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One of the most wonderful things about having a dog is how attached they become to their owners. I work from home and my Jack Russel terrier, Scout, lies next to me on his bed for most of the day. The only time he leaves my office is for a sip of water or to go outside and sun his belly on the porch.

That's why whenever I leave the house and can't take Scout with me, I wonder, "Does he miss me? Is he sad that he's alone?" Studies show that our dogs miss us the moment we leave the house and that feeling slowly intensifies until we are gone for about four hours and they have a "plateau of melancholy." That's why the longer you're away, the more excited your dog is when you return home.

The moment I pull up in my car Scout begins to howl like a wolf trying to contact someone who's miles away. It's like, "Dude, I'm 30 feet away. Give me a second to grab the groceries out of the trunk."

Researchers from the Universities of Pisa and Perugia, Italy have found that if you give your dog some affection before you leave the house they'll have less anxiety while you're away.

They conducted experiments with 10 dogs between the ages of one and 11 without attachment issues. The group was composed of seven mixed-breed dogs, one Labrador retriever, one Hovawart, and one Chihuahua.

Participants in the study walked their leashed dogs into a fenced area where they were greeted by a researcher who took their dog's heart rate. In the first test, after the owners walked their dogs into the area, they talked with a researcher for one minute then left without giving the dog any special attention.

In the second test, the dog owners petted the dog during their interaction with the researcher.

In both tests, the owners left the fenced area and hid far enough away so that the dog couldn't smell them.

After the owners left, the dogs looked for them for about three minutes on average. After the owners returned, the researchers measured the dogs' levels of the stress hormone cortisol as well as their heart rates.

The researchers found that whether the dogs were petted or not, their cortisol levels were unchanged. But their heart rate showed a marked decrease if the owners petted them before leaving. Researchers later watched videos of the dogs and found that the ones that were petted showed " behaviors indicative of calmness for a longer period while waiting for the owner's return."

Next time I'm ready to leave the house and Scout follows me to the front door after saying, "Sorry bud, you can't go with me on this trip," I'll kneel down and give him a little extra love and attention.

Maybe that way he won't howl like the house is on fire when I pull up in my car after a trip to the grocery store.

This article originally appeared four years ago.

Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash
brown short coated dog on tree branch

Molly, an adorable, affectionate 10-year-old pit bull, found herself tied to a tree after her owners had abandoned her. According to The Dodo, Molly had “always been a loyal dog, but, unfortunately, her first family couldn’t reciprocate that same love back,” and so when the house was sold, neither Molly nor the family’s cat was chosen to move with them.

While the cat was allowed to free roam outside, all Molly could do was sit and wait. Alone. Luckily, the young couple that bought the house agreed to take the animals in as part of their closing agreement, and as soon as the papers were signed, they rushed over to check in.

In a TikTok video, April Parker, the new homeowner, walks up to Molly, who is visibly crestfallen with teary eyes. But as soon as Parker begins cooing, “Baby girl…you’re gonna get a new home,” the pitty instantly perks up—all smiles and tail wagging.

“We are going to make her life so good,” Parker wrote in the video’s caption. “She will never be left all alone tied to a tree.”

@geaux75 The people that sold our house to us left behind their 10yr old dog they had since it was a puppy. I was so stressed we wouldnt get the house and something bad would happeb to her. We are going to maje her life so good. She will never be left all alone tied to a tree. 😭😢@roodytoots ♬ Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) [2018 Remaster] - Kate Bush

The video has been seen upwards of 4 million times. Countless people commented on how enraging it was to see a dog treated so carelessly.

“I’ve had my dog since she was 7 weeks old. She just turned 10 a few days ago. I literally cannot imagine doing this,” one person wrote.”

Another added: “The tears in her eyes…she doesn’t understand why they could just leave her, it breaks my heart. People like that shouldn’t be allowed to be pet owners.”

Subsequent videos show Parker freeing Molly from her leash and introducing the sweet pup to her husband, with whom she was instantly smitten. It’s clear that this doggo was both relieved and elated to be taken in by her new family.

Since being rescued, Molly has accompanied her new mom and dad everywhere.

@geaux75 Replying to @ohitscourtney ♬ Lucky Girl - Carlina


“She’s sticking to our side,” Parker wrote. “She won’t stop following us around. It’s so sweet.”

Parker has created an entire TikTok channel documenting her newfound pet’s journey, aptly named “Molly’s New Life,” showing Molly enjoying warm baths, plenty of treats, cuddles…all the finer things in life.

But what Molly seems to enjoy most of all is car rides:

@geaux75 Taking Molly to get a treat! Stay tuned!! #mollysnewlife #goodgollymissmolly ♬ original sound - Mollysnewlife 🐾🐕💗

And in case you’re wondering, the kitty is doing well, too, though it still prefers to stay outdoors.

Molly also has two indoor cat siblings who instantly welcomed her into the family. The video below shows one of them, Joofus, comforting a trembling Molly with kisses during a thunderstorm.

@geaux75 We had a big storm this morning and Molly was having a hard time. Joofus got on the bed and started comforting her. It was the sweetest thing. They got snuggled up and Molly went to sleep. Animals are amazing. #mollysnewlife #petsarefamily ♬ I Won't Let Go - Rascal Flatts

It seems that Molly has gotten the safe, loving home she’s deserved all along.

We know that animal abandonment is fairly common. According to The Zebra, almost 4 million dogs are either given up to shelters or abandoned each year. And still, it’s really hard to fathom how humans can treat such innocent creatures with such blatant disregard when they provide so much pure joy.

Thankfully, there are folks out there like the Parkers who know that taking care of animals like Molly is one of life’s most precious offerings.

Stay up-to-date with the rest of Molly’s journey by following her on TikTok.


This article originally appeared two years ago.

Microchipping your cat is one of the best ways to ensure you can find each other if they get lost.

When a pet goes missing, it's a worrisome time for any pet owner. Having no idea where they are, if they're okay, if they're even alive—so many worst case scenarios can cross your mind on top of simply missing them. Many animals are found fairly quickly, as neighbors discover a stray cat or dog at their door, but on rare occasions pets are found after being missing for months or even years.

That's what happened to children's author Anne Twist—who also happens to be the mother of pop star Harry Styles—when a shelter contacted her saying they had her cat. Her black-and-white floof Evie had been missing for two years, but someone had taken her in a few days before.

Twist wrote:

"The most incredible thing happened today .. I got my little Evie back! Two years ago she went out and never came back. After months spent searching I was resigned to having lost her. 😞

"Last night I got a phone call .. a little rescue centre @willowsway_cat_rescue had her! She’d been taken in by a lovely lady who had fed her for a couple of days in her greenhouse. Although I have no idea where she has been for the past two years I am immensely grateful to have her home🙏 From June last year it became the law to have your cats microchipped .. something I have always done since I started having them in my life … keep your details updated, miracles can happen. 🥰"

Surely Evie was happy to be back home after her two year adventure, wherever she was, as well.

The law Twist is referring to is in the U.K. "With more than 9 million pet cats in England, the introduction of mandatory microchipping will make it easier for lost or stray pet cats to be reunited with their owners and returned home safely," says the U.K. government website. "Microchipping is already compulsory for dogs and is proven to be the most effective method for identifying lost pets, with microchipped dogs more than twice as likely to be reunited with their owner."

What does microchipping a cat mean?

Vets can insert a microchip, about the size of a grain of rice, under the skin of a cat or dog on the back of its neck. The microchip contains a unique identification number that matches up with the owner's contact information in a database. It's not a GPS tracker and doesn't actively transmit any information, but the ID number can be read from the chip with a special scanner. Microchips are painless for the animal but super helpful for rescues and shelters to find owners when they find a pet that has one.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

Aren't cats good at finding their way home?

Cats are actually quite adept at getting themselves home after they've wandered. We don't fully know how they do it, but there is some evidence that cats use a combination of scent cues and the earth’s geomagnetic fields to locate their homes. It's called a homing instinct, and scientists figured out the geomagnetic field element in 1954 when they put magnets on cats, which seemed to make it harder for them to find their way home.

Cats have been known to even find their way home from dozens of miles away, though most missing cats are found within a few miles of home. When a cat comes back after going missing for years, it's likely someone took them in during that time, though who knows for sure? It's not like Evie can tell Anne Twist what she's been doing for the past two years, and its unlikely she was on tour like her big brother (wouldn't that be quite a show). But Twist is happy to have her back, regardless of what she's been up to.

Congrats on your reunion, you two. And thanks for the example of why microchipping our beloved pets is so important.

Cat discovering owner's pregnant belly.

Can animals tell if you're pregnant? That question has been asked countless times without a scientifically proven answer, but some people swear their pets started behave differently around them when they're expecting. Some cats or dogs get more snuggly, some get more protective, some get more territorial, but it's not uncommon for people to report their pets acting notably differently when there's a human baby on the way.

A woman captured a sweet moment of her cat interacting with her pregnant belly, almost as if it just realized she had a baby inside it. At first, the kitty looks over at her rubbing her belly with its curiosity clearly piqued. Gently moving towards her, it starts sniffing her belly button, peering into it, then oh-so-gently touching it with its paw.

"Oh my god," the woman whispers. "I'm literally crying."

People loved seeing the cat's "discovery" and shared some of their own experiences with pets and pregnancy.

"My old boy Leon knew ❤️ he laid on my belly every night. He waited to meet his baby brother and then crossed the rainbow bridge 🌈"

"My cat would sleep on or against my pregnant belly, but as soon as the baby kicked she’d wake up and look at my belly in annoyance. 😂"

"My Eddie used to sit on my belly every night -- until I became pregnant, and then he sat close by , but never on my belly. He knew before I did!"

"My cat wouldn't leave my side after my csection. He was stuck to me and baby LIKE GLUE. He never cuddles so much. He was ON ME. Turns out, I had complications, and needed to be rehospitalized. I feel like he knew something wasn't right🥹 I am forever grateful!"

"My cat Minou used to always cuddle me while I was pregnant. He had never been a cuddle before or after."

"My "soul cat" Isabelle would curl up and sleep on my pregnant belly. She only got mad once because she was kicked and acted like I did it 😊"

"Cats know. They know when someone is pregnant and even when someone is ill or about to die. We underestimate them."

Do they really know? The verdict is out on that question in terms of definitive research, but there are some indications that they could. Hormonal changes during pregnancy may result in slight changes in your smell, which cats' incredibly strong olfactory senses might pick up. Cats are also super sensitive to changes in their environment, so their human's growing belly and behavioral changes as they prepare for a baby's arrival may also signal to them that something new is afoot. Whether that means they actually understand that a new human is on the way is an entirely different question, and unfortunately we can't get into the mind of our feline friends.


In Love Cat GIFGiphy

As far as when someone is ill or about to die, we've seen at least one cat who seemed to have a sense for when people were close to death. Oscar "the Hospice cat" lived in the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Providence, Rhode Island, as a therapy cat, but caregivers began to notice a pattern. Once in a while, Oscar would start spending a lot of time in a specific resident's room.

"We would eventually find out after he did this several times that the people he was staying with were usually the next ones to go," Dr. David Dosa shared with Crossroad Hospice. "One death occurred, then two deaths and ultimately he hit about 20 or 30 deaths in a row at which point everybody started to say, ‘Wow, this is something quite unique.’”

In fact, workers at the center began calling people's families if Oscar started spending a lot of time with them, as it was so often a sign that the person would pass soon.

There's a lot we don't know about what animals can and cannot sense, but that doesn't change the sweetness of seeing a cat peer into and paw at the belly button of a pregnant woman. What a lucky baby.