Just like you, of course, your dog needs enough sleep to regenerate his body and gather strength for new adventures. But how long do dogs sleep exactly and why is it so important that you support your four-legged friend?
Answers to these and other questions about sleep in dogs are given below.
As a dog owner, you have certainly known for a long time that your dog needs more sleep than you do. At the very least, you will most likely have noticed that your four-legged friend rests very often and thus clearly gets more than the seven or eight hours you sleep at night.
In fact, an adult dog needs about 14 hours of sleep per day. Sick and decrepit dogs as well as puppies sometimes even need more than 20 hours of sleep a day.
That may sound like a lot, no doubt. However, your dog is far from sleeping all the time. This is because the data on sleep requirements include not only the deep sleep phase but all of your four-legged friend's breaks.
If your dog is resting, this does not necessarily mean that he is actually sleeping. Often his eyes are even open during his rest breaks. Even if you think that your four-legged friend is bored, you should not disturb him. Because simply resting is also important so that your dog can regenerate and recharge his batteries.
Even if your four-legged friend has his eyes closed, this does not necessarily mean that he is actually asleep. Because often he is merely dozing. If this is the case, you can assume that your supposedly sleeping dog is very aware of his surroundings and can jump up at any time from one second to the next if he thinks the situation requires it.
Of course, your dog also needs proper sleep to process the experiences of his day and to regenerate. However, of the 14 or more hours a day just mentioned, this sleep only accounts for between six and eight hours. If you only take into account the actual deep sleep, dogs don't sleep as long as it might seem at first glance.
If you compare the rest times mentioned in this article with those of your four-legged friend, it may well be that your four-legged roommate rests significantly less. This does not mean, however, that your dog needs less sleep than its peers, but is instead an indication that it has never learned to rest on its own.
This is not least due to the strong fixation on their owners that has been trained into the four-legged friends over many generations. If a dog does not sleep long enough, it is therefore very likely to fear that it is missing out on something as soon as it retires and closes its eyes.
If your dog does not sleep long enough and has a hard time getting to rest, this can be a serious problem in the long run and can be massively detrimental to the four-legged friend's health.
At first, your dog's lack of sleep will make itself felt through over-excited behaviour. In the further course, his motor skills and his ability to concentrate will suffer and the four-legged friend will make an increasingly irritable and nervous impression.
If you do not do anything about the lack of sleep, your dog will become increasingly aggressive and susceptible to various diseases. Sooner or later you will even have to reckon with serious, sometimes chronic dog diseases.
As you can see, it is anything but harmless if your dog does not sleep long enough. It is therefore important that you support your four-legged friend in getting enough rest from an early age. This is especially true for puppies, who still have to learn when they are allowed to play and when they need to sleep. In the beginning, you may even have to lie down with your little four-legged friend so that he can get some rest.
Apart from that, you should neither disturb your dog nor encourage it in any way when it retires to sleep.
Try to establish a daily routine that is as regular as possible so that your four-legged friend can get used to fixed times. This not only gives him security but also helps the dog to develop normal sleeping behaviour.
If your dog generally finds it difficult to calm down, a dietary supplement with Shiimun Calm may be useful in addition to the measures mentioned. Shiimun Calm is a natural food supplement with shiitake mushrooms and other high-quality ingredients, such as green tea and brewer's yeast.
Thanks to its special composition, Shiimun Calm can help your dog relax more easily and take the rest breaks that are so important for his well-being.
Get to know Shiimun Calm in the shop.
If your dog is to get enough sleep, it naturally needs a suitable place to sleep. What makes a good place to sleep varies depending on the size, age and individual preferences of the dog. Regardless of this, however, there are some things you should consider concerning your dog's sleeping place.
If your dog sometimes twitches or makes strange noises while sleeping, this is quite normal. Because just like humans, dogs process the experiences of the day while they sleep.
Twitching legs are part and parcel of young and old dogs and are not something you should pull your four-legged friend out of sleep for. They usually only show that the dog is dreaming while sleeping.
It is normal for dogs to rest much more than humans. However, most of the time they don't really sleep, but just doze off with their eyes open or closed.
It is very important for dogs' health and well-being that they sleep long enough. Permanent sleep deprivation can cause behavioural problems and serious illnesses.
If your dog tends to rest too little, you should therefore definitely support him in this. Fixed daily routines and a cosy dog bed in the right place are two measures that can help you with this.
Most dogs are extremely peaceful and friendly contemporaries. Even if some four-legged strangers are rather reserved due to breed-specific peculiarities, they usually do not pose a threat to their..
You probably already know that your dog needs far more sleep and rest than you do. But did you also know that the sleeping position of your dog tells you a lot about your four-legged friend’s health a..
