A dream is more like a universal thing that happens to everyone during their sleep, be they young or old, a newborn or an aging elderly individual. It's also worth noting that dreams aren't only segmented to the human species alone, and I can say this for a fact because I've witnessed how animals like our house pet display some act that shows that, just as humans do, animals also dream, and their dreams can be as dramatic as those of humans, which are either good or not too palatable. In this article I'll be talking extensively about this and my experience witnessing such.
I can vividly remember when I was young, we used to have two pet dogs who went by the names Smart and Sharp. These were Alsatian dogs that were purchased when they were much smaller, and I can remember the day they were brought home for the first time. They looked so fragile, lost, and afraid because it was a new environment. Not long after Dad brought them home, we gave them food and sat outside to take some evening fresh air. While sitting, the two young puppies lay down beside our feet and soon drifted off to sleep, and all of a sudden we saw and heard one of them scream from sleep and immediately stand up and run away.
It was a surprising thing to behold, and I was wondering what happened. That was the first time I knew animals also had dreams like humans, because a day later made us understand the puppy was dreaming, and that was what warranted the strange behavior it just exhibited. I can't help but laugh and talk about it all day during that period, because I just can't help but imagine what they could be dreaming about, but now I'm guessing the puppy probably dreams about how it was taken away from its mother once again and quickly walks up to see if it can save itself from that happening.
One of the funniest experiences of our house pet dream was also with these our dogs; I can't remember which one it was—it's between smart and smart, but I can remember that very afternoon. I was sitting on the veranda of our house, and one of the dogs came to sleep just next to my leg. They have the habit of wanting their body to touch mine whenever they're around me, so I didn't expect anything strange when they came that day. While I was reading a novel, the dog soon slept off, but I noticed while sleeping, it was continually licking its lips like it had seen a very big chicken or food that interested it, but I didn't do anything about it other than observe and continue with my book.
All of a sudden, I just felt a sharp pain on my feet, and by the time I looked down, I realized the dog was licking my feet and biting them. Out of shock and annoyance, I called its name, and it immediately woke up from its sleep and realized my leg was what it had been trying to feast on. I could see the innocent, tearing eyes displayed on its face immediately trying to beg me to not discipline it. And I just laughed and let it slide, but I remember talking to it and asking, "Does my leg look like food?" By evening, when everyone came and I recounted the experience, they all couldn't help but laugh that my dog dreamed of eating a big piece of meat, not knowing it was my leg it was biting.
In a nutshell, animals also dream and they can have both nightmares and peaceful dreams just as we humans do.
All photos are taken and edited on canva.