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Lightning and Dogs

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EQ42

Skilled Investigator
The other night I had an old wire that goes from my circuit breaker box to the meter reader that started arcing. I had to call the power company to come out and turn off the power till I could get it replaced. I'm confident my dog did not know about the arcing wire- she wouldn't have been able to see the occasional flashes of light from it. But my dog started acting the exact same way she does during a lightning storm- panting and turning into a nervous wreck and getting right up beside me. Could lightning and that arcing wire both generate something similar- like an electromagnetic field? Is that what she is reacting to? She only freaks out during lightning- not rain. And I don't think it's the loud noises associated with lightning that bother her because where I live is rural and we often hear things like the gunshots of hunters. This is a very specific behavior which I've only noticed during lightning storms and the other night. Once the power was turned off to the house she did fine.
 
I'd say yes. Animals are more in tune to their natural environment...and a high electro-magnetic-field should be something to be avoided- for the sake of survival.
 
Electricity, Lightning and myself do not get along. A dead battery could arc right to my jugular. Throughout my life I have sustained numerous shocks including a lighting strike in 2001. From that strike I have what I call a "Lightning Rash". It is a very vascular area on my forearm that gets bright red and sort of road map looking in appearance when a storm is approaching. Otherwise you can barely see it. Getting struck by lighting sucks. I do not recommend it.
I guess my point is that my body is sensitive to approaching storms with lightning so I could see where a dog might have similar warnings or intuitions. They can probably even hear the crack of lightning long before we can.
 
I've been told that dogs can sense static charges building up. Some dogs react negatively to it and that's one reason they freak out when a thunderstorm approaches. Some people rub dryer sheets on their dog to dissipate the charge, helping keep the dog calm. My girlfriend's dog is like Doppler 2000 or something when it comes to storms, she starts showing signs of anxiety long before a one gets anywhere near.
So, I can see where your dog could detect the discharge with your wiring.
 
Jay said:
I've been told that dogs can sense static charges building up. Some dogs react negatively to it and that's one reason they freak out when a thunderstorm approaches. Some people rub dryer sheets on their dog to dissipate the charge, helping keep the dog calm. My girlfriend's dog is like Doppler 2000 or something when it comes to storms, she starts showing signs of anxiety long before a one gets anywhere near.
So, I can see where your dog could detect the discharge with your wiring.
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Thanks for the comment Jay. I'm going to try that!
 
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