What Do Sun Dogs Symbolize?

A Sign of Foul Weather

Despite their beauty, sundogs are indicative of foul weather, just like their halo cousins. Since the clouds that cause them (cirrus and cirrostratus) can signify an approaching weather system, sundogs themselves often indicate that rain will fall within the next 24 hours.

Is it good luck to see a Sundog?

You need the right atmospheric conditions for ice crystals to form, then the sun has to be at the correct angle for light to refract. Rare or not — according to folklore, sun dogs are a sign of good luck.

What does Sundog mean in Native American?

One said to me, the sundog was simply a natural sign which meant that the Lakota could expect cold weather. Another gave me the honest reply that he had not heard of a story associated with the sundog event. The Lakota call the sundog Wíačhéič'ithi, which means The Sun Makes A Campfire [For Himself.