The dream catcher meant for a child can also have a feather strung to its center, just as an added means to guide the good dreams on their way. It is also believed that the feather symbolizes Air, which is so essential for life.

And with the notion of gender roles quite common amongst the Native American tribesmen, it is a regular practice to have an Owl’s feather, signifying wisdom, in a baby Girl’s dream catcher and an Eagle’s feather, denoting courage, in a baby Boy’s one. 

The feather is not attached to the dream catcher of an adult.

The dream catcher is hung mostly over sleeping children as a charm to protect the young ones from nightmares. In fact, it is believed that the ancient dream catcher, called the �?STRONG>Sacred Hoop�?was fashioned by a concerned parent.

 However, the Lakota myth is that the netting in the dream catcher will entrap your good ideas while letting the bad ones pass through the net.

Though its origins cannot be vouched for, the dream catcher has some captivating pieces of myths surrounding it.

According to the Ojibwe legend, the Spider Woman or Asibikaasi who brought back the sun to her people, asked the women of the tribe to make a dream catcher out of willow hoops to protect their children from nightmares.

The netting was fixed to the hoop in eight places in order to signify the eight legs of Asibikaasi or seven to denote the Seven Prophecies.

The legend of the dream catcher takes on different shades across the various American Indian tribes. The Chippewa tribesmen hold that the dream catcher was made according to the wishes of the medicine who asked the women of the tribe to fashion out a dream catcher out of love and willow hoop to protect their wards from evil spirits. The dream catcher would have a notch at the center in the shape of a heart through which the good dreams would pass.

The Lakota legend has that Iktomi, one of their greatest teachers appeared in the dreams of an elderly tribesman and instructed him to weave a dream catcher out of a hoop, feathers, horse hairs and beads.

He explained that the Good Spirit would filter away the bad dreams and ideas to help the tribe lead a peaceful life.