Is It Safe To Sleep With Your Pet? Pros and Cons

As a pet lover, sleeping with your pet on your comfortable mattress is the sweetest experience ever. You love the feeling of their fur brushing against your skin or the warmth that emanates from their body to yours.

However, not all people would agree with your sleeping setup. For the longest time, 0there have been debates about whether it’s safe to sleep with your pet or not.

In this article, we’ll finally settle the score. Should you sleep with your pet? Is it safe to sleep with your pet?

The Dangers of Sleeping with Your Pet

People have been vocal about warning pet owners about the potential dangers of letting their pets sleep on their beds. According to them, many potential problems may arise when you choose this setup. Here are some of them:

Behavioral Issues

There have been circulating dominance theories which claim that your pets will become possessive or dominant when you let them sleep with you. As a result, it may lead to various behavioural problems, precisely aggression issues.

While it’s true that allowing aggressive pets to sleep on your bed is not a good idea, you should understand the fact that their aggression is caused by fear and not because you’re allowing them to sleep on your bed.

Health Concerns

This is the most significant concern that other people have regarding letting pets sleep on the bed. According to most people, sleeping with your pet is not recommended because there’s a chance that you’ll catch a disease from him.

According to experts, this won’t be an issue if both you and your pet are in good health. By good health, they mean that your pet has updated vaccinations and undergone regular check-ups. Additionally, he shouldn’t have any parasites, ticks, fleas, and other infections or diseases.

On the other hand, the owner should not be immunosuppressed. If you’re a transplant recipient, cancer, or an HIV-positive patient, you should avoid sleeping with your pet. This is also true if you’re undergoing chemotherapy, radiation, dialysis, or any other treatments that lower your immune system.

The Benefits of Sleeping With Your Pet

Now that we have explored what people claim to be the dark side of sleeping with your pet, let’s look at its bright side.

Below are some of the benefits you can get when you let your pet sleep in a bed.

Comfort Level

Comfort you sleep on your bed alone and have a strong emotional connection with your pet, having him sleep with you can bring you comfort. The warmth of his body next to you can bring the same comfort you can get when you sleep next to another person.

It’s also more comfortable for your dog too. After all, your bed also offers a more comfortable sleeping surface than a doggie bed on the floor.

Security

If you have a guard dog and you live alone, you’ll indeed feel secure if having him near you. In the event that you hear weird sounds at night, your dog can alert you even if you’re already asleep. You can prepare for whatever it may be, thanks to your dog’s warning.

Relaxing and Calming Feeling

If you’re anxious or having trouble falling asleep, the feeling of your dog’s body against you can bring you a sense of calmness and relaxation. His breathing sounds and cute snores can also act as white noise and can help put you to sleep.

Summary

Based on all the facts that we’ve mentioned, the answer is it depends. It’s safe to sleep with your pet if both of you are considered to be generally healthy.

But if your dog has ticks, infections, parasites, or certain medical conditions, it would be best if you establish a separate sleeping space for him. The same applies if you’re immunocompromised, and there’s a slim chance that your overall health will be put at risk if you sleep with your pet.

To ensure that it’s entirely safe for you to let your pet join you in bed, make sure that all his vaccines are up-to-date. You should also bring him to the vet regularly.