The reason dogs sleep so much!

Narrated from: Curious Dog Facts

Do dogs really sleep that much? Well, that depends on the dog – trained working dogs would never fall asleep while they’re on duty (that would mean a court-martial in the army after all!), while hyperactive dogs are usually too busy destroying their owner’s house.

However, many dog-lovers have found out that with regular dogs this ain’t exactly so. Taking a picture of the dog asleep in a funny pose is quite easy when said dog spends the better part of the day sleeping! Some dogs can sleep 13 hours a day – talk about a marathon!

But why are dogs so drowsy?

Character

Well, much depends on the dog’s character. We already mentioned that hyperactive dogs tend to wreak havoc all over the neighborhood – but they only do that when they are bored and their owner doesn’t have time to play with them and exercise them. However, less active dogs just prefer to drowse when they get bored. If that is the case with your dog, then you should be happy – a sleeper might seem lazy, but is much better than Dennis the Menace incarnated running amok in your living room!

Furniture

If your dog loves sleeping, then this could mean that you’re a good owner. For most dogs the length of the sleep depends on the accommodation that the dog has found – just as humans prefer to sleep in comfy beds!

If you have provided a good dog-bed for your dog, then you are simply provoking him into sleeping and sleeping and… sleeping (yawn)… After all, pet dogs rarely have a job to go to – what’s the point in getting out of the warm bed then?

Energy and lifestyle

Of course, the energy levels of the dog also determine how often the dog falls asleep. Old dogs, for instance, love drowsing – they are just too tired, even though they lack the ability to spend hours and hours reminiscing how things were better in the good old days.

Also, if you exercise your dog properly (and it is not a hyperactive greyhound that is almost impossible to tire out), then the dog will be tired enough to fall asleep quite often – while an unexercised dog will keep waking you in the middle of the night!

A dog’s senses

Last but not least –a dog’s sleep is different than a human’s… but not so much as you would expect. You may have heard of the two distinct phases of sleep all humans have – REM (Rapid Eye Movement) and non-REM. Dogs (and all other mammals for that matter) pass through the very same stages, and are very much like us in that aspect! They even have their own doggy dreams!

However, a dog has far better senses than a human, and the constantly alert mind of a wild animal to control them. This is to say, a dog’s sleep is much lighter than a human’s – and more often interrupted. Dog often startle and are always ready to switch to full attention. Random sounds and vague scents a sleeping human would not detect even awake are strong enough irritants to wake a dog – which is why humans rarely make good guards dogs of course!

To summarize – this means that a dog is more of a drowser than a sleeper. And it’s only natural that a light afternoon nap can take most of a dog’s day!

to top of the page
Previous Next

Other articles that might interest you::