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Unexplainable

Unexplainable

Is animal grief real?

Unexplainable · Nov 17, 2025 · 26:11

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A dog on its owner’s grave. A killer whale carrying around its dead calf. A goose that isolates when its mate dies. These behaviors in animals may look like human mourning, but should scientists call them "grief"? (First published in 2023)

Guests: Jennifer Vonk, comparative/cognitive psychologist at Oakland University; Jessica Pierce, bioethicist and author of several books about animals; Susana Monsó, animal ethicist and a philosopher and author of Playing Possum: How Animals Understand Death



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Episodes: Unexplainable

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