Do cats have nightmares(What do cats dream about)

Cats are known for their infamous naps. They seemed to spend most of their time sleeping, either curled up in our laps or hiding in their favorite secluded spot. You might be surprised to learn that they sleep twice as long as humans, averaging about 15 hours a day, but for an extremely tired cat, this can easily be up to 24 hours.
With so much time to rest, it’s reasonable to assume they dream just like us. But is this true? Read on to learn whether cats dream and what it means when your cat twitches in his sleep.

When did the dream happen?

In humans, dreams occur during the REM sleep state, usually starting 90 minutes after you fall asleep. During this time, signals important for learning and memory are sent to your brain, but some of these signals are random, and it is these signals that are responsible for dreaming. When your brain tries to interpret these signals and piece them together, it causes your brain to create some kind of story—in other words, it creates a dream.

Do cats dream?

Yes, people believe cats can dream. According to Michel Jouvet in the 1960s, cats also experience REM sleep, so they are most likely dreaming in a similar way to us.
Jouvet demonstrated that cats have similar low voltages of electrical activity in their brains, tend to twitch their eyes and have a relaxed muscle state, all characteristics associated with REM sleep in humans. While this doesn’t fully answer the question of whether cats dream, the evidence clearly shows that something is going on in their brains during sleep.
Interestingly, the amount of REM sleep your cat experiences decreases as they age, so it is hypothesized that kittens are more likely to dream than adult cats. It could also be because kittens are more aware of the world around them, so they have a lot more information to process and more signals are sent to their brains.

What is a cat’s dream?

According to veterinary neuroscientist Adrian Morrison, when cats experience REM sleep, they tend to move their heads as if they are following or watching something. So it’s possible that when our furballs curl up for a nap, they’re probably dreaming about their favorite pastime – hunting.
Research in the United States also suggests that cats may dream about events that occurred in the day or in the distant or recent past, similar to dogs’ dreams. Cats may dream about snuggling up with you on the couch, hunting birds or mice, or dreaming about being with another person. An incident that occurs with a cat or dog.

Do cats have nightmares?

While it seems likely that cats dream, we know nothing about whether they experience nightmares or nightmares. However, anecdotal evidence seems to suggest that cats can wake up and act scared, which is indicative of nightmares.
According to TJ Banks writing for Petful, your cat may be having nightmares. Banks wrote that sometimes her rescue cats would wake up from their slumber, eyes wide open and appear scared. Additionally, there have been other incidents where cats that have experienced traumatic events will make stress noises while sleeping and then suddenly wake up and show obvious signs of distress.
If your cat is also very anxious while awake, read our article How to spot and treat anxiety in cats for valuable help and advice.

cat sleep cycle

Cats go through two sleep cycles, REM sleep and deep sleep.

1. REM sleep

The REM stage is when cats are most likely to dream. They will exhibit certain behaviors such as squeaking and twitching of their eyes, ears, and even tails. Despite all these tics, they also experience a loss of muscle tone, called dystonia.

2. Deep sleep

Deep sleep occurs during the rest of the time your cat sleeps. This is a critical phase as it is responsible for the rebuilding and repair of the body.
It’s important that you don’t wake your cat when they’re sleeping – you should let them get as much rest as possible. It’s often a good idea to provide them with a comfortable, secluded space where they feel safe enough to enter the deep sleep stages.

Why do cats twitch while sleeping?

Sometimes, while your kitten is sleeping, you may notice them twitching, stretching, snoring, or even making unusual squeaking sounds. Usually nothing to worry about as they are all related to REM sleep. When your cat twitches in sleep, it’s usually just due to signals being sent to the brain during the “dreaming” stage.
Some people worry that the convulsions are a type of epileptic seizure, but this is unlikely to occur during sleep, and other symptoms such as general stiffness, drowsiness, loss of appetite, or vomiting are generally present. If your cat also exhibits these symptoms, be sure to take them to your veterinarian as soon as possible.