Do Animals Sense Thunderstorms Coming? | The Science Behind the Behavior of Dogs and Other Animals

Do animals sense a thunderstorm coming? A look into the science

Many pet owners will recognize this. A dog that suddenly becomes restless, a horse that seeks shelter sooner, or birds behaving differently, while the sky still appears fairly clear. Only later do dark clouds gather and the thunderstorm breaks out.

It raises an interesting question: can animals really sense thunderstorms or severe weather sooner than humans?

The short answer is: maybe. Not because animals can predict the weather, but because they perceive changes in their environment that are much less obvious to humans.

More than just the air is changing

Before a thunderstorm develops, various changes already take place in the atmosphere. Many of these are measurable and well known scientifically.

Air pressure

Air pressure drops during many thunderstorms. People usually do not consciously notice this, although some people with, for example, migraines, joint problems, or other chronic conditions report being able to feel weather changes. There is mixed scientific evidence for this; it varies greatly from person to person.

Animals are suspected to be more sensitive to changes in air pressure. Different animal species exhibit different behavior prior to storms or thunderstorms, but it is not yet precisely known how they perceive these changes.

Humidity

Humidity also often changes before a thunderstorm develops.

For dogs, this is potentially much more significant than for humans. Their sense of smell is exceptionally well-developed. Changes in humidity affect how scent molecules spread through the air. As a result, the smell of the environment literally changes.

Whereas we primarily look at the sky, a dog "reads" its surroundings largely with its nose.

Infrasound

A thunderstorm produces not only audible thunder, but also very low sound waves, known as infrasound. These vibrations are below the human hearing threshold and can travel over long distances.

It is known that various animal species are sensitive to low frequencies and vibrations. Research is being conducted to determine whether dogs also use such signals to detect changes in the weather, but there is currently no conclusive evidence for this.

Electrical changes

Before a thunderstorm, a strong electric field builds up between the earth and thunderclouds.

Various animal species, such as sharks, rays, some fish, bees, and certain bird species, are known to be able to detect electric fields.

This has not been demonstrated in dogs. However, it is thought that static electricity can be uncomfortable for some dogs, for example because their fur becomes statically charged more easily.

Changes in the air

Many people recognize the typical smell just before or after a thunderstorm. That is not their imagination. During thunderstorms, ozone and nitrogen oxides, among other things, are formed, while rain also releases odor molecules from the soil and vegetation.

For a dog, with a sense of smell many times more sensitive than that of a human, these changes are likely much more clearly perceptible.

Dogs perceive the world differently

People rely primarily on what we see.

For dogs, scent, sound, and subtle changes in their environment play a much larger role.

In addition, dogs are particularly good at perceiving changes in people. They can react to changes in body posture, muscle tension, breathing, facial expression, tone of voice, and even to changes in scent associated with stress or emotions.

As a result, it is sometimes difficult to determine exactly what a dog is reacting to.

Does he react to the approaching thunderstorm? To changes in the atmosphere? Or does he notice instead that his owner starts feeling physically or emotionally different?

That probably varies by situation and by dog.

Not every dog reacts the same way.

Just like humans, dogs are also individuals.

Some dogs sleep peacefully through a thunderstorm. Other dogs become restless hours beforehand, seek out their owner, or exhibit behavior other than normal.

The reaction after a thunderstorm can also vary. Some dogs actually seem more sensitive, tired, or easily overstimulated the next day.

This shows that there is probably not a single explanation. The behavior presumably arises from a combination of various factors, such as weather changes, previous experiences, sensitivity of the nervous system, and the reaction of the people around them.

What do we know, and what do we not yet know?

Science shows that before a thunderstorm, measurable changes occur in, among other things, air pressure, humidity, sound waves, and electrical activity in the atmosphere.

We also know that animals often possess much more sensitive senses than humans.

What we do not yet know exactly is which signals dogs actually use and why one dog reacts strongly while another dog hardly seems to notice anything.

It is probably not a single mechanism, but rather an interplay of various stimuli that a dog perceives.

Finally

Animals do not possess a magical ability to predict the weather. However, they do live in a sensory world that is richer than ours in many respects.

Perhaps that is why they notice changes that are still invisible, inaudible, or imperceptible to us.

That is precisely what makes the behavior of animals around thunderstorms so fascinating: not because it is inexplicable, but because we still do not fully understand the unique way in which they perceive their environment.

Sources

The information in this blog is based on scientific literature and information from recognized research institutes in the fields of animal behavior, veterinary medicine, and meteorology.

Books

-Horowitz, A. (2010). Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know. Scribner.

- Horowitz, A. (2016). Being a Dog: Following the Dog into a World of Smell. Scribner.

- Miklósi, Á. (2015). Dog Behavior, Evolution, and Cognition (2nd edition). Oxford University Press.

- Overall, KL (2013). Manual of Clinical Behavioral Medicine for Dogs and Cats. Elsevier.

-Yin, S. (2009). Low Stress Handling, Restraint and Behavior Modification of Dogs & Cats. CattleDog Publishing.

Scientific journals

- Journal of Veterinary Behavior

- Applied Animal Behavior Science

- Frontiers in Veterinary Science

- Animal Behaviour

- Journal of Comparative Physiology A

Meteorology

- Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI)

-National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

-World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

Remark

Although scientific research shows that animals are sensitive to changes in their environment, there is currently no convincing evidence that dogs can actually predict thunderstorms or severe weather. It is most likely that dogs react to a combination of changes in the atmosphere, their exceptionally well-developed senses, and subtle changes in the people and animals around them.