Dogs are called man’s best friend for a reason. Besides being cute, cuddly, and loyal, they always seem to have our best interests at heart. Sometimes, as humans, we don’t pick up on people’s true character, but animals really seem to have a sixth sense for that kind of stuff.

A dog owner found this out when his pet began behaving strangely around his wife. After digging a little deeper, he found out that she had been secretly abusing their child. He kicked her to the curb, all because of his faithful dog’s tip-off.

More info: Reddit

Dogs are extremely intelligent and can sometimes sense things that we humans would have never even realized

Image credits: János Csatlós / Pexels (not the actual photo)

The poster said that one day, he noticed his dog become alert, growl at his wife, and chase her out of the room when she got close to their 10-year-old son

Image credits: bearfotos / Freepik (not the actual photo)

He later asked his son why the dog would do that, and the boy hesitantly revealed that his mom had hit him and threatened not to love him anymore if he told anyone about the incident

Image credits: Freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)

After the dad came to know that his wife had emotionally and physically abused their son multiple times, he called the police and told them exactly what she did

Image Credits: Cute-Basket1563

The poster felt grateful that his dog alerted him to the incident, due to which he filed for divorce and applied for sole custody of his child

This horrifying and heartbreaking story highlights just how easily the woman was able to hide her abusive character from her husband but not from their family pet. Immediately after the incident, the dog changed its behavior around her and tried to protect the boy from further harm, which also, luckily, alerted the poster to what was going on.

This type of situation might seem far-fetched, and many netizens stated that as well. To find out if something like this is truly possible, Bored Panda interviewed Ralf Weber, a TWC-certified professional dog trainer. He is also the owner and head trainer at Happy Dog Training. During his 20-year career, Ralf has worked with 1600+ dogs of many breeds.

He has a thorough understanding of all aspects of canine training, including evolutionary psychology, ethology, and, most importantly, learning science. Ralf also specializes in resolving dog behavior challenges, service dog training, and advanced obedience. He is certified in a wide range of canine training areas and is the author of a dog behavioral book.

Ralf told us that “what the man observed with his dog is not just possible but very plausible and highly likely. Dogs are highly intelligent and very social animals. Like all mammals, dogs share the same limbic system (the part of the brain that regulates emotions and behavior) as humans.”

“It is quite common for a dog to protect a child from a stranger or even a family member who poses a threat to a child if the dog cares about the child. Nothing in this story strikes me as exaggerated or untrue. This is believable and not far-fetched at all,” he added.

Image credits: Pixabay / Pexels (not the actual photo)

It’s difficult to know exactly whether the OP’s dog was on alert around the woman because it sensed something wrong or if it had witnessed her being violent. Ralf Weber told us that “dogs are very aware of people’s state of mind and will act differently around people they perceive as ‘off’ in some way.”

“Being ‘off’ doesn’t mean the person is [bad], but something about them is out of the ordinary. The person could have a bad day, be angry, or just started or came off a medication that affects them. If a dog is generally good with people, meaning he likes people, doesn’t mind petting, or even the proximity of friendly strangers, its senses can be very useful to us if we just pay attention.” 

“I have seen this with one of my dogs when a contractor came to the home. My dog likes people but was very alert about this particular contractor, so I kept an eye on him.” Ralf also added that “a dog that is fearful in general or with people in particular still senses the same things. However, we can no longer rely on its intuition as everything scares it.”

The poster told commenters that his wife had been threatening their son for a long time, even before they ever got a dog. Luckily, they now had a furry protector who was willing to do anything to protect the man’s young kid. This is definitely the best paw-sible outcome!

Folks were glad that the poster took quick action to protect his son and report his ex-wife to the authorities

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