Researchers at the Mayo Clinic have found that there is no harm in letting dogs sleep in your bedroom at night. They don't advise letting dogs sleep in your bed though.
"The relationship between people and their pets has changed over time, which is likely why many people in fact do sleep with their pets in the bedroom," said Dr. Lois Krahn, a Mayo Clinic sleep medicine specialist who co-authored the study.
Krahn explains:
"We decided to collect data using a measuring device, applied to both the dogs and people, to see who was right.
And we found that as long as the dogs were not on the bed, their presence in the bedroom did not appear to be a big issue for the sleep of their owner, but on the bed was a different story.
I do think that it’s possible to have a dog, to incorporate them into your life, to spend time, including evening and night hours, but you have to be sensible.
You have to sort of pay attention to your own needs, your own sleep, and then think of how you can incorporate the dog. And don’t let the dog just do exactly what it wants."
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