Benefits Of Sleeping with Dogs

Need Better Sleep? Snuggle Two Pugs and Call Me In The Morning!

I love sleep!  I am the only one in my family that does.  My hubby and son both think that it is such a waste of time and if they could go without sleep, they certainly would.  Silly men.

Researchers at Canisius College in Buffalo New York published a study about sleeping with your furry friends in the journal Anthrozoos.  The study was titled “Adult Women’s Sleep Quality and Sleep Routines in Relation to Pet Ownership and Bedsharing”.  Wheww!  That’s quite a mouth full.

The researchers in this study surveyed 962 adult women in the United States and inquired about their pet ownership and sleep.  Fifty-five percent of the respondents said that they shared their beds with at least one dog and Thirty-one percent shared with at least one cat.  Fifty-seven percent also stated that they sleep with a human partner.

As a woman who sleeps with all three, human, dog and cat, the study’s key finding did not surprise me.  Dogs were perceived to be less disruptive to their owner’s sleep than cats or human partner.  Dogs were associated with a stronger feeling of comfort and security then either a cat or human.  My little 7 pound Chihuahua, Percy will be happy to hear that. 🙂  And lastly, cat and human were considered to be equally disruptive to the women’s sleep.

I whole heartily agree with these findings.  When my husband is out of town and I have the whole bed I sleep great!  My husband also struggles with his sleep, so if I don’t fall asleep before he comes to bed his restlessness can keep me awake.  Sorry honey.  And when our cat Stanley comes to sleep with us he always steps on Percy and makes him yelp.  This has been going on for 6 years now.  I think Stanley knows that Percy is under the covers and just doesn’t care.  This happens a number of times a night because Stanley, being a cat, doesn’t stay in bed all night long.  As you can imagine, it is very disruptive in the middle of the night.

There was a long-held belief that you shouldn’t share your bed with your pet, but many doctors are pulling back on that idea.  If you and your dog are both healthy and your dog is bathed regularly there is really no reason to keep them from sharing sleeping space with you.  They can provide warmth, relieve stress and anxiety, help relieve insomnia and of course bring a sense of calm and security.

Sleeping with your dog doesn’t just benefit you, it is also good for your pet.  With our busy lives today our furry friends don’t get much one on one time with us.  Sleeping next to each other all night gives them that little extra dose of snuggle time.  They also receive the feelings of comfort and security from you their favorite human.

So snuggle up to your furry friend and have a good snooze!