Do Hamsters Dream? - Know It All About This Adorable Pet

We rarely get to see our hamsters snoozing. Instead, they spend so much time tucked away in their dens that your first encounter with one may leave you puzzled when you see them moving around or trembling.

But do Hamsters dream? Hamsters, like humans, have dreams, but they tend to be less detailed than ours. They may dream about running, devouring food, grabbing stuff, and exploring their cage. You may catch your hamster acting out in its sleep if it sleeps in an uncovered nest.

So let us dive into this interesting article, where you will find everything about how and what a hamster dreams about.

Do hamsters dream when they sleep?

There is proof that hamsters, like all other animals, have dreams. Which provides the answer to hamsters’ twitching movements during sleep. It actually results from daydreams involving active play.

However, hamsters may wiggle about in their nap as a natural defense mechanism against being attacked by another animal. To navigate their dream, we need to understand that they don’t perceive life as we assume.

What Do Hamsters Dream About?

One of the significant differences between hamsters and humans is that hamsters use their perception of smell rather than their eyesight. So a hamster’s dream might be unique from ours since we depend so heavily on sight, but they wouldn’t see nearly as well in their sleep.

You may sometimes discern what people are dreaming about by observing their actions while asleep. And similarly, a hamster’s movement during sleep can also tell a lot about what they are dreaming of. This article can help you learn more about it.

Eating

If they seem to be attempting to chew on something with the help of their hands, you can assume that they are dreaming about eating something. For instance, they may be remembering the tasty treats you often provide them in their dreams.

Running

As previously said, hamsters can twitch and kick their legs in sleep. For example, hamsters that spend a lot of time on their exercise wheels are prone to these motions.

To get a visual idea, you can watch the video of a hamster running in its sleep. It shows how staying on the wheel for too long resulted in the hamster having this dream.

Additionally, hamsters have a natural inclination to flee and run from potential danger. And those anxieties might follow them into their sleep, causing them nightmares.

Prey

As hamsters are not predator animals in nature, they need to be on the lookout for potential threats even while they’re resting. Which may lead to hamsters having nightmares about predators. They must sleep in a peaceful, secure environment free of distractions.

One of the best ways to do this is to provide bedding at a minimum of 6 inches deep. Hamsters, when sleeping, may have vaguely specific dreams concerning past events. Nightmares, on the other hand, are the result of traumatic events that one has had.

Playing

Hamsters probably recall the events of their day while they sleep. MIT supports this theory by detailing how maze-running rats’ neural activity was studied and shown to remain consistent even during sleep.

It occurs during the sleep stage known as rapid eye movement (REM), in which mammals spend most of their dreaming time. As a result, if a hamster can dream, the things that come to mind would likely include both the good and the bad experiences that have left an impression on them.

Let us look into this research paper on Golden Hamster’s behavior to learn more about their sleeping pattern.

Do Hamsters Have Nightmares?

Hamsters, like other small animals, may have joyful dreams as well as nightmares. They may dream of everyday activities, but it’s also clear that they dream about frightening or dangerous situations.

Many pet owners have likely been through this before. Nightmares are a common problem for hamsters, which may be terrifying for the pet and its owner.

The Scream

The screams of a hamster in its nest are enough to terrify anybody. A hamster will only produce this noise when in extreme danger or suffering or dreaming about one of these. Therefore, it’s natural to assume that when a hamster screams in sleep inside its nest or den, which is a highly secure area for a sleeping or tucked-away animal, it is having nightmares.

They’re safe there; nothing wrong will happen to them. But still, it’s terrible to be able to hear their cries for help while they should be asleep.

What not to do when your hamster is having a nightmare

It is a common question if you notice your hamster scurrying about in the middle of the night. The question is, “what should you do?” Since it is sound knowledge that waking up a hamster under normal conditions is not a good idea since it may cause a great deal of stress, it follows that this is not a task you should be doing when it is having a nightmare.

However, if they have a horrible dream, it is assumed that the dream is causing them stress, and getting them up from it is thus a good idea. Don’t wake the hamster by handling it or reaching into its nest; these actions might cause serious harm.

I’m sure everyone here has experienced the disorientation of waking up from a horrible dream, with their heart racing and their bodies still in a state of readiness to either fight or flee the nightmare’s threat.

The same holds for hamsters, and since they are prey animals, they will likely resort to biting if they awake to find anything in their nest.

What to do when your hamster is having a nightmare

You may attract your hamster’s attention if you notice they are having a bad dream by making a minor or creaking sound with your lips. You may also scrape the area outside their nest, which is made of the substrate.

You can also make a little bit of noise with your actions. Avoid making any unexpected noises that might further terrify them. Instead, make a soft noise to wake them up softly. There’s no need to jolt them awake or rush through the process. Watch this video to see how to wake them up gently when your hamster is having a nightmare.

Only by rousing them will the dream finally end. Of course, you must avoid hurting your hamster or yourself. That, therefore, is the bare bones of preventing hamsters suffering from having nightmares.

Do Syrian and Dwarf Hamsters have dreams?

The most common kind of hamster kept as a pet is a Syrian Hamster. Therefore, a common question is “do Syrian Hamsters dream?” These hamsters might sound like demonic babies in their sleep while having a nightmare, which might scare you to death.

Bad dreams can cause them to cry in their sleep making sounds that range from soft rattling to a full-on human baby crying. Like humans, they may experience both pleasant and unpleasant dreams. Watch this video where a hamster cries in its sleep that sounds like the cry of a human baby.

If they don’t come on their own, it’s usually better to wake them up so they can see that everything is alright. Some hamsters make squeaking noises after waking up.

You may also ask, “Do Dwarf Hamsters Dream?” It seems more common among dwarf hamsters than among Syrian hamsters. And they sound more like a chirping noise while they’re still agitated.

Syrian Hamsters are nocturnal. This implies they have the opposite daily schedule of most individuals, being up at night and sleeping throughout the day. So, their dreams will also be very different from humans.

Here is a research paper that will help you learn more about the Syrian Hamster’s behavioral experiment.

Some Parting Wisdom

Hamsters, like other species, are capable of experiencing and remembering events. Moreover, there is evidence that rats may suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder on a much lower scale than humans.

Nightmares are one symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder, including replaying intrusive memories of terrible experiences. So, be very gentle if you need to wake them up. Other dreams that include their daily activities are normal and nothing to be worried about.