Do dogs have nightmares?

Question

The reason I ask is I have 4 dogs, but my Lab and American bulldog will whimper/whoop and kick in their sleep. My mini schnauzer has howled in her sleep once as well. I wake them up and pet them, but are they having nightmares or talking in their sleep? Is this normal?

Answer 1

Yes,Hon! Dogs do have nightmares as well as good dreams.
Were these dogs adopted from a shelter or have you had them from puppies?
Abused animals have post traumatic stress just like humans.
Well cared for & loved animals can still have nightmares too,but theirs are different from abused animals.
For instance ,a cared for dog may be distressed from a dream of not getting a daily treat or feelings of neglect if they think another animal is getting favored over them.
All animals have dreams of fighting enemies,or chasing prey

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Do Dogs Have Nightmares

Answer 4

Accepted wisdom says dogs dream just like people so yes they inevitably have some nightmares. People only tend to remember dreams or nightmares when they wake up during REM sleep, so waking your dog during this kind of episode is not necessarily the best solution - especially since he may be confused when woken.

Dogs tend to dream with more action and for shorter times than people. Sometimes dogs exhibit so much movement during a dream that people have in the past mistaken them for seizures. However, you can easily wake a dreaming dog, but you could not halt a seizure in the same way

Answer 5

well , they say that if there barking or whimpering in there sleep that you leave them be. i always feel bad for my cocker spaniel . last night he was asleep on the couch howling really really loud and running in his sleep . i think that means there having a nightmare but i have no idea.


here ; i found something =)

Sleep And Dreams
As far as the howling in their sleep or their barking at night during sleep is concerned, dogs actually dream! They could well be dreaming of catching a cat or a mouse and hence the excited barking, and if they are terrorized by a nightmare wherein they are being attacked, they howl!

Lastly most owners always express doubts on their pet's sleep cycles. As dogs are polyphasic sleepers, which means they sleep in more than one round of sleep they are rarely fatigued. Since they had to be alert of dangers in the wild in the past, they could not afford to sleep for many hours at a stretch as humans do. Therefore, at the least bit of noise or most minimal scent they are up and back to business!

Answer 6

Yes, they do. In this sense, their brains work like ours do. Dogs will kick in their sleep in reaction to whatever it is they are dreaming about. Humans do too, just you don't hear of many cases of this for two reasons: 1) our limbs are more extended and heavier than a dog's is {we tend to turnover instead} and 2) not every case of movement (including sleepwalking) is reported.

Just like us, if you wake a dog up durring a dream/nightmare, you run the risk of confusing the dog {making him/her a little distrustful towards you} or possibly even get bitten {especially if the dog was in a nightmare.

So do dogs dream? yes, and it's totally normal. If it'll make you feel better, just make sure they're sleeping in a safe enviorment with no objects nearby that can fall on them or near them.

Answer 7

dogs dream just like people so yes they inevitably have some nightmares. People only tend to remember dreams or nightmares when they wake up during REM sleep, so waking your dog during this kind of episode is not necessarily the best solution - especially since he may be confused when woken.

Dogs tend to dream with more action and for shorter times than people. Sometimes dogs exhibit so much movement during a dream that people have in the past mistaken them for seizures. However, you can easily wake a dreaming dog, but you could not halt a seizure in the same way.

Answer 8

I have 2 dogs very loving is the Pitbull and The Chocolate Lab is getting old but still friendly enough and a good dog. He is going 16. I know his days are numbered it will be hard to part with him arthritis has taken it's toll on him. He still gets around decently. He eats good but his weight doesn't increase much. He dreams but as far as nightmares very seldom. I have the Pitbull since she was 5. She just turned 8. She has nightmares occasionally but I just wake her up and reassure everything is fine. She usually back to sleep and his fine. She keeps her ears perked when she is asleep. Don't know why that is? She also snores which sometimes can be annoying but I let her sleep and snore. She is my baby. Even though she is a little older she still my little girl. Love her very much and love him as well. She sleeps in the bed with me most times. He always sleeps in the floor. He is too big to get in bed. When she has puppies as they got older they liked my bed. Imagine 8 in bed with u.

Answer 9

Totally normal. Dogs do dream.

I personally don't believe they are having scary nightmares, however I do believe they have lots of running dreams. I like to believe they are chasing a rabbit or some other little critter in their sleep.

I usually do the same thing with my pets; I wake them and pet their head; usually they go right back to sleep having been reassured that all is fine in the world.

Answer 10

Yes and that's what make them man's best friend. I have an ordinary type of dog, after a day of playing & running with him, in the evening, when she lay down and sleep, she twitches her feet and also moan, we think shes dreaming.
Like people do, when they're tired, so much stressed, that's when we most have bad dreams.

[Although no one really knows the true function of dreaming it does seem to be necessary for normal data processing and memory storage. Dogs think and they have memory. And their memory banks need period purging and reorganization during sleep just as ours do.

Dogs and humans are not as different as some scientists would have us believe. Scientists tend to dwell on the differences between the two species, whereas the sameness is positively compelling. We're 95 percent identical genetically and physically (right down to the iron-containing porphyrin ring our common blood pigment, hemoglobin). Because of this blue print similarity, you might expect a lot of the inner workings to be the same –and they are.]

Answer 11

Very good question !! I too wonder if my is having a nightmare?? Or dreaming about a hot time under the porch !?! Maybe with a favorite neighborhood dog or something !?! Now this kinda shocked me one night!! & I want to know if it's normal for Labadors to howl while asleep!?! lol If not`, I gotta see if I can find out which MUT.. lol Well Neighbors dog that she's dreaming of !?! Or some brute stealing her away`, h`a.h'`a;`H'a,`.