What our dogs’ sleep habits tell us about them -- and ourselves

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Andrews McMeel Syndication

Dogs have shared our lives for millennia, and that includes our beds. We have similar sleep times and sleep habits. Like us, dogs typically take longer to fall asleep in strange places, their sleep habits change with age, and they snore.

It’s no wonder that sleep researchers find dogs to be important models for studying human sleep-related cognition. Humans and dogs tend to sleep primarily at night, and dogs’ daily sleep duration is eight to 14 hours -- compared to eight hours for humans and 12 to 15 hours for cats.

Working with family dogs and noninvasive polysomnography -- the use of sensors to monitor physiological signs like brain waves, eye movements, heart rate and breathing patterns -- researchers are able to learn more about how sleep affects cognitive processes such as memory consolidation and emotion processing. Along the way, they’ve learned more about canine sleep experiences.

If you are middle-aged or older, or live with a dog who is, you probably won’t be surprised to learn that older dogs sleep more. Dogs who have had a physically or mentally active day because of competition or advanced training sleep soundly, too. Compared to dogs who have had a more typical (read: less active) day, they become drowsy earlier, moving quickly to the sleep stages called NREM (non-rapid eye movement) and REM (rapid eye movement).

The NREM stage is when the body repairs and regrows body tissues, builds bone and muscle, and strengthens the immune system. REM sleep stimulates areas of the brain that aid learning and are associated with increased protein production.

We don’t know, though, whether dogs experience the intense dreams that humans do during REM sleep.

“Dogs are not able to tell us what they experienced during their sleep, so we can’t tell whether they dream or not,” says Vivien Reicher at Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary, lead author of a sleep study in family dogs published in February in the Journal of Sleep Research. “Intuitively, of course, we can claim that a dog is dreaming when he or she seems to run, or whines while sleeping. The signs of dreaming -- in REM sleep, specifically -- are similar to humans: rapid eye movements, irregular respiration and heart rate, limb and body movements and twitching.”

Dogs with smushed faces, such as bulldogs, French bulldogs and pugs, may have trouble sleeping. You’ve probably been kept awake by their snoring. While more investigation needs to be done, Reicher says in an email, these dogs’ poor respiration, related to their abnormal upper airway anatomy, can result in decreased sleep quality.

Dogs also have a problem that many of us can identify with: They don’t fall asleep easily in strange places. At home, they reach REM sleep earlier than they do if they’re staying at someone else’s home, a boarding kennel or a sleep laboratory. But dogs who are used to sleeping away from home reach NREM and REM sleep much more quickly than dogs who rarely do so.

“These findings are consistent with human studies, suggesting that a novel and potentially stressful environment plays a crucial role in sleep quality,” Reicher says. “Presumably, dogs that sleep only at home are more sensitive to laboratory conditions, and those dogs that regularly accompany their owners for longer periods outside their home environment are more experienced and therefore less excited (at the sleep laboratory).”

What does all this tell us about ourselves? Dogs are increasingly recognized as models for human neuropsychiatric conditions, including sleep disorders such as narcolepsy (which can be inherited in dogs) and the disordered breathing that causes snoring and sleep apnea.

“Dog sleep research might open up new directions for investigation of the links between environmental factors and brain mechanisms underlying cognitive dysfunctions, which could help (us) better understand complex dog and even human phenotypes,” Reicher says.

One way or another, our dogs are going to help us sleep better.

Q&A

Living with

a deaf pet

Q: We’re considering adopting a pet who is deaf. Do you have any tips on safety and communication?

A: One of the things I love best about being a veterinarian is seeing the accommodations people make for pets with disabilities. Deafness is common in dogs and cats of any age. Some are born deaf, while others develop hearing loss as they age. The following tips can help you get your pet’s attention, communicate with her and keep her safe.

-- Sign language. Both dogs and cats are good at learning hand signals and even American Sign Language. Hand signals include a raised hand for “stop,” a hand moving upward for “sit,” and a hand moving down and back for “down.” Give a thumbs-up, followed by a treat or other reward, when your pet does something you like. If you’re teaching ASL, your pet’s favorite words might be “dinner,” “walk,” “play” or “outside.”

-- Visual signals. Keep a small flashlight at hand. If you need to get your pet’s attention, flash it in her direction (not in her eyes, please). She’ll learn that when she sees the flash, she should look for you. If you’re in front of her, you can wave your hand to get your pet’s attention, or use the universal signal of pointing two fingers at your eyes to indicate that she should look at you.

-- Good vibrations. Animals are highly sensitive to vibrations. If you’re coming up behind her, stomp your foot (not right next to her) so she’ll know where you’re coming from. If she’s sleeping beneath a table or desk, you can tap the surface to get her attention.

Work with a positive-reinforcement trainer to teach your pet these cues. For more about deafness in cats, see this article: fearfreehappyhomes.com/sound-matters-tips-on-living-with-a-deaf-cat. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Chihuahua named

hero dog of the year

-- A longhaired Chihuahua named MacKenzie received the 2020 Hero Dog Award from American Humane for her work educating kids. She visits schools, teaching children about kindness toward animals and people with physical differences; about caring for baby animals with birth defects; and about the importance of social skills, play and manners for us all. MacKenzie was born five years ago with a cleft palate and was tube-fed for nearly a year before being able to have lifesaving surgery. She has since helped hundreds of other animals, giving back more than anyone could have imagined. Other nominees, all worthy of a win, are Remington, a retired search-and-rescue dog; Aura, a hearing service dog; Blue II, a military dog who saved many lives through her ability to find IEDs; Cody, a law-enforcement dog who specializes in explosives detection; Dolly Pawton, a cardiac alert dog; and Olive, a therapy dog who works in Missouri’s judicial system.

-- Cats being treated at the University of California at Davis’s Small Animal Clinic can now recover in a new feline treatment and housing suite that combines hospitalization and treatment wards. This minimizes transport time and stress for sick cats, making it more efficient for veterinarians and technicians to treat multiple hospitalized cats -- some 5,000 per year, with 50 to 75 at a time during wildfires or other large community emergencies. The new facility includes sound-dampening features throughout to reduce stress caused by barking dogs in nearby wards.

-- Rabbits and hares are related, but not identical. Both are found in many parts of the world, and there are hundreds of species and varieties of these long-eared herbivores. Hares tend to be larger, with longer ears and black markings on their fur. Most rabbits live underground in burrows or warrens. Cottontails are the exception: Like hares, they live in nests on the ground.

-- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet care experts headed by “The Dr. Oz Show” veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker, founder of the Fear Free organization and author of many best-selling pet care books, and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. Joining them is behavior consultant and lead animal trainer for Fear Free Pets Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.

Professional cleanings do more than remove tartar and get teeth white

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Andrews McMeel Syndication

My nearly 13-year-old cavalier, Harper, has had some vague symptoms lately that had us concerned about what might be going on with her. After a number of diagnostic procedures and lab work, plus a return to normal behavior and appetite, she was declared to be in good health. Since that was the case, I decided it was a good time to have her teeth professionally cleaned under anesthesia. It had been almost a year since her previous cleaning.

I dropped her off at the veterinary hospital, and received a call from our vet much earlier than I’d expected. “We just started on Harper’s teeth, and there’s a mass on one of her tonsils,” he said. “I’m going to remove it and send it out to pathology.”

That’s the call no one wants to get, but it illustrates the importance of regular dental care for pets. A professional cleaning isn’t just for polishing up fangs and temporarily improving bad breath. Your veterinarian is on the lookout for problems such as tooth resorptions; loose, broken or chipped teeth; areas of inflammation that could indicate infection; orthodontic issues such as missing, unerupted or misaligned teeth; and oral cancers.

Tooth resorptions, in which the tooth is being eaten away from the inside out, are common in cats, although they also occur in dogs. Stomatitis, an abnormal reaction to the formation of plaque on the teeth, is often seen in cats and dogs -- like our other cavalier, Keeper. And chewing on antlers is the No. 1 cause of fractured teeth in dogs, says veterinary dental specialist Jan Bellows, DVM.

“Fractured teeth can be so severe that the whole exposed tooth fractures off, leaving the root showing,” he says.

Broken and chipped teeth are painful. So are teeth that have grown sideways, and ones that are surrounded by large cysts. Teeth that are mobile can cause pets to have difficulty eating. Poorly positioned teeth can interfere with other teeth, or even grow into the jaw. Those are orthodontic issues; your pet won’t get braces, but she might need surgical extractions or a decrease in the height of the opposing tooth.

Oral cancers like Harper’s are more common than you might think. Not all lumps and bumps on skin or tissues are benign, especially in cats. Nine out of 10 malignant oral tumors in cats are squamous cell carcinoma, and SCC is the second-most common oral malignancy in dogs. In cats, SCC is associated with exposure to secondhand smoke, but it’s not known what might cause it in dogs.

Caring for your pet’s mouth is more than just getting annual cleanings and occasionally doing a halfhearted brushing at home. Those don’t do much good if you aren’t caring for teeth and looking at the mouth regularly the rest of the year. Dr. Bellows recognizes that most people don’t brush their pets’ teeth, so instead he recommends daily use of dental wipes. “It’s not what’s in the wipe that’s important; it’s the friction,” he says. He keeps a container of wipes in his TV room, and he or his wife rub their dog’s teeth while they’re watching TV. “The dog knows she’s going to get a treat after,” he says.

Look at your pet’s mouth at least monthly to check for problems. Reward with a treat after every look-see or wipe session. If your pet won’t let you look at her mouth, that’s a clue -- nobody with a painful mouth wants it touched -- as is bad breath. If a pet’s breath stinks, it’s time to go to the veterinarian.

Harper’s mass is malignant, but it hasn’t spread anywhere else, so we hope that chemotherapy and medication will give us more years with her. I’m glad I didn’t put off that professional dental appointment.

Q&A

What are cat’s

vital signs?

Q: What should I know about determining my cat’s vital signs?

A: Great question! I’m always in favor of people knowing as much as possible about how their animals “work.” Vital signs, which show how well the body is functioning, are temperature, heart rate and respiratory rate. Here’s what to know about each one when it comes to cats.

Normal body temperature for a healthy cat ranges from 100 to 102.5 degrees Fahrenheit. To take the temperature, you can use an old-school glass thermometer or spend a little extra and get a digital rectal thermometer that beeps when it’s time to remove it and has an easy-to-read display. Before inserting, lubricate the thermometer with a water-based medical lubricant. Gently and slowly insert the thermometer 1 to 2 inches into your cat’s rectum and leave it in place for about two minutes or until it beeps.

Call your veterinarian if your cat’s temperature falls below 99 or rises above 103, or if you see evidence of blood, diarrhea or a black, tarry stool on the thermometer.

To determine your cat’s heart rate, place your hand on his left side, just behind his front leg. You should feel the heart beating. Using a watch with a second hand, a stopwatch or an app on your smartphone, count the number of beats during 15 seconds. Multiply that number by four to get the beats per minute. A cat’s heart rate ranges from 140 to 220 bpm. Check with your vet if it is slow, fast or irregular.

Take your cat’s respiratory rate while he’s relaxed and standing. Count the number of breaths for a full 60 seconds. Normal feline respiratory rate is 20 to 30 breaths per minute. Call your vet if the rate is faster or if your cat is panting. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

China dogs are

popular design trend

-- Artists have been modeling dogs in clay for thousands of years, but perhaps the most well-known clay canines are the Staffordshire dogs, which began to be produced in English factories in the 18th century. We tend to think of the highly collectible painted figurines as spaniels, but the artists produced a variety of breeds, including pugs, setters, pointers, Dalmatians, poodles, deerhounds and greyhounds. Some Staffordshire dogs were given glass eyes, thought to add a touch of realism. They came in the commonly seen red and white, but also in black and white, or white with splashes of blue, yellow, green or brown.

-- Lymphoma is the most common cancer in domestic cats, and prior to the development of a vaccine, the most common cause of feline lymphoma was feline leukemia virus. Any cat that spends time outdoors, including cats who live indoors but occasionally get out, should be vaccinated against FeLV. Vaccination programs have reduced the rate of FeLV-associated lymphomas by more than 50%, says Dr. Lori Teller, an associate professor at Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. When bringing a new cat into your home, test her for FeLV before introducing her to your other cats.

-- What color is your dog? Don’t say plain old “brown.” Depending on the breed standard -- the “blueprint” for each purebred dog -- dogs don’t come in plain brown wrappers. Instead they might be sable, beige, fawn, mahogany, Isabella, tan or chestnut. It makes you wonder whether the people who come up with the standards have a background in interior design or work in the marketing department of a paint manufacturer. And who was the genius who came up with “chocolate” Lab versus the, er, colorless character who decreed “liver” for English springers? -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet care experts headed by “The Dr. Oz Show” veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker, founder of the Fear Free organization and author of many best-selling pet care books, and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. Joining them is behavior consultant and lead animal trainer for Fear Free Pets Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.

Build the house of your cat’s dreams -- or at least jazz up his life a little

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Andrews McMeel Syndication

We’re all spending a lot more time with our pets these days -- dogs are getting walks galore and more playtime than they know what to do with -- but what about cats? They don’t typically go on walks (though a few are exceptions to this rule), so what have people been doing with -- or for -- their feline friends?

They’ve been busy. Building castles, for instance. A recent post making the rounds on Facebook showed a number of home projects for kitty, built by cat lovers with plenty of time and cardboard boxes on hand. Castles with crenellated walls and drawbridges, clubhouses (“Dogs keep out!”), a “hissing” booth decorated with a skull and crossbones, a fort with a sniper tower, steps and ladders to elevated entries. No doubt somewhere out there is a French “cat-eau.” Or maybe “chat-eau” is, after all, the correct spelling.

With shorter days, longer nights, colder weather and spiking coronavirus rates, you, too, may be looking for ways to fill your time and entertain your cat. Here are some tips on building a feline freeway or fort; where to buy cat steps and bridges if you’re not handy; and other ways to entertain your cat -- and yourself as you watch him explore and enjoy his new home decor.

For advice on building “up,” we turned to artist and photographer extraordinaire Bob Walker, who, with his artist wife, Frances Mooney, turned their entire house into a cat playground with overhead walkways, spiral staircases, floor-to-ceiling scratching posts and much more. You don’t have to go that far, but Walker says it’s easy to use found objects -- those Amazon boxes that are piling up, wooden or plastic crates, or even a sturdy stepladder -- to create a feline hidey-hole or gym.

When he built a catwalk, he used 2-by-6-inch pieces of wood, which allowed room for cats to turn around or pass one another. For inclines, he inset carpeting, putting carpet tape beneath it to hold it in place. That provided the cats with secure footing as they went up or down. Walker recommends referring to the Public Playground Safety Handbook (cpsc.gov/s3fs-public/325.pdf) to ensure that anything you build takes safety into account, especially if you have kids in the home.

His best tip? Use negative space. “Think of your house in cubic space terms, not square footage,” Walker says. For instance, take advantage of unused space behind objects or furniture or high areas on walls that are otherwise bare.

If you’re handy with an X-acto knife or box knife, you can build a cardboard kitty castle or fort that is as simple or elaborate as you please. To strengthen cardboard, especially if you have multiple levels, reinforce gaps with glue or packing or duct tape. You can also add an extra layer of cardboard in the bottom, cut to fit, or sandwich a piece of foam between two pieces of cardboard. Find inspiration on Pinterest for cardboard or wooden structures.

For the simplest of cardboard projects, take two to four open boxes, tape them together, and fill them with plastic play balls for a moggy mosh pit. Other spaces you can fill with play balls, for impromptu cat hockey games, are bathtubs or kiddie pools.

Don’t want to build anything? You can purchase attractive, high-style cat walks, climbing shelves, hanging beds, play tents, scratching towers, rope bridges, window seats, and furniture on websites such as Hauspanther, Etsy, Wayfair, Chewy, Overstock, Petco and PetSmart. Active cats may love having an exercise wheel to run on. You can find one through a number of online retailers or ask your local pet supply store to order one for you.

For the simplest play of all, make or buy puzzle toys (see foodpuzzlesforcats.com for ideas), or just hide your cat’s kibble or favorite treats around the house so she can “hunt” for them. Or be the goalie in a game of hall hockey with a pingpong ball. Your cat will be delighted.

Q&A

Which crate

for new pup?

Q: I’m getting a new puppy in a few weeks! What should I look for in a crate, and how should I introduce her to it?

A: There are lots of different types of crates with different features. Here are some things to look for as you make your decision.

Wire, plastic and soft carriers each have pros and cons. Wire crates offer good ventilation and views and are easy to cover if necessary. They fold up when not in use, but they can’t be used for air travel. For safety, remove your dog’s collar before putting her in a wire crate.

Some plastic crates have wheels, making them easier to move. Look for one with a top that comes off easily. Top-loading kennels are helpful for Fear Free veterinary visits. Your pup can be examined while he’s still in the carrier if the top comes off, or he can be removed without being forced out. An alternative for small dogs up to 20 pounds is a crate with a bottom that slides out, such as the Van Ness Calm Carrier.

Soft carriers are lightweight. They’re not the best choice for a puppy, but once your dog is grown and trained, they can be a comfy choice for relaxing or suitable for stays in hotel rooms.

Whatever crate you choose, make it attractive to your puppy. Before you pick her up from the breeder or shelter, spray or wipe down the crate with a calming canine pheromone such as Adaptil. At home, place the crate in an area where there’s lots of family activity. Put treats and toys in it for her to find, and feed her in it. Give a treat or leave her with a favorite toy every time you put her in it at naptime or bedtime. -- Mikkel Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Pre-Columbian

-- We don’t typically associate big cats with the country of Peru, but a giant cat drawing -- a geoglyph -- has been found on the side of a hill at the site of the country’s famous Nazca Lines, pre-Columbian figures etched into the sand and visible from above or from great distances. Archaeologists accidentally uncovered the feline figure on the slope of Mirador Natural Hill as upgrades were being made to the lookout site. The figure of the cat measures more than 120 feet across and dates to approximately 2,000 years ago. Even then, apparently, people were sharing pictures of cats.

-- Seniors who need help adopting and caring for pets can get financial assistance for adoption fees, veterinary care, food and other expenses from nonprofit Pets for the Elderly, which is increasing its efforts to help people and pets stay together to benefit from the human-animal bond. People over 60 can qualify for adoption discounts from participating shelters and apply for aid in covering pet-care costs, including in-home visits from shelter employees to check on the welfare of people and pets. Pets help seniors by keeping them active, and seniors help pets by providing them with homes and love. Win-win!

-- November is Adopt a Senior Pet Month. Other pet-centric events are National Pet Awareness Month, National Senior Pet Month, Pet Cancer Awareness Month and Pet Diabetes Month. Going on now is National Animal Shelter Appreciation Week. Also occurring in November are National Canine Lymphoma Awareness Day (Nov. 7), National Black Cat Day (Nov. 17), and the National Dog Show, broadcast on Thanksgiving Day. In December, celebrate National Cat Lover’s Month, National Mutt Day on Dec. 2, Celebrate Shelter Pets Day on Dec. 5, International Day of Veterinary Medicine on Dec. 9, and National Cat Herders Day on Dec. 15. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet care experts headed by “The Dr. Oz Show” veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker, founder of the Fear Free organization and author of many best-selling pet care books, and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. Joining them is behavior consultant and lead animal trainer for Fear Free Pets Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.