#60 - Should You Sleep With Your Pet?
Alright - Yes - this title could be taken two different ways.
So for you sickos that found this blog - move along.
And for the rest of us normies, let me save you the trouble and say that it’s illegal to have sex with animals - with some exceptions in parts of Africa.
And whilst there is an obvious joke about rhinos - and a less obvious joke about big cats - let’s move on.
Because I don’t want a bunch of guys in suits coming to my house and taking all of my hard drives …
Most people assume young humans sleep by themselves, and adults sleep with a bed-partner.
But did you know that for every 2 dog owners, 1 of them co-sleeps with their dog?
But this blog will focus on pets that bed-share (as opposed to room-share).
And we’ll ignore all those crazy shows where we see people living with chimpanzees and llamas, and just focus on the main pets.
Cats and dogs.
The Benefits of Sleeping with a Pet
I’m currently recording for our Short Online Course for Brief Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (BBT-I) - and within that I speak to the point that when we fall asleep, we make ourselves vulnerable.
That’s a vulnerability we have to accept. But some people don’t.
Thus one benefit of having a pet in the bed can be that extra layer of security for us.
We believe our pet could alert us to danger whist we’re wading through the waters of deep sleep. That their movement, growl, hiss or bark could wake us up when we need.
A second benefit is that people enjoy cuddling their pets - and this is easy to do in the bed.
The companionship we have with out pets can therefore extend to the bedroom.
Another benefit is that pets can help to distract us from our worries and concerns in the evening - and thus aid in the management of anxiety.
So what are the costs to all these benefits?
The Downside of Sleeping with a Pet
One of the most basic ‘treatments’ for sleep problems is known as Sleep Hygiene.
And one aspect of sleep hygiene is to ensure we have a bedroom that is conducive to sleep.
Pets can move and make sounds (eg, snore).
Just like their owners …
One study found that when people slept next to a bed-partner, a third of the person’s ‘movements’ (which are correlated with awakenings) were due to the movement of the bed-partner.
It really goes to show that instead of removing all tech devices from the room, we should remove all bed-partners instead.
If that were the case, I should also be developing a Short Online Course for Brief Marital Therapy.
Whilst some people do kick out the bed-partner, or move themselves to another room, or use ‘elbow-in-the-ribs-therapy’, most of us don’t kick out the bed-partner (see ‘Benefits’ above if you’re wondering why).
Yet pets can move during the night, and these movements can wake us up.
One study showed more ‘movement’ occurred in dog owners during the night if their dog slept on the bed vs those owners whose dog slept on the bedroom floor. Regardless of how big their dog was.
So when people and pets are measured objectively - the sleep of humans is bad.
But ask the same humans of their perception of their sleep, and they report their sleep quality is good.
What To Do?
There’s clearly some pros and cons for sleeping with a pet.
And each individual needs to weigh these up.
But if you’ve tried everything to deal with a sleep problem you’re having - maybe you haven’t?
Maybe it’s time to experiment with a week without your pet on the bed?
This might mean they learn to sleep on the floor, or in another room.
It might mean that you sleep in a different room (even if you need to have a week’s vacation somewhere without your pet).
And if you do make a change, ensure you be as scientific about it as possible.
Not only should you measure your sleep, but also measure how you feel during the day.
Questionnaires that measure our daytime functioning are a great way to do this.
You just need to know HOW to interpret it.
And that’s what we’ll explain to our subscribers in our weekly email coming out this Sunday.
You’re a subscriber, right?
If not, look down at the bottom of this page…
Prof Michael Gradisar