Can cats have nightmares?

MACgirl

I know this sounds like a strange question, but every day when i come home from work, my kittys always sleeping and wakes up when i come in the door, I pick her up, give her a cuddle, she purrs and then I feed her, this is a routine Ive had since Ive had her, these past 6 months. :rolleyes:

So, last night I was climbing the stairs to my apartment and I could hear frantic meowing from behind my door :eek: so I rushed in and the cat seemed really distressed, she was fine once she was picked up, but for the life of me I cant work out what was wrong with her, then i thought, could she have had a nightmare just before I got home? 'Cos she is always asleep around that time, but Ive never seen a cat actually distressed from a nightmare, just waking with a start

metalgear2k2

I think thats a yes.

MACgirl

lmao, maybe she ran into a wall, that would be pretty distressing alright :rolleyes:

metalgear2k2

maybe she saw something she didnt like?

morganafay

I'm sure they can because they can have dreams. They can meow or dogs can bark in their sleep, they run and chew in their sleep too. And sometimes their breathing gets fast and they seem scared so I wake them up!

Alun

I've certainly noticed some of our cats over the years have what look like nightmares while they're lying there asleep. They start twitching, breathing a little heavier, licking their lips, start swiping at imaginary things with their paws and then suddenly wake up all startled and then immediately jump down of whatever they're sleeping on. So yes, they do appear to dream and have bad dreams occasionally too.

MACgirl

OMG metalgear2k2 thats my cat, lol, even the yellow eyes lol, pretty much what she looked like when i got home to.

Thank you for all replies, hopefully when i get home today she'll be asleep and happy enough

CamillaRhodes

Yep, one of my cats definitely has nightmares. She's blind and i think the world is a scary place for her, so scary stuff happens in her dreams, the poor little mite (I've had her checked out healthwise and the vet is convinced it's not seizures or anything, because she's otherwise healthy)

It's quite upsetting for me but she seems to get over the nightmare more or less immediately, as soon as she realises she's awake, and especially if she gets a bit of a cuddle.

Your kitty may just be a sensitive one too - all the more excuse to give her even more love That said, she may simply have learnt to recognise the sound of your footsteps on the stairs (mine can definitely tell when it's me getting home) and she was just meowing in anticipation cos she was missing me!

Zapperzy

Cats can dream so im sure its possible they have bad dreams occasionally. Its more likely however that something just spooked her, like neighbours doing work (drilling, making loud noises etc.) or road works in your area. It could've been anything really, my own cat gets spooked at the slightest of things like the postman putting letters in the letterbox, people visiting, the neighbours kids playing next door or sometimes just the binmen making noises outside. Its also possible she recognized the sound of your car approaching or you walking up the stairs and woke up.

argosy2006

naa i'm sure they'll win all ireland again this year

jmbkay

There's a couple of cats causing nightmares in my back garden this very minute! The screams of them!

morganafay

Has anyone noticed kittens and puppies seem to dream a lot more than adults, or maybe they just move more in their sleep.

I noticed one of my guinea pigs chewing in his sleep the other day, but he might just have still had grass in his mouth while asleep

MACgirl

Well, I got home and she was fine, chasing a fly and far more interested in that, than me :rolleyes:

NoDice

I like to think my dog has nightmares! She kicks in her sleep, growls in her sleep and then suddenly wakes up and barks at nothing! It's so funny when she realises she's in bed cause she just curls back up again as if she's sulking.

minister poxbottle

3 years ago my kitty cat used to have terrible nightmares it was awful
so i had it put to sleep, not one hightmare since and the dog is a lot happier now he never liked the kitty, poor kitty i miss him loads :(

MACgirl

argosy2006 wrote: »

naa i'm sure they'll win all ireland again this year

lol

CamillaRhodes

minister poxbottle wrote: »

3 years ago my kitty cat used to have terrible nightmares it was awful
so i had it put to sleep, not one hightmare since and the dog is a lot happier now he never liked the kitty, poor kitty i miss him loads :(

You're trolling, right?

--

Enough of the personal abuse.

minister poxbottle

No need for that.

minister poxbottle

CamillaRhodes wrote: »

Yep, one of my cats definitely has nightmares. She's blind and i think the world is a scary place for her, so scary stuff happens in her dreams, the poor little mite (I've had her checked out healthwise and the vet is convinced it's not seizures or anything, because she's otherwise healthy)

It's quite upsetting for me but she seems to get over the nightmare more or less immediately, as soon as she realises she's awake, and especially if she gets a bit of a cuddle.

Your kitty may just be a sensitive one too - all the more excuse to give her even more love That said, she may simply have learnt to recognise the sound of your footsteps on the stairs (mine can definitely tell when it's me getting home) and she was just meowing in anticipation cos she was missing me!

if she was missing ya your not giving her enough love cats need plenty of love, i dont understand why people neglect their pets tis very sad:(

Hellrazer

Right thats it MinisterPoxbottle and Camilla Rhodes--You 2 are being infracted for personal abuse.

If you have a problem with a post or user report it but DO NOT RESPOND to them.

Keep it up and you can take a holiday from the forum.