Halloween is arguably one of the best holidays of the year. Really, how can you top a seasonal celebration that’s entirely focused on candy, costumes and creeps? Few can resist the pomp and circumstance of the festivities. And everyone loves a good ghost story. So with spooky season in full swing, let’s take a look at some haunting nd hair-raising tales of ghost dogs!
  

Preston the Boxer 

For over 50 years, the Belmont-Hillsboro neighborhood in Nashville, Tennessee has been “haunted” by the friendly ghost of a Boxer named Preston. According to local legend, Preston was with a group of trick-or-treaters when one of the children stopped in the street to pick up candy. Preston darted into the road and knocked the boy out of the path of an oncoming car. Preston was struck by the car and thrown into a nearby lawn.

When the children looked for Preston’s body, it was nowhere to be found. Since then, Preston is said to keep watch over trick-or-treaters on Halloween. Children claim that they have felt Preston’s spirit nudge them back onto the sidewalk when they veer onto the road. 

Blue Dog Ghost 

The legend of the Blue Dog might be the oldest ghost story in American history. The story dates back to the 1700’s in Port Tobacco, Maryland. Late one night, a soldier named Charles Thomas Sims entered a tavern with his faithful hound, Blue Dog. Sims drank and bragged to the locals about his wealth in gold and a deed to a large estate. Upon leaving the tavern, he was followed by a man named Henry Hanos. Henry would ultimately rob Sims of his riches and kill both Sims and his dog. 

Hanos buried the gold under a holly tree and planned to return for it later. However, when the killer returned to retrieve his loot, he was met by the ghost of Blue Dog and frightfully ran away. Shortly after his encounter with the ghost, Hanos fell ill and suddenly died. It is said that Blue Dog continues to watch over his master’s treasure, and every February 8th, on the anniversary of their murders, Blue Dog can be heard howling by the tree.   

Kabar 

Los Angeles Pet Memorial Park in Calabasas, California is the final resting place of celebrity animals and animals of celebrities alike. In 1929, it became home to silent-screen actor Rudolph Valentino’s faithful companion Kabar, his Doberman Pinscher. It’s rumored that Kabar died of a broken heart after Valentino met his untimely death years earlier, in 1926. Visitors to the cemetery where Kabar is buried have reported hearing Valentino’s dog barking. Others have noted that they felt his spirit lick their hand. 

Leona 

The Holly Hotel in Holly, Michigan is thought to be one of the most haunted historic buildings in America. Both guests and employees have said they have seen, heard and even smelled the presence of ghosts and spirits many times in the hotel. In 1989, Norman Gauthier, a parapsychologist and ghost hunter visited the Holly Hotel and found it “loaded with spirits.” In the 1990s, the Ghost Hunters of Southern Michigan began making annual trips to the hotel to ghost hunt.

Examples of sightings at the Holly Hotel include the materialization of the hotel’s first proprietor John Hirst, moving objects, scents of perfume and cigar smoke, disembodied voices and the list goes on. And yes, there is a ghost dog “haunting” the property as well. Leona, the Hirsts’ Rat Terrier brushes up against people’s legs and can be heard running down the halls and barking early in the morning. 

Poogan 

At 72 Queen Street in the King Street Historic District of Charleston, South Carolina stands a historic Victorian home built in 1891. It was turned into a restaurant in 1976. It’s called Poogan’s Porch and it is one of the most popular attractions for visitors to Charleston. Not only does Poogan’s Porch serve up delicious Southern cuisine, but it also boasts a haunted history. In the 1970’s, a well-loved local street dog named Poogan would wander from house to house, dining on table scraps from neighbors and napping their porches.

His favorite porch just so happened to be at 72 Queen. When the last residential owners sold the home and it was renovated into a restaurant, and Poogan became a fixture on its porch where he took on the role of greeting guests. That is, until his natural death in 1979. Since then, diners have reported hearing Poogan barking as they enter the restaurant and have felt him brush against their legs as they eat. Employees have even spotted Poogan napping on the porch.