Just like us, our pet dogs also dream when they sleep. Have you ever noticed your dog’s legs moving or their tails wagging while they sleep? That’s because they’re seeing a dream.
In their dreams, they might imagine running in big open fields, playing with their favorite toys, or even getting lots of yummy treats. It’s like a movie in their minds where they can do all the fun things they enjoy.
The team of ThePleasantDream (a dream interpretation website) came across a study with some interesting findings on various dream dynamics of pet dogs. Seeking a clearer understanding of dogs’ dreaming habits, we consulted experts worldwide who shared their invaluable views with us.
Here’s what they had to say…
How can you tell if your dog is dreaming?
Alex Anderson-Kahl, Nationally Certified School Psychologist
Dogs, like humans, experience rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, which is the sleep stage associated with dreaming. During REM sleep, you may notice certain behaviors in your dog, such as twitching of the facial muscles, rapid movement of the eyes, and even movements like running or paddling their paws. These movements and behaviors are indications that your dog might be dreaming.
Pareen Sehat, Clinical Director at Well Beings Counselling
When your dog makes faces or growls while sleeping, it indicates that your pet is dreaming.
Marissa Moore, Licensed Professional Counselor, Therapist, MA, LPC and Mental Health Consultant writer at Mentalyc
Dogs exhibit various physical and behavioral signs during dreaming. You might notice twitching, paddling their legs, small whimpers, or even gentle barks while they’re asleep.
These actions are reminiscent of their waking activities and suggest your dog engages in dream-like experiences.
Bayu Prihandito, a Certified Psychology Expert, Life Coach and Founder of Life Architekture
Dogs, like humans, enter the REM phase during sleep. You might observe behaviors like twitching paws, subtle movements, or even soft barks during this phase.
These are indicators of them being in a dream state. The article from Inverse also notes that dogs often bark, growl, and seem to run in their sleep, mimicking their awake activities.
Dr. Brian Evans, Clinical Director at Dutch Pet
When your dog enters the dreaming REM sleep phase, you might notice twitching, eye movement, running movements while lying down, and even tail wagging. In this phase, many dogs also emit sounds like heavy breathing or yipping.
Kevin O’Brien, CEO & Co-founder of PetRelocation
Like humans, dogs have a REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep phase where dreaming occurs. If your dog is in this phase, you may notice twitching, paw movements, or even the dog making noises as if they’re chasing something.
Daniel Caughill, Co-founder of The Dog Tale
Dogs often whimper or bark when dreaming. These sounds may sound muffled or subdued because your dog does them while asleep, but the sound is unmistakable.
Dogs may also run in place, with their legs spinning as they sleep on their side. These sounds and movements indicate that dogs probably dream of chasing other dogs or animals they’ve seen outside.
If you hear a thumping while your dog is asleep, it may be the sound of their tail hitting the floor. This indicates that your dog dreams of something that makes them excited or anxious.
Do dogs have recurring dreams?
Alex Anderson-Kahl, Nationally Certified School Psychologist
The research available does not provide a definitive answer to whether dogs have recurring dreams. However, studies on rats have shown that their brains replay their activities from the day during REM sleep. Given the similarities in mammalian brain structures and sleep patterns, it’s plausible that dogs might also replay their daily experiences in dreams, but whether these are recurring is not confirmed.
Pareen Sehat, Clinical Director at Well Beings Counselling
Yes, small dogs usually have more recurring dreams than old ones. They often dream about the activities they have been involved in during the day.
Marissa Moore, Licensed Professional Counselor, Therapist, MA, LPC and Mental Health Consultant writer at Mentalyc
While we can’t definitively say that dogs have recurring dreams as humans do, research suggests that dogs might experience similar dream content across different sleep cycles.
Dogs often dream about familiar activities, places, and people they’ve encountered in their waking lives.
Bayu Prihandito, a Certified Psychology Expert, Life Coach and Founder of Life Architekture
While it’s hard to determine the exact content of a dog’s dream, behavioral observations, and studies, like the one from MIT on rats, suggest that animals dream about their real-life experiences. So, if a dog has had a repetitive or impactful experience, it might replay in their dreams.
Dr. Brian Evans, Clinical Director at Dutch Pet
A number of canines are discovered to have recurring dreams involving their humans.
Kevin O’Brien, CEO & Co-founder of PetRelocation
While it’s hard to confirm whether dogs have recurring dreams, they dream about their daily experiences. So, if these experiences repeat, it’s plausible their dreams might as well.
Daniel Caughill, Co-founder of The Dog Tale
It’s impossible to know exactly what dogs dream. But most of their dreams likely revolve around similar events, such as playing fetch or wrestling with one of their friends at the dog park.
Do dogs see color in dreams?
Alex Anderson-Kahl, Nationally Certified School Psychologist
Determining the exact visual content of a dog’s dream is challenging. However, in waking life, dogs see the world differently than humans, perceiving colors mainly in shades of blue and yellow. If dogs do visualize their experiences in dreams, it’s likely they would see them in the same color spectrum as when they’re awake.
Pareen Sehat, Clinical Director at Well Beings Counselling
Unlike humans, dogs have restricted sight of colors when they dream. Either they don’t see any color, or if so, they are usually yellow, gray, or blue.
Marissa Moore, Licensed Professional Counselor, Therapist, MA, LPC and Mental Health Consultant writer at Mentalyc
Dogs perceive colors differently from humans due to their dichromatic vision (limited color spectrum).
Whether they see color in dreams remains uncertain, but their dream experiences might involve more prominent sensory inputs like scents and sounds rather than vivid visual imagery.
Bayu Prihandito, a Certified Psychology Expert, Life Coach and Founder of Life Architekture
Dogs perceive the world in shades of blue and yellow. Their dreams likely reflect this same color palette, painting a world of summer skies and golden fields.
Kevin O’Brien, CEO & Co-founder of PetRelocation
Dogs see fewer colors than humans, which likely translates to their dreams. They see the world in shades of blue and yellow but cannot distinguish between red and green.
Daniel Caughill, Co-founder of The Dog Tale
A dog’s brain can only recognize the colors that are visible to it when it’s awake.
Do dogs have nightmares? If yes, what causes these nightmares?
Alex Anderson-Kahl, Nationally Certified School Psychologist
While we can’t definitively say that dogs have nightmares in the same way humans do, they can exhibit signs of distress during sleep, such as whimpering or twitching. These could be indicative of unpleasant dreams or nightmares. The exact cause of these distressing dreams is unknown, but, like humans, it could be related to negative or stressful experiences.
Pareen Sehat, Clinical Director at Well Beings Counselling
Yes, dogs can have nightmares. When you see your pet growling or making faces during sleep, don’t wake them. They might have a nightmare.
During this state, they don’t know where they are and can cause harm to you if you interrupt their sleep. They see such dreams because they might have gone through some traumatic experiences.
Marissa Moore, Licensed Professional Counselor, Therapist, MA, LPC and Mental Health Consultant writer at Mentalyc
Dogs can indeed have nightmares, just like humans. These nightmares are likely triggered by stressful or traumatic experiences they’ve had.
For instance, dogs that have been through abuse, separation anxiety, or other distressing situations may experience nightmares related to those events.
Bayu Prihandito, a Certified Psychology Expert, Life Coach and Founder of Life Architekture
Absolutely! Just as past traumas or fears can influence our dreams, dogs might relive stressful or scary experiences in their sleep.
A dog with a traumatic event might have dreams reflecting those emotions. Ensuring our pets have a safe and loving environment can help reduce such occurrences.
Dr. Brian Evans, Clinical Director at Dutch Pet
Yes, dogs can experience nightmares. Your dog’s dreams are connected to things that happen in their everyday life. So, if something bad or scary occurs to them, they could dream about it.
For instance, if your dog gets really frightened by fireworks due to a bad incident, they might dream about fireworks again later. When dogs dream, they’re creating memories.
Kevin O’Brien, CEO & Co-founder of PetRelocation
Dogs can have nightmares, identifiable by distressed sounds or movements during sleep. These could be triggered by past traumatic experiences or anxiety.
Daniel Caughill, Co-founder of The Dog Tale
If a dog has experienced traumatic events, it could likely experience nightmares and happy dreams.
How do dog dreams differ from human dreams?
Alex Anderson-Kahl, Nationally Certified School Psychologist
Both dogs and humans experience REM sleep and show high levels of brain activity during this stage. However, the content of their dreams might differ based on their daily experiences and memories.
For instance, a dog’s dream might revolve around activities like chasing balls, playing, or exploring their surroundings. While humans can dream about abstract concepts, emotions, or future events, dogs likely dream about their day-to-day experiences. Additionally, the way memories are processed and reassembled in dreams might differ between species.
Pareen Sehat, Clinical Director at Well Beings Counselling
Just like humans, dogs see dreams related to their daily activities. But it is often said that, unlike humans, they cannot see themselves in their dreams.
Marissa Moore, Licensed Professional Counselor, Therapist, MA, LPC and Mental Health Consultant writer at Mentalyc
Dog dreams are likely simpler and more sensorial compared to human dreams. Human dreams often involve complex scenarios, abstract concepts, and emotional experiences. On the other hand, dogs tend to dream about day-to-day activities, interactions, and familiar scents.
Additionally, the duration of dog sleep cycles, including REM (rapid eye movement) sleep where dreaming occurs, varies from humans. Dogs spend a larger proportion of their sleep in REM, which might mean they dream more frequently and intensely than humans do.
Understanding dog dreams gives us a glimpse into their cognitive processes and emotional experiences. While we can’t fully comprehend the content of their dreams, the signs they exhibit during sleep offer intriguing insights into their inner worlds.
If you’re concerned about your dog’s sleep patterns or behaviors, it’s always a good idea to consult a veterinarian to ensure their well-being.
Bayu Prihandito, a Certified Psychology Expert, Life Coach and Founder of Life Architekture
While the mechanics of dreaming might be similar, the content can differ. Our complex lives, emotions, and societal pressures influence our dreams. In contrast, a dog’s dreams are likely more straightforward, revolving around its daily experiences.
The Inverse article also highlighted that the pons in the brain stem play a role in preventing both humans and dogs from acting out their dreams, indicating some similarities in the dreaming process.
Dr. Brian Evans, Clinical Director at Dutch Pet
You might be amazed that your dog dreams like you do. Dogs dream about things they’ve experienced, and dreams help them make memories.
Kevin O’Brien, CEO & Co-founder of PetRelocation
Dogs’ dreams are believed to be more immediate and activity-based, reflecting their day-to-day experiences. Where humans dream in a narrative form, dogs are likely to dream about their basic daily activities.
Daniel Caughill, Co-founder of The Dog Tale
A dog’s dreams will be limited by a dog’s memory and understanding of the world. This means their dreams won’t include language and will more likely be oriented around the sensations and people they love.
Closing Thoughts
All the experts had some great insights to share with us, delving us into the world of what our pet dogs dream. It’s amazing to think that when we see our dogs twitching or wagging their tails, they might be chasing exciting adventures in their dreams. Understanding this aspect of their lives brings us closer to our beloved pets, reminding us of our excellent bond with them.
