Why does my dog wake up in the middle of the night and stare at me? Surprising Answer

The 7 Possible Reasons Your Dog Stares at You When You Sleep

The most likely reason you find your pooch staring at you in the night is that you’ve stirred during your sleep and woken them up before you’ve woken up, making it appear that they’ve been staring at you while you’re sleeping. You may have been dreaming and moving around, causing your pooch to wake up and see what you’re up to!

Many owners feed their dogs both in the evening and in the morning. If this is the schedule that you feed your pooch on, they may simply be hungry and waiting for you to wake up and feed them! Dogs have an internal clock according to the sun and seasons, and many may be able to predict when you are about to wake up. They are simply waiting for their morning meal.

Dogs need plenty of mental and physical stimulation to stay happy and healthy, and they may be waiting for you to wake up (or will even wake you up themselves!) to get some engagement. Inadequate stimulation can result in serious behavioral problems in dogs, and this may just be one result. Alternatively, if you tend to walk or play with your dog in the morning, they may just be waiting in anticipation.

Dogs have a long genetic lineage of living and thriving in packs, and as their owner, you are generally viewed as the pack leader. Dogs in packs will instinctively look out for and protect each other, and one of these methods of protection is standing guard while the rest of the pack is asleep. This is especially true with natural guard dogs, such as German Shepherds or Rottweilers.

My dog looks at me when I sleep, what does it mean?

It can be a little difficult to understand why a dog stares at us when we are asleep because we wont be aware of it until we wake up. At this point, the dog may change their demeanor. However, there are some general reasons why dogs stare at you when you are asleep:

Hunger: you most likely feed your dog first thing in the morning after you wake up. Since dogs are creatures of routine, it is possible they will stare at you while you sleep because they are hungry and want to be fed. Some dogs may even go as far as to wake you up themselves when they are hungry enough.

Walk or play: since there are many activities a dog cannot do while you are asleep, they might stare at you because they want to go out for a walk or play. This may happen in particular when you sleep in. If they expect you to exercise with them, but you are breaking their routine, they may come to stare at you to encourage you to get up.

Boredom: if dont you give your dog enough mental and physical stimuli, they may stare at you because they are waiting for some sort of engagement. Boredom in dogs is dangerous as it can also lead to serious behavioral problems. You may find your dog doesnt stare at you while you sleep if you given them enough attention when you are awake.

Loneliness: if a dog likes to be around other people, they may be staring at you while you sleep because they want company. This is similar to boredom, but is particular to the individual dog.

Protection: wild dogs live in packs and they all have specific roles within it. Although they live in a hierarchical social group, all the dogs should be looking out for each other. One way they protect each other is to stand guard against predators and other dangers while others in the group sleep. This is especially the case for puppies Due to domestication, our dogs see us as one of the pack and may be standing by the bed to help keep us protected while we sleep. This is something we can see especially when dogs are protective of babies.

Perceived danger: if your dog suddenly starts staring at you while you sleep, but didnt before, it is possible they have heard a noise or seen something which they see as a threat. Whether or not there is an actual threat, they may be staring at you to ensure you are OK or to find out what is the problem.

Love: another reason why a dog may be staring at you while they sleep is simply because they love you. When a dog has a strong bond with their human guardian, they will want to be by their side all the time. They know they cant disturb you while you sleep, so they may watch you instead. This is because they reciprocate love and feel it just being around you. However, we also need to be careful the dog doesnt become over-attached as this can lead to separation anxiety when you are not around.

In rare cases, the dog might have a problem with you which leads to them staring at you. However, this is not likely something they will do when you sleep. If a dog is poorly socialized, has received emotional trauma or has any reason to be angry with you, they can stare you down. It is not likely they will stare at you while you sleep for these reasons.

Read our article for mor general information about why dogs stare at us.

Your Dog Might Be Sick:

Yes, you heard it right. He might be sick and you have to take care of that. Your pup might be suffering from Dementia. It is a disease that disturbs the cognitive aspect of your pooch brain. Staring or other compulsive behavior is a side effect of this disease. If your dog has arthritis or suffering from heartworm disease then also he will find it difficult to find a comfortable position to sleep.

If your dog suffers from hypothyroidism then it is obvious that he will find it difficult to sleep at night and have nothing to do other than stare at you. In this case, your dog’s body has difficulty metabolizing food.

14 Signs Your Dog Doesn’t Love You (Even if You Think They Do)

Dogs stare at you while you’re asleep for many reasons, but it’s mostly because they’re trying to tell you something. Whether it’s out of protection, fear, desire, they want to communicate through their eyes.

Sometimes, they’re too afraid to wake you up, which explains the behavior. Let’s see why else they do it!