Curious Overnight Behavior

[Leslie and Halas]

If Halas is really, really tired, he'll sleep through the night.  But most nights, he wakes up at least a couple of times, for various reasons.  I know this because I'm a pretty light sleeper, so I notice if he jumps off the bed, moves around, etc.  There seem to be a few different reasons for this.

Reason #1:  Sometimes it's because he has to use the bathroom.  In that case, he whines to wake me up, and I'll get up and let him out. 

Reason #2:  Sometimes, he just wants to lay somewhere else for awhile.  In that case, he doesn't intentionally wake me up, but I usually wake up a little bit just because I hear him. 

Reason #3:  (Here's where the curious behavior starts.)  He just wants to wake me up on purpose for apparently no reason at all!  He will whine, and lightly hit me with his paw until I wake up.  If I get out of bed to try to let him outside, he doesn't even get out of bed to follow me, so he doesn't have to go to the bathroom.  I'll get up, but he'll just lay back down.  Now that I've realized this, I'll just pat my pillow or the bed, and he'll lay down right next to me.  But he could easily do that, and often does, without purposely waking me up.  I've been trying to figure out what he wants or why he does this, and I have noticed something the last few times he's done it.  He seems to whine and paw at me to wake me up when I'm dreaming.  I haven't been able to remember the dreams, so I don't know what's happening in them, but I do know that I've been dreaming.  Do you think I'm doing something while dreaming that's worrying him or making him think he needs to wake me up?  Or do you think it's just a funny coincidence that I'm dreaming, and he just really enjoys waking me up?

[Wendy and Eddie]

Elmo does the same thing when I'm dreaming or when my hands fall asleep. It's pretty handy, ha ha! If I wake up enough to shake out my hands or turn over, then he goes back to sleep. I've noticed he doesn't do it all the time when I'm dreaming, only if I am in a really "deep" dream, so I wonder if my breathing changes. I try to remember to praise him and not grumble, because it's a nice little service he provides. :-)

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Very interesting - who knows! Don't you wish you could videotape them? THey are smart, so I wouldn't put it past Halas that he is trying to wake you from a dream. Really!

Peri is funny about getting on our bed. She is not allowed on the bed while it is dark outside. She has a routine - every morning I hear her loud yawn and stretch - then I pat the bed and she sleeps at the bottom of my feet until the alarm goes off. It is literally an every day thing and it occurs the minute the sun comes up (or so it seems!).

[Frannie & Callie]

That is very curious behavior indeed! While your dreams may be very pleasant to you, you might be muttering or opening your eyes during your sleep and that wakes up Halas and prompts him to wake you. Or, if your eyes are partially opened he might think you're up and starts whining because he doesn't understand why you aren't petting him!

(I know it's weird, but I've been told that I sleep with my eyes partly open all the time...have since I was a child. I have freaked out my parents, college roommates, and boyfriends my whole life! That's why I thought of it, but it kinda makes sense. I also talk in my sleep. So shocking that I'm single!).

Alternate suggestion is that Halas wakes up and just wants some attention!

[Leslie and Halas]

He does think he needs attention 24/7, so it could be that. But I know he wakes up other times during the night and doesn't wake me.

One of my friends used to talk in her sleep. Every time we saw her and her husband, he always had some great new story of what she had said in her sleep. He would have conversations with her, and not realize that she was asleep until she said something really weird that didn't make any sense. The stories were hilarious.

[Frannie & Callie]

One of our family "legends" is how my mom's dad ALWAYS fell asleep in his chair after dinner and muttered "no" in his sleep. One night he started muttering "yes" and my mom and her sisters lined up and asked him for stuff! It was just the one time and then he went back to saying "no". The whole time I was lucky enough to know him (which was 20 years) he muttered "no" every night as he napped in that chair.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I think it's very possible that if you are making some sounds when you're dreaming, Halas thinks you're talking to him and/or thinks you need his help. Has he always done this, or is it a new behavior? I'm also wondering if he hears something outside and that's what's causing him to try to wake you...if you're dreaming at the time, you might not hear it, being in very deep sleep.
Jack moves around my bedroom quite a bit at night, from what I can tell. I think that part is normal. Some dogs will patrol the whole house at intervals during the night.

[Leslie and Halas]

He's pretty much always tried to wake me at least once during the night. But until recently, he always got up and went outside to go to the bathroom if I got up with him. But going potty was sometimes a half-hearted effort, so I figured he mostly woke me up just to get some attention. Maybe he figured he had to go outside to justify waking me up. He just recently started waking me but not wanting to get out of bed to go outside. He just wakes me up and then lays down next to me. Of course, once he wakes me up, I have to go to the bathroom, so I still end up getting up some of the time. But he just stays in bed and waits for me to come back. I live in a condo, so I do have people on both sides of me. They are quiet, but there could probably be some noises that he can hear and I can't.

[Anna and Achilles]

It sounds to me like he is trying to alert you of something. Try and remember your dream, maybe you are making a sound that he thinks you are troubled. I don't talk in my sleep but sometimes if I am having a bad dream I whine a little, DH wakes me out of it. Maybe he is protecting you. Good boy!

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Get a nannycam and see what you catch LOL!

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I do this to my DH why I want him to roll over because he is snoring ...... maybe Halas wants you to stop snoring! lol .... jk

[Leslie and Halas]

I don't snore, but everyone says they don't snore. Especially snorers. If he feels the same way I do about snoring, he would kick me and claw at me instead of whining and using gentle paw. lol

[Lorraine Bromley]

Put up a video camera and tape one night. We had to do that for a Dr once when our son had sleep apnea issues and the Dr wanted to see what happened at night. You be able to see what you are doing prior to being prodded! Could be interesting.