If you die alone in your home, chances are your favorite pet will EAT you

National Geographic’s Erika Englehaupt decided to look into more stories about pets left with their owners who died. He personally collected 20 cases of so-called “indoor scavenger,” all from scientific publications, and then correlated them with a study compiling 63 other such incidents. Unfortunately, the statistics are ruthless and show that the pet, if stuck with its deceased owner, is more likely to feed on the corpse. When she began her analysis, the filmmaker was under the popular belief that cats are more willing to devour their deceased owners. In addition, he also had data on hamsters or birds that would have done such a thing. The 2015 study showed that a quarter of dogs started feeding on their owners’ bodies within 24 hours of death, with some even giving up special food despite having it available. In extreme cases, such as that of a Labrador that was found in the house only after a month, it was simply a matter of survival and a natural behavior of any carnivore. The bottom line is that the results of this study shouldn’t influence our feelings about our pet friends. In fact, studies do not indicate any correlation between the intensity of the affective bond between the owner and the animal during life and the probability that it will eat it after death.