English bulldogs are well known for sweetly slumbering away much of the day and our bulldog is no different. One minute he will be actively chasing a ball, and the next minute we can hear him snoring away in his bed.
As we watched our bulldog snooze through the day, we started to wonder, how many hours of sleep do bulldogs need every day? And should we be concerned by how much our English bulldog was sleeping during the day?
On average, an English bulldog needs between 12 and 14 hours of sleep per day, or about 50 percent of a 24-hour period. The amount of sleep an English bulldog requires will vary by its age and level of activity. Older English bulldogs and puppies will sleep between 16 and 20 hours per day.
Hours of sleep by English bulldog age
| English bulldog age | Hours of Sleep |
| Puppy | 18 – 20 |
| Adult | 12 – 14 |
| Senior | 16 – 18 |
When watching our bulldog puppy sleep I used to wonder, he is so calm when slumbering, when will he calm down when awake? If you’re curious to know how many years it takes for a English bulldog to calm down check our post on the topic.
We tracked how many hours our 6-month-old English bulldog slept in a 24-hour period and here are our results and sleep log:
Cumulative time slept in 24 hours: 15 hours and 54 minutes
Sleep log
| Midnight – 8:00AM | 8 hours |
| 10:00AM – 11:15AM | 1 hour 15 minutes |
| 1:00PM – 3:05PM | 2 hours 5 minutes |
| 3:45PM – 4:55PM | 1 hour 10 minutes |
| 6:00PM – 6:50PM | 50 minutes |
| 7:00PM – 7:25PM | 25 minutes |
| 8:50PM – 9:15PM | 25 minutes |
| 10:15PM – 11:59PM | 1 hour 44 minutes |
| Total | 15 hours 54 minutes |
English bulldog sleeping statistics
Since we are fortunate enough to own an English bulldog we thought it would be fun to track some of his sleeping habits over the course of a week and provide some statistics. Here is what we found out from our experiment:
Over the course of a week, our English bulldog slept 113 hours, averaging approximately 16 hours per day.
| Day | Sun | Mon | Tues | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Total |
| Hours | 15:45 | 14:00 | 16:15 | 16:45 | 17:30 | 16:15 | 16:30 | 113 |
| % | 14% | 12% | 14% | 15% | 15% | 14% | 15% | 100% |
Hours slept per day
Percent of hours slept per day
Heatmap of hours slept over one week
Remember, every bulldog is different and age plays a big role in how many hours your dog will sleep. Our English bulldog, Ollie, at the time of writing this is 6 months old and weighs about 45lbs.
Why do English bulldogs sleep so much?
No one really knows why bulldogs sleep so much. One common theory is that when dogs in general sleep only 10% of their sleeping is the deeper REM sleep. REM standings for rapid eye movement. Both dogs and humans require a certain amount of REM sleep per 24 hour cycle to remain healthy.
Since bulldogs only get about 10% REM sleep in any given snooze session they require more sleeps throughout the day. If you notice your bulldogs eyes moving or legs twitching during their sleep they are most likely in the REM phase of the sleep cycle.
How much do English bulldogs sleep when they’re puppies?
Bulldog puppies between the ages of 0 – 18 months sleep between 18 – 20 hours per day. Puppies when awake are active and energetic. The increased expenditure of energy requires additional sleeping time to recuperate. Additionally, bulldog puppies are growing every day. Many hours of sleep are needed to grow into a strong smart bulldog! So let your sleeping dog lie!
If you’re wondering what are the best products use for your English bulldog, we got you covered. We created a recommended products page which links to every product we personally use for our English bulldog, Ollie.
How much do English bulldogs sleep when they’re middle aged?
Between the ages of 3 and 6 you can expect your bulldog to sleep around 12 – 14 hours per day. Sleep will be mostly at night with many naps sprinkled throughout the day. Generally speaking, a bulldog sleeps 50%, lounges 30% and is active 20% of its day.
How much do English bulldogs sleep when they’re old?
When your bulldog becomes a senior citizen around the age of 7-8 they will start sleeping similar amounts of hours to a puppy. Just like us humans the older your bulldog gets the more sleep and naps are needed to get through the day.
What times of day do English bulldogs sleep?
Bulldogs sleep 7 to 8 hours uninterrupted throughout the night. During the day bulldog naps will occur throughout the day and total about 5 to 7 hours.
What days of the week do English bulldogs sleep the most?
English bulldogs sleep patterns and length of sleep is greatly influenced by their owners schedules. English bulldogs tend to sleep more during days when owners aren’t home because of work. For bulldogs whose owners are away at work Monday through Friday, those days will be their heaviest sleep days. Weekends or other days where owners are spending more time at home will encourage a bulldog to stay awake for more hours to increase their play time with their owners.
When should you be concerned with your English bulldogs sleep?
If your bulldogs sleeping patterns change suddenly with no explanations like a busy day playing at the dog park, don’t be afraid to reach out to your local vet. Signs of viral, bacterial infections or cancer can include change in sleeping patterns along with some of the following:
- Bathroom accidents inside the house
- Change or loss of appetite
- Not playing as frequently
- Coughing
- Vomiting
- Sneezing
- Diarrhea
- Whimpering or other audible signs of pain
- Not drinking much water
- Drinking too much water
- General lethargy
Bulldogs are amazing dogs with strong personalities, to make sure they’re happy let them snooze whenever they want. No one wants a tired cranky bulldog.
Honestly, when a bulldog decides to sleep, it will and you won’t be able to wake them from their slumber, even if you wanted too!
