Sleeping on the same bed with your dog – What you need to know

By Kodichukwu Okonkwo, DVM | January 17th, 2017




I have kept so many dogs indoors but the only dog that had access to my bed was Peach my black pug. She was very little, the size of my fist when I got her. She will readily sleep off when she has opportunity to lie on your body. She looked so frail and pitiable so I usually kept her beside me when I slept on the same bed. I never liked the idea though, so sometimes I would drop her on the floor but she will try to climb back to the bed and after several attempts she would stop and lie on the floor there. Time passed and she became expert at climbing my bed and the first day she succeeded she was so excited that at any attempt she will just climb the bed and lie down there.

She lies very quietly so I didn’t have a reason to chase her out of the bed. Besides I’m not a fan of sleeping so I didn’t mind. Peach soon learnt to bark. She heard some noise and the next thing I heard was ‘mmmgbof! mmmgbooof!!’ (barking) she was barking and the sound was too funny I couldn’t stop laughing.

She soon memorized when I wake up in the mornings. At that time I like to wake up 5am to prepare for work and any day I refused to wake up she will grab my blanket with her teeth and drag it off my body as a signal that I should wake up. I took her along to work so she always looks forward to that time and does everything to make sure we go together.

At a time, letting her sleep on my bed became very annoying because she likes to change positions a times but mostly when I change my sleeping position. She will practically climb across my stomach or my leg and sometimes my head. It doesn’t stop there; she will keep adjusting until she is comfortable enough to sleep. This her adjustment makes me very uncomfortable enough not to continue in my sleep and subsequently ruining my much cherished night sleep.

She started to chase wall geckos at unholy hours of the night not minding what she is stepping on, whether it’s my head, chest, stomach or legs she doesn’t care because her mind is focused on the reptile. I like the fact that she chased those creatures but not when I need so much rest.

The worst is when the wall gecko is on the other side of the window’s mosquito nets; she will start barking at the creature making sleep difficult for me at night.

I tried to tolerate all these for a while until I couldn’t; I gave her another place to sleep at night while she can sleep on my bed during the day.

Some people see allowing dogs to sleep on the bed as a dirty thing because dogs are dirty but I have to disappoint you by telling you that dogs are not actually dirty by nature. In fact, it will surprise you to know that dogs hate dirty environment and will always choose clean places to stay when indoors. They will not mess up your bed except when they are still puppies or if they received little potty training from you.

Besides the bad sides I experienced allowing my dog to sleep on my bed, there are other numerous advantages like the fact that they provide warmth especially during cold seasons or weather. She also alerted me when there is someone around my window without invitation. She helps me wake up early when I need to study late in the night. She distracts me from sorrowful thoughts most times. She has a way of telling me that her water is finished and that is when she goes into the bathroom trying to drink from the tap or stored water.

Yes, it’s important to note about ticks and flees because the dog might bring them indoors. In my own case, Peach is never allowed outdoors except whenever I go outside to check my car up, to spread cloths, on rare occasions evening walks etc. So she never has opportunity to bring in such parasites. She has a weekly bathing routine with tick and flees shampoo so this aspect is out of the way. If your dog is infested with any of these and still sleeps on your bed, please do something immediately to get rid of them because they might remain around your house for a long time if not carefully exterminated.

My advice is that you should know when your dog is becoming a nuisance to you and teach them to use other places for their night sleep instead of sleeping on the same bed with you. Thank you.

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    Kodichukwu Okonkwo, DVM

    Founder of Fairvet Animal Clinic Ltd since 2011, studied at the University of Nigeria Nsukka. He is well experienced in small animal, large animal & poultry medicine, and also skilled at zoo medicine. He loves animals and builds both professional and personal relationship with pet owners in order to sustain a good interaction with pet and animal owners, coupled with His great skills in programming; he brought about www.fairvet.com which he personally built from scratch.



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