when a kitty sleeps....

[momos]

I am looking at my monkey ....
as he sleeps facing me in the dinning table...
and he is quite funny, and sceary at the same time !

Is as if he is running in his dream , moving the whiskers, and legs..and his little eyes are half open!!

does that happen often? Ir because he is not very well? ( not eating , been to the vets today ...etc)

 

[buzbyjlc10]

Oliver does this occasionally too and my black lab does it EVERY single time she falls asleep, haha, we've even seen her woof in her sleep.... I don't think it's anything to be worried about - I just try not to startle them when they're dreaming cuz I think it means they're in a pretty deep sleep (a la sleep-walker deep) and I've always heard you shouldn't startle/wake people when they're in that state... if I do have to wake them for some reason, I just use a soothing voice, saying their names and things like "good boy/girl" etc until they wake up more naturally... you could always just make a call into the vet's office and ask over the phone if you're worried, stuff like that the techs can usually answer for you...

 

[charlie'smommie]

Both of our boys do the same thing when they are in a really deep sleep. They are probably just dreaming about something really good (like birds!).

 

[tom w]

Tuffy moves his feet, ears, eyes and wiskers in his sleep all the time. He also breaths real funny sometimes too. I have seen our other cats do it sometimes too but not as much as Tuffy does.

 

[kris777]

What it is called is REM sleep. In this sleep the body does twitch and the eyes move back and forth. It is completely normal. Even humans go into REM sleep.

 

[KitEKats4Eva!]

Sorry to burst your bubble, everyone (lol) but there has been a lot of research into this phenomenon, and it is actually pretty widely accepted in veterinary/biological circles that cats don't actually dream, and all the twitching etc is the release of electrical energy and impulses through their extremities...ie feet, tail, whiskers and mouth. Pretty boring compared to the alternative, huh??? Lol

Dogs, however, I am convinced is a different story - I could swear that they dream, and vividly, too!!

 

[renny]

I don't know if I believe that KitEKats4Eva....at least not after watching me two. Lucky mimics her own behaviour when she sees birds in her sleep. She gets tense, chatters her teeth, her tail swishes and her paws twitch like she's about to pounce, it usually doesn't go farther into the hunt since she's never had the opportunity to actually hunt.

just IMO. I find researchers/biologists (as one myself) pretty much need explicit, irrefutable proof. And until our kitties wake up and speak english....

 

[KitEKats4Eva!]

Originally Posted by Renny

I don't know if I believe that KitEKats4Eva....at least not after watching me two. Lucky mimics her own behaviour when she sees birds in her sleep. She gets tense, chatters her teeth, her tail swishes and her paws twitch like she's about to pounce, it usually doesn't go farther into the hunt since she's never had the opportunity to actually hunt.

just IMO. I find researchers/biologists (as one myself) pretty much need explicit, irrefutable proof. And until our kitties wake up and speak english....

You know, despite what I said, I kind of agree with you. Why wouldn't cats dream? It certainly does mimic their behaviour when they're awake, and they need to expel their memories, same as us. I must admit when I read that I was pretty sceptical.

And I'm SURE it doesn't apply to dogs. Last night Chester kept having what seemed to be the same dream over and over - he was quite distressed, whimpering and doing cute little puppy woofs in his sleep. He only settled when we settled him - much like when your child has a nightmare. He was definitely dreaming, IMO, and he does it all the time.

 

[misty8723]

I don't for a minute believe cats don't dream! In fact, I think they have some pretty cool dreams, which is why they sleep so much

I'm sure they're chasing a bird or a squirrel or each other when they twitch like that.

 

[tom w]

It would take allot to convince me that cats don't dream also. If he wasn't dreaming than why does Tuffy's breathing speed way up like he is scared or excited? When he is not twitching or dreaming his breathing is so slow he looks like he died. Or dog dreams allot too and I can't see the difference from what the dog does to what the cats do in there sleep other than the cats don't go "woof" lol.

There has been different times I watch the cats sleep and wonder what goes on inside there little heads.