Dogs need a lot more sleep than people do. In the wild wolves sleep when their bodies say they need sleep—unlike people who have busy schedules and not listen to the sleep/rest signals from their bodies. On average dogs need about 12 to 17 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period. That will however vary with age and breed. Puppies, Giant Breed dogs and older dogs will need even more sleep, up to 20 hours per day.
In the awake hours of the day ,wolves will spend another 30% of their day “loafing”. Basically being awake but not really doing anything, just laying down and watching the world, enjoying being a bit lazy. The same for our dogs, looking at it this means that on average 80% of the time our dog’s day is being spent not doing much at all.
Despite all the sleep our dog gets, canine sleep cycles are much shorter than human sleep cycles. According to Dr Loomis and Dr Dement and Kleitman, the average dog sleeps for about 45 minute at a time, and experiences two sleep cycles during that time period. That is much different compared to the sleep cycles of humans that are much longer. Sleep cycles in humans according to Dr. Rechtschaffen are about 70 to 120 minutes each.
The length of our sleep cycles increases as the night passes, also the amount of time we spend in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Humans may spend up to 25% in REM sleep, the stage in which dreams occur, and we cycle from non-REM to REM several times. Dogs, on the other hand, only cycle through REM twice, and spend an average of 6 minutes in REM each time.
Dogs are continuously exposed to various stimuli in the human world. This means their brains are constantly active. “All day long, electrical activity is happening in our brain, and random, disorganized data gets stored in various places,” says Dr. Nicholas Dodman, professor emeritus at Tufts University. “We organize that in our sleep, and dogs do, too. It’s very therapeutic, and if you deny dogs that, they’ll kind of lose it.”
With all that exposure that lack of sleep will contribute to your dog being in a bad mood and is often the explanation of his or her’s unruly behavior and the display of unwanted behaviors. Dr. Joan C. Hendricks, VMD, PhD, Dip ACVIM, adds that sleep helps a dog’s brain development, memory, and learning capacity, as well as their immune system. “Sleep-deprived animals and people are more prone to infections” she says
Most pet dogs don’t sleep enough and get too little sleep. Some of these dogs may develop CDS, Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome, a canine variation of Alzheimer’s disease. Dogs who have developed CDS appear more anxious and in many cases “forget” their house training.
But what about peeing? Can a dog hold his bladder for 10 to 12 hours?
Most healthy adult dogs can easily hold their bladder for 12 hours during the night. Like in humans, hormonal changes prevent the dogs from needing to pee at night. Humans would have a difficult time to not use the bathroom for 8 to 10 hours during the day but when sleeping for a healthy human that is no problem at all.
For all my personal dogs and my board and train dogs I strive to give them at least 10 - 12 hours of sleep per night, crated in a dark environment away from human stimulation.
During the day however that is a different story. When dogs are active during the day, crating them for 10 hours will result in having accidents in the crate. This is due to the influence of their natural awake/sleep cycle and homeostasis.
Another thing that needs to be said is that the crate should have been conditioned properly and is not perceived as a prison but as a safe environment. Also dogs with severe separation anxiety should not be crated for that long, even during the night. An alternative for those dogs is to have your dogs sleeping in a kennel or provide a “dog proof” room.
So how can you improve your dog’s sleep?
Implement a routine, so they know when they are expect to be active, exercise and sleep. During the day vary the activity level and activities and feeding times. Before going to bed allow the dog to go to the “bathroom” one more time. Also make sure the last meal is 4 hours before bed time. Most dogs enjoy their own sleeping spot, a crate, their own bed or kennel. Very similar to the “den” in the wild. If you notice any significant changes in your dog’s sleep that persist for more than a few days, talk to your veterinarian.
So with that all said. Sleep well.
Bart de Gols
