Can Dogs Be Suicidal? 9 Shocking Stories Revealed

You’re aware that humans consider suicide at times.

It’s something we’ve heard on the radio.

It can also be found in articles.

Or see how people took their lives away on the news.

But have you ever wondered…

“Are there real stories about dogs being suicidal?”

In this article, you’ll learn:

• Whether dogs can be suicidal.
• 9 shocking stories about this behavior.
• If suicidal thoughts ever come to a dog’s mind.
• And a lot more…

Can dogs be suicidal?

Dogs can’t be suicidal. But they may appear so due to vision problems, instinct drive, separation anxiety, or depression. They may be unable to cope with a new environment. This can make them desperate to escape. While attempting to do so, they might have an accident that leads to their death.

Can dogs have suicidal thoughts?

Dogs can’t have suicidal thoughts. This is because they don’t understand the concept of life and death like people do. Plus, canines have a strong survival instinct wired in them. Committing suicide goes against this primary instinct.   

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9 shocking stories about dogs and suicide

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#1: 300 dogs leaped off ‘the suicide bridge’

Have you heard about the suicide bridge?

Let’s talk about the well-known Overtoun Bridge in Scotland. Its popularity is due to the mystery it holds.

All of it started in the 1950s when 300 dogs leaped off the bridge. Sad to say, 50 of them passed away.

For this reason, Overtoun bridge gained the name of “Dog suicide bridge.”

What puzzles people is…

Why do dogs jump off a 50 ft (15m) tall bridge?

Locals believe that there’s a paranormal activity happening. That ghosts are somehow luring dogs to jump. 

While some people are skeptical about this, others have bought this idea for some time. 

However, Dr. David Sands came to Overtoun bridge in 2010. He’s also in search of answers as to why dogs jump off the famous bridge. 

So, he did his research. His data shows that a dog’s vision and keen sense of smell might be to blame.  

How?

Dr. Coren says that dogs have poor eyesight. A dog can only see limited colors compared to humans. 

The vision of canines is way unclear too. A human’s vision is 20/20, while dogs have 20/75 only.

With this in mind, a dog relies more on their smell instead of what they see. 

So, Dr. Sands suggests that the dogs who jump off the bridge didn’t commit suicide. Rather, scents under the bridge may have attracted their nose. 

Given that dogs are curious, it made them jump. And due to their poor vision, they weren’t aware of how high the bridge was.

#2: The dog who leaped off a 4-storey building multiple times 

Some people attempt to commit suicide by jumping off a building. 

Will dogs do that for the same reason?

Here’s a case of a pooch from Taiwan named Amy. 

Her family, who lives in the countryside, relocated to a 4-story building in the city. And Amy was brought along with them.

But that’s where Amy started to act oddly. 

Reporters said that she struggled to adjust. She began showing an intense escaping behavior.

On their first day of living in the new house. Amy knocked out their aircon unit. And then without hesitation, she jumped out the opening. 

Fortunately, she fell on the 2nd-floor awning and survived. 

But Amy wasn’t done. She ripped the window mesh on her 2nd attempt. Then she jumped out. 

And this pooch survived the fall again.

On her 3rd try, Amy was leashed but she managed to destroy the window lock. As per usual, she leaped through the window. 

Guess what happened to her?

She was dangling by her neck below the 4th floor. Fortunately, she slid out of her collar. And again, landed on the 2nd-floor awning.

Her dog parents then tried to keep her in a safe room. Where it’ll be hard for her to escape.

But Amy was persistent. She managed to climb on their kitchen window. 

Then she jumped from the kitchen balcony. And this jump took her life away as she slammed into a parked car. 

Some people may look at Amy as a suicidal dog. But that wasn’t really the case. 

Amy had a hard time coping with a new environment. And her escaping behavior shows that she didn’t want to be there.

The story of Amy reached the news (although presented as suicide): 

#3: The dog who died from high rise syndrome

Duke’s high rise syndrome was the talk of the town in Chicago way back in 2013. 

It’s a term used by the locals. Which refers to incidents in high-rise buildings that lead to a pet’s death. 

Here’s how it happened to a Rottweiler-Shar Pei mix, Duke. 

Duke’s human family was busy moving into a new condo. 

So, there were a lot of boxes and furniture all over the place. The balcony door was left open too. 

The pup, on the other hand, is left unsupervised. Police records say that Duke was let out on the condo’s balcony by his keeper.

That’s when Duke climbed on the scattered furniture. Which made it possible for him to jump off the balcony. 

Duke then fell to his awful death from a 43-story high-rise condo. 

But why do you think he jumped?

Actually, Duke wasn’t the only pet who experienced the same thing. This isn’t the first time either.

That same week of the accident. A cat fell from the same building and died before Duke. 

The reason?

Dogs and cats are often mesmerized by what they see outside. They might see birds on the window and find it entertaining. 

Pooches will then jump without knowing what will happen next. 

To prevent situations like this, take a vet’s advice. And keep a careful eye on your pets. Especially when living in high-rise buildings.

#4: Loyal dog dies after her keeper

Does a dog’s loyalty come with a price?

Let’s learn from a female dog’s story in India. 

The pooch’s dog parents were both doctors. However, her fur mom was suffering from a kidney problem. The dog mom was Dr. Anita Raj who rescued her pooch 13 years ago.

Then the fateful day came, and on July 1, 2020. Dr. Anita passed away. 

On the day when her fur mom’s body came home, the dog started howling loudly. That caused the doctor’s son to take the pooch to a stock room. 

But that didn’t stop her. She broke out of the house and barked continuously. 

Just when the family was leaving. Supposedly to cremate their loved one’s body. The loyal dog jumped from the 4th floor and ended up dead.

This didn’t happen because she committed suicide. 

Her escaping behavior and excessive vocalization were signs of mourning. 

Experts say that such dog behavior is caused by a change in routine. Although dogs aren’t able to understand death, they can feel that their human is gone. 

Dogs can also feel sad because they sense it to the people mourning around them. 

You might also want to read: 13 Reasons Why Your Dog Is Suddenly Sad + 9 Easy Tips To Change That

#5: Adventurous dog finds his death by jumping on a cliff

Dogs love playing fetch. But could this game lead to their death?

Let’s find out from Frankie’s story. 

Frankie was a 1-year-old Australian Shepherd. Together with his dog parents, they hiked on Vancouver island. 

When his fur mom, Nikki, was taking pictures of him, a stranger walked by and threw a stick off the cliff. 

And due to Frankie’s instinct, he chased the stick. Causing him to fall over the edge. 

Frankie’s fall happened so fast. Nikki, despite being shocked, immediately called 911. 

A rescue team then arrived to search for Frankie. But they came to a conclusion that the pup won’t survive the fall.

Frankie was found almost 290 ft (88m) below the cliff. Sadly, the rescuers were right. 

The adventurous pup didn’t survive the drop. 

Frankie didn’t mean to end his life. Given that Frankie was an Australian Shepherd, he was adventurous and active. 

He couldn’t help his instinct. This drove his fur mom to make an appeal to people to be more cautious with their actions. Because someone’s rush decision caused her best friend’s life.

You might also be interested in: Burying A Dog In Your Backyard: Laws In 50 States + 9 Risks

#6: The dog who climbed a hollow tree and died 

Did you know that there are dogs who can climb trees?

“But how can they do that?”

Good question!

Let me ask you this:

Have you noticed a toe on the side of your dog’s foot? The one that doesn’t touch the ground.

That’s a dewclaw. PetMD says that canines use it to:

• Climb trees.
• Hold objects. 
• Climb out of water.

Stuckie used his dew claw to climb up a tree. 

Who’s Stuckie?

It’s time to discover his story. It goes like this:

He was found in 1980, Georgia, USA. It’s when loggers chopped down a 28 ft. (9m) chestnut oak.

The pooch wasn’t found on the top of the tree. Neither on one of its branches.

You’ll be surprised as the loggers who found him. 

He was stuck in the center of a tree. 

And that’s how his name was given. ‘Stuckie’ for being stuck in a tree. 

But, unfortunately, he’s already a mummy when he was discovered. 

Yes, that’s right. The moisture of the tree made him mummified. 

Experts suggest that Stuckie has been there for 20 years. 

“How did he get there?”

Well, Stuckie didn’t do it to end his life. 

According to the experts, Stuckie was a hunting dog.

They also concluded that he was on a prey drive. Chasing a squirrel or a raccoon for example. Then he might have followed it when it entered the tree’s hole. 

The same experts say that he continued to climb based on Stuckie’s paw position.

And as he climbed up, the tree’s opening became more narrow. As a result, he got stuck and died from thirst and hunger. 

Further reading: 5 Stages Of Dog Decomposition (How Long It Takes & Facts)

#7: A dog’s fall from the stairs lured her to death

Dogs going up and down the stairs is a normal thing. 

But how about when a dog falls from it and dies?

Here’s what happened to Eevie:

Eevie was a 1 year and 5 months old pup. She loved following her fur mom wherever she goes. 

One day, Eevie followed her fur mom while she was on her way upstairs. Which is what this pup usually does. 

When her fur parent was about to come down, she heard a banging noise. 

She turned around right after locking the door behind her. She was stunned by what she saw. 

Her pooch was falling down the stairs. 

The concerned fur mom ran down right away. She wanted to check if Eevie was okay. 

Unfortunately, she wasn’t. Eevie couldn’t move and her heart was beating so fast. 

The next thing that happened was Eevie’s heart’s beat slowed down. Until it came to a point that it stopped beating. 

Did Eevie jump on the stairs to end her life?

No, it could be anything but suicide. 

She might’ve slipped on her way to follow her fur mom. Or she might not have controlled her force and missed a stair step. 

#8: Dog suffers fatal fall from 21st floor

In the first month of 2020, the Yaletown condo tower neighborhood was in a state of shock. 

An Australian Shepherd/Collie’s case was investigated. 

Fido allegedly jumped off a railing from the 21st floor. The impact of his drop caused his death.

How do you think it happened?

That’s the same question everyone had. 

Did the pooch leap off the building? Or did someone push him?

There wasn’t any evidence that the dog was pushed or thrown. 

A neighbor also told the media that she knows the dog and the fur parent. She believes that it was just a horrible accident. She also added that the dog parent was attentive to his dog. 

The investigators say that the pooch might have been left too long on the balcony. Perhaps he was left with little food or his feeder ran out of water. 

They also suggest that the dog was just trying to find his way back inside. And due to his desperation, it just happened that he slipped under the railing. 

#9: The cutest dog in the world dies from a broken heart

Have you ever experienced losing your best friend?

Just imagining it sends you a pinch on your heart.

Let’s take a look at the story of Boo, a Pomeranian social media star. 

He had a Pomeranian best friend named Buddy. They spent their wonderful lives together for 11 years. 

But sadly, Buddy went to doggy heaven at the age of 14. 

Boo’s dog parents said that losing Buddy made Boo heartbroken. 

Buddy’s passing caused Boo to show signs of depression. 

The pain he was feeling was evident. He started to eat less and was often restless. 

Then after 2 years of living with depression, Boo passed away in his sleep. 

BONUS: Wandering Cloud’s search is over

A similar case of Boo happened to Wandering Cloud. 

She was a dog who roamed the Palonegro airport in Colombia. Her name was actually given by the airport staff.

Why was she roaming the airport?

People at the airport said she seems to be looking for someone. She spent a month roaming at the airport.

Guess what she was doing.

She spent the whole month sniffing people. As if she’s trying to find someone. Her caretaker perhaps. 

But when her search seemed to fail, she gave up. She just laid in one corner, sulking, and never ate anything. 

Afterward, the vet came to the rescue. But despite their best attempts, she died soon after. 

People thought that Wandering Cloud might be looking for her keeper. And failing to succeed caused her depression. Which unfortunately led to her death.