Dogs usually dream about their lives identical to people and have nightmares too
Twitching and moving animals do when they are asleep are signs they are thinking about places they have been and things they have experienced
Dogs dream about their daily lives just like humans, boffins say. The twitching and moving pet pooches do when they are asleep are signs they are thinking about places they have been and things they have experienced.
Science writer Beki Hooper said experts have looked at the brain activity of animals to determine if they dream. They believe they do and frequently re-visit experiences while snoozing.
Beki told BBC Wildlife magazine: “Most of us have watched a dog, cat, rat or bird twitching in their sleep and these movements are likely to indicate dreaming. But the absence of movement does not mean the absence of dreams. Many wild animals may have evolved not to move too much in their sleep in case it attracts predators.
“Scientists have started looking at brain activity. When sleeping animals have brain activity that mirrors wakeful brain activity this indicates they are dreaming. By looking in detail at brain activity during sleep scientists can figure out exactly what animals are dreaming of.”
Brain activity in snoozing rats suggests they ‘dream about specific places’ such as mazes they have explored while awake.
Beki added: “Not only that, they might walk those routes in reverse and imagine new routes in their dreams too.”
Experts believe pets experience the same type of dreams.
According to the Blue Cross animal welfare charity ‘the same areas of the brain that light up for humans when we dream also light up in dogs’. A spokesman said: “Just like us, dogs enter different cycles throughout their sleep.
“Dreaming is most likely to happen in the REM – rapid eye movement – phase of sleeping.”
Signs dogs are dreaming include paw twitching, breathing changes, eye flickering, whimpering, barking, body movements and tail swishing. The charity said ‘we’ll never know what dogs dreams about’ as ‘there’s no way to see inside their heads’.
But a spokesman said a dog’s ‘brain processes information in a similar way to ours so they may dream in the same way that we do’.
“As humans we dream partly to process our day,” they said.
“This helps us to learn about and digest what we have experienced. Our dreams mix things we like or dislike with memories of people we’ve met throughout the day. The same goes for our dogs.
“So if your dog enjoys chasing squirrels they may experience this in their dreams. Dogs are often very attached to their owners. As owners we also play a huge part in our dog’s day. So, it’s incredibly likely that your dog is also dreaming about you.”
The charity said it was ‘impossible’ to tell if a dog was having a ‘good or bad dream’ but their behaviour while asleep may give a clue, adding: “Dogs react physically to their dreams while they sleep similar to humans.
“It’s likely that if your dog is happily barking or twitching they are having a good dream. Whimpering may indicate they are having a bad dream.”
But it was important to let a sleeping dog lie even if their owner suspected they may be having a nightmare.
“You should not wake your dog up if you think they’re having a bad dream,” the spokesman said.
“When we dream we digest our day. It’s our way of building up emotional resilience so that when we’re faced with the situation again we can better cope with it. It is thought that dogs’ dreams are of equal importance to their wellbeing. So it’s best to let them sleep even if they’re having a bad dream.”
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