tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916537799265211085.post4545270644811941573..comments2024-01-09T05:29:39.848-05:00Comments on Cat Man Do: Do Cats Grieve for Other Cats?Arnold Plotnickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18418761395646719384noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916537799265211085.post-44465331433227160982011-05-06T17:04:29.080-04:002011-05-06T17:04:29.080-04:00I posted this comment with this article on my Face...I posted this comment with this article on my Facebook page: "I've always felt that animals understand things a lot more than we give them credit for. When one of our two doggie brothers died, I took the living one into the room where the dead one awaited burial so he could sniff the box and say goodbye (despite my mom's objection). I felt he needed closure, too."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1916537799265211085.post-39642801627906677572011-03-30T00:50:38.574-04:002011-03-30T00:50:38.574-04:00I'd never had to confront the issue of whether...I'd never had to confront the issue of whether to allow surviving animals observe a deceased family member until my senior horse died, leaving my young mare (temporarily) as a solitary herd animal. Due to the nature of disposal of the body, Mr. Coal lay in the pasture before we could arrange for burial. I was surprised but Cassie didn't seem to pay much attention to the body. We moved her to a nearby pasture while the backhoe was in use. When we let her back in, she went first to where Mr. Coal had been, pawed and sniffed a bit, then followed the EXACT path the backhoe had taken to the fresh grave. Once there, Cassie began to dig vigorously in the soft dirt and continued to do so for a few minutes. Fortunately that was the only sign resembling mourning that she exhibited.<br /><br />Since that time we've lost quite a few of our furry family members, from prairie dogs to cats. Each time we allowed the rest of the animals time to view the body. Our Jack Russell loved one of our PDs so much and she licked her for hours, until I finally had to place the PD in the freezer. (Yep, used to work for a vet and lunch next to a loved one isn't a foreign idea.) Diamond lay in front of the freezer staring at it for hours and continued to look for her to come out for days, I think.<br /><br />Most of the time the animals act as Cassie did, not paying obvious attention to the body, sometimes even crawling over it as if it weren't there However, once a cat violently attacked my roommate's cat with whom he lived and got along with fine who had been hit and killed by a car. I could only hypothesize that he was just trying to get any reaction from her. More recently, we lost a young Ragdoll. We hadn't offered her for sale as we suspected she wasn't a healthy individual but, of course, it was still a sad occasion. In this case, many of the other Ragdolls slept next to her. Only her mother exhibited any possible acknowledgment that she was no longer alive and she lay almost nose to nose with her until I removed the body to take her for a necropsy. Ragdolls are very sensitive and caring cats so I don't find it too surprising that they would be somewhat more demonstrative about the occurrence.<br /><br />Aside from the recent loss, our animals have never appeared to mourn. In contrast, a pet sitting client's cat lost her littermate. She was taken to the vet to be euthanized and didn't return home. Immediately afterward, her sister began wandering the house and vocalizing loudly. Perhaps she just happened to lose her hearing at the same time as the loss...but I don't think so. I don't really think she was mourning the death of her sister, since she didn't know of it, but was distressed because she was missing and couldn't be found. Having had a wonderful cat disappear years ago, I can say that not knowing is horrible. Examining the scenario from the survivor's point of view, they sense the grief of their guardian(s)and, without the body of the deceased, are unable to connect the two.<br /><br />When my father suffered a heart attack and was hospitalized, my parents' dogs had to be left alone until I arrived to care for them. Needless to say, my parents were hurried and under stress when they left so the dogs were anxious when i arrived. Whether a reaction to my calm demeanor or from my telling them that I understood the situation was scary and that my Mom and Dad would be back soon, they were much calmer when I left and remained so each time I came back to care for them. I also believe that animals understand much more than many tend to give credit for.Michellehttp://www.ExaltedCat.comnoreply@blogger.com