How do you explain a cat who can sense death?

It is possible that Oscar is sensitive to small movements that the staff is not. For instance we know that some dogs can be trained to detect the onset of seizures so people can take appropriate actions before they occur.

There have been some reports of dogs identifying cancer tumors and other medical problems.

One possibility there (and with Oscar) is that this is detected by smell. For example, if a patient is dying perhaps their organs are shutting down and failing to work properly. This could possibly cause a smell that is detected by Oscar (who amazingly has learned to then give the patient attention) but not be detected by us inferior humans with our blunted sense of smell.

This is not to say that I don’t believe animals have psi abilities as there is certainly enough evidence demonstrating such ability.

However, like any other situation all normal explanations need to be explored first.

In Oscar’s case I think it’s more important that he brings comfort to the dying then it is to explain how he makes accurate predictions.

Although it might be interesting to compare those to any deaths that he didn’t identify to see if he is better at detecting certain types of causes for death.

Psiexploration

Source(s): http://www.sheldrake.org/homepage.html
“Psychic Animals” by Dennis Barden1

I used to work in a nursing home where there were 2 cats and a dog. Whenever they would start staying close to a resident, we knew that the resident was going to die. Throughout the years I have heard from many different co-workers that this happens in most nursing homes/hospitals that have animals. I’m not sure why this is, but it seems like they can sense that the person is dying and want to comfort them. I don’t think there is anything strange about this, I think that animals can tell us a whole lot more about our world than we give them credit for.

Source(s): Personal experience.

My animals seem to know when one of them is dying.. but I guess that’s because they’re sick or hurt.They sure know that they have died afterwards.

That’s one cat I think I’d take to the funeral home. It would be at home there.

WAIT A MINUTE… Where is Oscar the REST of the time?? He’s got to be somewhere.Does that mean that every one he is around dies? He probably visits them all… and sits with a lot of them. Some die and some don;t . Does he do any kind of “ritual” with these certain ones? Are they in a special room?

Someone should follow him and write down everything he does.

Edit.. Ok.. I read Tom’s answer. So I thought about this. Maybe there is a black shadow that the cat follows and it leads him to the room. (Just guessing.) Someone told me I had a black shadow around me years ago .Turns out someone was trying to kill me. Think I’ll post a question about that.

Well, I don’t believe in Grim Reapers or cats with Magical Powers or anything.

When I was sick, my dog would lay by me until I got better. And now that I have a cat, she will almsot always come to me when I am upset and crying.

So, I think it just falls into that catergory of things animals can do that humans don’t understand. It may be that cats (and dogs) can smell hormones/chemicals released from the body when we are very sick. Or, that they can sense stress.

In any case, I think animals are amazing but not paranormal. Also, we have to be careful about believing the statistics of stories like this.

I live in Pennsylvania and there is a nursing home close to my house. I have heard of the same thing. At the nursing home, there is a cat. When someone is about to die, the cat comes in their room and sleeps with them. I have no idea why but thats what the cat does. The cat can sense when someone is about to pass and I really hope that cat never visits me!

I can’t explain Oscar, but wonder about a few things.

If I’m living in that nursing home, I’m not letting that cat within 50 meters of me. If the Grim kitty jumps in my bed his tail will go flying out the nearest window. (We’ll test that always lands on four feet theory). Then just to be on the safe side I’m going to the shelter and picking up a cat hating Rottweiler.

It seems to me the only people letting that cat near them are the ones unable to wing him out of their beds(the weakest and sickest) or unaware of it’s reputation. It’s human nature people, even old folks don’t want to die.

Aside from that (my mom is in a nursing home) I’m not sure I like the idea of a cat having the run of the home. It doesn’t seem sanitary, or safe disease wise. I like cats but as an observer of their grooming habits, they do some funky things.

Hospitals wouldn’t allow animals the run of patient rooms, I’m sure.

It just seems to me, human nature would keep people away from Oscar, especially with his reputation.

Sounds like the good doctor might be hyping his book.

There are dogs that can detect certain cancers by smell and this has been tested. Most animals do have one of more senses that are superior to humans. But this item with the cat is interesting, but no one asks how many he slept with and did not die. Being in a nursing home how many years? With elderly and ill patients.

Cat’s sleep most of their lives and like sleeping on beds with people. It is possible this is selective thinking.

Source(s): http://www.skepdic.com/selectiv.html

Animals are very sensitive to spirits because of there sensory, they even act different before an earthquake.

Spirits are sensitive and know when someones is ill or going to die, animals are sensitive too, even their hearing is on a higher frequencies.

They say some dogs know when a person is about to have a seizure, I had a dog that had seizures, and I always knew when it was going to have one, perhaps in some way I was reading the dog, just the little ways it would act always gave it away. So with the cat, perhaps it would read the little differences of the way the person would act, or the slowing down of the person heart, since cats pick up on frequencies.

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Short of the cat being a superstition come to life, I believe the cat can sense something that we cannot. Think of the cat smelling a death pheromone as being similar to it being able to see a ghostly figure standing by us waiting to bring us into the light. It is just a different sense giving it away.

For years now the fact that a “nursing home” dog or cat will “sit” with a resident prior to death has been verified. It is also known that “homes’ who have “staff companion pets” will (if the home is credible) rotate pets “out” for the pet’s health and welfare. Anyone who wants to “learn” more about this should look up a book entitled “Pets Who Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home”, a fascinating read documenting real pets “knowing” those whom they companion.