Does your dog always sleep next to you? In your room? Or does he sleep between your legs? In any case, the reasons that explain why this behavior is related to the type of relationship you have established with him and the bond created. In this way, a dog will always sleep with the person or people he appreciates the most, and if you are one of them you should feel very lucky!
On our site we will talk about the feeling of attachment and explain why your dog sleeps with you, keep reading because you will love the reasons! !
Why does my dog want to sleep with me?
There are many reasons why your dog sleeps close to you, in your room or on your pillow. However, they all come down to the attachment that dogs can feel for their guardians. Yes, this relationship that we consider exclusive to humans also occurs with animals, especially those that have undergone a process of domestication, such as dogs and cats. Studies such as the one carried out by Topál, J., Miklósi, Á., Csányi, V. and Dóka, A.[1], in which carried out with more than 50 dogs and their owners the famous Ainsworth Test for children, show that the majority, seeing themselves without their reference figure, present behaviors typical of the attachment that a child can feel with their parents.
Now that we know that your dog sleeps with you mainly because he feels attached to you, let's see in more detail what motivates this habit or behavior the most.
1. He is a social animal
The first thing you need to understand to understand why your dog sleeps with you is that it is a social, pack animal, which in the wild would sleep in a groupThe dog is not a solitary animal, so this "curious" habit is in its nature. In fact, if you live with more than one dog and the relationship between them is good, surely you have noticed that they never sleep alone. Most either sleep with their humans or sleep together in the same bed or room.
two. He wants to protect you
As we said in the previous section, the dog is a herd animal, which watches over its own, cares and communicates with them through its own language. In this way, apart from the rest of the reasons, sleeping together fulfills an important function: protect each other
Sleep is one of the moments in which we are most exposed and, therefore, we are most vulnerable For this reason, many Dogs prefer to sleep near their humans or next to them so they can protect them if something happens. This is a natural behavior of the species. If you suspect that your dog likes to sleep with you because of this but you don't want him to continue sleeping in the same bed, he puts his bed next to yours.
3. He feels safer
If your dog sleeps with you it always means that you convey security and trust He is comfortable with you and sees you as a figure of reference who to follow and who you can trust. Therefore, it is not surprising that in addition to sharing with you the moment of sleep, your dog follows you everywhere.
4. Look for your warmth
Dogs love to feel the heat, which is why many prefer to sleep with their humans and get under the sheet to the warmest part of the bed. And if your dog always sleeps next to you or on top of you, this could be the reason too! Likewise, if your dog sleeps between your legs, it may be because he is precisely looking for this warmth.
We also see this search for heat during the day, when they lie down in the areas of the home where the sun's rays penetrate. Of course, this behavior has more reasons besides the one mentioned, do you want to know them? Visit the article "Why do dogs like the sun?".
5. He doesn't like his bed
Have you checked the comfort of his bed? If you doesn't feel comfortable it's normal to look for a more comfortable place to sleep, like your bed, the sofa or the pillow. That way, if your dog sleeps on your pillow, it's time to check his own mattress!
In these cases, the best thing to do is buy a comfortable bed, place it next to yours and leave a blanket to ensure that it has the heat you need. Also, you can review the article "How to teach a dog to sleep in his bed?" if you prefer that I stop sleeping in yours or watch this video:
6. He is showing you his love
In short, if your dog sleeps with you it means that he adores you He loves to feel your warmth, he feels safe with you, he wants to protect you and transmit all his love to you. Sleeping together is one of the greatest demonstrations of love and also helps to strengthen the bond. Although his bed is the most uncomfortable in the world, if he does not love his humans or they do not transmit security, a dog will not sleep with them. See the article "How to know if your dog loves you?" to know all the signals.
However, although the reasons why your dog sleeps with you or in the same room are charming, is he really good? We explain it below.
Is it bad to sleep with my dog?
Sleeping in the same bed is a habit that can be positive for both as long as some general considerations are taken into account. For example, it is very important to maintain proper hygiene for the animal, especially after walks. If we don't, all the dirt that is on their paws will be transferred to our bed and to us. With his hair we must take the same care, so we will have to brush it daily to control the fall and, therefore, prevent our sheets from being full of dead hair.
On the other hand, we must not neglect preventive medicine, since there are parasites that dogs can transmit to humans, such as fleas and ticks. In this way, we will have to deworm the animal following the instructions of the veterinarian to avoid the presence of said parasites.
Apart from hygiene, we must ask ourselves if it really sleeping together provides adequate rest to the animal and to ourselves, since depending on Depending on the conditions and dimensions of the bed, it may not be the most recommended. Thus, if this is your case, you can always place the animal's bed next to yours so that your dog sleeps in the same room, feeling safe and protected.
Now then, if the dog suffers from separation anxiety or hyperattachment, sleeping with your dog is not good because it reinforces this unpositive behavior for him. In these cases, it is necessary to go to a canine educator or ethologist to treat the basic problem, since not sleeping together is not the only solution.
