Pet owners after spending the whole day with their best companion often don't seem to like the idea of relegating their furry friend to the pet house.
Especially dog owners tend to treat their pet dogs like family members. There's an extensive list of activities that they take part in together, from eating to going for walks. The list seems to be extending to sharing the same bed at night.
According to a research survey conducted 43% of adult women shared beds with their pets.
So, while sleeping with pets may seem like a good idea, there are a few things that you may wanna reconsider. Keep reading to know more about how human-animal co-sleeping might be affecting you and your furry friend.
7 Reasons Why You Should Sleep With Your Pet
Having a pet co-sleep with you in bed reduces stress and loneliness. Although it's comforting and helps promote sleep quality, the debate still goes on.
If you're confused about your pets sleeping with you, we've got you. Here are 7 scientifically backed reasons why sleeping with pets is a good idea.
Reduces Stress and Depression
Multiple studies have found that sleeping with your dog reduces stress and depression.
Sleeping with your pets improves mental health and helps with depression by promoting the production of the love chemical, oxytocin.
In addition to that, cuddling with pets also lowers levels of cortisol. cortisol is the hormone associated with stress.
Co-sleep tends to ease anxiety in many pet owners. anxiety may be caused due to post-traumatic stress disorder and is one of the main reasons for poor sleep quality.
Alleviates Insomnia
The worst part about staying up at night is not being able to sleep despite multiple attempts. but pet owners don't have to worry as long as they've got their furry friend.
According to researchers, anxiety and insomnia are linked together. the connection forms a loop of anxiety-induced insomnia, where not being able to sleep due to anxiety induces more anxiety the next day. If you find yourself stuck in this loop, it's time to start co-sleeping with your pet.
Having your pet sleep with you is a proven way of producing the happy brain chemical, serotonin. In return, it reduces stress, promotes comfort and ultimately cures anxiety-induced insomnia by easing anxiety.
In addition to curing several mental health issues, sleeping with pets also helps lower blood pressure and improves heart health.
Ensures Comfort
Stress and anxiety are the main causes of poor sleep. oftentimes the anxiety is triggered by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These reasons cause reduce the quality of sleep and, in the worst-case scenario, lead to phenomena like nightmares disorders.
But your pet has got your back in this one too. dogs are more commonly associated with making you feel safe and secure. An increased sense of security while sleeping at night assures better rest without any nightmares.
Although dogs are a symbol of safety, just having a warm body with a heartbeat lying next to you is sufficient to promote a sense of security in pet owners. Consequently, it promotes sleep quality and increases the production of dopamine.
Moreover, pets are light sleepers. In case, anything goes wrong during the night, they'll be on high alert before you know. Knowing this can also ensure better sleep.
Lessens Loneliness
Nothing, not even your heavy blanket, can beat the comfort of sleeping next to a warm body and the warmth it radiates. therapists recommend service animals to people with depression.
While having a service animal may be of help, having your pet with you is also a scientifically proven way to cope with depression and loneliness. physical contact makes the pet owners feel relaxed. It's mainly due to the bond that pet owners share with their pets.
Promotes Sleep Quality
While the research about pets lowering anxiety levels and various poor sleep disorders is slim, the evidence present to support the cause cannot be ignored.
There is a long list of interlinked factors that influence sleep quality. as stated earlier, lowered anxiety, increased sense of security and comfort and higher levels of happy brain chemicals, all play equal roles in providing improved sleep.
Eases Health Issues
While snuggling with your pet at night helps with various mental health issues, it also eases several physical health issues.
As anxiety increases the heart rate, it results in fluctuating blood pressure. studies show that sleeping with your dog may lead to much normal blood pressure. Moreover, human sleep with pets has also been linked to better cardiovascular health.
Strengthens The Bond Between Dog Owners And The Dog
Sleeping with your dog has a number of benefits for both you and the pet. the way co-sleeping helps pet owners get better sleep, it also provides feelings of love and care to the pet. While being around them during the day seems sufficient, accompanying them during the night is a proven way to strengthen the bond.
Oftentimes, new environments and sudden changes in the surroundings can be intimidating for your pet. letting your new dogs and cats sleep with you helps them feel secure and lets them put their trust in you. Co-sleeping is usually essential for younger pets, but even if your pet is older, letting it sleep with you will ensure a stronger bond with deeper trust.
Why Is Sleeping With Your Pet Unsafe?
While sleeping with pets has several benefits for both mental and physical health, there are a few exceptions and points to be reconsidered. Basically, there are certain categories of pet owners who should avoid sleeping with their pets. These categories mostly include people with allergies and diseases like asthma.
Here are a bunch of reasons why pet owners should avoid sleeping with their pets.
Aggravates Allergies
Allergic responses to different animals are very common in both adults and children. These allergies if discovered in infants can be cured, or developed immunity, by allowing the infant to interact with pets. however, if an adult hasn't developed immunity against pet allergies, sleeping with them will simply worsen the case.
Doctors advise adults with pet allergies to avoid coming in contact with pets even during the day, let alone sleeping with them at night. Prolonged cuddling sessions with pets may expose the allergic person to pet hair and much more.
Moreover, pet hair doesn't only trigger pet allergies. As pet hair contains pollen and dust, prolonged exposure to it may trigger pollen or dust allergies too. In such cases, interacting with pets during the day isn't much of a danger, but sleeping with them at night may trigger your allergies.
Spreads Diseases
In addition to dust and pollen, pets bring germs and bacteria to your home sleep environment. While a lot of bacteria improve the immune system, pet hair also brings bacteria that are harmful and cause diseases. This puts the pet owner's life at risk of diseases spread by animals or Zoonotic diseases.
Although the spread of diseases through animals is unlikely to happen, the possibilities are never zero. typically, infants are prone to such diseases and are to be kept safe. Adults with asthma and other respiratory diseases are also more prone to infections.
May Cause Injuries
It is a well-known fact that snuggling with your pet relaxes you and calms you down, but it solely depends on whether your pet is calm or not. Constant movements and sharp claws may both result in injuries of various types.
Moreover, for light sleeper dog owners, letting their dogs sleep with them simply means waking up continuously throughout the night. That's because dogs tend to stay alert and bark every time they hear a sound or see a light coming in through the window.
Causes Breathing Issues
If you already have a health issue like asthma, you may wanna reconsider the idea of letting your pet sleep with you. cuddles with pets also worsen other health conditions like allergies and chronic diseases.
Makes It Difficult To Share A Bed With Your Partner
Depending on the size of your bed, most beds have space for two people. since there is no extra space, trying to sleep with your dog in the presence of a partner is almost impossible. Having an extra body with you in bed simply means you and your partner are both gonna wake up feeling cramped and tired.
Should You Let Your Dog Sleep With You?
Letting your pet sleep with you is not a great idea in all cases. It totally depends on the health and behavioural factors of both the owner and the pet.
Here is a checklist of things you may wanna observe before letting your pet sleep with you.
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Is your pet house-trained?
If your dog is young or new to the changing environment, letting it sleep with you may cause an increased number of inconveniences. It's always better to let your new dog adjust to the environment first.
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Do you have allergies?
Pet hair brings dust, pollen and bacteria into your home. the chances of exposure to such impurities increase when you cuddle or sleep with your pet. This may trigger several allergies in infants and adults. Moreover, bad bacteria are also responsible for causing several diseases.
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Are you a light sleeper?
Pets, especially dogs are restless and loud and bark whenever they hear an unusual sound. Being a light sleeper in this case means you'll have to wake up over and over again throughout the night.
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Do you or your dog have health issues?
While being close to your pet may help you with lots of mental health issues, there are a few situations when you may not be willing to sleep with it. If you or your pet are sick or injured, you should avoid sleeping with it.
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Is your pet new?
New pets have a hard time adjusting to a new environment. Before you let your pet sleep with you, show it love and make sure it is interested in sleeping in your bed.
Tips for Safely Sleeping With Your Pet
Letting your pet sleep with you comes with several pros and cons. The experience may be extraordinary or pretty scary, but we're here to help so you don't have to deal with the second part.
Here are our top tips before you start to sleep with your pets.
Set Limitations
The first and foremost step is to communicate the boundaries. Make separations and let your know about its side of the bed. make sure your pet knows all the ground rules about what they're allowed to do and whatnot, so you don't have to deal with the hassles later.
Don’t Share the Covers
Covers can act as a separation between you and your pet if you are sleeping together. as pets bring lots of impurities through their pet hair, keeping them over the covers lowers the chances of you getting exposed to most impurities. This way you can safely sleep with your pet without having to worry about catching diseases or triggering your allergies.
Take Them Out Before Going to Bed
What's worse than your pet having an accident in bed? to avoid this, it is very important to take your pet for a short walk every day before taking it to bed. Moreover, if you don't want to clean up an accident right after waking up, don't forget to take your pet for a walk early in the morning.
Keep Your Pet Clean
You cannot stress this enough. keep your pet clean. This is the only way to avoid allergies and diseases that are being spread through pollens, dust and germs in your pet's hair. In addition to staying safe from allergies, you definitely don't want to sleep with a smelly pet.
Use Mattress Protector
It's an exhausting job to clean a mattress. our go-to advice for staying safe from all sorts of accidents and tiring situations is to use a mattress cover. A good mattress cover will ensure the safety and cleanliness of your mattress. There are all different kinds of mattress covers available in the market right now. The best ones are typically allergy, dirt and water-resistant.
FAQs
Now we've discussed everything about sleeping with your pets. Let's walk through some common FAQs so that you will get a more clear picture of the topic:
What If My Pet Steals The Covers?
If your pet repeatedly steals covers, which in return wakes you up every night, you may wanna reconsider the idea of letting it sleep with you. The key is to take some time to sleep-train your pet and then let it sleep with you.
What Should I Do If I Have A Pollen Allergy?
As discussed earlier, pets bring a lot of different impurities from outside into your home by means of their hair. Some noticeable ones are dust, pollen and bacteria. Your pollen allergy will be triggered if you are exposed to your pet’s hair for prolonged periods.
How Do I Sleep-train My Dog?
Sleep training your dog isn’t an easy procedure. However, under the right guidance, it’s not a difficult task. For starters, you may wanna show your pet that it is a part of your family and above all, it is safe with you. Then, get yourself good quality mattress covers and start with establishing some ground rules like forming separations of the bed.
Wrap Up!
All in all, who doesn't like snuggling and sleeping with their furry friend? and especially when it comes to so many mental and physical health benefits. From reduced stress and depression to an increased sense of safety and comfort, sleeping with your pet has benefits that exceed your imagination.
Although there are a few drawbacks to sharing a bed with your pet, we're here to help. with our tips and products, you don't have to worry about catching any allergies. We have discussed the advantages and disadvantages of sleeping with your pets, along with all you need to know before sharing your bed.
That aside, we think having mattresses that are incredibly soft and comfy will definitely provide you with a safe space for sleeping comfortably. We at crafted beds are bringing you the best mattresses that'll help you stay safe and comfortable. Get the rewards of sleeping with a pet even if you're sleeping without it.
