SPACE.com -- Full Moon and Lunatic Dogs


	Full Moon and Lunatic Dogs By Robert Roy Britt Senior Science Writer posted: 07:00 am ET 09 January 2001

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With little scientific backing, the full Moon has forever been blamed for increased rates of violence, suicide, births and simply driving some people stark raving mad.

Luna, Lunatic, Lunarian

The goddess Luna lent her name to the ancient belief in the power of the Moon to make us mad. Modern studies have associated full Moons with everything from extra insanity to traffic accidents. But the connections have been thin.

Perhaps the most well-founded human relationship to the lunar cycle is the menstrual cycle of many women. Some studies have found weak associations to increased aggression, unintentional poisonings and absenteeism. But other studies have contradicted these findings.

Unquestionably, the Moon is the source of a rich lexicon: Top 10 Luna-Terms

Even animal behavior has long been tied to the lunar cycle. One word: werewolf.

But what about dogs? Is your favorite mutt more likely to take a bite outta someone during a full Moon? The question hasn't exactly been dogging scientists forever, but it does beg for an answer, and now two separate groups of researchers have looked into it.

Problem is, they have two answers: yes and no.

In one study, animal bites were found to have sent twice as many British people to the emergency room during full Moons compared with other days. But the other study, in Australia, found Fido can be pretty beastly on any given day.

Both studies were published in a recent issue of the British Medical Journal.

Bitten in Britain

In England, researchers doggedly examined the records of 1,621 animal bite cases at the emergency room of the Bradford Royal Infirmary, a public hospital. Eleven of the injuries were inflicted by rats, 13 by horses, 56 by cats and the rest by man's best friend.

Here's the real news: Not only are animals twice as dangerous during a full Moon, they seem to warm up their canine teeth (or their homologues) in the days prior.

Next Page: Why dogs are different "down under"

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