Goosebumps
Posted by Diane Humann on February 18, 2004
Q: Hi. Do you know if animals get goosbumps? Do you know why some dogs raise thier hackles, like all the time and others don't? Do you know how much control animals have over raising their fur, or is it reflex?
Thank you for your time.
all the best
Diane
A: Take a look at the Goosebumps unit www.enaturalist.org and you'll see that birds and mammals both get goosebumps. Don't confuse animals with mammals - birds are animals too.
Goosebumps in animals are not under our conscious control but are a reflex - our body takes action without our thinking about it. When a dog raises its hackles (in effect gets goosebumps) it makes it look bigger and tougher when meeting other dogs. Birds will do the same thing when confronted by an unknown bird.
John Wiessinger ( February 19, 2004)