You’ve heard a lot about dogs’ noses and their sense of smell. An experienced dog can detect an odor trail in a busy city two days after the odor is formed, sniff out explosives at concentrations of less than one part per million, and detect pollutants in the soil. In fact, some dogs’ noses are so sensitive that they are almost like little doctors. There is a long list of diseases that dogs are thought to be able to detect by smell alone, including multiple types of cancer, diabetes, narcolepsy, malaria and most recently COVID-19.

Dogs can also “smell” pregnancy, many dog ​​owners say. Many dog ​​owners say their dogs behave differently around them after being confirmed with a pregnancy test. But is it because our four-legged friends can smell the new member of the family, or is it just an overactive imagination of the human owner?

Can dogs understand pregnancy?

It cannot be denied that the human body goes through many hormonal changes during pregnancy, and some of them can certainly cause a change in smell. In addition, the reason for this is not only the differences in hormonal balance. Hormones called estrogens specifically increase during pregnancy for the body’s temperature regulation, i.e. making you sweat extra.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean that dogs’ behavior changes are behind their amazing sense of smell. There are many other possible reasons why your dog’s behavior may change. Dogs are more attuned to human emotions than any other species. Our facial expressions, tone of voice, and body language play an important role in their lives, they understand when you are sad, happy or nervous.

Therefore, it is also possible for them to perceive the mood swings, fatigue, and other feelings that come with pregnancy. And when you add in behavioral changes like paying more attention to your tummy, walking slower, sleeping more, morning sickness, and changes in your diet and exercise habits, you may not need a dog’s nose to realize that there’s something different going on.

Of course, human psychology may also play a role here. Just as dogs are extremely attached to us, we in turn behave differently towards dogs, and we also have an interesting “ability” to see patterns that are not there. Thus, it is possible that even if it is not unusual behavior, we may notice that our pet is doing something that we think is strange, and subconsciously decide that this is evidence of a supernatural ability to sense an approaching member of the family.

In short, there is no conclusive evidence that dogs can detect when a human is pregnant using scent. Although many dogs behave differently towards their owners who become pregnant, this may be due to a number of different factors mentioned above.