Sleeping With Your Dog Can Give Better Night Rest: Mayo Study

[Eugene]

Source: Tech Times

Sleeping With Your Dog Can Give Better Night Rest: Mayo Study

9 September 2017, 7:58 am EDT By Athena Chan Tech Times

Is having a dog companion in the bedroom helpful or detrimental to an individual's sleep quality? A new Mayo Clinic study says having canine companions could actually help some people sleep better.

Detriment Or Comfort?

Today, 40 million American households have canine companions. More than just being pets, many think of their dogs as members of the family. However, people are still divided when it comes to letting their dogs sleep in the bedroom. While others find it comforting, some find that having their dogs in the bedroom is a detriment to their sleep quality.

To clear things up a little bit, researchers from Mayo Clinic's Center for Sleep Medicine conducted a study on the effects of having dogs in the bedroom on human sleep. To do this, they enlisted 40 healthy individuals without any sleep disorders and with dogs of over 5 months old. Both the dogs and the owners were given sleeping trackers to monitor their sleep patterns for seven nights.

Let The Dogs In

What researchers found was that the participants who let their dogs sleep in the bedroom actually had good sleep regardless of whether their dogs were small such as Yorkshire Terriers or large such as Great Danes. However, participants who let their dogs actually sleep in the bed with them experienced disrupted sleep.

Basically, letting the dogs sleep in the bedroom results in good sleep quality, but having them on the bed results in poorer sleep quality.

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Read more: http://www.techtimes.com/articles/213316/20170909/sleeping-with-your-dog-can-give-better-night-rest-mayo-study.htm

[procon]

2. Throughout my long life I've always had my pets, dogs and cats both, in my bed,

if that's where they wanted to sleep. I have always had big dogs, Great Pyrenees, and sleeping with two of them, plus the cat, and the Mister, was sometimes... logistically challenging. Strangely, since then, none of my Pyrs want to sleep in my bed, choosing to sleep in the bedroom doorway instead, ever vigilant for intruders I suppose.

Cats have a hierarchy of their own determination, and the boss cat gets the coveted spot on the pillow above my head, while the minion puss gets the laundry hamper or the chair.

I like knowing my critters are nearby, the dogs make me feel secure, the cat's purring is soothing, and I do feel somewhat comforted just stroking a warm furry critter, so I'm happy to have them pile up on the bed with me. That's an easy trade off for losing a bit of sleep.

[shenmue]

3. Squee

[LakeArenal]

4. I must be the exception that proves the rule..

Cuz I sleep well with my Boy dog. He's warm and toasty. Cuddly and comforting.

[sinkingfeeling]

7. I've shared the largest chunk of my bed with a dog for 30 years or more. With the

Samoyeds, I was often clinging to about 12 inches of the queen size bed.

[LakeArenal]

8. Mine waits til you go to the bathroom...

When you get back he's totally in the sweet spot..

[TEB]

5. I agree

[sweetroxie]

6. Me too. nt

[Duppers]

9. Cooties

My big girl picks up mites outside and needs weekly bathing - we should bathe her 2x per week but don't have the energy.

She does have her own sofa in the master bedroom! She often snores but it like music to me. I have to vacuum, spray, and change sheets on her sofa weekly.

Sooo, the sweet girl's not welcome in our bed because we don't want her cooties. Besides, at 112lbs. she'd take up too much room.

[TexasBushwhacker]

10. That may be the case

But my 9 pound cat turns my queen sized bed into a twin.



After I took this pic, he stretched and took up even more space!