Parrots sleep for 10 to 12 hours a day, waking up at sunrise and falling asleep at sunset. Since parrots spend a lot of time sleeping, one might wonder if they have dreams and nightmares.
Parrots experience nightmares during the rapid eye movement (REM) sleep phase, which occurs about 90 minutes after initial falling asleep. Scientific research suggests that parrots are likely to dream of songs, while young and stressed parrots may experience night terrors.
Stress factors such as predatory pets, loud noises, and sudden lights can disturb parrots. If a parrot is frightened while still sleeping, it may have a nightmare, which can escalate into a night terror or fright, causing the parrot to wake up agitated.
How do parrots have nightmares?
Since parrots can have dreams, they can also have nightmares, which are merely frightening versions of dreams. Many owners have mentioned that their parrot moves, shakes, or makes noises while sleeping.
All birds can dream as they experience paradoxical sleep, just like mammals. Birds have two sleep phases:
- Paradoxical sleep
- Non-paradoxical sleep
Non-paradoxical sleep, characterized by slow brain waves, is the stage where the body repairs itself. Paradoxical sleep is characterized by dreams and low muscle tone, meaning the muscles are relaxed.
However, birds have more muscle tone during sleep than mammals, allowing them to perch and sleep simultaneously. Despite this minor difference, birds still experience paradoxical sleep.
The subject of nightmares
Even though research shows that parrots can dream, it is harder to understand what topics they commonly dream and have nightmares about.
Songbirds like zebra finches dream of the songs they sang during the day. The theory suggests that this helps birds do the following:
- Enhance their memory
- Learn from their experiences
- Sing better songs in the future
It is likely that parrots dream of similar subjects, as they use vocal mimicry to blend into their flock. Dreaming of sounds they heard during the day could help parrots remember those sounds.
Parrots are intelligent animals whose cognitive abilities are similar to those of a young human child. Therefore, it is reasonable to think that parrots use dreaming to enhance their performance in the waking world.
No research has been conducted on the content of nightmares in parrots. However, parrots may nightmare about predators because they are prey animals.
How often do parrots have nightmares?
No official research has been conducted on the frequency of nightmares in parrots.
If your parrot is constantly anxious during its sleep, it may be due to the following factors:
- Something in its environment has changed, stressing the parrot.
- A person, whether a new roommate or a visiting friend, scares the parrot.
- A pet or another animal that threatens or scares the parrot.
- Sounds or activities disturbing your parrot’s sleep, causing distressing images.
To identify the stress factor, evaluate your parrot’s environment and eliminate any issues.
Signs of parrot nightmares
Nightmares occur most often in young parrots and recently adopted parrots. If they have just arrived at your home, they may be scared by all the unfamiliar sounds and sights.
These factors may remind your parrot of the presence of predators, even if it is domesticated. Parrots, being prey animals, are naturally nervous and wary, and this instinct does not disappear, even in your home.
Here are some signs that a parrot is having a nightmare:
Drooping head
During paradoxical sleep, a parrot’s neck muscles relax, which can cause its head to droop.
When it returns to non-paradoxical sleep, it often raises its head suddenly without waking up. This is a sign that your parrot is no longer dreaming.
When you see your parrot dreaming with a drooping head, check for these signs:
Distress noises
To identify a nightmare, listen to the specific noises your parrot makes. Many owners notice their parrots chirping or saying words while sleeping.
If the sounds or words are peaceful, your parrot is having a pleasant dream. However, if it starts screaming or squawking, it may indicate that it is having a nightmare.
Distress movement
Your parrot may also have a nightmare if it experiences sudden jerks, moves side to side, or starts flapping its wings. Similar to distress noises, this wakes the parrot up.
If the dream was intense or if the parrot is still partially asleep, it may turn into a night terror or fright. These cause the parrot to thrash wildly in its cage.
The clearest way to know if your parrot is having a nightmare is when it turns into a night terror.
Why do parrots have night frights?
Night fright occurs when a parrot is scared by something at night.
In response, it thrashes in its cage and starts screaming. When a parrot detects a predator, it seeks to fly away. This sudden agitation is therefore an attempt to escape from your parrot.
Parrots can injure themselves during night terrors, so issues should not be left unresolved. Instead, you need to eliminate any factors leading to panic.
Everything from passing car lights to the sound of a vacuum cleaner can scare a parrot. If it is sleeping while hearing a frightening sound, it may lead to a night fright.
Parrots are likely to be frightened while sleeping because birds are capable of unihemispheric sleep, meaning one hemisphere of the brain sleeps at a time.
The unihemispheric sleep allows parrots to monitor their surroundings and detect predators, even when they are resting. It is generally evident that a parrot is in unihemispheric sleep because it sleeps with one eye open.
Nightmares can cause night frights, just as external stimuli such as:
Insects
Even though parrots have foraging instincts, they can be scared by the sudden presence of another creature in their cage. You may notice insects flying around your parrot, such as:
- Flies
- Moths
- Wasps
- Bees
- mosquitoes
- Hornets
They can wake a parrot and cause it to overreact. Even insects buzzing on the floor of the cage can trouble your parrot.
Animals
Cats and mice are natural predators of birds.
So, if you have a cat, make sure it is never left unsupervised with your parrot, especially at night. Your parrot knows that cats are predators and will be unable to relax in their presence.
Although less dangerous than cats, mice are predators in search of a parrot’s eggs or chicks. In the home, mice will invade a birdcage in search of food.
If you have mice as pets, keep them secure in their cage, especially at night. If your parrot detects one while it is half asleep, it may panic.
People
Even roommates, family members, and yourself can scare a parrot.
Worrisome actions around a sleeping parrot include:
- Moving around the same room
- Speaking and laughing loudly
- Cleaning
- Sudden noises
If you keep your parrot in the main living area, move it to a quieter place at night for sleeping.
Sudden lights and noises
Flashing headlights and sudden noises from passing cars can scare your parrot at night. Additionally, using a vacuum cleaner near your parrot or a bad thunderstorm could destabilize it.
If your parrot is sleep-deprived, young, or stressed, its dreams may suffer as a result.
What to do if your parrot has night frights?
Here are some strategies that may help your parrot rest better:
Resting cage environment
Parrot cages should not be in a room where activity is high well after sunset.
For example, your living room or kitchen may be an inappropriate sleeping place for a parrot, as the noise and movement could scare it and make it believe a predator is nearby.
It is rather recommended to move your parrot to a dark and quiet room.
If possible, have two cages for your parrot:
- One in the main room, where it spends the day.
- One in a dark and quiet room, where it spends the night.
Additionally, it would be beneficial to cover the cage with a blanket or towel.
Night light
Wild parrots are accustomed to sleeping in dimly lit forests. It is not surprising that many owners note that keeping a night light reduces the number of night frights.
If your parrot is awakened by something and sees complete darkness, it may panic as it will be unable to see dangers or identify its surroundings.
However, if there is a soft light, it can see that there is no threat and fall back asleep.
White noise
If your parrot often has night frights, consider playing the following music:
- Soft, classical music with the volume just above a whisper.
- Nature sounds that remind of a forest, but without animal cries.
- White noise from a large fan, air purifier, or white noise generator.
These relaxing sounds will drown out any sudden noise that may scare your parrot and wake it up.
Parrots do have nightmares, but it is difficult to know when they are having one until they start to stir. The most effective thing you can do is create a calm and relaxing sleep environment.
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