Blog - When the Light Changes: Will the Dogs Feel the Eclipse?

Lez Graham discusses the solar eclipse

When the Light Changes: Will the Dogs Feel the Eclipse?

Tonight, the Moon will pass between the Earth and the Sun. From the UK we will see a partial eclipse, with around 90 to 96 per cent of the Sun covered, depending on where we are. It will begin shortly after 6pm, reach its maximum shortly after 7pm and finish at around 8pm, although the exact times vary across the country.

It will not become completely dark because we are outside the path of totality, but the light may become muted and slightly strange, the temperature may dip, shadows may look different and the natural world may briefly behave as though evening has arrived earlier than expected.

The last big eclipse I remember was on 11 August 1999. It was a total solar eclipse, although from East Sussex we were just outside the path of totality, so what I saw was an incredibly deep partial eclipse. Almost all of the Sun disappeared and it was absolutely amazing.

At the time I was working at Amex in Brighton as a Project Manager on the Y2K project. We were preparing computer systems for the moment the date changed from 1999 to 2000, while the Moon and Sun were quietly getting on with something governed by a considerably older and more reliable system.

I can still remember watching the eclipse using a tiny pinhole in a piece of paper, projecting the image rather than looking directly at the Sun.

Mobile phones existed, of course, but they certainly weren’t the miniature filming studios we carry around with us now. Instead, my phone was the iconic and seemingly indestructible Nokia 5110. This time I had planned to turn my back to the eclipse, flip my phone into selfie mode and watch what was happening through the screen. However, having found conflicting safety advice about using a phone in this way, I’ll be returning to the decidedly less sophisticated, but much safer, pinhole projector.

But will the eclipse affect us?

From a purely astronomical point of view, an eclipse is geometry - the Moon passes between us and the Sun and temporarily blocks some or all of its light.

There is no scientific evidence that a solar eclipse releases a special burst of energy, resets our bodies or opens some sort of cosmic portal.

However, that doesn’t mean we cannot feel something.

Human beings have always attached meaning to eclipses. They have been viewed as omens, endings, beginnings and moments when the normal order of the world is temporarily interrupted. Even when we understand the astronomy, watching the Sun apparently disappear remains extraordinary.

Our brains are constantly predicting what should happen next. Daylight should remain daylight. Temperatures should change gradually. Birds and insects should follow their familiar daily patterns.

When those patterns suddenly shift, the brain notices. Our attention sharpens because something is not quite matching its prediction of how the world should be. We may become more alert, more emotionally affected and more aware of what is happening both around us and within us.

Add the anticipation, the excitement and the knowledge that millions of other people are watching the same event, and of course it can feel powerful.

Perhaps some of what we describe as energy is the body noticing subtle changes before the conscious mind has found the words to explain them.

There’s the slightly wacky hippie bit, although it isn’t really quite as wacky as it first sounds.

An eclipse may not emit a mysterious energy that changes us, but it changes the light, the temperature, the shadows, the sounds around us and, perhaps most importantly, what we are paying attention to… and that is more than enough for our nervous systems to notice.

And what about the dogs?

Dogs won’t understand that the Moon is passing between the Earth and the Sun, but they may notice the consequences.

During the 2017 total solar eclipse, researchers studied 17 species at Riverbanks Zoo in South Carolina and found that 13 of them changed their behaviour. Many began their usual evening routines, while others displayed behaviour that the researchers interpreted as anxiety or responded in ways they had not previously observed.

Other observations during eclipses have included birds becoming quieter, insects associated with dusk becoming active and animals returning to their resting areas as the light fades.

However, these studies have largely involved wildlife and zoo animals during total eclipses, not pet dogs experiencing a partial eclipse, so we need to be careful not to assume that our dogs will respond in the same way.

Tonight’s environmental changes are likely to be less dramatic than they would be within the path of totality. Some dogs may become quieter, look around more than usual, settle down as though evening has arrived or come closer to their person. Others may take absolutely no notice and continue searching the garden for something revolting to eat - all of those responses would be perfectly normal.

There is another influence, though, and that is us.

Dogs are very good at using our behaviour to help them interpret uncertain situations. Research into social referencing has found that, when dogs encounter something unfamiliar or potentially worrying, many look towards their owner for information. The emotional message given by the owner can then influence whether the dog approaches or avoids the unfamiliar object.

They also notice where we are looking, how we are standing, the tension in our bodies, our expressions, the rhythm of our breathing and the tone of our voices.

If we suddenly go outside, stare towards the sky, hold up our phones and become unusually animated, our dogs are likely to notice us noticing the eclipse, even if the changing light means very little to them.

When people talk about dogs picking up on our energy, behaviourists can occasionally become a little twitchy. However, energy can simply be a shorthand word for a collection of very real signals that we may not realise we are giving.

Our emotional state affects our movement, breathing, expression, voice and even our scent. Dogs can combine visual and vocal information to distinguish between positive and negative emotional expressions, so they do not need a supernatural ability to know that something is happening as they have spent thousands of years becoming extremely good at reading us.

Research has also found associations between the longer-term cortisol levels of dogs and their owners. This doesn’t prove that emotion is transmitted invisibly between us, nor does it tell us that one moment of excitement will alter a dog’s physiology, but it does show how closely intertwined the lives and stress systems of dogs and people can become.

So, will our energy during the eclipse affect our dogs?

Possibly, although probably not because the eclipse is firing mysterious vibrations into them.

If we are calm, interested and quietly observant, they may watch alongside us or simply carry on with whatever they were doing. If we become highly excited, gather in a crowd or behave as though something alarming is happening, a more sensitive dog may decide that there is something to worry about.

The practical answer is simply to let them choose.

They do not need to look at the Sun, and we should never encourage them to do so. They don’t need eclipse glasses balanced on their noses for a photograph, nor do they need to be taken somewhere crowded simply so they can experience it.

Let them stay inside if they prefer. If they come outside with you, keep everything calm and familiar, then watch what they do without trying to manufacture a reaction.

The spiritual part of me loves the idea of an eclipse as a moment to pause, take stock and recognise that we are standing on a moving planet while the Moon briefly crosses the light of a star.

The scientist in me knows there is no evidence of a mysterious energetic portal opening above us.

The dog behaviourist in me will be watching Emrys and Faelan, curious to see whether they notice the changing light, the temperature, the birds, me, or absolutely nothing at all.

Perhaps the real magic is not that an eclipse creates something that wasn’t already there. Perhaps it simply interrupts our normal routine for long enough to make us stop, look and pay attention.

After this morning’s blazing sun, warm wind and two hawks talking across the sky, I’m already paying attention.

References

Albuquerque, N. et al. (2016). Dogs recognize dog and human emotions. Biology Letters, 12, 20150883.

Hartstone-Rose, A. et al. (2020). Total Eclipse of the Zoo: Animal Behavior during a Total Solar Eclipse. Animals, 10(4), 587.

Merola, I., Prato-Previde, E. and Marshall-Pescini, S. (2012). Dogs’ Social Referencing towards Owners and Strangers. PLOS ONE, 7(10), e47653.

Sundman, A-S. et al. (2019). Long-term stress levels are synchronized in dogs and their owners. Scientific Reports, 9, 7391.

Royal Observatory Greenwich (2026). How to see the 12 August 2026 partial solar eclipse.

UK Health Security Agency (2026). How to watch the solar eclipse safely this summer.

NASA (2026). August 2026 skywatching tips.

first published 12 August 2026

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