ANIMALS Animals in dreams represent primitive drives and desires, such as fear, lust, and anger that can only really be understood on an instinctual level. Thus, to dream of a certain animal could suggest an aspect of your personality that is instinctual, hidden, or striving for recognition. It could also represent a part of yourself you find hard to control. And because we often assign characteristics or personality traits to animals, dream animals may also symbolize gut feelings we have about others. An attacking lion, for example, may depict how we see someone who is being aggressive toward us.
Animal dreams rouse special interest because they contain images that are familiar to us, but at the same time we recognize something that is unfamiliar and obscure. Traditionally, the characteristics of the dream animal are applied to the world of humans, often seeing the animal as a harbinger of misfortune or good luck; for example, a wolf is often thought to predict thieves or misfortune. According to Freud animals in dreams are not predictive of future events but a classic expression of repressed or unexpressed sexual and aggressive tendencies. Jung, however, argued that animals in dreams should be analysed individually, depending on the character they portray in the dream and the association the dreamer has to them.
Jung believed that animals are sublime and, in fact, represent the ‘divine’ side of the human psyche. He suggested that animals live much more in contact with a ‘secret’ order in nature itself and – far more than human beings – live in close contact with the ‘absolute knowledge’ of the unconscious. In contrast to humankind, the animal is the living being that follows its own inner laws beyond good and evil – and is, in this sense, superior and a source of inspiration and guidance.
Although animals are one of the most common dream symbols, dreams that feature them can be complex and hard to interpret. Perhaps the simplest way is to first think about how you feel about the specific animal in your waking life. You may, for example, adore cats and think of them as lovely creatures because you have a much-loved pet cat, or you may associate cats with feeling unwell because you are allergic to them. Thinking about how that animal makes you feel within the context of your dream should help you recognize if that feeling is struggling to the fore, or is already expressing itself in daily life.
If, on the other hand, you have no feelings in particular about the animal in your dream, you need to think about the quality you typically associate with it: for example, a fox with cunning and stealth, an elephant with strength and mystery, or a dog with unconditional loyalty and love. Because animals are thought to represent unedited feelings and drives, it’s possible that your unconscious used the symbol of the fox in your dream to alert you to your own or someone else’s cunning. Thinking about that aspect of yourself – again within the context of your dream – should tell you whether you need to nurture and develop it, tame it, or be on your guard against it in someone else.
If you still feel puzzled, it may be that the hidden meaning lies in archetypal, traditional, legendary, mythical, or magical associations. Dream animals may also embody a pun. For example, if you dream of a badger, are you feeling badgered or aggravated in some way? If you dream of a zebra, could this refer to your black-and-white viewpoint?
Dream animals, no matter how problematic, offer us an opportunity to contact and explore both the parts of ourselves that we have shut away and the parts that we have yet to discover. In general, researchers believe that animal dreams mean that the subconscious has woken up and has come to life.
Our dreams will be selective and personal in the choice of animal used to portray our life situation, but as you interpret never forget that animal symbols in dreams typically represent a fundamental push toward life and living it with passion.
See also BIRDS, FISH, PETS.
Animal Scenarios
Agricultural Animals
Neither pets nor wild creatures, agricultural animals often represent personal traits that you may have tamed to a certain extent, although there is always the risk that they will escape conscious control and run wild. It’s important to reflect on the context of the dream involving a working or farmyard animal, as it may reflect how you feel about the burdens and responsibilities of your daily life.
Animal Noises
If you hear animals making sounds in your dream, you need to consider what these sounds mean to you in waking life and then to make a symbolic link. For example, if you hear an animal barking, wailing, or whining for attention, these sounds could be calling your attention to the qualities that that particular animal represents to you. If you hear ominous growling, roaring, or cackling, it could reflect pent-up anger either within yourself or another person. If you hear braying, it could indicate a need to overcome basic animal instincts. If you hear bleating, you may be taking on new cares and responsibilities that could be positive or negative depending on your attitude toward them.
Animals in Pain
To dream that you are rescuing, caring for, or saving the life of an animal suggests that you are successfully acknowledging certain emotions and characteristics represented by the animal. A wounded animal can mean a pain you need to come to terms with that has caused an instinctive reaction, such as reactive anger or terrible fear. To find yourself in the waiting room of an animal hospital suggests a desire to avoid a responsibility or commitment you have in your waking life. To see lab animals in your dream suggests that an aspect of yourself is being repressed. Alternatively, it suggests that you need to experiment with your fears, choices, and beliefs. Try not to limit yourself.
Animals in Water
Dreams about animals in water are symbols of our emotions. Water is a symbol of emotion because water, like emotion, constantly moves and flows. How the animal moves within the water reveals our emotional mood. For instance, if the water is calm and beautiful then it shows our emotions are good.
Animals with Their Young or Baby Animals
Maternal and paternal instinct; your basic childhood need for love and protection or your own experience of being parented. A baby animal can refer to yourself when young and vulnerable; feelings or memories concerning your childhood; desire for babies; vulnerability; fundamental survival instincts such as crying out for protection and comfort and the need for dependence and bonding. If the young animal is injured or dying, this could suggest problems with maturing or dealing with adult life.
Caught or Caged Animals
To see wild animals caged suggests that you are in control of your instincts. If you are in the cage with them, it could suggest a need to break free from constraints. If you dream of an animal tangled in barbed wire or in a trap, this could suggest an unhappy relationship with yourself or someone else. If the animal seems calm, it suggests inner strength during adversity, but if the animal panics, unhappy memories or unhealthy habits are limiting your potential for development and growth.
Changing into an Animal
Also known as zoomorphism, to dream that you are changing into the form of an animal indicates that you are becoming less civilized and restrained, and becoming more free and instinctive. You may be expressing your new-found freedom and independence. Alternatively, taking the form of an animal can also suggest repressed urges that need to be understood and managed. Consider also the qualities of the animal that you turn into and what happens to you in the dream. According to Jung the end of the dream is particularly significant. Favorable resolutions direct us to the most constructive ways of solving problems, while unfavorable dream resolutions contain a warning of negative changes. Dreaming of animal skin could mean you may have found or need to acquire the traits, power, and wisdom of the animal concerned.
Cold-blooded Animals or Reptiles
The unfeeling, cold, almost inhuman element in some human instincts is often suggested by cold-blooded animals or reptiles.