Dogs

What does it mean to dream about dogs?

Being chased by a dog…

Dream: I have been having a reoccurring dream where I am being chased by a dog. I’ve been having this dream for roughly ten years. It changes over time but more or less the same. The dog is not vicious (although at one point it was), it just tends to chase after me. It’s sometimes barking, but mainly just starts chasing me.

Last night I had the dream again and this time it is like embedded into my thoughts today. This normally does not happen as I tend to just forget my dreams as the day progresses.

Last night’s dream… I was walking down what seemed to be a street. Next thing you know I see a dog staring at me. I begin to run away from it. The dog proceeds to chase me down the street. I end up jumping over a fence to get away. The dog jumps over it as well. I jump over other side of fence and so does the dog again. Finally I jumped over the fence as did the dog. We made eye contact and I woke up. I did not wake up in fear but i could not get back to sleep.

Please if you have any thoughts in regards to this I would truly appreciate it, as I am beginning to think my dreams have been trying to tell me something and I truly have no clue.

DreamsMaster: Yes, recurring dreams mean that your innermost self is trying to send you an important message. And the fact that this particular time the dream wouldn’t leave you adds extra emphasis to the urgency of the message. You mentioned that the dream first occurred 10 years ago. Can you recall what was going on in your life around the time you first had the dream? This would provide the first clue as to its meaning.

The dream’s recurring theme is rather straightforward: being chased by a dog. Let’s start by considering what a dog represents to you personally.

Since I don’t know you and can’t interview you in person, I will offer some general ideas of what a dog in a dream might mean. See if any of these seem to fit for you, and if not, see what other ideas are triggered that are more relevant.

A dog is often regarded as “man’s best friend” because of its unconditional trust and loyalty. A dog is also dependent on its master. In your dreams, the dog could represent someone in your life, or it could represent an aspect of yourself. It might even represent both. Here are some examples…

Perhaps the dream occurs when you are dealing with someone who is somewhat dependent on you. It might be a partner, a younger sibling, or even a child. At times this person’s dependency might become a bit overwhelming for you, and you may have an unconscious desire to run away from the responsibility. You may also be feeling some guilt about this, and trying to run from that feeling as well. This could be one possible interpretation of the dream metaphor of running away from the dog – trying to flee from the perceived burden of responsibility.

Being chased by “man’s best friend” could also by symbolic of betrayal. In other words, the dog could represent someone you’ve trusted and that has been loyal to you has suddenly turned on you.

Now let’s say there’s no one in your life that fits either of these descriptions. In this case, it’s possible that at times you unconsciously distrust and tend toward fleeing situations (such as potential relationships or jobs) that may require a certain level of personal responsibility.

Finally, take a look at these traits in yourself: dependent, loyal, trusting. Do you distrust or feel anxious about these aspects in yourself? Have they gotten you in trouble in the past? Do you experience any fear of commitment?

An important common factor in this repetitive dream is that at no time are you in actual danger. In fact, in the last dream you finally stop and make eye contact with the dog. This could represent that you’re ready to face your fear and stop running from this misconceived threat in your life.

Start keeping track of what was on your mind the night before you have the dream. You’ll see a pattern emerge, which will shed further light on the dream. Once you start acting on the dream’s message, the dream will either no longer occur or will change in nature… don’t be surprised to find yourself petting the dog instead of running away from it!

Puppy went missing…

Dream: I have a 5 month old puppy. In my dream my puppy went missing. Every time I thought I saw him it wasn’t him. It was like I was finding all his brothers and sisters or ones that resembled him, but it was never him.

DreamsMaster: Before you fell asleep, do you recall having anything on your mind related to your puppy? For example, had you made a mental note of a risky area in your home or on your property that you thought you should attend to, such as a broken cabinet door or a hole underneath the fence? We often store things “in the back of our mind” that we intend to get to later but then forget about them, and these are the very things that appear in our dreams as reminders or warnings. So for starters, heed the possible literal warning in this dream and take a look around your place to be sure your puppy is safe in his surroundings.

After you’ve considered the literal meaning of the dream, next take a look at the symbolic meaning. A puppy is like a child, dependent and vulnerable. Since the puppy in your dream is your actual puppy in waking life, to dream that he’s gone missing could represent a part of yourself questioning or fearing your ability to live up to the responsibility this new parenting role demands.

In general, a puppy in a dream may represent a new relationship, one that has the potential to grow into a strong bond (dogs are known for their loyalty and being a best friend). To have a puppy or dog go missing could represent someone or something close to your heart that you are anxious about losing. It might even represent a fear of losing or “missing” the trusting, loyal, spontaneous part of yourself.

Interesting that in the dream you saw lots of other puppies that resembled yours, but you knew it was never him. The attachment you have to your puppy – your new relationship – this part of yourself – is genuine and unique. There is no replacement, and your loyalty to this being is as strong as a dog’s loyalty would be to you.

In summary, if this were my dream, the underlying message may be to stay alert to my needs and those I care about, and to not take them for granted. If left unattended, they may inadvertently stray.

Submit a dream of your own to the DreamsMaster…

Animal nightmares…

Dream: A lot of animal nightmares come in my mind and I don’t have good sleep at night. The dreams are very dangerous like when I go to sleep I see a dog in front of me or a bull and many other animals.

DreamsMaster: To begin, it appears that you are currently under a great deal of stress and have a lot on your mind at night when you go to sleep, which is why your dreaming mind is so active and your dreams are full of threatening images.

A brief explanation about sleep and dreams: Our brains go through different stages when we are asleep, one of which is called REM (Rapid Eye Movement). It is during REM sleep where we have most of our dream activity. We cycle through these stages of sleep on average of every 90 minutes, which means that about every 90 minutes we’ll have a REM period filled with dreams.

When we have a lot going on in our waking world, our dreaming mind is on overdrive. The more emotion-packed the dreams, the more likely we are to be awakened by them during these REM periods.

Before moving on to interpretation ideas, I strongly recommend you start keeping a journal. At night before you go to bed, write down everything that’s on your mind, all of your worries and unfinished business of the day. Write for as long as it takes to get it all out – the more you flush out before falling asleep, the less active your mind will be during the night, and the more restful your sleep will be.

Keep the journal by your bed, and each time you wake up from a dream, take a few notes about it. Don’t try interpreting it in the moment, just write. In the morning or sometime that day, take time to review the dreams in context of what was on your mind the night before, and see what connections you can make.

Ultimately, these abundant, frightening dreams are trying to send you a problem-solving message, and they won’t ease up until you take some action.

You specifically mentioned two animals in your dreams that you perceived as dangerous (dog, bull). Here’s an idea for you to ponder in order to reveal what these animals symbolically represent to you:

In your journal, have an imaginary dialog with the dog and/or bull, asking questions such as these:
– Who are you?
– Why are you threatening me?
– Are you angry with me for something I’ve done?
– What do you want from me now?

Then, based on the answers that come, ask yourself:
– Does this animal represent someone in your life, or is it a part of yourself?
– What problem in your life is this dream trying to help you solve?
– What action could you take, in order to solve this problem?