How Much Sleep Does My Dog Need?

I received a message from a client regarding her adolescent dog.  They had flown together for the first time over the Thanksgiving holiday.  While it was a short trip, her dog experienced some anxiety during the trip as evidenced by her panting on both flights. By the time they got home, her dog was exhausted and slept from the moment they got home.  The next day? She was still resting up from their adventure.  This is a really active dog, so seeing her need that much sleep was a bit of a surprise to the owner! So, how much sleep do our dogs actually need?

While adult dog sleep 12-14 hours a day, on average, puppies need 18-20 hours of sleep each day for their growth and development...and your sanity. Just as with humans, there will be times when your dog needs even more sleep than that average, like my client's dog above.  Obviously, sick pets sleep more as do the elderly.  We often take for granted the idea that our pets need sleep (I mean they sleep all the time, right?)  and they need for us to help them get the best sleep possible.  Here's what I mean by that:

For a puppy, you need to enforce nap times; like toddlers, they will often fight naps, and that's when you really know they need them!  Puppies need to nap in a crate so that they are forced to rest.  Adult dogs may appear to just nap anywhere, but providing them with quiet and safe napping areas is particularly important during the holidays. If your adult dogs crate, make sure their crates are situated in such a way to maximize snoozing and stress relief for the dogs using them.  Even if your dogs just use dog beds for resting, make sure visitors to your home understand that when the dogs are resting there, let them be; they are like phones on their recharging stations!

It's often difficult during the holidays to keep your pets on their regular schedule.  As much as possible, however, you really should try.  Feed them, walk them, play with them, etc. as you would any other time of the year. If you have guests in your home, remember your dogs actually live there year round.  Their comfort and safety is important too!

Don't neglect rest for yourself this hectic holiday season.  I got a cute message from my daughter telling me she was supposed to be studying for finals, but her sweet collie had other ideas, snuggling up to her until they both ended up taking a nap.  Smart dog.  She'll be better rested for studying after a quick nap to recharge HER battery.

As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

My daughter's collie, Westley, definitely knows the value of a good nap.