What is Fudge Thinking When I Sneeze?

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Last night in the middle of the night I had to sneeze.  Fudge was in bed with us and I try not to sneeze when she is around because she gets a little weird when someone sneezes.  I usually try plugging my nose to stop the sneeze, which ends up feeling like a minor explosion in my head, but I am willing to make the sacrifice for my dog. 

Please no comments about killing brain cells or something.  Well, last night the sneeze won and Fudge, who had been sound asleep, got up and stood at the end of the bed, on my husband's side, and would not move.  There she stood with her head hung down and looking away from me as if I had the Bubonic Plague. She stood like that for a long time and finally laid down as far away from me as possible curled up next to my husband.

My mom just sneezed!

If I am in another room from Fudge when I sneeze, she comes immediately from wherever she happened to be and sits in the doorway and stares at me. It gives me the same creepy feeling that I am sure the Nursing Home residents feel when the cat who can predict the next death comes into their room. Fudge will not move from that spot until I coax her into the room.  What is she trying to tell me?  I always cover my mouth with my hand when I sneeze, so I know that is not it. I am certainly not one of those violent sneezers who sneeze with such force that you wish you had opted to wear a Depends that day when you are standing next to them when they let loose.   I am also not a sprayer sneezer who makes you wish you had worn a Hazmat suit when they sneeze next to you.

I am a very polite sneezer.  Is this Fudge's silent way of saying, "Gesundheit"? Remember we are a German speaking family. I say pizza, gnocchi, cannoli, and tiramisu all the time.

Can anyone tell me why Fudge reacts this way to a sneeze? Please, F, don't use big words that we both know I don't understand and try and explain this in some scientific way.  I only joined the Science Group because someone said Science was sexy and you were discussing red lipstick or something and I wanted to post a funny picture of Vern and his manhood. Also, I do not think I smell, so I am discounting that as a reason Fudge steers clear of me when this happens.  I would appreciate any help you can give me in this matter.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

She does act scared! I wish I knew exactly what she was thinking!

[Becka]

Laurie, I don't have any answers for you, but when I sneeze, Sadie looks at me as though I've just insulted her mother, her father, and everything she believes in. Seriously, she looks so offended. Maybe human sneezes translate to something obscene in dog language?

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

LOL....Uh oh, what does she think I am saying? She drives with me a lot so I know bad language does not offend her...LOL!

[F, Calla & Luca]

I will say this very simply. Fudge thinks you are losing a little more of your gray matter (brain, that is) every time you sneeze. She is really frightened (scared, that is) because she is wondering how long it will be before you lose the ability to feed and care for her. She may have noticed your declining (getting smaller, that is) mental powers  already. In fact she wonders if you have any left. She started wondering after she realized you were writing a blog about all this. So I say great blog discussion and "Salute", which is really bless you in German : ) P.S. The science group is great. You should post something while you still are able to.

[Carol and Banjo]

Hysterical!    Love the last bit of advice F.

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

Ha ha! F you are mean! ....You and I both know that Fudge is confident that she'll be well looked after by her dad, your brother, when Laurie's grey matter splatters out of her nose. Fudge is a smart dog, give her some credit. Maybe she was just giving Laurie something to blog about, as a means to help her keep her brain intact.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

LOL

[F, Calla & Luca]

Good thinking Sherri. The doodles are inventing ant dementia blogs.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

LOL....F, I knew I could count on you for a laugh :) Thank you for talking down to me...LOL!! I understood everything you said, for once.

[F, Calla & Luca]

: )

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I googled "dog's reaction human sneezing" and was surprised by how many people are asking this same question. It seems that many people's dogs act alarmed when their owners sneeze. Here's one explanation:

Q We have a nine-year-old male retriever who becomes upset if I happen to sneeze. He can be in a deep sleep, but he wakes up immediately and looks at me with an alarmed expression. He continues to look at me for some time afterwards before he goes back to sleep. Sometimes he tries to hide behind my wife, or if the door is open he might even leave the room. Why does he react like this? PB by email

A Fear of humans sneezing is common in dogs. The most likely explanation is that the sound of a sneeze resembles a signal that dogs use themselves. A human sneeze is similar to a snort, cough or a "tooth-snap" in a dog or a wolf. Snorts are relatively neutral sounds that usually signal that something else is about to happen. Coughs and tooth snaps, however, are specific sounds that are used to communicate threat and defence. I suspect that your dog is misinterpreting the sound of your sneeze as if it is a threat.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/family/4513275/Pet-advice-dog-training-f...

[F, Calla & Luca]

That is interesting Karen. Too bad our Laurie hasn't mastered the internet : )