Dog sleeping on my bed

When my children were young we always had two cats and a dog. None were permitted anywhere upstairs.

Our lovely mongrel dog died and I took my time to replace him. My son loved that animal, so for his 6th birthday one November, I managed to purchase a lovely little puppy. A Whippet, and the run of the litter, had been hand raised by the Bitch's owner.

Someone said to me that a whippet puppy born in the winter would have small chance of surviving and the runt, virtually none. So when my sone asked if the pup could sleep in his bedroom I broke my own rules and allowed it.

Dog survived very well, but from Night one, 'sharing the room', became sharing the bed. I did get a bit annoyed when my son, would come into me in the middle of the night complaining that Smokey was 'kicking him out of bed' - told him to kick back.

This did work fine, BUT I really do not like the idea of an animal sleeping on a bed.

When we got our Aussie shepherd 9 years ago, I was determined not to let her on any furniture. In the past we have had dogs on furniture and paid the price, especially as they got older and more protective of 'their' spot!

Somehow, when she was about 5, my DH invited her up on the bed. Since then, she comes up for a snuggle while we go to sleep, then she jumps off and goes to her bed on the floor. She still does not go on any living room furniture. Best of both worlds, I think. I am not opposed to animals on the bed.

dalrymple23

Gwyllt: Lucky you. My Flatcoat snores constantly, joining in with OH. The racket is so abominable, the Goldie removes himself from the bed! Yes, two Retrievers and two humans is a tad crowded and blooming draughty when the duvet has been nabbed.

Our little dog snores terribly during the day time but when he is in our bed at night he doesn’t snore and is as quiet as a mouse, it is strange but lucky for us.

We had our dog as a puppy at 8 weeks old, he is 13 next October, for years he slept in a crate and we never heard anything from him all night then 18 months ago he started being distressed in the night, he lost a considerable amount of weight and we were really worried about him. We took him to the vet about the weight loss and after an examination they suggested a series of tests and a scan which would have cost a lot of money, we said we would get back to them. We went home and thought things over and concluded his weight loss could be due to stress and since he was upset at being in his crate we let him sleep on our bed as a trial. He was as good as gold, slept without making a noise or a fuss and from then he started to gain weight. He is always ready to go up to bed with us and will sleep with us for the rest of his life, it does mean changing the duvet cover more often as he won’t sleep on a blanket we cover the duvet with but it is a small price to pay for his health and peace of mind for us.

I've been sleeping with dogs since I was a child. Growing up we had multiple dogs of all shapes and sizes. Always had a coyote on my bed.

Now 30 odd years married we've had many dogs. All being allowed to sleep with us. At one point we had a greyhound and a lurcher who would position themselves on our double bed. Bit of a squeeze.

We now have a fabulous king sized or super king (aren't they cigarettes?) which our ageing JR sleeps and manages to take up vast amounts of space

Many years ago when I got a Belgian shepherd pup the breeder asked if I would take part in a Liverpool uni very study comparing the gut bacteria and their owners. Interestingly dog dog poo had a very different bacterial profile to their owners

Yes, he does, and has done from day one! However, if I’m away he sleeps in one of his own beds on the landing. He’s thoroughly spoilt, but gorgeous.

farview

My cocker spaniel sleeps on my bed….i love her being there…. My friends think it’s wrong… I don’t… anyone else’s dog sleep on their bed? 🐕‍🦺

yes for sure

Gwyllt: Lucky you. My Flatcoat snores constantly, joining in with OH. The racket is so abominable, the Goldie removes himself from the bed! Yes, two Retrievers and two humans is a tad crowded and blooming draughty when the duvet has been nabbed.

I never have in the past, but our rescue from the dogs trust had been sleeping on his foster carers bed ( she told us when I asked about sleeping him ) only had him few weeks and to see him sleeping so content I must say there is something lovely and bonding about it, his not very big cross Jack/ sausage dog sorry lost the correct name spelling 🥹 at the moment.. both my husband and myself are surprised as would once never dream of even having a dog upstairs… seems it’s their pack instinct and comes very natural to him and now us
His settled very quickly and is very affectionate… wouldn’t change this now

Gwyllt

It is interesting the comments about holiday accommodation that allows pets We have three holiday cottages and we allow pets. The majority of the time they are left immaculate. However if a cottage is left in in a state it is far more likely to be someone with kids

Thanks for that comment. We always leave our holiday rentals clean and tidy, despite the fact that there's usually a cleaning charge.
Before we had a dog, we never opted for places that said dog friendly but now we’ve had to choose those, I haven’t found a problem.

Dog sleeps on my bed and under the duvet when it’s colder. His warm little body and soft-breathing are very comforting. I’m fastidious but he’s kept clean and he’s the perfect sleeping partner.

It is interesting the comments about holiday accommodation that allows pets We have three holiday cottages and we allow pets. The majority of the time they are left immaculate. However if a cottage is left in in a state it is far more likely to be someone with kids

My big labradoodle lay across our back doorway, a. Behaviourist explained guarding behaviour. The dog had clearly worked out, any attempted break in would be from that area, not the front door 🐕🌞

Iam64

Your dog was guarding you crosstitchfan. Lying across doorways is apparently, typical guarding behaviour

Thanks for that info Iam64
Now I know why our dog, when the gate into our room is closed, drags her bed in front of the doorway, meaning we’re liable to trip if we try to get out.
I thought she was punishing us for shutting her out until her 6am bark for the loo break, when the gate is left open.

Your dog was guarding you crosstitchfan. Lying across doorways is apparently, typical guarding behaviour

Threads like this inevitably remind me why I prefer animals to people any day of the week - and no, my dog doesn't sleep in my bed as a rule, although he does come up for a snuggle from time to time.

I think farview was asking whether anyone else let their dogs sleep on their bed. I don’t think she was asking to be lectured as to whether it was ok or not!
When I was a teenager, we had a dog. He was a rescue and he would come upstairs when I went to bed, and lie outside my door. I tried to get him to sleep on my bed but he was having none of it. That surprised me, because he would happily lie on a blanket cuddled up to me on the sofa.
I loved the fact he ‘guarded’ my bedroom though!

IMO it’s up to the owners.
As long as they’re not insisting that everyone should let their pets sleep on their beds, I don’t see a problem.
Those against it don't do it. Those for it, do.

Some people have habits that are a lot less pleasant than letting pets sleep on beds.

Sorry don’t think dogs or cats should sleep on the bed, especially cats you have no idea where they have been when outside

Well, unfortunately you get good guests and you get bad ones, that's the risk in letting accommodation whether people have a dog or not. My older daughter is in the process of selling a house with a self contained flat that she has let for many years on air B&B. She does not allow dogs but some guests have left leaving damage and mess behind them, it's what happens!

foxie48

Some dogs shed more than others and they also can shed more at different times of the year. If you allow dogs it is inevitable that if you look you will find some dog hair however careful the owner is. I try to leave our accommodation in a clean state but I absolutely can't guarantee he wouldn't leave a few hairs behind. We recently stayed in a lovely newly decorated cottage for two nights, we paid £25 extra to take our little terrier, I think that would more than cover vacuuming up the odd hair that he might have left behind. We met the owner briefly when we arrived and she made a huge fuss of our dog, very sensibly all the downstairs floors were tiled, she'd put easily washed blankets on the sofas although we had brought our own and she pointed out the tap she had put outside to wash muddy boots and paws if needed. We always appreciate owners who are happy to have dogs and tbh expect them to make arrangements that suit the dogs as well as the owners if we are paying for the dog to stay.

Nobody minds a few dog hairs but bedding and sofas covered in them is something else! Until a few years ago we always had dogs ourselves so I am not anti dogs.

The first year we did holiday lets we charged nothing for one dog. The next year we charged £20 per stay purely because of dog hairs, dog biscuits spilled on the floor and dog poo left in the garden. I left dog poo bags, old towels in the shed in case of wet dogs and a polite note in the kitchen. I also always left dog treats if a dog was booked in.

Some dogs shed more than others and they also can shed more at different times of the year. If you allow dogs it is inevitable that if you look you will find some dog hair however careful the owner is. I try to leave our accommodation in a clean state but I absolutely can't guarantee he wouldn't leave a few hairs behind. We recently stayed in a lovely newly decorated cottage for two nights, we paid £25 extra to take our little terrier, I think that would more than cover vacuuming up the odd hair that he might have left behind. We met the owner briefly when we arrived and she made a huge fuss of our dog, very sensibly all the downstairs floors were tiled, she'd put easily washed blankets on the sofas although we had brought our own and she pointed out the tap she had put outside to wash muddy boots and paws if needed. We always appreciate owners who are happy to have dogs and tbh expect them to make arrangements that suit the dogs as well as the owners if we are paying for the dog to stay.

foxie48

We always take our fog on UK holiday and stay in soft friendly accommodation, he comes with his own bed and we cover a place where he can settle with a freshly laundered blanket but he will shed hair. I'll shed hair and skin too. It's a normal process for dogs and humans. If property owners don't want dogs they just don't allow them. It's normal practice to charge extra for dogs, we normally pay £30 or more for a weeks stay or £10 for an overnight stay. This covers any extra cleaning costs and general wear and tear.

We also had people with a dog and you wouldn’t know there had been a dog in there! It’s the ones who allow their dogs to sleep in the bed and on sofa who spoil it for others because they then stop allowing dogs.

Dog not fog