Do animals commit suicide?

[justafewchickens]

For the beached whales, I heard it's because they get confused, or set off course by the currents. And lemmings don't jump off cliffs....willingly. The Disney company forced the mass suicide by making them jump off a cliff, to reinforce the myth.

 

[deerman]

Agree i also don't think animal commit suicide.......lot of these are just part of nature, males getting eaten after mating. even insects that sting themself, ..if you check alway a reason when they happen to kill themself....like running off a cliff...most are running because they are scare..of being chased.

 

[chickened]

Animals do not commit suicide but they do things that result in their death that would seem like suicide. A sick feeble starving animal will always try to evade it's capture. Humans with no will to live will not do this. Animals and humans think very very differently despite what Disney has portrayed them to be.

 

[redhen]

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Thats makes sense to me too...

 

[redhen]

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Yep...
We may think a cat commited suicide by running off and hiding somewhere to die.. etc..

But really, thats just a cats INSTINCT... cats hide their illnesses... if they show that weakness in the wild, they will be a goner... same goes for dogs..pigs...

 

[sheaviance1]

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I have to politely disagree. I have worked with bloodhounds trained for search and rescue. There are too many instances documented that shows a bloodhound tracking someone, and as soon as they smell the scent of death, their tail drops (held very high and wagging while searching), most will cry, and when they make their find, they are not happy about it. When they find a living person, they are ecstatic, and it is very evident in their behavior, but when they find a dead human, they usually are very visibly and audibly distressed.

Also, very recently, there was a piece on the news about the elephant and the dog that were best friends at the elephant sanctuary in Tennessee. The dog was killed by a coyote attack. The elephant found it's body, picked it up in its trunk, and brought it home. She had to be aware that her friend was dead and could not move on its own, else, she would have just left it be where it was. Poor elephant has been depressed since.

 

[OtterCreekRanch]

We had a gerbil once that I swear killed himself. We had him and his brother for almost 7 years. Way longer than they typically live. His brother died. He was obviously depressed about it. Didn't want to run on his will, was not interested in his favorite treats, etc. A week or so later we came home to find him dead. He had stuck his head between the stand and crossbar of his wheel and his paw was holding the crossbar down tight around his throat. Without his paw there he would not have been stuck. I really honestly think he killed himself on purpose. Maybe it was all coincidence, I don't know. But sure seemed like he had nothing to live for anymore.

 

[Beekissed]

There are too many instances documented that shows a bloodhound tracking someone, and as soon as they smell the scent of death, their tail drops (held very high and wagging while searching), most will cry, and when they make their find, they are not happy about it. When they find a living person, they are ecstatic, and it is very evident in their behavior, but when they find a dead human, they usually are very visibly and audibly distressed.

Could this possibly be due to them sensing the moods of their handlers in the same situations? Aren't humans distressed and anxious when they find a dead body and ecstatic when they find a live person? Sounds more like conditioned response to me....maybe the dogs sense a greater reward when they find a live person by the tone of the handler's voice, body language, etc. and less of a congratulatory air when a dead body is found. I'm sure they are immediately pulled to one side and their handler isn't taking the time to give effusive praise in that instance~too many other factors in that situation, I would imagine.​

 

[deerman]

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Could this possibly be due to them sensing the moods of their handlers in the same situations? Aren't humans distressed and anxious when they find a dead body and ecstatic when they find a live person? Sounds more like conditioned response to me....maybe the dogs sense a greater reward when they find a live person by the tone of the handler's voice, body language, etc. and less of a congratulatory air when a dead body is found. I'm sure they are immediately pulled to one side and their handler isn't taking the time to give effusive praise in that instance~too many other factors in that situation, I would imagine.

this is easy prove with your pet dog...play dead .....they sure are happy to see you move.

 

[redhen]

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Could this possibly be due to them sensing the moods of their handlers in the same situations? Aren't humans distressed and anxious when they find a dead body and ecstatic when they find a live person? Sounds more like conditioned response to me....maybe the dogs sense a greater reward when they find a live person by the tone of the handler's voice, body language, etc. and less of a congratulatory air when a dead body is found. I'm sure they are immediately pulled to one side and their handler isn't taking the time to give effusive praise in that instance~too many other factors in that situation, I would imagine.

this is easy prove with your pet dog...play dead .....they sure are happy to see you move.

I agree