Do cats have nightmares?

[skygem]

Sorry, I'm not sure if this question should go in here or in the Cat Health section, but my boy Rayleigh was just sleeping peacefully on his cat bed next to me, and had been for about an hour or two. Then, out of nowhere, I noticed his face twitching a little bit, and out of nowhere, he just jumped to his feet, all arched back and pupils narrowed to slits, and hissed at me in a way that had me terrified, before he jumped down to the floor and walked away. He calmed down almost immediately, and when I got down to make sure he was okay a few seconds later, he was completely back to normal, and didn't shy away from me or nip me when I tried to pet him.

I just wanted to know if it was just a nightmare, or possibly a health problem that I should be worried about? I'll make a note of it anyways and keep an eye out for if it happens again, but I just wanted to see if anyone had any explanations?

 

[susanm9006]

Cats do seem to dream so I guess he could have had a nightmare. Or there might have been a sound or smell that woke and startled him. In any case, I wouldn’t worry about it.

 

[rubysmama]

I guess we can't really know for sure if cats dream or not, but here's an excerpt from the TCS article on Cat Sleep: What Owners Need to Know – TheCatSite Articles

Do cats dream?​

Researches agree that our cats seem to dream, just like we do. Studies that measured feline motor activity, as well as brain waves, in sleeping cats, show that cats certainly have dream periods in their sleep cycle. Just like humans, cats go through an REM phase. REM stands for Rapid Eye Movement and we know that in humans, this is when dreaming occurs.​

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What do cats dream about? Do cats dream in color? Do they have nightmares? Nobody knows for sure. If you watch your cat as she or he sleeps, you may notice them twitching. They could very well be dreaming of chasing toys, or even prey.​

Since your guy was quickly back to normal, it's probably nothing to worry about.