Dog Suicide

Do dogs take their own lives?: For a dog to commit suicide and be able to take his own life, he would have to be conscious of the meaning of death. Up until we have discovered dogs don't. A person that takes his or her own life does it because they evidently fear living above dying and they turn to it because they do not feel capable of being able to continue living and facing their problems. Stress because of finances, sentimental matters, depression, lack of work, psychic or physical illness, loneliness, loss of a loved one, loss of hope etc are just some examples of what takes an individual to take his or her own life. Can any of these same motivations cause a dog to take his own life? Now, it has been said and there are numerous stories of dogs that have passed away because of the absence of their owners, such as by lying on their grave or staying in the place they last saw their owner etc. However, it is very unlikely to suppose that they died voluntarily. Stress, pain and anxiousness to be near his owner do affect a dog psychologically and so much so that the dog might not even react to another owner or friend, obviously this happens when there have been very strong friendship bonds between the two. A sad animal will start to disconnect from his surroundings, causing a progressive weakening of strength and energy. The dog will not acknowledge information that goes around him whether it be very cold or very hot, if he is hungry, or tired; he does not react because his owner is the only thing on his mind. The dog's mind stops functioning in response to exterior stimulus and slowly the dog starts entering into a semiconscious state until he finally passes away. A depressed dog would never throw himself in front of a car though nor will he jump off of a high cliff to take his life. When dangerous situations come up, another instinct kicks in and that is something that can overcome depression, and that is survival which is something that all animals do.