On Co-sleeping with Pets

I’m at home sitting in my king sized bed with my dog and kitty cuddled up next to me.  It never fails—our dogs always lay vertically, taking up the whole bed, leaving me squished to the wall or falling off the edge!

It turns out that dogs and people have been co-sleeping for centuries!  Dating back to Pre-Aztec culture, dogs acted as bed warmers and companions to people. In the Australian Outback, the saying: “three-dog night” was related to how many Dingo’s it took to stay warm.

It seems this habit has stood the test of time and has scientists studying both the benefits and disadvantages of co-sleeping with your pet.  Hal Herzog, PHD, conducted a study in an article for Psychology Today.  He studied over 1,000 people that co-slept with their pets and over 1,000 people that didn’t sleep with pets.  He found people who co-slept with their pets may take longer to fall asleep than people who did not co-sleep with pets.  Other than taking longer to fall asleep, there was no difference in the quality of sleep between the two groups.  In measuring the quality of their daily lives, people that co-slept with their pets were equally as productive and awake as people that slept in a pet-empty bed.  The study seems to shatter the myth that sleeping with your pet is problematic for your quality of rest.

I personally would have continued to sleep with my pets even if the study said it was not in my best interest!  But it is reassuring to know that sleeping with a healthy pet is not only fine but may bring psychological benefits to the owner.  A recent study in the Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine confirmed that my pets can lower my heart rate, promote regular breathing and relax my muscles. The study also found that my stress related hormones dropped even more quickly than if I had taken medication to lower them!

I find it exciting that the scientific evidence is clear, there are great benefits to sleeping with my pet, both because I just love snuggles and because it is just plain healthy. But what about the health of my pet?  Is it healthy for my pets to sleep with me? Behaviorist Dr. Marsha Reich of Maryland believes that under normal circumstances, co-sleeping is healthy for the pet as well.  Dr. Reich believes that if your pet exhibits grouchy behavior while in your bed that they may need to get off.  However, as long as they mind their manners, the pet can stay.  More good news for our fur family!

There is nothing better at night than being tucked in bed with all the folks in my home that I love.  I know I would not change that no matter what my research or professionals said.  I am so glad that the research matches my beliefs, being surrounded by the ones you love is just plain healthy for everyone!

Is there ever a reason you would not sleep with your pet?