As someone who was a dog owner, I don’t think I was ever in a situation where I saw my dog trying to protect me from something.
It’s not that my pup was scared or anything… it’s just that situations like that were really rare. I never really needed him to protect me.
However, I feel like it would be an interesting experience. Some breeds are more attentive than others, and they will do whatever they can to make sure their owner is safe.
When it comes to this owner, she has a pup that fits the bill. Shona was always a very sweet dog who was very protective of her owner, even when she didn’t have to be. And, that is something that we will talk about today.
What Did You See, Shona?
When Amber Palmer decided to go for a hike on an unexplored path in the woods of Washington, she brought her pup, Shona, with her.
The two of them prepared for a good hike and went to the location with their car. Just as they were about to leave, Shona noticed something.
She started growling in the car to warn her owner, but when Amber looked outside, she saw nothing there.
She had no idea what upset her, but Amber realized that Shona was not stopping. She continued growling at something.
Amber thought it was a good idea to trust her instincts, so they went back and hiked in a completely different location.
This was not the first time Shona displayed such attentive behavior. Her owner noticed that she would often approach other animals from afar by pointing, even though Amber had never trained her to do it.
At one point, Shona’s owner thought it would be a good idea if she did a short workout on her cardio machine, only to realize that the pup went ballistic.
She was concerned for her safety because she didn’t know what the machine was doing. In her mind, this machine was trying to harm her precious human.
She Is A Clever Dog
Considering this owner from Washington was really surprised by her pup’s reaction to something she saw in the woods, she posted it on her TikTok to get a second opinion.
And, she most certainly got the response she was anticipating because many people saw the video and went to the comment section to share their thoughts.
One person commented: “My uncle had a dog that never barked or growled. Until one day, dog wouldn’t get out of the truck and was growling like crazy. Mountain lion came running by. They know when something is up.”
Yeah, it’s possible that Shona saw or smelled something that Amber couldn’t see there, so she was most definitely not wrong to ignore her instincts.
Another person said: “Ridgebacks were bred to hunt lions originally. Definitely listen to her. She isn’t playing around.”
I didn’t know this, but it’s clear that she has a strong sense of smell, and whatever she saw or smelled was concerning enough that she didn’t want to leave the car.
Lastly, somebody commented: “It’s something I’d take especially seriously if it’s out of character for your dog. They have senses well beyond ours.. they know and notice so much.”
I keep thinking what she could have seen in the forest that unsettled her so much. I guess we’ll never know, but a safe bet would be a mountain lion hiding somewhere.
Either way, Amber’s story can really show us just how important it is for us to listen to our pups when they are trying to tell us something.
It might be nothing, like the cardio machine, or it might be something, so we might want to listen to their warnings.