For those who have dogs do you let your dogs sleep on the bed? I had a zoology teacher tell me once that not to sleep with your dogs. Do you know why that is?
2006-11-30 12:02:08 · 33 answers · asked by amber 3 in Pets ➔ Dogs
I dont let my dog sleep with me or in my room. even though i love my dog more than anything, ive learned that if i let him sleep with me, the number of bacteria and bugs in my bed turns ten fold. already, there are billions of little tiney bed bugs/ dust mites in our matresses and sheets that thrive off of our skin particals that are always flacking off our bodies even if we cant see them. the only way to get rid of em is by vacummeing daily, washing sheets and bedding in hot water once a week, along with nonstop cleaning- and who in their right mind has time for that? along with this, i have somehow devolped a slight allergy to my dog. if there is little or no circulation in a small enclosed room, and im laying next to my dog, i get nausia after 10 minutes and have trouble thinking, seeing, and get a headache. then i have to open a window or go walk around and get air. also, one of the few times i did let him sleep with me, he threw up all over the covers and made my matress stink for weeks. unknown to me, my brother in law fed him chicken ontop of his dinner, and even after poopie time, he had a lot in him that just decided to come up not long after jumping on my bed. i think it was more of an acid reflux thing. i take naps with my dog all the time still (in fact, i just woke up from one and i feel great!). i have a big blanket that i throw on the floor and we just lay down and cuddle for a few hours. that way i get to sleep with him and he doesnt feel left out, but i can still take a shower and retreat to a nice warm, clean bed, while buddy gets to have a big comfy blanket on the couch, where he still has the freedom to get up and run around and play.
2006-11-30 21:06:45 · answer #1 · answered by Stickie:) 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Some dog parasites such as fleas will transfer over to you. That could be what your zoology teacher was talking about. There can also be issues with dominance. Sleeping on your bed is sort of like being equal to the pack leader.
That being said, I will sometimes snuggle with a book and a dog for a while before I sleep. But when it's time for shut-eye, the doggies go in crate or on their own bed.
2006-11-30 12:05:16 · answer #2 · answered by Michelle F. 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋
Two of our dogs do. Two do not. The two that do are small enough, that they take up like no real room. They are a Shih Tzu/JRT mix and a little lab mix. The two that don't are a Siberian Husky and an Alaskan Malamute.
Sometimes the Malamute will sneak up on to the bed at night when I am fast asleep, but when my wife isn't working, only the two little ones are allowed up on the bed. plus, we're never sure when one of the kids will have a bad dream and end up in bed, so rather then having the difficult task of waking up and moving the heavy sleeping Malamute, I will usually keep her out of the bed.
2006-11-30 13:50:47 · answer #3 · answered by nanookadenord 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Its because, wild dogs, their heirarchy is that the higher up in the pack, the closer they sleep to the alpha dogs. Sometimes dogs may get dominance issues with you because they think that they can challenge you for the leadership of the pack (your family). If you are going to let them sleep on the bed make sure you have a good training regime to let them know you are the boss. Make sure the dog doesnt sleep on your bed unless you are there and make them get off the bed before you in the morning. The bed is the sleeping place of the boss so you have control of it not the dog.
2006-11-30 12:11:42 · answer #4 · answered by Big red 5 · 4⤊ 0⤋
I adopted my little Chihuahua 4 years ago, and was told that I should never let my sleep with me. However, after two nights of him crying while sleeping on the floor in his doggy bed, I would awaken in the morning to find him sleeping at the foot of my bed! I would attempt to give him a consequence while placing him on the floor, and it would be the same thing night after night. I eventually gave up, and he finally worked his way up the bed and underneath the covers! He now has to sleep under the covers and right next to my stomach or back! He hasn't had any issues with fleas to which I am allergic, and he is very clean. He always pops out after a while to lay on the pillow, and yes, he does appear to believe that he is human! I think that you really have to just listen to your heart and what makes you most comfortable.
2006-11-30 12:28:57 · answer #5 · answered by tatesgr 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
yes. my husband and i allow her in our bed at night when we sleep. she is a very well behaved dog. she is allowed to sit on the couch during T.V. time too. the key word "allowed". dogs are pack animals. their human owners are their new pack. they need a sense of belonging. if you were excluded from everything everyone else was doing it would suck right? well dogs (animals) feel the same way too. i treat my dog like a child, which people say not to do, but she is a pit bull and her feelings get hurt very easily. so she is as much a part of our family as i am. maybe your zoology teacher had a bad experience with a dog. i dont know.
2006-11-30 12:15:13 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
My 11 year old boxer girl sleeps with me on my bed. Im 14 now. When i was 8 yrs old when i got her, she would sleep right next to me, and she was bigger then me, because im a small kid, and i would hope she never rolled over. Now since im bigger she sleeps at the end of my bed, but sometimes she sleeps next to me. The only problem is, if i go to the bathroom or get water, she takes up the whole bed and i cant sleep.
2006-11-30 12:34:49 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Zoonotic diseases. There are a whole bunch of things you can catch from your pet, and they from you.
That said, I have taken several zoology, microbiology, and biology classes, I have 3 that sleep with me.
I wonder if the bird flu would have ever came to be if people in Asia didn't live with their chickens? At least I have no CHICKENS in my bed! LOL!
2006-11-30 15:53:20 · answer #8 · answered by whpptwmn 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It's probably a dominance thing like eating before you feed your dog or letting your dog on the furniture. It makes them think they are the boss. My dog gets too hot in our bed. He starts out there but goes to his "room" sometime in the night.
2006-11-30 12:10:03 · answer #9 · answered by porkchop 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Yes, our Husky sleeps with us, all 55 lbs of him. We have a queen size bed, and he sleeps at the foot of the bed, between my husband and me. At times, it can be uncomfortable, with everyone trying to find "their spot".
I don't know why dogs can't sleep with us. They are pretty social animals and love to be with their masters.
2006-11-30 13:17:01 · answer #10 · answered by Ceci 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋