Can Rest Home Cats Predict Death?
Oscar the cat who famously predicted the death of over 100 rest home residents with Doctor Dosa who wrote a book about it. Photo Credit.
There have been many accounts of cats in rest homes repeatedly sitting near residents who pass away not long after. Is it possible for animals to sense when someone is about to die?
Rest Home Cats Predict Death
Oscar the cat resting on a patient's bed at Steere House. Photo Credit.
It is remarkably common in rest homes around the world to hear stories of cats that seem to know when people are about to pass away. When my nana was dying in a rest home the staff told us about how the rest home cat, a tabby and white beauty named Toby, seemed to know when residents where about to pass away.
Toby would often linger outside the door of residents who were on their death bed or jump on their bed for a nap. I am a huge cat lover but this cat had something in its eyes that made it a bit creepy.
A little more well known is a therapy cat named Oscar. Oscar was adopted by the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Providence, Rhode Island. He was one of six cats adopted by the pet-friendly facility in 2005. Oscar was named for his reputation of being a bit of a grouch. He didn’t really like people and he would let you know if he wasn’t happy by hissing.
Oscar was a very timid cat and would often hide away in closets and under furniture. Strangely just a few hours before someone was about to pass away Oscar would emerge from his hiding place and go and nap next to them.
Staff noticed that people would often pass away within a few hours of Oscar’s arrival.
Joan Teno, one of the facility’s Doctors, noticed that Oscar would almost always show up within the last few hours of a patients life.
If Oscar was kept outside of the room of the dying resident he would often scratch at the door and meow to be let in.
After Oscar had accurately predicted 25 deaths the nursing staff began to call family members if Oscar was sleeping near their relative to give them a chance to come in and say goodbye.
As of 2015 it the staff at Steere House believed Oscar had predicted over 100 deaths.
Doctor David Dosa was so moved by his time working alongside Oscar the cat that he wrote a book about it.
Theories about Cats Predicting Death
Doctor Teno and Doctor Dosa wondered if Oscar was able to smell certain chemicals that are released when the body’s organs begin to shut down.
They also wondered if it was the stillness of the patient that made them a warm and peaceful spot to nap.
Others have argued it is merely confirmation bias and people are only noticing Oscars presence when patients are likely to die soon anyway.
From a more paranormal angle many people suspect that animals are able to see spiritual things that humans cannot. Cats are known to stare intently into space as if looking at something we can’t see.
Maybe cat’s heightened senses of sight, smell and hearing give them abilities beyond what we can comprehend. Perhaps they can see the whatever makes up a person’s consciousness beginning to detach from the body. After all the supernatural is just reality that we haven’t quite figured out yet.
If you enjoyed this article you may also like to read about why we find liminal spaces creepy or mull over different types of paranormal fog.
Further Reading:
Making Rounds with Oscar by David Dosa.
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