Your dog loves you so much that he continues to do so even while he sleeps. It's not poetry, it's pure science. When you see Fido moving his paws in his sleep, when you hear those little noises he makes between the covers, when you notice his eyes moving under his closed eyelids, know that he is most likely reliving the best moments of the day spent with you. Harvard researchers have discovered something that will make every dog owner smile: our four-legged friends not only dream, but they mainly dream of us. Their brain, during sleep, reconstructs faces, smells and sensations linked to the people they love the most.
How Dog Dreams Work in REM Sleep
Scientific confirmation comes from Dr. Deirdre Barrett, clinical and developmental psychologist Harvard Medical School, who conducted an in-depth study on the brain patterns of dogs during sleep. What he discovered will forever change the way you look at your sleeping furry friend.
Dogs go through the same sleep phases as humans., including that famous REM (Rapid Eye Movement) phase during which the most vivid dreams occur. When your dog reaches this phase, about 20 minutes after falling asleep, his brain becomes extraordinarily active. His eyes begin to move rapidly under his eyelids, his breathing becomes irregular, and he begins those curious paw movements.
During this neurological process, something amazing happens: the canine brain processes the day's experiences just like we do. But there is a fundamental difference that directly affects us.
We are the protagonists of canine dreams
“Since dogs are generally extremely attached to their owners,” Barrett explains in the interview with People, “it is very likely that, when they sleep, they are dreaming of your face, your smell, in short, the pleasure of remembering you”.
Think about it: How much time does your dog spend with you during the day? How many experiences do you share together? Walks in the park, playtime, cuddles on the couch, even those seconds when you look into each other's eyes without saying anything. All these experiences are stored in the canine memory and resurface during dreams.
As we have highlighted in other articles, canine cognition is much more complex than we imagine. Their dreams are not simple replays of events, but real creative reworkings of lived experiences.
Size Matters in Dog Dreams
A curiosity that emerged from the research concerns the differences related to size. Small dogs dream more frequently but for shorter periods, while large breeds have less frequent but longer dreams. A Jack Russell may dream every 10 minutes for about a minute, while a Labrador dreams every 60-90 minutes but for 5-10 minutes at a time.
Age also plays an important role: Puppies dream much more than adults because they have more information to process and consolidate into long-term memory.
When Dreams Become Nightmares
Not all dog dreams are positive. Just like us, they can have nightmares. If you notice that your dog seems agitated, shakes, or makes uncomfortable sounds during sleep, he may be having an unpleasant dream experience. Experts advise not to wake him up abruptly, but rather to call him softly to gradually bring him out of the dream.
Next time you see your dog moving his paws in his sleep, smile.. He's not running away from something or chasing who knows what. Most likely he's reliving the moment you played together at the park, or he's savoring that special caress you gave him before going to bed. Dog dreams are the sweetest scientific proof that love has roots so deep that it continues to exist even while we sleep.
