Do Your Pets Sleep in the Bed with You?

Do your pets sleep in bed with you?  Mine do.  My bedroom's like a Jack London novel.  But there's a new study that claims that having your pets sleep in bed with you may not be the best thing for a good night's sleep.  In fact, a study by the Center for Sleep Medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona suggests Dolly and Ellie may be demonstrating behaviors that actually keep me awake at night.  And I'll admit . . . they snore, they dream and whimper, they growl if someone tries to move them and, at times, they can be a little gassy.  But is this really affecting my sleep patterns?

According to the study (which I caught on Twitter because I follow the Huffington Post), 20% of the pet owners in the study described their animals as "disruptive."  I wouldn't call Dolly and Ellie disruptive . . . even though Dolly's been known to go crazy in the middle of the night and start digging in the sheets like she's mining for gold and Ellie, occasionally, decides to stick her tongue as deep into my gaping, morning-breath mouth as she can.  And, yes, on more than one occasion I have sprung out of my deep sleep gagging because my dog has French kissed me in the middle of the night.  LOL and YUCK!

However, 40% of the folks in the study labeled their pets "unobtrusive" and even claimed them to be beneficial to sleep.  As unpredictable as my dogs are, they are really good snugglers.  They love to sleep, they're warm and they love to nestle right up beside a human.  And, while they'll occasionally do crazy stuff . . . like tunnel underneath the sheets all the way to end of the bed, then overheat and gasp and pant for air as they crawl back out . . . I wouldn't have it any other way.

What about you?  Do your pets sleep with you or do you make them sleep in their own beds?

And, to read a detailed summary of the Mayo Clinic's study, CLICK HERE!