Do dogs dream?

They do. Well, that’s what Shantee’s vet said at least. And I think I’ll have to agree. Shantee’s not the first dog Marc and I have seen “talking” in their sleep.

Choknat, Sheero and Harry sleeping and in dreamland

I have a lot of dogs, and some of them sleep near me at night when I’m working. It’s just hard not to notice that some of them do “talk” in their sleep.

Harry is crazy about loaf bread. Don’t ask me why, he just is. He’d go all crazy whenever he sees a bread slice, even to the point of “trading” it for a steak bone (yep, he’ll choose the bread slice over a tasty steak bone if given the choice). Harry is easily excitable by nature, but his displays of excitement are usually controllable. But not when it comes to loaf bread—he goes really crazy when he sees it.

When I was still living with my parents, Harry liked to sleep by my feet under the computer table while I worked. His brother Choknat preferred the area under the printer, while his late mom liked sleeping on my pillow, on my bed. I’ve heard Harry “bark in his sleep” more than once already, which gave me the idea that maybe dogs do dream. What confirmed my idea was the fact that I heard him bark in excitement the same way he does whenever he sees a slice of bread—it was like he was dreaming of loaf bread.

I’ve also seen Spike, our oldest dog, bark in his sleep, then sucked on an invisible nipple :P I think he was dreaming he was still a baby being breast-fed by his mother. :D

Sheero had a bad dream once, and I think it was about me. I heard her yelp for a few seconds in her sleep while on my bed and woke up suddenly. As soon as she did, she ran and jumped on me, gave me doggie kisses. Maybe she dreamt something bad happened to me. She was such a sweet dog :(

My husband, Marc, witnessed Shantee barking in her sleep. He said she seemed as if she was playing in her dream :)

Do dogs dream? Yep, I think they do just like us. Who knows? Maybe dogs also have hopes and aspirations. We’ll never know, would we?

This entry was posted in Dog Psychology, Dogs and Science, My Dogs. Bookmark the permalink.

3 Responses to Do dogs dream?

  1. Mikko says:

    Nice post.

    I haven’t seen our dogs bark in their sleeps. :D I’m excited to see one, most probably our dog who sleeps on my bed. :D

  2. JOY TO THE WORLD! says:

    This is so amusing! i think so too, that dogs do dream. i grew in a household that dogs are like furnitures – they’re everywhere. anyhoo, i have seen them doing funny antics whenever they’re asleep. like right now, i have an aspin and a pug. my pug would usually fashion his mouth like he was eating (he loves eating) and my aspin, would run in her sleep. while lying on her side, she would maneuver her legs in running stance, for more, she does this as if she’s really running off somewhere! Ang bilis bilis tlga! then it would gradually slow down as if she’s done for the time. it’s so funny to look at!

    i think like humans they dream of the things they love doing too! i am just curious with their sleeping patterns though, they seem to be readily alert after a good sleep. uughh.. except for my pug though! he is always asleep. :D

    hehehe

  3. Gail says:

    Yep, it is! Kubrick, one of our Shih Tzus, “sleep-bark” often :P It’s cute to watch!

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