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Your french bulldog could be sleeping more for harmless reasons as well as ones that are more severe. It’s important to know all the reasons why french bulldogs might sleep so much so you can have a better idea if something is wrong with your pup.
Why Do French Bulldogs Sleep So Much:
French bulldogs sleep so much because dogs get much less REM sleep compared to humans. There are also physical as well as psychological reasons why a french bulldog will sleep a lot. Such as, injury, depression, poor diet, lots of activity, their age as well as boredom.
In this post you’ll discover:
- 9 real reasons why french bulldogs sleep so much
- When psychological troubles may be causing them to sleep more
- When they should see a vet because of changed sleep patterns
- And much, much more
Let’s jump right in.
Table of Contents
Is It Bad If My French Bulldog Sleeps All Day?
Depending on how old your french bulldog is will determine how much sleep they’ll need.
Most healthy, adult dogs will sleep for roughly half of the day, 12-hours.
If your frenchie is just a pup, you could see them sleeping around 16 hours per day.
Same if they’re a senior.
This is because young pups are constantly growing which means they need more rest to recoup from all their growing pains.
Plus, they’ll have random bursts of excessive energy that tires them out making them need to rest and recover.
And for dogs that are moving into their senior years, they need more sleep because everyday activities start to require more energy from them.
Which of course makes them need more rest to get their energy back.
However, if you’re noticing that they used to sleep roughly 2-3 hours in the morning but are recently sleeping for 5-6 hours moving into the afternoon, you should take them to the vet.
This could be a sign that they’re dealing with an underlying health condition.
Random days of extra sleep here and there aren’t an issue.
But when their behavior starts to change on a consistent basis they should be looked at by a veterinarian.
9 Reasons Why French Bulldogs Sleep So Much
1) Increased Activity
If your french bulldog has recently been getting much more physical activity than usual, this could cause them to sleep more.
In this case, increased sleep is perfectly normal and healthy.
When your pup is getting more exercise than they have in the past, their body needs to adjust to the change.
Their muscle fibers are breaking down and rebuilding which requires additional energy.
That means their muscles need to recover from the added tension and the only way for them to recover is through sleep.
If you’ve been playing with them more, recently went for a hike (which is new for them) or increased your walk frequency/length, these could all cause your frenchie to sleep more.
2) Boredom & Lack Of Attention
On the flip side, if your pup hasn’t been getting much of any physical activity recently and is bored, they may sleep more.
During the day while you’re at work they’ll likely get in the habit of sleeping more because it’s an easy way to pass the time.
There’s no one to play with and since they aren’t able to use an iPad to play games, they’ll be pretty darn bored.
This way they’ll make sure they’re fully rested when you come home and they’ll have plenty of energy to play with you.
However, if you’re noticing them sleeping a lot even when you are home, it could be because they’ve gotten used to not getting much activity.
And unfortunately this creates a bad cycle of being bored, sleeping more, eating, going back to sleep and repeating.
Which can easily lead to weight gain which further makes them want to sleep more.
Related Reading: 10 Best Toys To Entertain Your Dog | Boredom Buster Toys
3) Getting Older
When a french bulldog is an adult, 3-7 years old, this is generally when they’ll need the least amount of sleep.
But once they start to move into their senior years, their sleep requirements will start to increase.
If as far as you know your pup is healthy, it could simply be them starting to show their age.
You can help keep their energy levels up and sleep requirements to a minimum by upping their exercise.
While you don’t want to push them past their limits given their age, gradually increasing their physical activity can keep them youthful longer.
Sometimes owners don’t want to push their pup as they get older and want them to be comfortable, but that doesn’t help their energy levels.
I’m sure you’ve seen senior people who are in their 80s that look 30 years younger and have tons of energy for their age and exercise is largely to thank for this!
Related Reading: Top 12 Best Beds For French Bulldogs
4) They Need More Sleep Than You Think
Sometimes people can confuse a very normal amount of sleep for their dog as too much sleep because it’s more than they need themselves.
While you may only need 8 hours to feel well rested, your french bulldog needs roughly 12 hours.
Interestingly, this is largely because dogs are only in deep sleep 10% of the time where people are in deep sleep 20-25% of the time.
Obviously this will vary depending on the person. But, on average, people require less sleep than dogs because they get better quality rest while they’re asleep.
Which makes it understandable that your french bulldog needs to sleep a lot.
However, if they’re starting to sleep more than 17-18 hours per day as an adult, they should see their vet.
5) Psychological Troubles
If your french bulldog is feeling more sad than usual, or even depressed, this could cause them to sleep more.
Reasons why your frenchie might be feeling depressed could be mourning the loss of a loved one, because of an injury, a change in living situation, or you yourself are feeling sad lately.
If any of these things have happened recently or are their current situation, it could be causing them psychological troubles.
For example, a study done in New Zealand in 2016 found that dogs who lost an animal companion spent 34% more time sleeping.
They concluded that this was a direct response to their sadness to not having their canine companion around anymore.
So if you’re noticing your pup being more standoffish, having less of an appetite and sleeping more, they could be depressed.
Related Reading: 9 Reasons Why French Bulldogs Look Sad & Depressed + Tips
6) Not Feeling Well
When your french bulldog isn’t feeling well, they’ll likely be found sleeping more.
Just like when you have the flu or some sort of bug, you need more sleep to help your body recover.
If your frenchie has had an upset stomach recently, they may be sleeping more to help their body fight off whatever they’re battling inside.
If their sleeping schedule doesn’t return back to normal after several days it’s important to take them to the vet.
7) Not Eating Enough
As with all living things, food is your french bulldog’s source of energy!
If your pup isnt getting the necessary amount of calories they need in a day, they’ll have less energy and sleep more.
There’s a couple things you can do in this situation.
First is to simply to wait a couple of days. Oftentimes dogs go through random periods of not wanting to eat their food.
This typically doesn’t last long and they’ll resume eating as usual.
Second is to try changing up their food. If after a couple days have passed and they’re still not interested in eating, try mixing in some new food.
Maybe their old food wasn’t sitting well anymore and they needed a change.
While trying these two things, it’s not a bad idea to take them to the vet.
It could be an underlying health issue that’s causing them not to want to eat and seeing a vet can help give you some clarity.
8) Bad Diet
The quality of your french bulldogs diet has a large impact on their energy levels.
Similar to people, when they’re young they can get away with eating poorly.
But as they get older, their body needs nutrient rich food to maintain their energy levels.
So if your pup is eating poor quality dog food that’s grain-based, eating too many treats, or too much unhealthy human food scraps, it’s likely affecting their energy.
And obviously the less energy they have, the more sleep they’ll need.
Which can then lead to weight gain and make the whole situation worse.
If you think your frenchies diet is likely to blame for their excessive sleeping, do your best to put them on a healthier diet.
Always remember to change their food gradually, not a complete change all at once.
Their stomach won’t be able to handle the change which could make them stop eating all together.
9) Underlying Health Issue
There are quite a few physical health conditions that could cause your french bulldog to sleep more.
Such as:
- Kidney disease
- Heart disease
- Diabetes
- Hypothyroidism
- Arthritis
Each of these conditions could be taking a toll on your french bulldogs body which makes them want to sleep more.
If you’re noticing a consistent sleep schedule change where they’re sleeping more every single day and it’s not sporadic, they should see a vet.
Another sign that they may have something going on internally is how fast they get up.
A healthy dog will bounce right up from their slumber if they hear their leash being grabbed.
Whereas one that’s in poor condition would slowly get up and not have the same amount of excitement.
Other posts you might find interesting:
Top 15 Best Harnesses For French Bulldogs
9 Reasons Why French Bulldogs Dig + Simple Tips To Stop It
11 Reasons Why Your Frenchie Farts So Much + Helpful Tips
Do French Bulldogs Like To Cuddle? 17 Things To Know
Citations:
Owners’ Perceptions of Their Animal’s Behavioural Response to the Loss of an Animal Companion
