Lifestyle
New Study Says Letting Your Dog Sleep in Your Bedroom Won’t Impede Your Slumber
Sleeping next to your dog can be soothing. Feeling your pet’s rhythmic breathing and soft, warm body can lull a dog owner into a deep sleep. But some people say that their dog ends up waking them up by moving around, so they demand that their pup sleeps outside of their bedroom. In order to work towards solving this debate, researchers have conducted a study, possibly the first of its kind, to see if sleeping in the same room (or bed) as a dog impairs sleep.
CBS News writes that the Mayo Clinic conducted the sleep study with 40 pet owners and their dogs over the course of five months. For a week, both the owner and the dog wore a sleeping monitor. The study found that no matter the size or number of dogs in the room, people seemed to sleep very soundly with the dogs around. And while having a dog in the bed with the owner could result in several disruptions of sleep, Psychology Today writes that owners still got a sufficient amount of good sleep (though results weren’t as positive as those who only shared the room).
The small study didn’t include puppies nor anyone with pet allergies, which presumably would negatively impact sleep. Further studies will need to be conducted to come to more concrete conclusions, but for now, dog owners can feel free to keep their bedroom door open.
