Where does your dog sleep?
Our dogs sleep in their bed and we sleep with them; at least that is what they would lead you to believe.
We have an over-sized queen bed; that uncomfortably fits all fur of us.
When Delilah first joined our pack we struggled with her jumping on the bed. I would get up and pull her off at least five times during the night. It was a battle fought and won by persistence. Hers.
Once the battle was won; we needed a nightly routine in order to ensure we at least had a chance to get a spot on the bed; it starts with Sampson and I in the bed. Sometimes Delilah is there too, but as soon as she thinks I’m heading her way she usually gets up and sits beside the bed.
I position myself; then using carrots, I lure Sampson up the bed toward his pillow, each time Sampson gets a carrot Delilah does as well.
After about three carrots I have Sampson where I want him and I say, “Okay, pretty come on.” Up she jumps to the bottom of the bed where most of the time she curls up on MY feet. If I move too quickly because I don’t have my feet in position before she gets settled; my darling diva growls at me.
I try to manage her by reaching down and petting her while I position my feet; the surprising thing is if I move during the night, she normally doesn’t growl. Go figure.
Sampson meanwhile has chosen a parent to lean against. He stretches his legs straight out against the other parent’s back. In this manner we go to sleep, Hubby clinging desperately to one side of the bed, while I cling to other and Sampson sleeping blissfully between.
It surprises me that this doesn’t upset me. In fact there are times when I wake up in the night to find his head tucked under my chin or resting on my shoulder and I smile. I. Smile. In. The. Middle. Of. The. Night.
Or my legs ache from remaining in one spot for too long, or my butt is freezing because it is hanging off the bed and I laugh. To myself of course, but I laugh.
Last night I rolled over and Sampson was facing me; I took the opportunity to give him a little good night kiss, he shifted his position and put his nose right up to my nose, typically this would freak me out; (if I can’t breathe cool air I wig) instead, I snuggled closer and I smiled.
Please keep the typing to a minimum…I’m trying to sleep.
This is all so true. My Foxy is a complete bed hog & i always tell her what a pain in the butt she is when she won’t move over. But sometimes, she falls asleep in the living room & after about 10min, I go and wake her up to come to bed because I can’t sleep without her snoring 😉
& I love the picture of Sampson!
Thanks Michelle!
If Sampson is hanging out in the living room I will go out there and try to get him to come in too! Isn’t it funny, can’t sleep with them and can’t sleep without them. LOL
Haha I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who has the opportunity to share my dogs bed lol
I sleep in a full size with both the girls and soon a third one will join us, but in order to be allowed on the bed you have to be able to get yourself up there so it will still be several months before I have to cling to the side for dear life 😉
Misty, are you keeping another girl? You crazy woman! LOL
A full-size bed with three big dogs and one person, you may want to get a bigger bed. 🙂
LOL or I may need to get smaller dogs 😉
It took my dogs a long time to train me as well as you are trained, but they are getting there.
Hang in there Jan, consistency is the key. ;-0
My girl climbed on to my bed the first day she came home from the shelter. Unfortunately, her favorite position is with her butt pointed to my face, but I can’t sleep right if she’s not there now. Go figure.
Oh George! We have the occasional butt to the face and we are very grateful they normally aren’t gassy dogs. 😉
It’s funny how we pamper them, isn’t it?
We can’t help but pamper them; we fall under their spell and we’re goners… It’s the magic of doggies 🙂
Mine’s a Boston Terrier and moderately gassy. Must be the chicken gizzards.
Fred sleeps on the couch or on his bed next to ours. Haylie sleeps on her bed next to ours – she cant stand to not sleep in the same room as me. We have a queen – there is no way Scott and I and both dogs could all fit but if we could I would do it 🙂 I spent years before scott having them both sleep on the bed with me and it was a good time.
There is a dog bed on the floor at the foot of the bed and one beside the bed. In the summer Sampson starts in our bed and then moves to the floor, but not in the cooler months!
I’m not sure if I could handle a dog the size of Fred. 🙂 Of course it has helped that they have both lost weight.
LOL I don’t think I’m going to let the 2 brown dawgs know about everyones’ sleeping arrangements. They sleep on the floor on a small blanket for each next to the bed. We don’t allow then in the bed or our the couch. They have it bad. 🙂
Those poor brown dawgs!
But they do get to hunt, now I’m thinking that is something Delilah might like.
So you keep the sleeping arrangements away from the 2 brown dawgs and I will keep the hunting secret from Delilah.
Deal?
LOL! Love the photo at the end. 🙂 Your dogs are very lucky, we are not so giving with the furniture – although we have been relenting on the ‘no sofa’ rule as of late, the bed is still ours. Leah and Toby sleep in their own dog beds, alongside our own, and Meadow sleeps in a crate. We’ve tried unsuccessfully to wean her from the crate at night, but the first time we tried, she kept picking on Toby (barking at him in the middle of the night – very strange), and the second time, we had a thunderstorm and I woke up to her trying to cram herself behind the bed in fear. So, she’s still crated.
There are times I wish I’d kept them off the bed, but most times I love having them snuggled up to us.
There are two dog beds in the room, so they do have options but choose to sleep with us.
Nothing wrong with the crate if that is where Meadow feels comfortable.
Ha ha, I could definitely relate to this. I tried for a while to have Clancy sleep just in his dog bed, but he kept jumping on my bed while I was sleeping and finally I relented. I can’t deny I love having him there as he is so cuddly, even though he is a bed hog. My cat Nate sleeps in the bed too and sometimes it seems like we have a whole zoo in the bed, they both take up more than their share of room. Great post, and I love the photo! 🙂
Thanks Julie, I love them snuggled up to me too! The cat MIGHT be able to sneak into the bed if he would just learn to keep his mouth quiet. Instead he comes in purring and meowing and the dogs will chase him out of the room!
I was surprised to see how many people let their pets sleep with them. 🙂
Our dog does not sleep in our bed. Since our cat sleeps on the bed, was with us first, and does not like to share, the dog sleeps in her own space. Which suits all of us just fine. The few times we’ve slept together while camping were a complete nightmare. I doubt any of us, even the dog, got any rest. In fact, we even got the dog her own tent so we could avoid such disasters in the future.
I think your arrangements are just too cute. It all sounds very cozy. 🙂
I’m sure Shiva likes having her own space.
I know sleeping arrangements are based on personal preference, personally I don’t care where the dog sleeps as long as it isn’t outside. 🙂 I just feel better when they are near me.
Sophie changes sleeping locale based on her mood. Some nights she sleeps on the couch in my room, sometimes on the dog bed, sometimes in her crate and once in awhile on the bed. Most nights she starts off on the dog bed, migrates to the couch and maybe then the bed. LOL
If she does end up on the bed, she will sometimes lay at my feet causing me to sleep scrunched up in a ball. Or sometimes she takes up the other half of my full sized bed.
Sophie sounds a lot like Sampson. He moves around a lot during his sleep process.
Delilah doesn’t move quite so much! 🙂
I’m so with you. There’s nothing more comforting than having a warm little body to cuddle up to.
I’ve been sleeping better lately, and I wonder if its because Sandy’s sweet innocence and small puppy-ness washes me over with happiness. And she’s so little that she fits happily right next to my head, unlike my two big boys.
I’ve had nights where I was grumpy about Florian wrapping himself around Fozzie in the middle of the bed–with Fozzie’s head square in the middle of MY pillow, paws extended every which way–but overall I love having at least one dog in bed with us. The cuteness factor is well worth the compromised space.
I do feel comforted, Sampson is warm without being hot. When Hubby is next to me I get too warm, not with Sampson, his body heat is different and it’s just perfect.
I love that little Sandy and would love to take her but Hubby says no and I know we really can’t, but I do want her!!
Aw, so cute! 🙂
Bella doesn’t sleep in our bed… she starts out her evening under the bench at the end of the bed, then migrates to her dog bed on my side, where she stretches out. Even when I’ve let her sleep on the bed, she only stays for a little while before she hops down and heads to her bed.
That is nice, to me it is the best of both worlds. You get the cuddle, but then you get the space. :0
What a nightly routine! If I were you I would give up and sleep on the floor (I do) 🙂
Don’t think there are nights that I don’t consider it. 🙂
Our Best Friend wouldn’t come near the bed for the first 2 1/2 years we had him– I think his previous owners traumatized him away from them. But now he loves to snuggle up. Fortunately, he doesn’t stay all night. I need my sleep!
Sadly, he still won’t sleep with the kids– and they’re the ones who want him!
Poor puppy! It’s funny, even when he gets off the bed I’m still clinging to the side. 🙂
Maybe he will sleep with the kids one day.