Background

What are animal dreams about?

Animals are a part of life, they can symbolize life outside of the human experience. There are domestic animals that we call our pets and consider family. There are animals that live in the wild. The DreamWell Dream Dictionary is based upon insights from 1,200 dream symbols in over 200,000 dreams. Let’s see what the data has to say about animal dreams.

The word cloud above shows the words that are specifically associated with animal dreams. These are the words that make animal dreams unique compared to all other dream symbols. Just examining the graph and reading the words of animal dreams can be illuminating about show animals affect our dreams. Be sure to check out the example animal dreams at the bottom of the page.

The circular bar chart above shows how animals in a dream will affect dream content as compared to other dream symbols. Higher bars indicate that animal is more related to the specific symbol in the graph. Lower bars indicate that animal is less related to the specific symbol in the graph. Specifically, animal dreams have more fantastic beings than 90.7% of dream symbols, more insects than 86.5% of dream symbols, and more eating and drinking than 85.8% of dream symbols. On the other hand, animal dreams have less strangers than 86.5% of dream symbols, less schools than 86.1% of dream symbols, and less human-made places than 83.1% of dream symbols. Notably, dreams of animals are very social! Animal dreams contain more characters tan 90% of all other dream symbols. Dreams, in general, are very social. There are people or characters in almost every dream, so it is notable that animal dreams have are so social. Every dream is unique. These are general patterns observed in an analysis of over 200,000 dreams. This analysis is a tool to help you make sense of your dreams. It is best to look at the differences. See how your dream of animals is different than dreams of animals in general.

21%

of dreams have animals

How common are animal dreams?

21% of dreams have the animals symbol within the dream. That's about 1 out of every 5 dreams. Considering all the dream symbols, it is frequent.

Identification

How are animal dreams identified?

This symbol is identified by the presence of other dream symbols such as hummingbirds, elephants, jackals, hamsters, kittens, apes, buffaloes, ducks, weasels, scorpions, wolves, antelopes, donkeys, dogs, bears, zebras, fish, deer, alligators, and sheep.

Most related

What is most related to dreams of animals?

Animals dreams are notable because they have substantially more pets, other fantastic beings, black cats, black dogs, small dogs, white cats, big dogs, and dead dogs than 95% of other dream symbols.

Least related

What symbols least related to dreams of animals?

Animals dreams are notable because they have substantially less Princess Leia, ovations, Kuwait, Estonia, Algeria, Morocco, Argentina, winning the lottery, pregnancy tests, soul mates, teeth falling out than 95% of other dream symbols.

Deep dive into animal dreams

Get an overview of characters, emotions, places, events, dream events, and senses in animal dreams.

Who is in dreams of animals?

Who is in dreams of animals?

Dreams of animals are more related to insects, much more related to fantastic beings, and more related to peers than dreams in general. They are less related to unnamed people, less related to strangers, and less related to family.

much more than usual
more than usual
less than usual
much more than usual
less than usual
more than usual
less than usual
less than usual
What are the emotions in dreams of animals?

What are the emotions in dreams of animals?

Animal dreams are less related to happiness, less related to sadness, and less related to grief and sorrow.

less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
Where do dreams of animals take place?

Where do dreams of animals take place?

Dreams of animals are less related to work, less related to human-made places, and less related to transportation.

the same as usual
less than usual
less than usual
less than usual
the same as usual
less than usual
less than usual
What happens in dreams of animals?

What happens in dreams of animals?

Dreams of animals are more related to eating and drinking than dreams in general. They are less related to friendly acts, less related to sex, and less related to health events.

the same as usual
less than usual
less than usual
the same as usual
more than usual
the same as usual
less than usual
How do dreams of animals related to the type of dream it is?

How do dreams of animals related to the type of dream it is?

Animal dreams are less related to lucid dreams and less related to vivid dreams.

less than usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
less than usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
How do dreams of animals related the senses?

How do dreams of animals related the senses?

Animal dreams are less related to hearing.

less than usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
the same as usual
the same as usual

How can you make sense of animals in dreams?

Animal dreams are frequent. Among other things animal dreams are very social. Do you think this is true for your dream of animals? How might your dream of animals be different?

All dreams have meaning

All dreams have meaning

You can gain insight from thinking about any dream, no matter how strange. Only you, as the dreamer, have final say on what your dream may or may not mean. Each dream is unique.

Look for the differences

Look for the differences

The DreamWell dictionary provides information on how each dream symbol appears in dreams in general. Finding how experience animals in dreams can be a key to understanding its meaning.

Return to the feelings

Return to the feelings

Our emotions in dreams can help us understand its meaning. Pay attention to how you felt in the dream. Pay attention to how you feel about animals in dreams. See how you feel about animals now, in your waking life.

An interpretation of animal dreams

An interpretation of animal dreams

This interpretation is from ""The Dream Interpretation Dictionary: Symbols, Signs, and Meanings" and is provided by J.M. DeBord aka "RadOwl". He is the author of several acclaimed books about dreaming, the host of The Dreams That Shape Us podcast, and is a moderator of r/Dreams, one of the largest dream sharing communities on the internet. Language is full of sayings such as “proud as a lion,” “slippery as a fish,” and “free as a bird”—rich with symbolism for dreams to use. Dreams bring to life these sayings and use animals to tell stories about you and your life. For example, a dream about fish dying in a fishbowl symbolically warns of an oncoming urinary-tract infection. The fishbowl symbolizes this person’s bladder, and fish live in water, so the dying fish indicate something wrong with that part of her body. See: Fish In a dream about finding a white horse in a snowstorm, the horse symbolizes personal strength to move forward under treacherous personal conditions. White animals are commonly messengers of the unconscious mind, and a horse symbolizes strength. In a dream about three kittens drowned in a pool—but one still alive—kitten-like qualities in the young dreamer are symbolically “killed off,” but the one kitten left alive shows that he is trying to preserve part of himself from extinction—the playful, kitten-like side of himself succumbing to teenage peer pressure to toughen up. Other associations can be made with fish, horses, and kittens, though. For instance, if your only experience with a horse is when one kicked you, then you aren’t as likely to dream about it in a good context. What an animal in your dream means to you matters more than pat definitions like the kind found in typical dream dictionaries! Consider the characteristics and qualities of animals that appear in your dreams. A dog to one person is a loyal companion; to another it’s a noisy nuisance. Both are common perceptions—which one fits your dream? To find out what an animal in your dream means, associate the animal with your experiences, perceptions and feelings. Also consider figures of speech that might apply, and caricatures from books, movies, cartoons, and TV shows that imbue everything from ants to birds to elephants with human qualities and voices. Your experience with, and impressions of, the creatures that appear in your dreams help determine what they symbolize. Generally, the wilder the creature, the more instinctive or primitive your related emotions or behaviors. We all have instincts reminiscent of certain animals or creatures. For example, rabbits and bulls are notorious for the instinct to mate. Gazelles and deer are known for the instinct to run. Lions and dogs are known for the instinct to protect territory. People have those instincts too. People are compared to animals and creatures in figures of speech like “stealthy as a cat,” “friendly as a dog,” and “treacherous as a snake.” One image can sum up a person’s behavior or personality. Comparisons to animals can be highly accurate ways of describing what we observe in people—and in ourselves. Pay attention to the age of the animal. A puppy, cub, or other young animal can represent something new or young in you, or something that needs to mature. An old dog might be a play on the phrase “you old dog,” meaning crafty or clever. It could symbolize an elder figure in your life, or something nearing its end. Parents of young children are known to dream about baby animals, because comparisons between young children and young animals are easy to make—and in fact are made frequently in media and everyday conversation. For example, a mother might call her child “my little tiger,” then dream about a baby tiger and not realize the relationship between it and her child. Recurring dreams about abuse of young animals such as puppies and kittens is known as a sign of early childhood abuse. White animals are an auspicious dream sign when they represent harmony among the conscious mind, the unconscious, and your instincts. Black animals, on the other hand, can be a sign of lacking harmony, or an adversarial relationship with your instincts. However, some animals are naturally white or black—the symbolism applies in situations when the color sticks out as deliberate. Because the possibilities are so numerous, throughout this dream dictionary are listed specific creatures and what they can symbolize. And keep in mind, the symbolism of animals in your dreams is given in the context of the dream-story. In other words, the white rabbit you chase down a hole might relate to something rabbit-like about you, like the desire to hide or protect yourself. Or it might be a prop in a story about finding out how deep the rabbit hole really goes. To explore the symbolism of groups of animals, see: Group. See also: Alligators, Ambushing, Baboons, Birds, Bulls, Cats, Camels, Caves, Chasing, Chicken, Cows, Creatures, Crowds, Deer, Dogs, Eagles, Eating, Fish, Flying, Foxes, Frogs, Goats, Giraffes, Geese, Gorillas, Groups, Guiding, Kittens, Leopards, Lions, Octopus, Owls, Pets, Pigs, Puppies, Rabbits, Raccoons, Rats, Roosters, Sharks, Stags, Tigers, Turtles, Vultures, Weasels, Whales, Wolves, Youth, Zebras

Examples of dreams of animals

Reading dreams is one of the best ways to understand dream symbols. Even though the DreamWell Dream Dictionary is based upon data, it is grounded in the experience of reading thousands upon thousands of dreams. We invite you to read examples of animal dreams for yourself. These dreams are actual dreams people have had. As result, they may contain racist, sexist, violent, or otherwise offense language and imagery. This can be true even for animal dreams. Read at your own risk.

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