the doctor and insist on a thorough check up!!

Aren't our pets amazing?

Sheri and Tucker


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## Posh's Mom (Dec 20, 2007)

I too have heard very recently about dogs detecting cancer by being able to smell it...so interesting.


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## irnfit (Nov 21, 2006)

I've heard about this too. My daughter will say to her dogs "where's the baby" and they will go and smell her belly. She didn't give them any signals, they just sort of knew where the baby was.


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## mckennasedona (Feb 20, 2007)

McKenna is always attracted to any of our boo-boo's. She sniffs, licks etc. Almost like she's trying to help us heal. I've always told myself that if she pays extraordinary attention to any particular wound or body part, I'll get it checked out only because she seems so sensitive and attentive to wounds or bruises.


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## Posh's Mom (Dec 20, 2007)

Oh one more thing I just read in a holistic pet column was that dog saliva can work as an antiseptic and you should let them lick your wounds...kind of gross but very cool!


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## micki2much (Feb 8, 2007)

Sheri - hubby & I both said the same thing - if Seamus keeps sniffing us we are heading straight to the docs!!!!


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## BeverlyA (Oct 29, 2006)

I've always found that type of behavior really interesting also. If we could only understand what animals could tell us.

Lina, that program you're referring to was recently on the National Geographic Channel and I found it amazing. 
There was a story about a Doberman named Donnie that put his toys into very specific groups and shapes. He would make lines of monkeys, lines of dogs, lines of balls, etc. He would make straight parallel lines in odd numbers. He would turn all the toys so the figures would be facing up. He would arrange them so they would be holding hands or hugging, specifically, on purpose.
They had a animal behavior specialist, Dr. Smuts, from the U of Michigan come to observe him. I would have loved to have heard that phone call! "Hi, I have this rescue dog that makes shapes out of his stuffed toys in the back yard." 
I found that entire program fascinating.

Beverly


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## micki2much (Feb 8, 2007)

Lina & Beverly I NEED to see that show. How long ago was it on?


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## polo (May 6, 2008)

I haven't noticed anything like that with my dogs yet. But, I remember when I was younger and not feeling well, I would get extra cuddles/extra closeness from the cats we had. It's like they were comforting us and knew something was wrong.


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## isshinryu_mom (Mar 23, 2008)

In a book I got about dogs and their behavior (sorry, I lent it to a friend and don't remember the exact title or author) it made the hypothesis that since a dog has, like, 25 times more olfactory receptors than humans have they can smell things, like changes in hormones for instance, that we can't. They were using this to explain why dogs can sense our feelings and reactions but it might be the same for illnesses I guess. Perhaps sicknesses give off smells we aren't equipped to pick up on, but they are.


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## BeverlyA (Oct 29, 2006)

It's been a few months since I saw it, but if you google "Dr. Smuts Donnie" or maybe throw Michigan in there, I found information that way that mentioned the name of the show. That way you could search the NGC site for the show or possibly youtube.

Last week on PBS there was a show on Nature about a dog that was trained to alert a child when their sugar was getting low so they wouldn't have a diabetic reaction. That was a really great one too.

Beverly


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## The Fussy Puppy Gang (May 21, 2007)

Here is a link to an article about dogs detecting cancer.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/01/0112_060112_dog_cancer.html

I wouldn't be surprised at all if your Hav was picking up on your Lab's illness. Dogs are amazing!


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## micki2much (Feb 8, 2007)

Thanks Beverly, will look that up. It was, now that I think back, so amazing...Seamus knew before all of us (including vet) something was so wrong with his buddy. Ozzie had lost 10 lbs, we had him to the vet, then 1 week later- back to the vet; vet said it was just the lbs he needed to lose (yes he did need to lose those lbs...lol) Seamus knew it was something else and we did not get his message. We will ALWAYS listen to our little boy!!!!!!!!!


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## micki2much (Feb 8, 2007)

Wanda - thanks - great article!!!! Michelle


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## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

Wanda,
Good article. I sent it on to my online cancer group, too.

Sheri


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## LuvCicero (Mar 31, 2008)

There has been news on TV lately about dogs detecting cancer. One doctor was on that said he now has a dog in his practice that will aleart to cancer problems....and he said he thinks we will see more dogs at the doctor's offices in the future!!

I now remember how my Pom acted when my daughter brought her little poodle over. She acted sad, would lay by her, and knew she didn't feel well. I thought it was so sweet....but after a month the poodle started having seizures and after a week of test we found out she had a brain tumor. After the fact, I realized that my Pom "knew" little Macy was sick!

I'm amazed with furbabies....I so wish they could talk !!


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## JASHavanese (Apr 24, 2007)

I think they're training dogs now to sniff out cancer. Their sense of smell is so acute that they can detect it. There was a woman on the news that had something on her leg that her dog wouldn't leave alone. That dog saved her life...she went to the doctor to find out what it was because of her dog's reaction and it was cancerous.


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## ruthann (Jan 26, 2007)

Annabelle has been extremley sensitive from the day I got her. When she was about three months old I had an abcessed tooth and she spent the night licking my face exactly where the tooth was. After the dentist proformed a root canal she laid beside me and licked my face for several days while I was in pain. Such love. I am diabetic and sometimes I fall asleep without taking my insulin, she will jump up and down on my chest until I wake up and take the injection. She was never taught any of this she just is my protector. I have had many dogs in my life but I have never loved one more than her. She is such a blessing!! Ruthann


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## Tom King (Aug 2, 2006)

Abby, now retired and living with Pam's parents, targeted Pam's breast cancer before she even noticed the lump. Abby would press her nose right against exactly where the lump was located. Pam felt it, went and got it checked out, and they caught it very early before it spread and she's been cancer free for several years now.

We trust them a lot.


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## JASHavanese (Apr 24, 2007)

ruthann said:


> Annabelle has been extremley sensitive from the day I got her. When she was about three months old I had an abcessed tooth and she spent the night licking my face exactly where the tooth was. After the dentist proformed a root canal she laid beside me and licked my face for several days while I was in pain. Such love. I am diabetic and sometimes I fall asleep without taking my insulin, she will jump up and down on my chest until I wake up and take the injection. She was never taught any of this she just is my protector. I have had many dogs in my life but I have never loved one more than her. She is such a blessing!! Ruthann


Wow what a girl!! You could have her as a service dog.


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## micki2much (Feb 8, 2007)

OK, know for sure now...if Seamus starts sniffing anyone like that again I will take them for a checkup instantly!!!!!!!!!! Really cool stories every one, thanks. I forgot who said it but WOW, are babies are amazing!!!


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## SaydeeMomma (Sep 9, 2008)

I saw a program on PBS about a week ago about a German Shephard that could sense when the family's young diabetic boy's blood sugar got low.This boy has a very severe form of diabetes and will have seizures if his blood sugar dips. It was so cute because the dog will sit by this boy while he's sleeping and watch him ever so vigilantly. He somehow smells this boy's sugar level on his skin and knows when to alert the parents!

In that same program they were training dogs in England to be able to smell prostate cancer. These dogs would go into a room and smell petrie dishes and choose the petri dish with the cancer cells!


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## EstrellaVila (Nov 30, 2007)

What an interesting thread. My DH and I were pondering our furbabies ability to pick up on this kind of stuff as they have been acting differently lately to certain things. Fascinating they can sniff out cancer.


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## Laurasch (Jul 1, 2008)

*Service Dogs for America*

There is a wonderful organization in North Dakota training service dogs. They started with assistance but expanded out into emergency medical response dogs. These dogs alert on things like seizures, blood sugar levels (Diabetes), etc. They are helping disabled people gain their independance and lead a fuller life. What a wonderful world where a dog is so valued, know he has an important job, and in turn a human becomes stronger, happier, and more independant.

Some of the dogs graduates of the program were strays slated for euthenasia. I volunteer in a shelter and see daily how people think dogs are just a throw away commodity, to be ditched when inconvenient. I hope/believe that as people see dogs acting so brilliantly and making a critical difference in people's lives that they will value them more and we will see less and less abused and abandoned animals.

Service Dogs is a 401-c non-profit and doing all this based on donations. They are one of my favorite charities, I hope you don't mind this plug for this awesome org and that you might check them out. Thanks, Laura

http://www.greatplainsdogs.com/


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## RikiDaisyDixie (Apr 15, 2008)

*Puppy barking*

When my mom first came over to meet Riki, and he was only a puppy, he barked like a mad man. It scared me. He never barked at anyone...nor had he barked in that manner to another dog. I called Sue, my havanese mentor. She asked me if my mom was diabetic. She is. She told me to have my mom check her blood sugar. It was way down. He knew.

My sister had a rescue dog that was very nervous around people and only came out of hiding to eat or to potty. They had a guest...and the dog actually jumped on my sister's bed and started licking her...and then ran to the bathroom door. My sister was elatated...thinking the dog had finally come out of her shell. Turns out the guest had had a seizure and was passed out on the floor. The rescue dog saved his life....


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## isshinryu_mom (Mar 23, 2008)

This is the most fascinating thread.


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## Cyndy (Feb 13, 2008)

This is freaking me out! I came home today with a really bad cold. Coconut will not leave my side. The strange thing is he is NEVER like this,he won't even get in my lap if I don't pick him up and put him there and then he jumps down at the first opportunity. He just turned 3 and surely I have had colds during that time, but he has never ever done this. It is starting to scare me
that something more might be wrong with me.

I sure hope he just smells my cold. Has anyone else had similar thing happen?


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## Perugina (May 28, 2008)

I have sleep apnea. Last night I didn't wear my cpap mask because I'm getting over a sinus infection. In the middle of the night Sophie started barking like mad, she's never done this. My husband said I had been snoring. She never barks when my husband snores. I wonder if she knew I had stopped breathing...?


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