With a keen sense of smell, dogs can smell hormonal changes. This change in owners’ lives can drastically impact canine behavior. Anna had been feeling sick for days. The young businesswoman from the US state of Virginia didn’t know what was wrong, besides being nauseous and uncertain, her dog was also acting strangely. The poodle Lulu, who was more attached to Anna than her husband, suddenly didn’t want to be around her anymore.
After suffering bleeding that landed her in the hospital, Anna found out she was pregnant. Doctors said that if the fetus survived, she would be facing a high-risk pregnancy. She and her husband returned home in shock. It was the hardest day of her life. All she wanted was to lie down and hug Lulu, but the dog refused.
Anna, who asked not to be identified in the report, said she was angry with the dog. She felt that Lulu was ignoring her the whole time she was feeling bad. “She didn’t sleep on my side like she has done most nights since we got her. She just wanted to sleep next to my husband, something she had never done before,” she reports.
A few days later, Anna lost the baby. When she needed a lot of support, Lulu wouldn’t go near her. “I thought dogs were supposed to give you unconditional love,” she says, remembering the pet’s uncharacteristic behavior.
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Dogs can smell hormonal changes
It took several days after the loss of Anna for Lulu’s behavior to return to normal. But what made the dog change so drastically?
“Dogs can smell pheromones, and during pregnancy, or after a miscarriage, there is a change in their owner’s scent,” says dog trainer Sissy Leonie Kreid, who studied zoology at Wageningen University in the Netherlands and founded the Canine Academy, Germany.
According to Kreid, these changes in hormonal chemistry can affect canine behavior. But that’s not the only explanation for what may have happened between Anna and Lulu. “After an abortion, there is also a change in behavior in humans, with increased sadness and even despair. The dog does not understand this change and needs time to get used to it”, adds the expert.
That’s what Anna went through with her dog. “I feel bad that Lulu got so confused. Now, I mean. At the time, I was just really angry.”
According to Kreid, the dog’s behavior will return to normal when the owner’s hormone levels readjust after an event like miscarriage. The specialist says that normally the dog returns to the way it was in a few weeks and, sometimes, in a few days – as happened with Lulu.
When Dogs Find Out They’re Pregnant Before Their Owners
Dogs are capable of finding missing people in forests or buried under rubble after an earthquake. They can also sniff out cancer or covid-19, and sometimes discover the owner’s pregnancy before she does, as in Anna’s case. “Lulu started avoiding me even before I found out she was pregnant,” she says.
Based on years of experience, Kreid claims that dogs notice changes in the air. “We don’t have scientific data on whether the dogs know what this change means, but from their behavior we can obviously tell that they know something is different.”
Benedict, a personal trainer from Bonn, Germany, says the family dog Merle definitely noticed his wife’s first pregnancy. “Suddenly Merle had this urge to make nests. She took stuffed animals to build this cozy corner. It was like she had a psychological pregnancy,” he recalls.
Other behaviors that dogs exhibit during their owner’s pregnancy include overly attachment to the pregnant woman or overprotection. “A dog can become controlling and protective and not allow others to sit next to the pregnant owner. They can bark aggressively at any noise coming from outside”, details Kreid, who recommends seeking a specialist in canine behavior in these cases.
This behavior can intensify after the baby is born. In 2014, a US study revealed that dogs can be jealous. “Empathizing with the dog should be the number one reaction. For dogs, the situation is uncertain and confusing when a baby is on the way. It can be for humans too, but dogs have much less control over it and can get nervous or neurotic. It’s important to show understanding,” Kreid points out.
Prepare your dog for the arrival of the baby
If you’re pregnant, it’s good to start preparing your dog for the baby’s arrival as soon as possible. Asking someone in the household to feed him sometimes or taking him for a walk is a first step. This way, the change will be less if you are too tired to do these things.
“It’s also good to get the dog used to baby sounds to prevent him jumping or barking when the newborn is crying,” adds Kreid. The expert also points out that babies and children should not be left alone with dogs.
