Do Dogs Dream? Understanding the Twitches and Running

If I had to guess what my dogs dream about when they enter the REM (rapid eye movement) phase of sleep, the images would certainly include squirrels, a peanut-butter filled KONG, and the flash of weeds as they tear along their favorite trail. Or maybe I catch them “woofing” at something with their mouth’s closed. It can be quite entertaining.

You’ve probably witnessed the tell-tale eye twitches and running motion of their legs that signal dreaming in our pets, but do dogs really dream? Here’s some background information on dream studies on animals and how dogs dream!

How Dogs Dream

According to Psychology today, “typically, a medium-sized dog will begin to dream about 20 minutes after falling asleep; their breathing may become shallower and irregular as compared to deep, sonorous, non-dreaming sleep.

The darting of eyes behind closed lids is the dog “seeing” images as if they were viewed in real life. Some animals may even snap or growl at imagined prey. Humans awakened during this same phase of sleep report they were dreaming at the time.

Anecdotal and scientific research both indicate the probability and content of a dream state. Anatomically and physiologically, the dog’s brain is extremely similar to a human’s, who we know dream of events and images pulled from daily life.

Based on brain wave studies, scientists have determined that smaller breed dream more frequently, but with shorter dream duration, than larger breeds.”

The Study of Rats Dreaming 

Of special importance in the generation of dreams is the hippocampus, an area of the brain associated with memory formation and storage. Washington Post states, that in rats, a species with a simpler brain structure, electrical recordings were taken from the hippocampus while the rats were awake and completing a complex maze.

The brain waves generated by these rats running the maze were very specific, repeatable, and so precise that researchers could pinpoint which area of the maze the rats were running based on the electrical wave. Later, when brain activity had indicated the rats were in the dream-generating REM portion of sleep, MIT scientists observed these identical waves.

This data was extrapolated to mean that the rats were dreaming about the maze they had just completed, down to precise location of the maze the rats were “running”  in sleep. In all likelihood, our dogs are dreaming about their version of the maze, dashing along a familiar path or playing with a favorite squeaky toy of which the hippocampus has retained images.

The Pons Region of the Brain

Another portion of the brain, the pons, was studied to determine dream content. In addition to acting as a sensory message relay center in the brain and helping to regulate sleep and respiration, the pons helps hinder movement in sleep. Without this special structure, animals actively engage in movement in the same manner during sleep as they would when awake.

In studies where the pons was removed or inactivated, sleeping dogs executed familiar actions even when brain waves indicated they were dreaming, such as chasing make-believe balls and flushing out imagined birds. Observing this study sounds like watching a dog zombie apocalypse! Puppies, human babies, and seniors all experience more movement such as twitching during sleep due to the underdeveloped or less efficient pons. Fascinating! (‘Pet Butler’ online magazine)

Can Dogs Have Bad Dreams?

If dogs dream about their daily lives, they can certainly have nightmares of being home alone during a storm or being attacked by another animal? If it occurred in real life, it’s very likely they do. Or maybe they had a scary circumstance that very day! It can be difficult to watch your restless pup dream and become agitated in sleep. Should you wake them from their nightmare or leave them be?

From personal experience, it can be very disorienting to have a scary dream interrupted by the alarm clock; it takes a few minutes for my breathing to slow and my mind to register my surroundings. Instinctually, your dog may react aggressively and unpredictably if woken during a nightmare. It’s best to let them sleep through it; when they wake, provide plenty of snuggles and play time so that future dreams include these joyful memories!