Dogs In Bed

Many people sleep together with their dogs on one and the same bed but is this is a good thing or not? And where is the proper place for your dog to sleep?

It is different. Some people think that a dog’s place for sleeping is outside. Others accept the dog as a member of the family. If you don’t want your dog to become a nuisance barker at night then the dog should sleep inside The dog can protect you if there is an intruder. A small puppy bonds with you if it sleeps close to you. However, you must teach your dog a few ground rules and house manners, it should get used to be confined to basket or a mat and to know that it is forbidden to run riot at night.

A new dog will soon understand where the pack leader sleeps so it will know the most important place in pack’s territory. It will be able to choose the most comfortable spot where to rest and lie down, this could be maybe the couch. The dog will also know where the food is kept and what has to be done to get it.
It is not a problem to allow your dog to occupy the furniture. The problem is if you can not ask your dog to get off. And that is so called” leadership problem”.

You should teach your dog to lie down at your feet on a mat just to get the idea of its status in the pack. This way you control the rules inside the house.

If your dog is taught to sleep on the floor in the bedroom, it is content to be part of the pack and it realizes its lower level than yours as a leader. Then on the later stage, you can allow your dog up on the bed to understand that this is a privilege and dominance will not be an issue. If you do not want your dog to share your bed and to be so close to you, there are other alternatives in a home like the laundry or the family room.

If your dog becomes bossy and he starts guarding its favourite spots, you should ask an expert help. It happens sometimes when you have been sick a long time in bed and your dog has been all the time in the room with you or on the bed, it may become over-protective .It often happens when dogs would not allow other people to enter the bedroom which belongs to its owner.