Sleep Startle
Sleep Startle
‘It is nought good a slepyng hound to wake’ wrote Chaucer in the 1300s.
Sleep startle is certainly not a new thing; however, with the increase in the number of dogs now living as family members, it is something we are more aware of. You may also hear sleep startle called sleep aggression. I prefer a startle as our dogs are not being purposefully aggressive when they are suddenly woken. It is a defensive action.
What is sleep startle?
Your dog is fast asleep, looking cozy and cute, and you can’t resist—surely they won’t mind a gentle stroke or a kiss from the lovely person they live with? Suddenly, without any warning, your dog turns and snaps or bites you. Naturally, this takes you by surprise. You may even feel angry and upset that your dog has reacted this way to your well-meaning advances. This type of reaction can also happen when walking
past your dog or trying to move them while they are asleep.
A startle during sleep can also cause dog guardians to worry that their dog is now aggressive. Let me reassure you: they are not. Sleep startling is a self-protective behavior.
Is sleep startle specific to any breed?
No! Any dog can have it, at any age. There is not usually any particular cause; however, dogs who haven’t spent much time around humans or who haven’t been properly socialized do seem to be more predisposed. This includes puppy farm dogs, street dogs, or kennel dogs such as racing greyhounds who have been raised in barren environments with little or no interaction from people or who have experienced negative experiences like rough handling or ill treatment when dealing with humans.
It could also happen in older dogs who have perhaps lost a bit of their sense of smell or hearing or who have a bit of doggie dementia (canine cognitive dysfunction).
Why does it happen?
In order to understand, we need to consider the historic background of dogs. Dogs were not always domesticated, let alone part of our families. In fact, the process of domestication has occurred over many thousands of years. And it may surprise you to know that the largest proportion of dogs in the world are actually free-ranging and do not live in family homes. Free-ranging dogs live in or near villages and towns and cohabit alongside the human population rather than with them in their homes. We can also call these free-ranging dogs natural dogs.
A natural dog (a dog that is not domesticated) will always be alert to threats; they have to be to survive! Reacting with a snap, snarl, nip, or bite is an automatic reaction to a potential danger, particularly if being woken from sleep.
Once the process of domestication occurred, humans started to breed dogs with specific traits. For example, we breed dogs to protect livestock, to herd, and to hunt. It should therefore be no surprise that dogs still have these genetic traits and respond in what used to be an appropriate manner (growl, snap, bite) to a perceived danger.
Sleep startle isn’t just about genetics, however; it also occurs when a dog is feeling anxious or unsettled and is particularly relevant for rescue dogs who may have had a traumatic time or experienced a trauma.
How do I deal with it?
This will largely depend on getting to know your dog and understanding his background. If none of this is known, you can still put measures in place to deal with startle behavior so that your dog feels less anxious.
The best thing you can do is not put your dog in a position where they are likely to be startled and react.
Put your dog’s bed in a quiet place, away from busy areas where there are likely to be a lot of people passing by. Avoid the busy kitchen area; sit near sofas and hallways.
Use a baby gate if necessary to give your dog a safe place to sleep where children (in particular) cannot go and disturb them.
If your dog likes a crate, then this can be a safe place for them to retire to. Have a house rule that no one touches the dog while they are sleeping in their crate.
Get in the habit of waking your dog up before you try to move them or approach them. You can do this by clapping, whistling, or making a noise that you know will wake them.
If they wake but are still a bit bleary, talk to them as you approach and make sure they are fully aware or awake before putting any hands or faces near them.
If you want to move them from their bed to get them outside for toileting, for example, throw a treat away from their bed so that they have to get up and out of their bed to get it, then you know they are fully awake.
Consider using a training line that is attached to your dog so that you can either use this to wake up your dog by gently tugging on it or to move your dog more easily.
If you want interaction with your dog and they are asleep, wake them first using the above methods and call them to you rather than going to them.
Sleeping in your bed should be discouraged for a dog with sleep startle from a safety point of view since they can react to you turning over in bed, causing them to suddenly wake up and bite or snap at you.
If your dog has sleep startle, avoid having him on the sofa or have a no touching the sofa rule so that he can be with you and both of you can feel safe. This is tough for us humans (particularly children), so sometimes it is better to have the dog sleep in their own bed.
If your dog is hard of hearing, deaf, elderly, or suffering from doggie dementia, the above still applies. However, it may be harder to wake them up, so bear this in mind when attempting to move them or approaching them. Scattering some smelly treats outside their bed may help, as a dog's sense of smell is amazing, and the smell of the treats alone should help to wake them up. Then get them to come to you so you know they are fully awake.
Remember, startling out of sleep doesn’t mean your dog is aggressive; they are simply reacting in a protective way to being woken by a perceived possible danger.