Paranormal Investigation and the Like

Animal Spirits and the Two Types of Hauntings

Jeff Belanger is my favorite paranormal author. He has a lot of pulished books, and I have almost all of them. When he isn't working on Ghost Adventures (he is the writer and historian for that show), Jeff travels and does paranormal talks. I've got to see him twice, once in Connecticut and once right here in Massachusetts. (As a side note, it was awesome that him and I had a conversation about how great Midnight Syndicate is.)

His talks are very interesting and informative, and at some points even scary. He brings up a topic that I rarely see anyone else bring up, but it's something people wonder about: Can animals be ghosts after death?

I personally don't see why not. The question lies on whether or not animals have souls, but really, it does not matter. Residual hauntings can be totally possible when it comes to animals, in the case where they don't have souls.

For anyone that does not already know, there are two types of hauntings: residual and intelligent. An intelligent ghost is probably what most people think of when they think of hauntings. They are aware of their surroundings, can see the living, and even interact with the living if they wish. On the other hand, ghosts in a residual haunting are not even really ghosts, if you want to look at it that way. They are most commonly compared to movies or videos on repeat. They keep replaying over and over again doing the same thing they did as if they were alive, due to an imprint of energy on a certain location. Take for example when an apparition (full-body ghost)  is seen walking through a wall, in total disregard to any living person or its surroundings. That is most likely to be a residual haunting, which is just energy from a time when there was a door in the wall. A "psychic impression" is what some investigators might call it. 

Take this other example: an old woman religiously went to bed at the same time every single night at 9pm, in her nightgown, walking down the hall to her bedroom. She never went to bed any earlier or any later. She dies, and the people who live in her house now witness an apparition of an old lady as the clock strikes 9pm, in her pajamas heading towards the bedroom. And even if the apparition is walking right towards them, she pays no mind. She is just residual energy. 

I cannot wholly explain residual hauntings or why they work. It isn't something I understand, to be honest. But I accept the fact they may be real, and it may be how animals can be ghosts after they pass, if they do not have souls like humans do. It may explain why a dog owner might still see his energetic little Chihuahua running around the house long after it has died, or why the owner might still hear its high pitched barks outside. 

On the other hand, if they do have spirits, then it is completely possible for them to intelligently haunt, just like humans. 

Jeff Belanger briefly touches upon the issue of whether animals have souls in his public speaking. He refers to a study that was done in the early 1900s, if I recall properly. Dr Duncan MacDougall tried to prove the existence of souls. He took a bunch of TB patients who were going to die soon and who volunteered (we only assume...) to be part of the study. When they were close to death, MacDougall put them on a scale, and noted how much they weighed before their death, and how much they weighed only minutes after their death. The doctor found that the patients weighed less (21 grams less, to be specific) in the minutes after dying, and he connects this to the soul leaving the body. 

MacDougall did the same with dogs, as he was trying to prove that only humans had souls. He took a group of dogs and put them to sleep on a scale, and did the exact same thing he did to the humans. The doctor found that the dogs weighed the same before and after death. No change in weight was noted, and the doctor concluded that animals must not have souls. 

But, animal lovers, do not worry! There are reasons that this experiment might have turned out this way, and the doctor's conclusions might be wrong. The first reason is that, when we die, our bodies become relaxed, we lose control of things, such as the bladder and the anal sphincter. This could cause certain liquids, solids, and gasses to be released upon death. The second reason is that, if souls are spiritual matter, how can they weigh anything?

So, the question of whether animals have souls remains. Personally, I think it is more likely than not that they have them. But many choose to stick to the religious belief that humans are different from animals and that only humans have souls.