11 Pets Who Returned As Ghosts To Help Or Haunt Their Owners

Christopher Knight tells this strange tale while filming a ghost episode of The Brady Bunch. The cast was staying at a creepy bed and breakfast and stayed up late telling ghost stories before finally hitting the sack. 

According to Knight, who played Peter Brady, he woke up in the middle of the night to find two hunting dogs sitting at the foot of his bed, staring at him. Then, he saw a little girl gazing at him from the doorway. Neither the dogs nor the girl made a sound. 

The next day, when Knight related his strange encounter, the B&B owner took him to a fireplace, where two hunting dogs were depicted on the metal fireguard of the old house's fireplace; they were the same dogs Peter saw. No one knows if the decorations were inspired by two real dogs who once lived in the house, but the mysterious experience left the young actor shaken.     

The Black Dog hangs around Castle Craig in Connecticut, where it has terrorized hikers and castle visitors for decades. Described as small, short-haired, and spaniel-like, the Black Dog makes no sound, even when it seems to be howling or barking. The spectral pooch comes with its own folklore: "If a man shall meet the Black Dog once, it shall be for joy; and if twice, it shall be for sorrow; and the third time, he shall die."

Numerous people blame the animal for the passings of those who saw the dog three times, and tales of such ends date back to the 1800s. 

Cats and dogs are by far the most common animals reported in non-human haunting, but large domesticated animals are also reported to return from the grave. In the Chicago suburbs, there are stables and riding trails in the woods near the busy intersection of 95th Street and Kean. One of the trails crosses this dangerous junction. Until recently, there was no traffic control device to allow those on horseback to cross safely, and at least seven people and some horses were slain. 

There have been numerous reports of ghosts horse sightings, especially at night or near dusk. Dozens of motorists have seen what appears to be a horse and rider in silhouette attempting to cross from one side of 95th street to the other. When drivers slow down to look at the pair, they suddenly dissolve from view. These figures don't simply disappear near one side of the street or the other, but often right in the middle of the road.

The blue ghost dog legend is one of the oldest ghost stories in the United States, dating to the 1700s. As the story goes, Charles Thomas Sims was attacked by a pack of thieves after a night of drinking and bragging about the amount of gold he had. Sims fought to his last breath, with his faithful dog, a blue tick hound, battling at his side.

In the end, the robbers were too strong for them, and the two fell on a rock along the road and perished. The thieves buried the gold, and when they returned for it, were beset by a large blue tick hound. The head thief escaped, but soon fell ill and perished. To this day, people say the hound watches over his master’s gold. A restaurant and bar takes its name from the Blue Dog.

This strange encounter occurred after nursery school teacher Debra Tadman's oldest cat, Wiggie, passed. Grief-stricken, Debra called animal communicator Sharon Callaghan to contact the spirit of her lost pet. As Debra recounts: "Wiggie and I had a very close relationship and I felt as if I had lost a child. He had seen me through a marriage, divorce, other relationships, three house moves and other life experiences."

Sharon was able to reach Wiggie in the great beyond, and told Debra Wiggie was concerned about her apartment, because it was a "toxic place." About a year later, Debra decided to paint her apartment and discovered asbestos and highly toxic mold in the walls and ceiling and aluminum wiring in grave danger of causing a fire. 

Debra is forever grateful to Wiggie: "To this day I can’t believe how accurate and true that reading was."

There is no way that Sharon, the animal medium, could have known that the asbestos and mold were beneath the walls. 

The story of Yabba is a typical pet haunting testimonial. On August 30th, 2011, Yabba passed 11 days before her seventeenth birthday. She and owner Maureen were inseparable; Yabba was her "rock and the love of her life" (aside from her son).

One night, Maureen woke up and found her beloved friend had passed. She was devastated. Desperate and in the throes of grief, Maureen began calling out to Yabba while taking pictures, hoping she could get just a glimpse of the dog's spirit in one of her photos. The second picture taken caught an image that looks like a dog. 

After taking the picture, Maureen made a memorial to the dog with her toys, a rosary, and a Jesus candle. She spoke to her every day, as if she was still here.

One day, Maureen took out a ball and said, "Yabba, here's your ball, come on let's play." The ball moved. It was sitting still on the floor and rolled. Then, it happened again. She felt something brush against her, though she was alone. She believes it was the ghost of Yabba, letting her know all was well, and she's still with her owner in spirit.