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Do Dogs Sleep Too Much

dog rescueAfter a dog rescue in San Diego, the first thing you will notice is how much the dog sleeps. An adult dog sleeps between 12 and 14 hours in a day. A puppy, on the other hand will sleep between 18 and 20 hours. Sleeping too much is normal but if your dog’s sleeping hours increase significantly, there might be a problem. For example, if your adult dog tends to sleep like a puppy, that is 18 to 20 hours in a day, there is a good chance he is depressed. You still need to keep an eye on the sleeping patterns of your dog. But why exactly do dogs sleep too much?

Why dogs sleep too much
As they sleep, dogs usually repack their day’s memories, store the important ones and ditch the rest. While sleeping, dogs also experience periods of rapid eye movement (REM). This happens when their minds are most active. In the REM cycle, the brain of the dog is usually processing the day’s experiences to make sense of them. Experts believe that dogs also dream like we do. Sleep also gives the dog’s body time to repair itself. If deprived of sleep, a dog will have weakened immune system hence prone to illnesses. After a dog adoption in San Diego, you should not feel bad that your dog is sleeping too much. It is for his good. Let the sleeping dogs lie.

Importance of the puppy naps
Good quality sleep is very important for the development of a puppy. A puppy has a lot of growing to do. Adequate sleep provides the downtime that is needed for the body to divert the energy to growth. Sleep also allows the puppies to make sense of the day’s events. Just like human babies, puppies have the on/off type of sleep pattern. They can go from full play mode to deep sleep within minutes. This is something you should be prepared for when considering a puppy adoption. You will need to allow your puppy adequate time to sleep.

Adult dog naps
The wake-sleep cycle of an adult dog is very gradual. Even when he is asleep, the adult dog will go through several periods of wakefulness. It is common for your dog to wake up, assess his environment and then go back to sleep. It is a known fact that the larger dogs sleep more than the smaller ones. The puppies and elderly dogs sleep the most.

Sleep is important to a dog. Don’t keep waking your dog just because you want to play with him. You can also ask the staff at the animal shelter about the sleeping behavior of your target dog breed before you go through with a puppy rescue.

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