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So, you are sleeping, and you have your dog across the room.
Suddenly, your dog wakes you up screaming in the middle of the night.
You reach over to it, and it is probably panting. What do you do? What could even be the cause of this?
Your dog is perhaps peeing on the floor as well, and its body may have also gone stiff.
As a dog owner, what you should prepare yourself for is the fact that your dog is bound to wake you up, screaming its lungs out even in the middle of the night.
Your dog might have gone to bed peacefully and happily only to wake up screaming the entire building down.
You are probably confused and do not know what to do next.
The first thing to do will be to examine the causes of your dog’s screaming.
Top Eight Reasons Your Dog May Wake Up Screaming
1. Your Dog Just Had A Dream
Just like human beings, dogs and other pets do have dreams.
The majority of people have seen their dog twitch, paddle slightly, or vocalize softly while they are sleeping.
This is not uncommon. The dreams that they have also differ.
Sometimes your dog may be having a good dream that could even make it smile in its sleep.
Sometimes your dog may be having a terrifying nightmare that could jolt it up, waking you up in the middle of the night.
They do this by screaming.
Not only are they yelling because the dream was probably a nightmare, but they are also shrieking for you to get them or check on them.
It’s possible that dogs who engage in extreme behaviors like screaming and thrashing around while they’re unconscious are actually experiencing REM sleep disorders.
2. Seizures
The most dreadful thing that you as a dog is bound to encounter will be the fact that your dog may have a seizure at least once in its lifetime.
Your dog may wake up in the middle of the night, stiff and staring blankly while still screaming.
Your dog is probably having a seizure, which is why it is crying.
A tell-tale sign will be the fact that its body feels very stiff.
It is much worse for you than your dog, which is the bad news.
Dogs’ vocalizations during seizures, which appear to be them in excruciating pain or pleading for assistance, tend to freak out people.
In reality, the dog’s vocalizations are caused by electrical activity in the brain.
3. Excitement
If you didn’t already know this, dogs get excited easily.
When they are sleeping, they can simply shoot their heads up and start to scream because of how excited they may be.
Your dog merely wants you to take it out to play, even if it means waking you up in the middle of the night with its screams.
4. Uncomfortable Sleeping Bed
Your dog may wake up in the middle of the night screaming the whole place down because it feels very uncomfortable.
It can not sleep probably because the bed feels very uncomfortable for it.
It will try to alert you to this fact by screaming so that you can hear and help it find a remedy.
You may even see the dog pacing around as it is also yelling.
The dog is trying to find a very good sleeping position or a comfortable spot that it can sleep on.
5. Illness
If your dog suddenly gets sick in the middle of the night, what it would do is wake up screaming.
It may be burning up with a fever, and this will make it try to alert you by shouting.
If you feel your dog’s body and notice that it is burning up with a fever, it could be why it is screaming in the middle of the night.
6. The Presence Of Parasites And Pests
Anybody new to the dog-owning business should always know that sometimes parasites and pests like ticks and ants could find a home in their dog’s skin and then multiply there.
These parasites will have your dog itching all day, and this may intensify at night and make your dog very uncomfortable.
What will happen next is that your dog wakes up screaming because these pests are biting it and making it very uncomfortable.
7. The Presence Of An Injury
If you took your dog out to play during the day or left it unattended, the chances are that your dog probably injured itself during your time away.
The funny thing is that this injury doesn’t in any way disturb the dog until it is very late at night when the dog is sleeping.
This injury may cause the dog to wake up in the middle of the night screaming and sweating profusely.
8. Feeling Of Anxiety
Yes, just like humans, dogs show a variety of emotions, and one of them may be anxiety.
There are numerous reasons why your dog may be feeling very anxious.
This feeling of anxiety is enough to have your dog screaming when it takes you up in the middle of the night.
When a dog is startled or startled unexpectedly, it can result in sleep aggression, which is another name for sleep startle.
It makes sense that a dog might respond fearfully and possibly negatively if their brain has alerted them to danger.
What Should You Do?
Check For Injuries And Parasites
The first thing you want to do when you wake up in the middle of the night and your dog is screaming will be to rush to it and check carefully to see if there are any injuries on the dog’s body or parasites and other pests on its skin.
If there are injuries and they are not that deep, you should clean them up and dress them.
In a situation where the wounds are serious, and you can not handle them, you should schedule a trip to the vet as soon as possible.
In the case of parasites and pests, you should prepare to have the dog taken to the vet.
It ensures the dog can be appropriately cleaned up and given medications.
Change Your Dog’s Bed
Suppose you notice a recurring pattern of your dog waking up screaming and pacing around at night.
It could be because its bed is uncomfortable.
You should make provisions to have it changed to be more comfortable.
Make your dog’s sleeping environment more relaxing if he or she has frequent nightmares.
If your dog struggles to feel secure in a “den,” try playing soft music, providing a crate, or using a pressure wrap.
Keeping Toys Around Your Dog
When your dog wakes up screaming because it feels exciting, you should have toys around it that it could play with because it is evident that your dog is looking for someone to play with.
For Seizures And Sicknesses
If your dog is having a seizure, try to give it some space, then go ahead to stroke it gently till it calms down.
Plan a visit to the vet as well so that your dog can be properly cared for. The same is the case when your dog feels very sick.
For Anxiety And Dreams
When your dog wakes up after a bad dream screaming or when it feels anxious, stay up with it for a couple of hours as the dog will find it hard to sleep again.
Stroke the dog and try to let it know that everything will be okay.
Why Does Your Dog Wake Up Screaming? – Conclusion
It is entirely normal for dogs to wake up screaming in the middle of the night.
You need to look for reasons your dog may be doing this, especially when it becomes a recurring pattern.
A trip to the vet to ensure things are okay usually helps, particularly when you have no clue why the dog is yelling.
Lucy is a real-time contributor to Purrfect n’ Pawesome, along with being a freelance writer to various pet forums and platforms. She started writing professionally in the year 2016. Earlier, she enjoyed her community life as a pet rescue volunteer and offered boarding services to pet owners. Her extensive experience in the pet field is now the basis for her writing at this site.
She loves to collect animal facts from around the globe and then transform them into amazing stories for her readers. For Lucy, the mission is to bring pet love to every home and equip the pet parents with the required useful and authentic information to nurture their pet accordingly.
She lives with her two cats and a shepherd mix, whom she loves the most. Despite her extremely busy life, she spends some time with wildlife and outer space to relax her mind and enhance her observation.
Purrfect n’ Pawesome is a platform that believes in providing our pets with the right kind of nurturing, care and upbringing to assist them in leading a healthy life. Go to our blog section and read out some pawesome and informative articles to ease your parenthood.
