Have you ever stopped to wonder why dogs twitch in their sleep? Could this seemingly benign behavior could be a problem? Veterinarians and researchers have been studying animal sleep behavior for a while now, and some of the answers to your questions may surprise you.
Why Do Animals Twitch in Their Sleep?
Your dog isn鈥檛 the only one who twitches in his sleep. As it turns out, many animals experience this phenomenon.
Puppies and other infant animals are especially twitchy in their sleep. Like puppies, senior dogs also twitch more than middle-aged adult dogs. is that when a dog is asleep, their brain stem (especially the pons and medulla) sends signals to relax muscles. These signals prevent your dog from actually jumping up to chase that dream squirrel. Perhaps this part of the brain stem is underdeveloped in puppies and less efficient in old dogs.
Regardless of the reasoning, even middle-aged dogs twitch, which means there鈥檚 definitely something going on in your dog鈥檚 head when they鈥檙e asleep. These twitches are believed to be associated with dreams.
Do Dogs Dream?
We can鈥檛 exactly ask our dogs if they dream and what they dream about. But science has come up with some interesting ways to determine if dogs and other animals dream.
A found that laboratory rats trained to run in a maze exhibited similar brain activity during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep to that when they were actually in the maze. Researchers concluded that the rats were dreaming about the maze they ran in earlier. The data was so precise, in fact, that researchers could determine where in the maze the rat was dreaming about just by looking at the unique signature of the rat鈥檚 brain activity.
Stanley Coren, neuropsychological researcher, has studied the sleep cycles of dogs and says, 鈥淎t the structural level, the brains of dogs are similar to those of humans. Also, during sleep, the brain wave patterns of dogs are similar to that of humans and go through the same stages of electrical activity observed in humans鈥攁ll consistent with the idea that dogs are dreaming.鈥�
Coren suggests that you can determine when your dog is dreaming. About 20 minutes after an average-sized dog falls asleep, their first dream should start. Their breathing will become shallow and irregular and there may be muscle twitches. Their eyes might also move behind closed eyelids because they鈥檙e looking at the dream images as if they were real. When people are awakened during this or REM sleep phase, they usually report that they were dreaming.
What Do Dogs Dream About?
We can鈥檛 know exactly what dogs dream about, but have observed that certain breeds of dogs tend to perform breed-specific behavior in their sleep when the pons is inactivated. Pointers, for instance, point, and English Springer Spaniels exhibit flushing behavior during REM sleep.
Harvard psychologist Deirdre Barrett, past president of the International Association for the Study of Dreams, suggests it鈥檚 likely that , just like humans. 鈥淪ince dogs are generally extremely attached to their human owners, it鈥檚 likely your dog is dreaming of your face, your smell, and of pleasing or annoying you,鈥� she says.
Should I Wake My Dog Up From a Nightmare?
Dreaming about a pleasant activity is one thing, but what about when your dog seems distressed during sleep? Those whimpers, tiny howls, and barks tug at our heartstrings. As a result, many owners are tempted to wake their dogs from a possible nightmare.
This may not be the best idea. There鈥檚 a reason for the adage 鈥淟et sleeping dogs lie.鈥� Disrupting a dog during REM sleep can result in serious consequences. Touching a dog when they鈥檙e dreaming may startle them and cause them to bite or scratch involuntarily.
If you feel the need to wake a sleeping dog, it鈥檚 better to call their name loudly or make a noise, such as dropping an object on the floor. Then, you can gently reassure them if they鈥檙e startled.
What if My Dog Is Having a Seizure?
Sometimes twitching isn鈥檛 related to a dream at all. Twitches can be caused by muscle or nervous system disorders and seizures. The AKC鈥檚 chief veterinarian, Dr. Jerry Klein, explains the difference between normal twitching during sleep and a seizure.
鈥淎ll dogs dream, and some manifest dreaming with twitching, paddling, or kicks of their legs. These movements are often brief (lasting less than 30 seconds) and intermittent,鈥� he says. 鈥淪eizing dogs鈥� limbs, on the other hand, tend to be rigid and stiffer, with more violent movement.鈥�
Most dogs have a seizure while awake or shortly after waking up. Some dogs, however, can have a seizure while asleep. Klein says seizing dogs can鈥檛 be easily woken. Dogs may also urinate or defecate during a seizure, but dreaming dogs normally will not. After a seizure, you may notice a dog drooling, panting, or acting disoriented.
Talk to your veterinarian if you suspect that your dog might be having seizures in their sleep instead of dreaming. Seizures can have a variety of causes, from epilepsy to cancer. It鈥檚 best to have your dog examined and diagnosed as soon as possible.
Rest assured that twitching during sleep is most often normal, so you might just want to take a moment to wonder what your dogs is dreaming about 鈥� and hope their dreams are sweet ones.