Dreams about neglected animals ... what are they all about?

[JMSA]

A horrible dream last night. I discovered that I had left my pet hamster - which I don't actually have! - in a large tub of water, with the lid on
On opening the lid, I was obviously horrified and consumed by guilt. The hamster was somehow still breathing but struggling ... funny that! I fished him out and put him on my body, to get some warmth into him.
I can feel tears pricking my eyes as I read this, as it was awful!
It's not the first time I've had a dream like this, as the last time I left a pet in a drawer.
What are these dreams about animal neglect all about?

I get dreams where my animal have had lots of babies and I've forgotten to feed them and some are dead.
It's usually hamsters and sometimes rabbits both of which I have had.
I get these dreams when generally anxious.

I too have the same terrible dream from time to time, usually involving our childhood pet rabbits. In the dream I / we have forgotten about them all winter, they haven't been fed, have no straw, the hutch is full of poo. It is really distressing. I wake up thinking did it actually happen when I was a child ? i think it must stem from some kind of guilt.

I've had that a lot, as well, but even worse, I've often dreamed I'd had a baby, then put it in a closet (or similar) and forgotten about it, followed by panic and guilt when I remember. Whether it's a pet or a baby, they are always still impossibly alive, but the guilt and stress are awful. It's like the 'forgot to go to class all term and now it's exam time' dream on steroids!

the animals are you. you might need to learn to love and care for yourself better.

I've had the neglected pet dreams but never realized they were so common. I wonder if they are more common in women as I have only heard women talk about them.

The forgot to study for the exam dream seems to be more universal.

I do this all the time. I have 2 cats, a horse and some hens in real life. All cared for incredibly well.

I often dream of different cats shut in cupboards and drawers, horses that are shut in stables not being fed that I have forgotten about, hens at my BTL house that haven’t been let out or fed.

Really realistic and distressing. I have emptied the wardrobe and drawers before checking for animals. Which is absolutely crackers (I have a diagnosis of parasomnia to be fair though).

The other one I have is about missing medication for my DD, I wake up having dreamt there is something (tablets) she is meant to have that I don’t give to her. To the extent that in the middle of the night I check the NHS app to see what her medications are (in real life she has inhalers and some sachets for constipation that she always has as required) because it is so real and I am so panicked and my heart is going like the clappers.

Horrid all round.

This is a recurring dream for me, along with driving a car and I can't reach the brakes. I think the pet one indicates that I'm stressed about having to do everything, remember to buy the shopping, pay the bills, make sure everyone has their needs met. The car one means I feel my life is out of control and I have feel I have no way to gain control.

I too have the car one but I'm pressing on the brakes and nothing is happening, the car just won't slow !

Aw OP the is so sad 😢.

I do think you should pursue the possible means of this and see if you can resolve the door cause in your life. I think that will end the dreams.

There have been periods of my life where for various reasons parts of my home haven't been accessible and are being used as spare room type places, even when we need to use them really. During these times I have all sorts of dreams about living in or moving to a home in which I discover that there is a big secret extra space somewhere. They are really frustrating because sometimes they are SO realistic and dream me spends loads of time and effort figuring out how to use them, and then I wake up 😑

These dreams resolve themselves when I get my butt into gear and sort my waking world space out.

Omfg. Every time I have a stressful time at work I dream that I open a cupboard and find my neglected hamsters in there. That I've forgotten about them and they're nearly dead. So it's not just me!

Yes! I have that one too, either can't reach or nothing happening if I can. It was my most recurring dream at one stage. Thankfully not so much these days but that's probably because I can't sleep much at the moment.

Oh my goodness, are you for real? I've had this one too, albeit not for a while!! Difference is, that the previously undiscovered space makes me feel uneasy on entering.

And what an interesting point, raised by a previous poster. I'd bet good money that it's predominantly women who have these dreams!

Oh, and the neglected animal being me actually makes sense. I'm a single mother of 3 older girls, and it's been tough recently.

Thanks again everyone. Hope everyone who has this dream can practise a little self-care

I definitely have this one - usually rodents (hamsters, mice etc) all of which I have kept as pets in the past. I have such feelings if horror and guilt in my dream for forgetting about them/not feeding them/letting them escape. My therapist always thought it was something to do with neglecting vulnerable parts of myself/my feelings. Interesting that another pp has ADHD as I have this too.

And I have the 'secret spaces' dreams too - usually it's an entire apartment I've somehow forgotten I own! My house is a bit of a state and I have way too much stuff which I am slowly trying to tidy/get rid of, would be so interesting to see if these dreams go away if I manage to sort it all out.

Difference is, that the previously undiscovered space makes me feel uneasy on entering.

I’ve had this recurring dream for 30 years or so! I call it the Big House Dream. There are a couple of versions of the house but the rooms are the same - sort of an annex off a short corridor. No one has specifically told me not to use them and they usually have more / better facilities than the part of the house I’m comfortable in, but they feel very “off” and threatening. I’ve been there so often I think “Oh, here I am again!” in my dream.

The neglected pet one was briefly taken over by dreams I’d forgotten about DS when he was a baby, then went back to pets.

I have had a similar dream fairly often but mine is always about fish, several fish tanks that I have forgotten about. Not had it for a while thankfully.

Secret/new rooms in your house could be about parts of yourself that you are discovering - new ones that signal growth or forgotten/threatening ones that you have repressed and are uncomfortable with but your subconscious is telling you are important.

I've had variations of this dream for decades. Usually hamsters (I used to keep hamsters when I was younger). Usually I remember I had a hamster or two, I go to check them confused how I've forgotten and it turns out they've had loads of babies, all of them are starving and I'm now trying to save them. The worst version I had was shortly after my dad died (I did quite a lot of his care), where I had forgotten he was alive and now he was starving. Thanks brain!

Oh goodness I thought it was just me who had these.... I've had recurring dreams (nightmares) for years where I have realise I have abandoned rabbits or fish. Miraculously they're always still alive but it is the worst feeling in my dreams. I had no idea it was this common!

I'm so pleased others have this kind of dream! I used to, but hardly ever now my kids are older, I'm in a happier relationship where the load is shared, life is nice and I've stopped focussing on, and let myself off the hook of a lot of historical things - I do think they were an indication of the burden of responsibility I carried for the kids (that no one else seemed to share)

I have a recurring dream about forgotten animals too. The animal varies, sometimes it’s a hamster, sometimes fish, ferrets or one time a horse.

I’m trying to work out what the dream means by thinking about the feelings I get when I have it and afterwards. For me, I am calm/ oblivious, then panic when I remember the animal, false hope when I think they may be alive then devastation, guilt and shame when I realise what has happened.

I haven’t quite worked out whether for me this means that I fear my detachment from others/ the external world (I live in my head a lot, am very introverted) will harm others in ways I will regret later. It could just mean I am scared or overwhelmed with all the responsibilities in my life and fear dropping the ball in a devastating way. There is definitely something about a lack of self-trust and regret for me. A fear of actions being unfixable.

I mean I'm sorry people have this dream too because it feels awful! I'd love to know how many men have this dream of if it's a women/mother thing?

I had a really nasty one like this about my dog who had somehow been stolen and taken to a festival type thing and half skinned and had her two back legs broken. I found her tied up but she was desperate to get away from me and even though I didn't remember hurting her in the dream she was clearly terrified of me and I felt I should have protected her better. I actually woke up sobbing and can still remember the feeling of the dream about 8 months later. I do think it has something to do with self care - I am also a single mum and my friend at the time wasn't very well, dd going through a lot at school and I was trying to help my dad be a functioning adult. I don't have any other family and no one has looked after me since my 20's when my mum died. Usually this doesn't affect me but at that point in time I was suffering with physical health issues as well and I wasn't paying attention to some alarming issues in my own body. I'd say to assume it is your dream projection of yourself because we tend to personify our pets to humanise them, so it would make sense for you to put your own traits subconsciously into your image of your pet. I would start by making a GP appt for any niggles you have overlooked in your health. I kept thinking I just needed to get through the next bit but actually ended up in hospital in a very serious state for something that could have been discovered by a blood test years ago. If nothing else get some bloods for vitamin/iron levels.

I often have these kind of dreams- usually I have pet Guinea pigs that have bred, and I've left them to starve in a filthy cage, when I eventually go out to them, some are dead, and some are alive but very poorly, I often wondered why I had these dreams