They say that some people are just hypersensitive, that they have some kind of sixth sense that the rest of us are lacking. I think this holds true for dogs as well. I know that dogs are much more in tune with energy than most people are and can tap into the vibes another animal or person is giving off immediately. But some dogs seem to have something even beyond this. And Chaos is one of those dogs.
I had never owned a Pit Bull before so I did research on the breed and kept seeing that they tend to be sensitive. Of course I assumed this was referring to the connotation of being empathetic to others and getting easily hurt feelings. This definitely holds true for my green eyed boy, but I did not realize his sensitivity would also allow him to sense things I never imagined.
Dog behaviorists and trainers alike agree that dogs can often be a mirror image of their owners. They reflect what we put out, which is a reason we form such close bonds with our canine companions. If I’m upset, so is Chaos, and he will try anything he can to make me happy. This would include licking my face like an ice cream cone, nuzzling me anywhere he can get his nose in and snuggling up to me just to let me know he’s there.
I’ve read and heard countless stories of Pit Bulls demonstrating heroic acts and saving their humans from danger before anyone even knew it was coming. They seem to have an innate ability to pick up on some kind of subtle changes in the environment that alert them that something is wrong. I’m certainly not saying this is a characteristic only of Pit Bulls, but I can tell you for sure, although Ares is awesome, he doesn’t have a clue about danger. And his brother is spot on.
I guess we started to see Chaos’s 6th sense and protective skills at work when he was pretty young. I remember so clearly one day we were at a dog park last summer. Chaos was probably 6 or 7 months old at the time and he and Ares were having a blast running around playing. At one point Ares was in my line of vision straight ahead playing with another dog while Chaos had moved just out of my peripheral view. There was another dog that I could see and seemingly out of nowhere it charged toward Ares snarling and growling. It was almost as if everything happened in slow motion but it was all a matter of seconds. Before any of us owners standing around had a chance to react, Chaos was suddenly there, tackling and pinning the charging dog to the ground. He stood still with the dog pinned underneath just one of his front paws and stared him down until the dog dropped his head to the side in surrender. Chaos then bounded over to Ares, who was at my feet, and licked the side of his face and then it was as if nothing had ever happened. None of the dogs were injured and we were all just kind of in shock.
Knowing what I know about dog behavior now that I didn’t know then, the dog that charged Ares had probably been giving off some type of signal that he was going to attack before he actually did that Chaos had picked up on. Dogs almost never react without warning. But Chaos responded to the threat against his brother without hesitation and his reaction was appropriate give the circumstance. We know he will always be there to protect Ares should the need ever occur.
Protection is the reason that many people get a dog in the first place. Maybe to protect the property or to feel protected themselves if they live alone or in an area with high crime. Some dogs were not intended for protection but end up becoming fiercely protective of their home and/or family to a dangerous degree. But Chaos seems to just know when protection is necessary and when it is not. We joke that he would invite burglars in and then help them take the loot out the car because he’s so people friendly. But unless it’s a friend or someone he recognizes coming into our home in the middle of the night, I have no doubt my sweet pittie would take a stranger on in a heartbeat if he sensed they shouldn’t be there.
It’s very common these days to train dogs for search and rescue. Their sense of smell is off the charts stronger than ours and some breeds can even smell days old scent trails. It’s also standard to train dogs to do service work, such as seeing eye dogs, dogs for the hearing impaired, physically challenged or even those with diseases and disorders like Diabetes and seizures. Dogs are born with the ability to work in these capacities but generally they are jobs that require formal training to hone the skills. I found out that when it comes to Chaos’s family, no instruction is required.
I woke up for work one morning last year and got up to start my day as usual. I always feed the furballs first and take the dogs out before getting ready. I felt a little sleepy but when you get up at 5AM, that’s pretty normal. I began getting ready in my bathroom like I always do, and Chaos came in and lay there by me like he always does. But soon he was up and pacing behind me back and forth, clearly becoming agitated. I asked him what was wrong and he came and squished himself between me and the bathroom counter and laid on my feet whining. I had no idea that minutes later my blood pressure would take a dive and I would nearly pass out.
A few times a year, for whatever reason, my blood sugar goes extremely low very suddenly and everything goes fuzzy and then blank for a moment or two. I never know it’s coming, but that day, Chaos did. As my vision blurred I dropped the curling iron in my head and stumbled to my bed, luckily just a few feet away. Chaos immediately jumped up with me and positioned himself on top of me so that it would be impossible for me to get up without moving him. My vision came back and my head cleared eventually and just as that happened, Chaos leaned up and licked my face and moved off of me. I was able to stand up easily and everything had returned to normal. I’m not telling you my dog is psychic, I’m telling you he was able to sense that something bad was going to happen from the chemical changes my body was going through and scent that only he could detect. But he reacted by trying to alert me and then essentially holding me down until I was okay to get up. And no one ever taught him that.
Most recently, Chaos showed off his rescue skills when Little O decided to sneak out one night. Chris had left for work and somehow both of us missed Little O stealthily escaping out the back door as the dogs were let out. About a half an hour later I noticed I didn’t see him, which was odd because he’s almost always visible from where I’m sitting. I got up to look for him and called him and couldn’t find him anywhere. So I started to panic. Ares was barking at the door but when I took him out he just kept doing circles. So I took Chaos on the crazy chance that I’d say go find O and he’d comply. To my incredible surprise he did sniff the ground and then take off for the wooded area beyond our complex. He dragged me up into the brush and around some trees and then stopped short. It was completely dark but as I walked around Chaos I saw the outline of a fluff ball curled at the base of a tree. My terrified kitty let me pick him up and carry him back inside where I spent some time picking sticks and other things out of his fur as his Pit Bull brother licked his head.
I’m sharing these stories because this dog amazes me all the time and I want to promote the awesomeness of his breed. Chaos doesn’t have superpowers nor does he see himself as a hero. I believe his actions are driven by love and a fierce loyalty to his family. Does Chaos have a sixth sense? You decide.
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