There are Positives and Negatives of Letting Your Pet Dog Sleep in Your Bedroom!

We love our dogs so much these days, even to the extent of letting them sleep in the same room as us.  

Humans have been sleeping in close surroundings with their dogs for thousands of years so it's really not a new development.

However, there are both positives and negatives one should be conscious of when thinking about this question.

POSITIVES OF SLEEPING WITH YOUR DOG:

1. PROVIDES FEELINGS OF SAFETY - having your pooch in the same room as you can give you a feeling of safety in the belief that they will be there to support you should an intruder break into your home.  This can be really reassuring and help with your sleep in the belief that you have protection.  
2. EASES FEELINGS OF LONELINESS - Our dogs shower us in unconditional love at all times.  Having a soul in the bedroom that shows this type of love towards us makes us feel like we belong....  that we are not alone.....  This is really positive to us as humans as we can easily develop feelings of loneliness in this fast past world.  Because humans are social animals, having someone, or something, share our room and show us unconditional love makes us feel really happy.
3. REDUCES ANXIETY - Studies have shown that owning a pet reduces the feelings of stress and anxiety.  This is especially true in people whom have suffered some sort of PTSD.  Dogs have a calming influence on us particularly when they are snuggling down and going to sleep.  This helps relax us as humans and we find great joy and comfort when they are around us.
4. LOWERS BLOOD PRESSURE - Studies show that being near to, and touching your pet dog, can reduce blood pressure which is really important to your overall health. 
5. CAN REDUCE ALLERGIES - As you get older, the more allergens in early life you have been exposed to, the less likely you are to develop serious allergies and asthma later in life as per scientific studies.  This is basically because as you get exposed to such allergens, your body develops immune responses which then get stronger over time.  Of course, this may not relate to many adults, however it is worth considering if you have kids.

Whilst there are many more positives, these are the most prominent ones.  

Now lets look at the other side of this discussion and consider the top 5 negative reasons for letting your dog sleep with you in your bedroom.

Remembering that although we have been sleeping in close quarters with our pets for a very long time, it is relatively recently that we have enclosed them with us within four walls and a ceiling.  This, therefore, presents us with some issues that perhaps open air camping may not!

NEGATIVE REASONS FOR SLEEPING WITH YOUR DOGS:

1. INTERFERE WITH SLEEP PATTERNS - Humans have a very different, natural sleep pattern to dogs.  Most humans, and indeed primates, have a sleep cycle which happens once a day.  Meaning, we go to bed at night and sleep all night.  Dogs have what is called a Polyphasic Sleep Cycle.  This means that they will sleep more that twice during a 24 hour day.  Therefore, it's highly likely that your pet will wake up three times or more during the night.  When this happens they tend to disturb you and thus wake you up.  this can happen by them wagging their tail, licking your nose, grooming themselves and moving around or wanting to go outside and then back in again.  Whatever the case, they can disturb your sleep which means you end up not operating at your best during the day.....
2. PET DOGS CARRY PARASITES - Whether we like it or not, our dogs are animals and animals carry parasites.  These include ringworm, mites, fleas, ticks to name but a few.  These parasites can find their way onto, and into, us especially if your dog is on your bed.  For this reason it is important to keep your dogs flea and tick treatments up to date and even keep your own family up to date with worming prevention.....  AND if your dog is on your bed, you should definitely be washing your sheets and pyjamas very regularly.
3. UNEXPECTED INJURY - Like humans, when a dog is suddenly disturbed in mid sleep, or awoken abruptly, there can be an automatic reaction.  It his case a dog could snap at you if you startle them in the middle of the night and mistakenly bite you.  Alternatively, they might startle and jump in fright and land on you.  Because you are asleep, and not ready for an impact they can accidently cause you and injury.....  Or, and it happens a lot more than you think, your puppy actually rolls over and head-butts you in the teeth or nose!
4. STIRS UP ALLERGIES - You don't have to be allergic to your dog to have them cause an increase in allergic reactions.  This is because your dog can carry pollen and dust etc.... into your bedroom by accident because they don't have the luxury of having a bath or shower before bedtime to wash off all the nasties.  Yes, sometimes their hair and dead skin will aggravate your allergies but in many instances it's what they unwittingly bring into the bedroom from outside which causes you to get the sneezes!
5. CREATES MORE WASHING - Dogs can be dirty.  They don't mean to be but if they are wet, muddy or just love being the yard they are more prone to running into the room they love to sleep in and feel the most comfortable right after they have been let inside.....  They don't care what mess follows them....  Plus, they will bring their toys they have slobbered on, old bones, leave paw marks on the floor and bed, drop hair everywhere and the list goes on.....  All this creates a significant increase in the chore of washing.....

One thing to remember is that you need to be the boss of your own good nights sleep.

Don't let your puppy dictate the terms of your sleep in your bedroom.  As discussed, they have different sleep patterns to us so it doesn't mean that they are deliberately being difficult.

Conversely, there are many great reasons as to why we love having them in the bedroom.....  None more so than the simple fact that you keep developing deeper emotional bonds with them.

However there must still be rules in the bedroom so as to ensure that you are seen as the boss and in order to give you a good nights sleep.  

An easy way for this is to train them, by using dog treats, to get off the bed when you turn the lights out and to sleep in their own bed next to yours.

A meat free, fat free Dog Treat like our Vege Tubes, is a great pet treat to give just before bed as it is meat free, and very low in calories so it won't mess with their diet if they have already had dinner.

Have a great sleep this evening and thank-you for your support.  We truly appreciate it.

All the best from the gang at Huds and Toke.

@Hudsandtoke

#Hudsandtoke