The Relief Was Instant
The change in the room was almost comical.
One moment, we were preparing ourselves for a potential trip to the veterinarian. The next, we were laughing at ourselves.
We carefully removed the eyelashes from the dog’s fur and threw them away.
Our dog simply stood there, looking at us as though we were the strange ones.
He wagged his tail and went right back to exploring the apartment.
As far as he was concerned, nothing unusual had happened.
How Did an Eyelash End Up on the Dog?
There are plenty of ordinary ways something lightweight like a false eyelash could end up outside.
It might have fallen from someone’s face, been discarded along a sidewalk, or been carried by wind and rain. Once it landed in the dog’s path, his fur provided the perfect place for it to become trapped.
Because false eyelashes are designed to be lightweight and flexible, they can easily become tangled in hair or animal fur.
Once wet, they can also lose their familiar shape, making them surprisingly difficult to identify at first glance.
Why Our Brains Jump to the Worst Conclusion
The incident was funny afterward, but it also illustrated something very human.
When we see something unfamiliar attached to our pet, we don’t necessarily think, That’s probably harmless.
We think about everything that could go wrong.
That’s especially true when the object resembles something we’ve been warned about before. A small dark spot might immediately make someone think of a tick. A strange lump might trigger thoughts of illness. A mysterious insect can suddenly seem much more dangerous than it actually is.
Our brains are designed to notice potential threats.
The problem is that sometimes the alarm goes off before we’ve figured out what we’re actually looking at.
