Sharing bed with pets

muppet_man

Hi all

I'm sure this has came up here sometime before but heard about this new report on Newstalk this morning and wondered how many people actually sleep in same bad as their pets. If so what and how many? Do you belive it?
Personaly I have 2 cats which occasionaly sleep on the bed and growing up I've had other cats sleep on same bed and I'd say I'm pretty healthy. Only ever had odd cold/headcold.
Here's a link to the story: http://www.petnewsalerts.com/study-says-dont-share-the-bed/551/

So what do you think?

ISDW

This is from that link:

“In many countries, pets have become substitutes for childbearing and child care, sometimes leading to excessive pet care"

What a load of nonsense, sharing a bed with an animal is not new, siberian huskies used to sleep with the Chukchi children to keep them warm, they were life savers. Many inuit people refer to how cold a night is by how many dogs it takes to keep them warm, it could be a 1 dog night, or a 2 dog night etc. So, if its good enough for them, then its good enough for me:D

Jesus Wept

It's weird.

KylieWyley

add a poll OP.


a good pet is warm and snuggly.

caseyann

I had a dog that slept on my bed and i was never sick.
I had a cat that slept on top of my head also never sick.
Now though i dont for mere comfort.:D

Tallon

Total BS to be honest

You have the same chance of getting sick from your OH if they were out working in a room full of people with Air Con for example

suziwalsh

Read the article in the health supplement of the times.....so rubbish. I don't sleep with the dogs in my bed mainly because one doesn't like it and is very restless.

But half the article is rubbish and will have many pet owners freaking out and possibly giving up their pets. Also people were advised to get "hypoallergenic" breeds of which there is none and one of the "breeds" they advises was a labradoodle.....most of which shed huge amounts. I hate when articles are printed with little research grrr......will only encourage breeding of more designer dogs and getting rid of pets! Booo......:mad:

Kablamo!

The cat sleeps on my feet at night. She's grand and warm. I keep her wormed and flea-ed etc so I don't have a problem with it, although some may find it odd.

pH

I can't see the difference between a spaniel lying on me when I watch TV and a spaniel lying on my feet when I sleep. Maybe you could argue that a spaniel should be doing neither (and I certainly feel this way myself now and again!) - but if you dog is indoors and gets on the sofa with you, I don't see why the bed is much worse.

I did a poll for this a while ago:

Approx 30% of posters had a dog on their bed or in their bedroom
Approx 12% have their dogs outside at night
And the rest have their dogs sleeping in the hall/kitchen etc.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056093306

SirenX

not. a. chance.

I'd wake up coughing hair balls.

my pups hair gets everywhere and it's not even fully grown yet. plus he likes to lick his arse then lick me If I'm asleep I can't stop it.

Whispered

When I'm working nights I usually have a nap during the day and one of the dogs sometimes join me.

If neither of the dogs are there with me, then one or both cats will sleep on the bed during the day.

When my OH is away for the night the cats sleep on the bed all night. I don't let the dog sleep on the bed all night as he snores very loudly.

When we go camping, we have the dog on the blow up bed with us, he starts at the end, but at some stage in the night tends to climb up under the covers, between us and lies there too hot, but too cosy to move. This year now, we have another boy in foster, so, if he's still with us, he will be coming camping too. I don't know how we will manage with both. I think they will have to be crated in the "porch" because I don't fancy waking up to a game of chasing over my head!

We change our bed covers twice weekly. I also have a throw which I put on the bed when one of the pets are on it. We are hardly ever sick!

pebbles21

I always let my dog sleep with us....because at least then im not the only one begging in the bedroom

SophieSakura

I don't see anything wrong with it. When I was like 11 then I had my dog sleeping in my bed and then cats always sleeping in my bed.

I was bottle feeding two little kittens and had them in a basket in my room, and they climbed up into my bed and I woke up with them cuddled up to me, that was so cute.

Then I moved to Dublin and had a cat in my apartment who slept in my bed.

Then I moved back home and I'm not allowed to let the cats into my room because my mother thinks the bed will get infested with fleas or something. She always thinks my cats have fleas . . . :rolleyes: But I really found it hard to sleep and missed them.

I've let one cat into my room a few times but he's so annoying! He wants loads of attention and then wakes me up really early! So I don't let him in anymore, but if I take a nap on the couch then he takes a nap with me

So I actually wouldn't let my pets in my bed. Dogs are too dirty, well mine are! and try to take up the whole bed and push you out. And cats are too annoying when they don't sleep all night. Also I have too many dogs and they all like to cuddle up together so there's no way I'd have four of them in my bed, and they're obsessed with licking my face. I'd never get any sleep.

But I don't think it's unhealthy usually.

adser53

Nope, no way, no how! Mine love to get as dirty as possible. Ours aren't allowed upstairs for that reason. Not that we think we'd get sick, its just unhygienic imo.
I don't judge those that do it, its just not for me

I wouldnt mind it but osky is a bit jumpy and barks randomly if there's any strange noises so he has to sleep downstairs for the sake of my sanity.

VW 1

Yep, the dog (miniature Jack Russell) regularly shares the bed with me. Never a peep out of her during the night and usually have to call her to get up in the mornings, she just loves her sleep so much! Never sick or anything like that, but I can understand those that wouldnt be in favour of it!

seamus

Nope, not this dog. The JR cross we had growing up shared all of our beds all the time. Once one person got out of bed, she'd slink out and find someone else who was still in bed and join them. She was living in a house with 4 teenage boys, so she was rarely short of somewhere to sleep.
She was good though - she'd get in and go to the bottom of the bed, lie beside your legs and stay there.

That said, at night she slept in her own bed in the kitchen.

The Staffie though, no way. For a start, she smells. And she farts as only Staffies can do. Plus she moves around a lot when sleeping, and snores and does a lot of huffing and puffing. I've also discovered that she's much happier when there are firm, "You're dog, I'm owner" lines, and allowing her to even sit on the bed would blur those lines.

TheAnswer

Our fella (Shih tzu) sleeps on the bed of late (the last 4-6 weeks or so), I'll push him down to the end of the bed but he'll usually mooch his way half way back up the bed and will be curled up behind your knees by morning. I keep threatening to banish him back down stairs but just don't have the heart for it and sure, he's not doing any harm:)

One thing I must add, he's not allowed up past waist level and he's definitely not allowed under the cover.

happy hotspur

Our two bichons sleep in our bed all the time. The 3 year old sleeps under the blanket on the OHs side of the bed and the 8 month old sleeps on a pillow at the top of the bed. We wouldnt have it any other way and either would they TBH.

pierrot

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRmk7jcYII0

tk123

I don't let him upstairs cos of his legs but I voted yes because if he could come upstairs or my bed was downstairs I'd let him sleep on it!

lorebringer

None of mine sleep in the bed with us, there wouldn't be enough room to fit any humans! They stay up with us in the bedroom or office until we go to bed (generally, I head to bed earlier - to read a book or something - than my OH). If there is only me in the bed, they all pile on but are promptly taken to the kitchen - where they sleep at night - when the OH goes to bed (or vice versa).

On rare occasions we have them up with us (usually at Halloween because a choice few are a bit skittish!), there are beds galore all over the room and even if they start off in the bed (with much pushing and nagging to get off!) most, of not all, end up in their beds or around the floor after a while.

In say this though, if one of us goes for a Sunday afternoon nap on the couch (or in a bed) we will wake up with a dog on top of us or a bum in the face! We also allow them onto the furniture (including beds) whenever they want to, but as a result sheets are changed very often (and there is always clean bedding if guests stay, just in case there was a dog lazing on the bed) and the couches are wiped down very regularly (they are leather).

I, personally, don't think it is unhygienic to sleep with your pets as long as you are willing to go the extra bit to make sure everything is kept clean. Obviously, if someone has an allergy sleeping with pets is a serious no - no but other than this to each their own! As "Tallon" already pointed out - you're more likely to get sick from your OH or working in close proximity to someone or from dodgy air conditioning than sleeping with your pets. It's not for me at all but whatever you are into yourself!

Nollipop

Our very large, 40 kilos and 30 inches tall greyhound sleeps on a huge beanbag bed in the lounge. I think it was probably meant for giant breeds but he manages to flop across most of it with no problems!

Greyhounds are notorious for folding up small and then stretching out, pushing whoever is unlucky enough to be sharing a bed with them out towards the sides, or even off the bed!!!

Plus, the boyfriend would not be very happy sharing.;)

Its the one place he isn't allowed to go in the house, so I think it's fair and gives him a rule to follow that reminds him who's boss.

My old cat DID use to sleep on the bed though, alternating between my mother's and mine when I lived at home. We put old towels on the bottom of the beds to keep the hair off the duvets.

vibe666

got 2 cats at the moment and they both sleep on the bed at one time or another. one of them actually wakes us up in the morning for work as soon as the alarm goes off at 5:45am (including the weekends with no alarm, grrr!) as she knows the routine and if my wife goes to bed before me, she will come in to me and pester me to go to bed, although i think it's more to do with her preferring us both to be in the same room than specifically wanting me to go to bed.

she usually sleeps on the pillow above my wife's head, or sitting on top of one of us purring, depending on her mood and who is fidgeting the least.

oddly enough, the other cat (a male & her older brother from an earlier litter) will sleep next to her anywhere in the house, but will only come up on the bed hen we are in it if she isn't already there and will lash out at her if she jumps up and then run off.

even more oddly, if neither of us are in the bed at the time, they will both sleep on it no problems, so i guess he's being defensive of his relationship with us, rather than the bed. it's like a cat version of eastenders in our house. :pac:

trio

HELL NO. That would be a total passion killer for me. It'd be like having a kid in the bed with me!

Aishae

the more the merrier style of thing. my dogs arent big, which helps! a jr and a jr pommeranian cross so theyre small. the latter doesnt shed much. i keep the jr brushed. i read a post above that sounded familiar - if you get out of bed then whoever is on that bed will slink off and find one thats still occupied.

at various points in the night ill have one or both dogs and ill have one of the cats too - if the dogs and the cat do not know each other are there :rolleyes:

i change the bed regularly anyway - as you do.

although if theyre mucky theyre in the living room.

Lawrence1895

Kablamo! wrote: »

The cat sleeps on my feet at night. She's grand and warm. I keep her wormed and flea-ed etc so I don't have a problem with it, although some may find it odd.

Same here, but mine lies next to my head for a few minutes before walking to the far end of the bed. For me his purring is kind of relaxing and helps me fall asleep

Shanao

The dogs are too big to climb the stairs but the cats are only too happy to share the bed. I usually wake up in the morning from the cat, (who we call pervy cat because of his tendency to climb under the duvet in the middle of the night), kicking me in the side. One of the kittens tries to sleep on my chest or neck, and the other two are happy enough just on the end of the bed.

Galway K9

At the start i always told jack "No, Sleep in his bed on floor!" but then he just sneaked up when i was asleep...now i cant bare the night without his warm, cuddly self next to me. Its amazing!:)

liliq

Mine are allowed on the bed, and sometimes sleep on the bed during the night.
One of them tends to prefer to sleep in her own bed on the floor. The other would sometimes want to be very cuddly, other times would prefer to be off on her own as well.
As long as they get down off the bed once I tell them to and understand I'm boss, then I don't mind!

Clare Bear

Our little dog comes in to bed for a cuddle every night and in the morning but we always kick him out after a few minutes. He starts crying now if we don't bring him in. Ruined :rolleyes::o I wouldn't want him in the bed all night though, apart from that being a bit much he'd be too annoying. He snores and kicks in his sleep!