Doggy Nightmares
 

I'm wondering if anyone else has an issue with their dogs having nightmares. Our poor 16 month old Crosby has what seems like violent nightmares about twice a week. He sleeps on the end of our bed and he'll start whining and barking in his sleep (something he NEVER does when awake). He of course wakes us up startled. If I wake Crosby up during his nightmares he's up pacing and whining for at least an hour. Like he's looking for or worried about what he just had in his night mare. He also shakes violently during these nightmares-almost like a seizure. And all 96 pounds of him shaking feels like an earth quake in the middle of the night!
During the day, during thunderstorms, or any other times he is the happiest pup out there and it really concerns us that maybe something in his diet should be changed. Or maybe something else?
Any dog psychologists out there?
It should also be mentioned that Crosby came to us at 12 weeks from a rescue organization--I often wonder if his nightmares are to do with something he went through before we rescued him---of course that makes me just want to :cry:
It has gotten so bad that I've taken him to the vet--unfortunately our regular vet went and had a baby (the nerve!) and I am not super overjoyed by her replacement--I videotaped a really bad nightmare and tried to show it to her--she didn't want to see it and just said there's nothing wrong :(
Any thoughts or suggestions? Thank you!

Just to be clear--it sounds like I'm annoyed he's waking us up..not at all! Just worried about our poor pup!

Sometimes Theo has dreams but not violent like that. Are you sure they are dreams and not seizures?

How can I be sure? Are there signs to indicate either or?
He only has them at night--never during his naps in the day time. If I don't wake him up he eventually stops and continues on with his sleep. I just wish I was more confident in this new vet...I'm thinking about calling the vet off on baby leave at home. She really is a great vet--she even called my mother on Christmas Day to find out how her cat was doing as they had to take him in a few days before--THAT's a GREAT VET! But I'm wondering what others think before I bother her at home....

Can you calm him down without waking him up? We can do that with our boy but he isn't as wild as yours sounds. We just prefer to not be whacked by his flailing limbs. If you could calm him without waking him perhaps the next hour of pacing and whining could be averted?

We place a hand on the dog and softly say good boy and he settles down. I really don't think he wakes up, at least not fully.

Good luck.

[QUOTE=Kirsten145741;1040106]How can I be sure? Are there signs to indicate either or?
He only has them at night--never during his naps in the day time. If I don't wake him up he eventually stops and continues on with his sleep. I just wish I was more confident in this new vet...I'm thinking about calling the vet off on baby leave at home. She really is a great vet--she even called my mother on Christmas Day to find out how her cat was doing as they had to take him in a few days before--THAT's a GREAT VET! But I'm wondering what others think before I bother her at home....[/QUOTE]

You can do a search on you tube for dog seizures. I am warning you in advance, they are very graphic and upsetting to watch. That way you can get an idea of what they look like.. (My little guy has then sadly but not violent once like some I have seen) ALSO, do a search for dog nightmare video's so you can see what other experience as well and see if that is what you are dealing with. Your vet sounds great! Personally, I'd bother her at home lol :)

Kirsten, I'm so sorry your sweet boy (and you!) are troubled by this. You said you have a video... is it uploaded somewhere? It could be a type of seizure. Nookie does what you're describing. Most of the time, they're just dreams. But we're quite sure that sometimes they're a neurological event of some sort. There are several types of seizures. Nookie has grand mals and pretty severe neurological issues. When you wake him, does he wake up completely? Is it hard to wake him (takes several seconds of shaking etc)? The pacing/whining is what Nookie does after a seizure, even once he's had the Valium. I recently read that it is due to a drop in the blood sugar levels and to give them a tablespoon of Haagen Daz Vanilla Ice cream (it has no preservatives and there's something about the way it's made that stabilizes the blood sugar fast). I haven't tried it for Nookie yet, because (thankfully!) he hasn't had a seizure since I read that. If you have a link to the video, I'll take a look at it :)

Thanks everyone for all the comments! I have the video on my iPhone--if I can figure out how to upload it I will post the link.
I'll try out the YouTube suggestions and the vanilla ice cream!
Thanks!

I think he needs a vet check. The fact that he stays so upset for so long afterwards seems off.
Oh, and if you watch seizure videos remember that all seizures are different in severity - there are very mild seizures which are barely noticeable and others that are horrific.
Good luck.