People are not the only ones who may get grumpy without a healthy amount of sleep; dogs need rest, too. Dogs, like humans, require an adequate amount of sleep to function properly, in addition to physical activity. While many studies have been conducted on how sleep affects humans (specifically, its effect on behavior), the same is not true for our canine companions. Although some owners use physical activity as a way to combat problem behaviors in dogs, a recent study suggests sleep may also play a contributing role in behavioral response.
The survey study, “Sleep Characteristics in Dogs; Effect on Caregiver-Reported Problem Behaviors”, examined the duration and quality of dogs’ sleep relative to their behavioral responses. Around 1,330 caregivers responded to the questionnaire, so even though some inaccuracy is expected due to human error and judgment, the large sample size lends confidence in the resulting findings of the study. The survey was designed to acquire information on their dog’s estimated duration of sleep (both at night and during the day), the dog’s typical response to different stimuli, the severity of their dog’s problem behaviors, and how easily their dog is disturbed from sleep.
The study found that 50% of dogs slept between six to eight hours during the night and around 55% slept between four to eight hours during the day. It states that no correlation was found between the problem behaviors and dog age, sex, neuter status, caregiver observation of REM sleep, or breed. However, according to their guardian, dogs who slept less than eight to ten hours (at night) were found to have an increased severity of problematic behaviors. In addition, it was found that there is a relationship between sleep disturbance (while the caregiver is out of bed), and the reported severity of their dog’s problem behaviors.
Although multiple correlations have been found within the data, behavioral problems reported in dogs could also be normal behavior perceived as a problem by the dog’s caregiver. It is also possible that longer periods of sleep lead to a lack of appropriate mental stimulation, which could result in problematic behaviors. Therefore, it is certain that future research is required in this area, as current knowledge regarding canine sleep is insufficient to determine the optimal duration of sleep for dogs.
In conclusion, although increasing the activity level of your dog may seem like a clever way to tire them out and eradicate problem behaviors, this is not always the case. The study “Sleep Characteristics in Dogs: Effect on Caregiver-Reported Problem Behaviors” shows that, like humans, dogs need sleep in order to be able to function optimally. Even though we lack information to determine the target amount of sleep for dogs, it is safe to say that high-quality and consistent duration of sleep is just as important to dogs as it is to humans.