Senses

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4 min read

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Can Dogs Feel Babies Move in Utero?

Senses

|

4 min read

|

Can Dogs Feel Babies Move in Utero?

Introduction

When a woman is pregnant, one of the most exciting moments is the first time she can feel the baby move. Once the baby is moving around, everyone will want to feel it turn and kick inside the mother. This had led many people to wonder whether or not our pets can feel our babies moving around inside, too.

Dogs are very intuitive, and often sense the changes happening in the pregnant woman’s body, but that doesn’t really mean that they know what is going on. For these reasons, we believe that dogs can definitely feel the baby move, but they don’t really know what they are feeling.

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Signs Dogs Can Feel Babies Move

People have come to the conclusion that dogs know a lot more about the human body than we previously thought. Not only are dogs often the first ones to sense that a woman is pregnant, but they also have an incredibly unique way of knowing this sensitive information. 

Using their senses, dogs see the changes happening in a woman’s body as the baby grows inside. First, dogs can smell the hormones associated with pregnancy, and they know that they are different from the hormones the woman had before.

Dogs can also see changes. For example, a pregnant woman’s growing stomach is easy to spot, even with the poor sense of sight that dogs have. Dogs will also notice new items being brought into the home, and they can see changes in routine, especially when it pertains to them. For example, a pregnant woman may need more rest than normal, and due to this fact, she won’t be able to take the dog on its daily walk.

If a dog is close enough to a pregnant woman’s belly, it can feel and hear the baby inside. Kicks can be felt by dogs just like they can be felt by other people when they touch a pregnant woman’s stomach.

Body Language

When your dog feels a baby move in utero, you may notice the following body language cues:

  • Alert
  • Barking
  • Head Tilting
  • Whining
  • Raise Ears
  • Whimpering
  • Ears Up

Other Signs

Other signs your dog can feel a baby move in utero include:

  • Reacting To The Movement
  • Laying On The Belly

History of Dogs Feeling Babies Move

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In the thousands of years that dogs have lived with humans, they have also been exposed to pregnant women. Since we have discovered that dogs can sense the existence of unborn babies in utero, it is pretty easy to speculate that dogs can also feel babies move inside their mother before they are born.

Dogs have the amazing ability to use their senses to detect the fact that a woman is pregnant. For example, dogs have such an acute sense of smell that they can actually smell the hormones associated with pregnancy and tell that they are different than the hormones in an unpregnant woman.

Even though dogs don’t really know that being pregnant means there will be a new baby in a few months, they can tell that something is happening. The fact that they know there is something going on show just how intuitive these creatures really are.

Since many of their other senses are involved in the detection of pregnancy, it shouldn’t be much of a surprise to learn that they can also feel babies move in utero. Any time a woman is close enough to her dog that they can touch her belly, the dog may be able to feel the baby move, just like another person would be able to if they put their hand against the stomach.

Science Behind Dogs Feeling Babies Move

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We now know that dogs can use their senses of sight, hearing, and smell to sense an unborn baby. All of the changes happening both inside and outside of the woman’s body are noticeable to a dog. A dog’s keen sense of hearing allows them to hear the baby’s heartbeats and crying in the womb, while their sense of smell allows them to detect hormonal changes in the body. 

All the while, they can see any changes happening as well. So, why wouldn’t dogs be able to feel babies move in utero as well. Allow your dog to sense all of this now, so the new baby isn’t such a shock when it is born.

Dealing with Dogs Feeling Babies Move

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While dogs are very good at sensing pregnancy, they don’t know what it really means to be pregnant. Don’t forget, they still don’t speak our language! They don’t know that a baby will arrive after a few months of their owner’s growing belly. They don’t understand that a baby, both in utero and after birth, is extremely fragile. 

Dogs can, however, feel and see the baby move, and they can hear it make noise in the womb. All of these little things help your dog bond with the baby before it is even born. This bond can make introducing your pooch to the baby a little easier.

Once the baby is born, you need to slowly introduce your dog to the new smells and sounds that will be occurring in your pet’s living space. Don’t leave your baby alone with your dog ever! You also need to understand that you need to limit the amount of time your dog has access to the baby. Give your dog the chance to acclimate to the sounds, sights, and smells before letting your dog get up close to the baby.

No matter what point of time it is during the pregnancy or after the birth, you need to be sure that you go about things safely. While you are pregnant, your dog may get excited at your baby’s movement, and this may lead them to jump on your stomach, which could injure the baby. Never let a large dog lie on your stomach, as it could cause injuries as well. 

Once the baby is born, don’t let the dog jump or climb on the baby either. It is important that you teach your dog appropriate behavior around the baby, and you need to be patient with your dog during this process, as it is dealing with a lot of new things.

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Safety Tips for Dogs Feeling Babies Move:

  1. Don't let dogs jump or lie on your belly.
  2. Prevent dogs from trying to play with the baby due to its movements.

Written by a Pomsky lover Chelsea Mies

Veterinary reviewed by:

Published: 05/09/2018, edited: 04/06/2020

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