3 Theories About The Overtown Bridge/ReignBot
There is a bridge in Scotland that dogs try to kill themselves from, and it is estimated that more than 600 dogs have already jumped from this bridge since the 1950s.
About 50 of them found their death and those who didn't - came back to try again.
Researchers are trying to decipher what exactly makes dogs jump off the bridge: is it witchcraft?
A ghost pushing them to their deaths?
Or is there something else under the bridge that piques the curiosity of the poor dogs?
Overton Bridge in Dumbarton, Scotland, was designed by renowned architect Henry Ernest Milner and built in 1895, during the Victorian era.
The bridge known among the locals as the "suicide bridge for dogs" has become a phenomenon that has confused experts for decades.
For an unknown reason, more than 600 dogs threw themselves off the 15-meter-high bridge.
However, estimates as to the number of jumpers vary as some claim that "only" 300 dogs jumped from this bridge.
Many of the dogs survive the fall even though there is a rocky area at the bottom.
According to the reports, all the dogs that jumped from the bridge are breeds with relatively long noses, such as a German shepherd or a Scottish terrier, and they all jumped from the exact same spot - on the right side of the bridge, right from the end.
In addition, all these cases happened on clear days.
Many descriptions include dogs behaving strangely right before they jump: sometimes they seem to stare at a certain point or frolic in place.
The bridge has a tragic past that is not clear if it is related to the suicide of man's best friends.
In 1994, a 32-year-old man threw his infant son off the bridge to his death, claiming he was the devil.
Even though one of the theories holds that there is a connection between the things, this is not the only delusional theory that has captured the hearts of the crowd that loves supernatural explanations.
There are many who believe that the ghost of a grieving widow named Lady Overton is the one who "drives dogs to their deaths".
Lady Overton, so local legend has it, was left lonely and sad after her husband, Baron John White, died in 1908.
Over the years, testimonies have been collected about a lady who walks around in white clothes in the area or about "frantic white lights" - and there are those who are sure that she bewitches the pets and convinces them to jump to their deaths.
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If we dismiss supernatural theories for a moment, there are some that provide more logical explanations.
One of them claims that what attracts the dogs there is the smell of squirrels, mice and especially winters, who often build their house under the bridge and their smell is strong.
As noted, most of the dogs that jumped were long-nosed breeds and the heightened sense of smell of these breeds led the researchers to assume that they were reacting to the scents of animals coming down.
In tests done in an attempt to solve the mystery, ten puppies of the appropriate breeds were given ten different smells to sniff, and seven of them clearly preferred the smell of winter.
This theory is strengthened for a number of reasons: the winters arrived in the bridge area in the 1950s, when these jumps began, and their smell is stronger on clear, dry days.
It is possible that the combination of this with the dogs' limited perspective causes them to misjudge the height from which they will fall.
However, this theory still does not explain why this is happening at the Overton Bridge and not at one of the many other bridges in the area under which winters live.
In addition, it does not clarify the matter of the "fixed point" for the animals to commit suicide.
Another question that arises is whether dogs are even able to deliberately end their lives?
According to dog psychologist Dr. David Sands - they can't.
Despite this, a few cases in history were recorded in which animals committed suicide (cows, a dolphin and also one dog).
Doctor Sands came to the bridge with a documentary film crew in 2005 to try to understand for himself what was happening there.
"Leave the dogs," he said as he stood at the point of death, "even I as a human being have a strange feeling here. All my senses are on fire."
He conducted a number of tests on the spot and came up with a bunch of theories related to some noise or sight that disturbs the dogs, but did not find an unequivocal answer to the mystery.
20-year-old Jenna, who lives near the bridge, agrees that there is something strange about this bridge.
"The first time I got to this point, I felt the air become thin and my stomach flip, a bit like when you miss a step," she said, "The second time I just felt like something bad was going to happen. There was a woman with a dog right at the end, and he wouldn't move. Late I also found out that that weekend two dogs jumped away and died."
In 2019, Bob and Melissa Hill, owners of Overton House, reported that in their 17 years in the area, they had witnessed quite a few agitated dogs fall off the bridge.
The promo for the short film "The Bridge"
Signs were placed at the site urging dog owners to hold their pets by the hand when crossing the bridge.
Since the story resurfaced, online "researchers" have been trying to crack the case and are confident they've found the solution.
One wrote: "Granite has quartz. The quartz vibrates at a frequency that dogs can hear and it can trigger a reaction in them."
Another wrote: "My theory is that the rocks are shaped so that the wind can cause the dog to hear a whistle and react accordingly."
Another added: "I'm not sure why so many dogs jump over the side of the bridge, but I guess some of the dogs see a bird at the height of the bridge, follow it and jump without knowing that there is a big drop. It's possible that for the dogs it's an optical illusion."
In October 2022, Heel Films used Overton House, the bridge and the alleged paranormal activities as the basis for their 2023 short film The Bridge, written and directed by Scott McMillan and starring Christopher Wallace and Susan Sims.
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