And while they don’t sleep with me every night, I enjoy it when they want to cuddle. “Cuddle” being the operative word. Notice I didn’t say “hog,” guys?
So why do dogs and people like to sleep together? I can think of a number of reasons. First, who doesn’t enjoy the comfort of a warm body next to you in the middle of the night? And the sweet rhythmic breathing makes the pawfect white noise if you need it. It’s all good until a certain Ninja starts snoring, but I digress.
Their presence promotes calm and a feeling of safety. It’s also a great stress reliever. If you’re into meditation, it’s easy to listen to the deep breathing of dogs. When you concentrate on the breaths, it’s easier to fall and stay asleep. Who isn’t in need of a little stress relief? Besides, don’t you just love those little puppy sighs and dream whimpers.
Soon enough winter will be upon us and that means it’ll definitely be a two-dog night. Sure there are down comforters, but there’s nothing quite like a dog next to you for staying warm on a cold winter’s night.
Finally, the unconditional love dogs provide can help ward off depression. Many of our patients ask if Sam can get up on the bed with them and if there aren’t lots of tubes or wires, we’re happy to accommodate their request. Plus your dog enjoys it too when they’re hogging the pillows lying next to you. It’s a safe guess you probably figured out I’m definitely in the “it’s fine and dandy” category. Which camp are you in?
Live, love, bark! ❤︎
I love dogs 😍http://yeevanieshepherd.wordpress.com i have a post that anyone is welcomed to view.i post on my opions and thoughts and strives to accomplish self expression in my blog.i consider it to be unique n would love to hear your feedbacks
My 1st dog Rebecca (Foxhound) used to get under the covers & sleep at our feet. Best foot warmer EVER!!!
My 2nd dog Bogart Sam (Husky/Shepherd cross) used to share the double bed with my hubby & I. Many a night I’d roll over to *kiss* Wesley ‘Good Night’ & end up kissing a dog muzzle….Bogart Sam was such a clown!!!
((hugs)) Sherri-Ellen 🙂
Haha. With a name like Sam…I’m not surprised about the clown part! Even though I have to wash the duvet cover more often, I still like it when the pups sleep with me. Love hearing their breathing. And cute noises (except for Elsa’s snoring!).
Literally Bogart Sam thought he was a star! He would sit with an unlit cigarette in his mouth for photos to be taken…
One time we went out for a Police call in a hurry. Left an UNOPENED pack of Hall’s cherry cough drops on Highboy dresser…..
We came back 1 1/2 hrs later…the house smelled like cherries….Bogart Sam had cherry breath. Cough drops GONE>>>where was the outer wrapper & the individual wrappers???
We looked around; Bogart Sam threw up on the carpet…a real ‘cherry’ of a mess! We cleaned him up & snuggled with him. And then Wesley found the wrappers safely HIDDEN behind the couch….what a D-O-G!!!! 🙂
The pups are part of the family, and your part of their pack. Why wouldn’t you want to cuddle up together. It’s natural when you look at it like that. 🐾👍
Plus they’re sooooo warm and nights are getting cooler. 😁
mY sNoRes aRe tiNy aN cutE
Thank you for sharing this. I have always felt guilty letting Butter sleep with us some nights, but have thought- ‘If I want it, it is okay.’ Nice to see others think that too!
👍🏻 As a big fan, I think it’s a dynamite idea 😇
I only have a full bed, so when I have a 50-lb. dog, a 30-lb. dog, and a 13-lb. cat all in the bed at once, it can be hard to find a spot for me, but I wouldn’t have it any other way! I like to think that they’re helping me work on my flexibility as I have to sleep in such strange positions to not fall out of bed 🙂
That IS quite the crowd, but what a way to go!
Usually, I’m a pretzel. 🙂 But I wouldn’t trade it for anything!
Ditto here, though I’d add ‘thrashing’ to the pretzel part. 😆
I never have nightmares. But when my human does, she wakes up and squeezes me a little closer (as if I might be afraid!) It seems to help her. <3
Way to make your upright feel safe Chester. Bravo.
Ms Zulu tends to snore and my husband is opposed, so it’s a no in our house. However, a dog bed managed to get into the bedroom (no I did not put it there but a certain upright did…) so who knows what the future holds. Happy snoring. A
While my guys don’t always sleep on the bed, their beds are on either side of it and it’s a comfort just knowing they’re that close when they aren’t smothering me. 😆
Sounds like an excellent idea.
We let the dogs sleep with us because I love it. Hubby used to work rotating night and day shifts so of course I had the dogs in bed. Bear will usually get up and leave during the night but he is back in the morning. Sammy is a cuddly little guy. He even gets closer when there is a high wind. How is that possible? I miss my huge back cuddler. Can’t teach that.
Love those cuddle bugs❣️
I LOVE it when my dog sleeps in our bed. Our Boston loves to cuddle. Unfortunately my husband doesn’t like her in our bed! I always fall asleep faster when she is with me.
I always sleep better…well until the snoring begins or someone (who shall remain nameless) decides it’s best to lay across my legs and make my feet go to sleep! LOL
My Boston always snores! … when my husband is out of town for army she is always in my bed!! 🙂
Better to have them snoring in bed than next to it. The sound carries upward and seems more like a freight train. At least if their snoring on the bed, the sound goes above your ears. Or so I’ve been told! 😆
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve woken up spooning Piper with Jack at my feet, Leo burrowed under the blankets, and a cat on my shoulder. Thankfully it’s a king-sized bed. And don’t even get me started on the snoring! Three squishy-faced dogs = a whole ton of snores.
Gotta love the snoring. Totally makes me smile.
LadyMum sayss hsee iss inn thee sleep with yur doggiess an katss camp fur sure!
An shee sayss shee used to have Three Doggie Nite…mee thott shee meened thee band, mew mew mew….
~~head rubss~~ Siddhartha Henry~~
Both doggies are in our bed. We are lucky that they are small-ish, Callie’s 18lbs and prefers to sleep up against my wife’s legs, Charlie’s still a puppy, and he curls up between our pillows or faces for a while before he joins Callie at the bottom of the bed. I wish they were cuddlier. Of course, I’m not known to be a peaceful sleeper so that might have something to do with it.
It’s a queen size bed, and we used to have a 5/6/7 yr old popping in during the middle of the night/early morning, and we used to let the cats in until they decided to be incredibly annoying. Cats got kicked out, kiddo finally is fully removed, and now we are planning on getting pregnant! LOL. I think we need to buy a king size bed. Particularly as we are planning on another dog in a couple years.
Oh my gosh…you guys have quite the ‘pack’ in bed. With your plans, I think a king is probably a good call for a good night’s sleep. 😃 And thank you for swinging by the Ranch. We ❤︎ visitors.
I’m all for it, BUT Callie was my bed hogger – Shadow used to get off the bed after a few minutes because she was too hot and Ducky sleeps in her crate – and I miss her sooooooo much.
Most bed hogs are the light of heart. One of the many things that make them so endearing. 💕
Oh, I love this post! While all the Huskies love to sleep nearby, my baby boy Wolf (who weighs in at 70 lbs) just loves to be in bed at my feet! He started to come up in bed back when I was sick for awhile. Now he stays. I think he has taken it on as his job to be sure I’m okay! Or…he likes the a/c! I do love it in the winter – he’s like having on an extra pair of cozy wooly socks! He’s actually a very polite sleeper! There is something so calm and serene with them so close by. <3 Love all your great pics!
Yes, those ‘wooly socks’ in winter are paradise for us circulatory challenged. Having a therapy dog, I know all too well how they stay tuned into their uprights. Sam practiced on me when I was recovering from an accident. Don’t know what I would have done without him!
Luke is so good about getting himself right between the hubby’s and my pillows, though he does on some occasions take up more room than he needs to. But I don’t like it when he’s not with us. Cricket sleeps by Dad’s legs, and that little girl is quite the snorer…but I find her snoring relaxing!
Must be a girl thing. Elsa snores like a freight train!
Teddy can be very still, so he could technically sleep with us all night and I wouldn’t mind one bit. Luna, on the other hand, is a wiggler. We enjoy snuggles but then it is off to the dog beds if I want to get any sleep!
I sometimes sleep with Ma, butts I tend to be a hot dog, so I likes to move around a lot, so it’s up and down, in the bedroom then to the family room, then I waits til Ma gets up and I rub my hinnie on her pillow…hehehehe what?? ☺ (oh, don’t tells her that last part…)
Kisses,
Ruby ♥
Did Sam suggest that to you? LOL 😂
I can’t even imagine a bed without a dog in it…
I can’t even fathom it myself.
Years ago we had a king size bed for us and five pugs. After time there was three and we decided to downsize to a queen. The salesman got a kick out of us laying on the mattress trying to determine if there was room for us and the pugs. Mabel goes to bed every night snuggled up to me – most of the time under the covers! Hazel sleeps by my feet – always on top of the covers.
It always tickles me when owners shop with the pets in mind like that. Your girls look like terrific snugglers.
I am currently sleeping on the couch with 4 small dogs. It’s not that I don’t like the bed, but I recently lost my foster mom cat, and the 2 cats she fostered are having trouble recovering fromher loss, so no dogs in the bedroom for the time being. My dogs/foster dogs may be small, but they fill up all the leftover space, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
It never ceases to amaze me how a little fur ball can take up so much room. Sorry for the loss of your cat. Hope the rest of the gang provide loads of comfort. 💕
Pierre sleeps next to me whenever he wants but Bentley is not allowed on the bed for safety reasons. He can’t jump off like Pierre without the possibility of injuring his Basset back. We used to sleep with two German Shepherds so we don’t mind the company at all.
Aw, I do hope sweet Bentley doesn’t mind.
We, too, are in the “it’s fine and dandy” category! Two dogs, two cats, and two people in a king size bed – it can get crowded! But we wouldn’t have it any other way…
😍 A household after my own heart.
I’ve always felt that way. My husband has even found me petting and talking to my kitties while I’m fast asleep!
😆
We used to let the cats in too until two of the three decided that nighttime was the time to either meow in our faces or step on them. No more kitties in the bedroom!
They are definitely our alarm clocks! And I actually woke up in the middle of the night last night to Mr Tubs sleeping on my tummy 😂
😍
I cannot have cats in bed or the house for that matter. Super allergic to kitties! 😇
Mom and I are on board! Sometimes she calls me the name of Chubby and says my bony legs are sticking into her tummy and my hard head is leaning too hard. That’s all good… Right…??
Love and licks,
Cupcake
Uh…close, Cupcake. Close.
Benji sometimes sleeps curled up at my back, but mostly he sleeps at the foot of the bed. I think he finds it better to stretch out there.
Lately Elsa tries to straddle my legs at the knees. Not especially comfortable and when I move to find a spot, she gives me a deep sigh which is the well-established poodle sign of disapproval. LOL
Thanks for finding my blog…now I have yours!!!!
And thank you for swinging by the “Ranch” and for the follow. We ❤︎ visitors.
Having slept with both dogs and cats, I have to agree that dogs are the preferred sleeping companions. Paws down. 🙂
No doubt about that!
I have cuddle time with the girls on their beds before I get into mine and I can totally appreciate all the virtues of a full night together you point out. But we’re in the “not allowed on the bed or furnature” camp. Kali convinced me to let her “try it out” a couple of years ago but she squeezed me almost out of space. I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and when I returned she had repositioned herself to take the remaining space I had when I Got up. So that was that. Coincidentally my daughter’s 10 pound Smokey is with us this week and he has full bed and furniture privileges. Kali and Kloe can’t figure that one out because to them he’s just another dog and they don’t have an appreciation for the 50 and 70 pound weight difference between him and them. Plus when the girls get to rumbling the top of a couch or chair is the only safe place for Smokey.
That ‘no dogs on the furniture’ rule tends to be v.e.r.y. flexible around the Ranch. More often than not, I sit on the floor and look up to see the entire sofa covered in dog! LOL Enjoy your visitor this week…’ruff-housing’ and all.
My humom doesn’t have a choice because I always hop into bed before she does. (But she’s okay with it as long as I don’t kick her too much BOL!) I like using her feet as a pillow sometimes and other times when I’m still a little restless I play with her hands until I fall asleep.
Oh Mia, you’d be a fun sleep companion I suspect!
Well I like to think so! (Minus my occasional snoring hee hee but my humom thinks its cute thankfully!)
It’s always cute till the huMom gets woken up by it.
Love that pic of those two cuties on the bed…they look so comfortable! One of my two cats is a real snuggler. Sometimes he’ll wake you up to get attention by walking on you or meowing, but other times you’ll just wake up and find him sleeping in the crook of your legs behind your knees. A warm purring cat is a great sleep aid!
Much like a snoring poodle. LOL
zzzzzzzzz….
Precisely!
untill she was house broken lily slept in a crate at night in our bedroom. since then she has slept with us. usually at the bottom of the bed on my side but sometimes she will wiggle her way to sleep in between us with her head on my pillow. snuggle time with a 60lb furry mutt. love it!
she shares the bed with our cat who likes to sleep between hubbys feet.
our bed would feel so empty and lonely with out them.
when lily was a just a few weeks old I would have her lying next to me while I read. sometimes she would squeal in her sleep. the first time it happened it scared the hell outta me. I was terrified something was wrong with her. thankfully she out grew that stage and now just barks sometimes.
I LOVE those puppy sleep whimpers! They always make me smile and sometimes even chuckle out loud.
My cats are banished from the bedroom when it’s time to turn in because I am the ultimate believer in completely undisturbed sleep (No phone either, emergencies can always wait until I wake up). I don’t even like sleeping in the same room with others let alonehave another person or animal in my bed with me. I’m not a germophobe by any means, I just prefer to have slumberland all to myself…
Totally understandable. Sometimes I prefer being alone too, but mostly enjoy the presence of a little fur.
Well, the presence of a little fur is unavoidable in any room here. I’m pretty sure there is enough of that stuff clinging to everything in the house to coat a brand new black cat! 😉
I don’t see an issue with “sharing” a bed (that boy can take up an entire queen size bed when he’s motivated). I always sleep better when Bear’s with me. It hasn’t always been that way – when I adopted him, he always wanted to be ON me or next to me … it made me really uncomfortable. But it was very obvious that that kind of closeness was what he needed, so I spent some time adjusting and going outside of my comfort zone. Now, I don’t sleep as well without him there. Bonus? Cats have higher body temperatures than we do … it’s like snuggling with a furnace 😉
All great in the winter time…not so much in the summer when it’s in the 90’s. But the comforting sound of the dogs breathing lets this insomniac sleep decently well. 💤
Dogs are welcome but all my cats have been nocturnal and I don’t like 3 am strolls across my body.
Yeah, don’t blame you on that one!
Choppy has never slept in bed with us – even at a hotel, she will sleep in a bed, but she chooses the other one without people. Now, Schooner? He has to be in bed with us. We have odd animals.
Maybe Schooner crowds her out. 😉
He does take up a lot of space for such a small guy!
The AJF will sometimes complain that her night’s rest was disturbed by the sound of “old man snoring.” Well, surprise, for once it’s not me who is the target of her aspersions – it’s the 16 pound Malt that makes an incredible amount of noise when deeply sleeping! Nevertheless we can’t imagine not having him up with us and he even has his own flight of stairs to access his sleeping spot.
Love it! Yeah, Elsa is the snorer in our house. Man, she sounds like a bellows some nights! LOL
Even though our dogs are small, they won’t fit in the cage.
🤣
Some or all of my gang sleeps with us, sometimes it was 4 dogs at a time in a king size bed. I can’t sleep unless they are there.
I’ll bet some evenings, it’s quite the circus with that many dogs. But such paradise when falling asleep.
Oh my dog, I love this post I have thought about making some of these before about sleeping with dogs. Anyhow we have three dogs all 70 plus pounds and they all sleep with us (every single night.) Alcide sleeps in the middle, Paisley will either sleep by our feet or she will spoon with me and Hayley will either spoon with me (if Paisley isn’t) or with my fiance’. I love sleeping with dogs people always have comments about how we are crazy or that it’s gross because they are dirty. I actually take pride in how clean my dogs are. We bathe them, they get their nails trimmed, teeth brushed and brushed frequently I always make jokes that our dogs are probably cleaner than alot of children haha (I am a clean freak) We also wash our bedding once a week as well. I to love the comfort of having my dogs right there when I fall asleep and when I wake up. Luckily we have a huge king size bed so it’s not too crowded.
I agree. And there’s nothing sweeter than waking up and watching them sleep, snore or twitch in the early morning light.
Or waking up to a paw right in the ribs 😛
Or when they lay across both knees. LOL
Yep that’s one too. Since Alcide sleeps in the middle there has been mornings where we woke up to a doggie butt instead of his face haha. I don’t enjoy those mornings too much 😉
As long as ‘that’ end isn’t snoring…
Years ago with my first schnauzer Freda and her 30 lb sidekick Sammy: I spooned Freda and Sammy slept with his back against mine. Lexi slept with us whenever she wanted, but hated being touched during the night, so often got off the bed. Lucy and Riley don’t sleep on my bed because they are too big and shed way, way too much. But Lucy sleeps on her own bed on the floor near us.I’m sure our next schnauzer will be in the bed with us.
My two knuckleheads are like my very own formula of Sleep-Ease tablets and help me fall asleep quicker.
Maybe if we had a king size bed
😍
I have cats and only 7 lb. Mollie likes to sleep on the bed. I’m always amazed at home much room a small cat can take and how loud they can snore!
Isn’t it hilarious how on their beds, they curl up into tiny balls but on yours, the open up like unfolding origami? LOL
Yes! A 7 lb. cat takes up 3 square feet!
Hahaha! And here I only thought dogs were the only ones to increase double in size in bed. 😆
I change the bedding twice per week and I can not imagine a night without the little hobbit in my bed. There is only one issue: he sleeps on my head and it looks like I’m wearing a crazy hat ;o) (and I better don’t talk about my hairstyle in the morning )
Morning hair happens whether the dogs are in bed or not. I must run marathons in bed. Or battle dragons judging by how the hair looks. 😆
Brèagha just started sleeping on my bed. She’s 4 months old now. Before when I tried it she would wake up in the middle of the night and decide it was play time and jump on me, haha!
Gives new meaning to the term dog pile, doesn’t it? 😁
My lab Chelsea slept with me and I was single so there was room. She got lots of baths so she was quite clean. Cole never wanted to be on our bed. He had his space in the room. Milo pined for the big bed from the time he came home. We started him in the crate for about two months, then cuddles turned into full nights with us. In the hotel room his barking could get us thrown out so we took him in with us there, and kennel back at home. Finally we gave in and he’s so much better during the day after sleeping with us at night. That sealed the deal.
It helps that he likes to squeeze up next to my husband so I have more room!
Nothing quite like a snuggling poodle toasty warm next to you. Even when they crowd out others.
Sounds good Monika… unless you have an almost 80lbs Ray who insists on stretching out in any direction he sets his mind to; who goes for a jog quite frequently in his sleep; is a very loud snorer; will often break out into an attention getting bark; sheds like crazy (nothing like a stray dog hair** on your face for a good sound sleep), and has been known to drool!
** a stray hair off a dog, or a hair of a stray dog……….. your choice!”
I recall the days with 3 dogs on a queen size bed. All 200+ lbs. of them. And 2 of the 3 were Old English Sheepdogs. Tell me about hair. 🐶
You win! 🙂
When we sleep with dogs, we all win. 😎
🙂
WHAT?!?! How could you NOT let Ray sleep with you?!?!
Hi Molly. It’s not that I stop him but more that he spreads over the whole width of the bed, and at the pillows end! If he is there first, then I have to squeeze in as best I can, and slowly nudge him over. He eventually gets off the bed and goes elsewhere. On isolated occasions when I have gone to sleep with him there, he is gone when I wake up, but I am an active/mobile sleeper so……………..!