If you have a dog, you already know that they are superheroes. It’s unlikely that you’ll ever find a human that will sit beside the door, staring at it, waiting for you to get back. We had a dog while I was growing up that somehow knew exactly when it was 5:00 pm and therefore time for her dinner. At five exactly, she would appear in the doorway of whatever room you were in and stare at you until you fed her. What’s your dog’s superpower? Here are five superpowers you might not know your dog even had:
1. They can read your mind (or at least your body language).
Dogs are much better at reading your body language than we are at reading each other’s body language. Have you ever wondered why your dog gets tense when you get tense? Why they seem stressed out when you are stressed out or why they are calm when you are calm? It’s because your dog can read your behavior, your body language and divine how they are supposed to feel from those signals. Your dog will read and learn your behaviors, just like you try to read and learn his. This is how they can often tell that they’re not just going for a ride in the car, but going to the Parrish vet. It’s because you’re stressed out about them being stressed out—which stresses them out even more. They know that something out of the ordinary is happening, even if they don’t know what that is yet.
2. They can find their way home even if they are lost.
Have you ever gotten lost? With the miracle of smartphones, it is not that difficult to get oriented again. But your dog does not have that luxury. And yet, when you are out on a walk, he probably knows exactly how to get back to your house. They might not even need to have walked the route before in order to know which way to go in order to get back to their territory. How is this possible? It’s because your dog, like all animals in his phylum, have an incredible sense of smell and an innate sense of direction. They will follow their own trail back to their territory if they are somewhere they know well and have been before. If not, they will look for a familiar scent, follow that scent, and then follow it until they pick up a scent that leads them back to their home.
3. They can predict a natural disaster.
This is actually true of most animals, besides humans. While it’s a well-documented phenomenon, we do not exactly know how dogs do this. The stories remain, however, of how dogs started acting strangely a few minutes before a huge earthquake hit or how they knew a tsunami was coming hours before their human counterparts. One theory states that dogs can sense changes in the groundwater, which signals them that danger is approaching (most common in cases of earthquakes). Other theories suggest that a dog’s incredible sense of smell can detect danger in the air. While not much is known about why or how this works, if your dog starts acting up, it might be time to see if there is a natural disaster headed your way.
4. They can tell if you are sick.
You’ve likely already observed that your dog can tell when you are sad. There is perhaps nothing sweeter in the world than when your dog comes up to you to comfort you because they can tell you are distressed. But did you know that many dogs can also tell when their human is sick? Dogs can do this even without being trained to do it. This is why, if you know someone who has chronic seizures, for example, you might see them with a dog at all times. A dog can sense when a seizure is going to happen, long before their human can, and can be taught to signal their human. They can even detect sicknesses like cancer. If your dog seems fixated on some part of your body, it may be because they are trying to tell you something.
5. They can tell if you do not like someone (and they keep a list of them).
Have you ever wondered why your dog is suddenly being aggressive towards someone that you do not like? That person has never done anything to your dog and they might even be nice to your dog, even if they are mean to you. This goes back to body language. Dogs are good at reading your body language and the body language of other humans. When they sense that someone has wronged you, they will actually make note of that person. Dogs actively remember people who have crossed their owners.
What’s your dog’s superpower? If your dog is like most dogs, they can tell, from anywhere in the house, that you are cutting a piece of cheese. They can hear you opening the box of treats, even if they are fast asleep. Dogs are more than just companions—they are truly valuable members of your household because of these amazing superpowers!
