Pets help us sleep!

[Catherine]

After years of saying we should remove pets from our bedrooms if we want to sleep, Singular Sleep founder Joseph Krainin has determined that pets actually help us sleep.

http://news.google.ca/news/url?sr=1&ct2=...t=2&at=dt0

Some of us already knew this.

http://news.google.ca/news/url?sr=1&ct2=...t=2&at=dt0

People with pets have known for years that their pets help them to relax and feel safe at night. That is a good formula for getting a good night's sleep. Add the warmth of a fuzzy pet and  sleep awaits you.
Even though my reptiles don't sleep on the bed I still have them there in the bedroom and I think I sleep better for it.
Jonathan the bearded dragon always slept on my bed and I always knew she was there and even after 3 years I miss having her there. Just remembering is like a comforting presence.
Tonight I have my guest bunny and I am sure I will sleep just fine.

[Tobi]

Yes I think they do. In the past when Misty first came to live with me, she slept in her own room. Sometimes if I couldn't sleep for some reason I would get her in with me instead and have the most lovely sleep.
If ever I couldn't sleep I would gently hold her tail and listen to her breathing and would fall asleep soon.

Mind you she did stretch out a lot at the bottom of the bed, and she tok up a lot of room when she was stretched out! haha....so I often woke up and had to scoop her up and gently move her to one side. I didn't mind one bit. And she had a habit of getting out in the night, shaking her body out, then getting back in. It was reassuring to hear that though.

And she was quiet, and slept nicely, and didn't wake me up at the crack of dawn sitting on my head! LOL

[Catherine]

I think pets are calm at night. They have much better senses and so they know when all is well. Their calmness helps us to be calm and so we sleep better.

Your Misty even when she moved around was so familiar to you that it wouldn't disturb your night.

I feel peaceful when I wake and find the bunny nearby.

When I had cats they always slept on the bed. I even had hamsters who would somehow end up on the bed.
Sharing the night with our pets just seems so normal. Of course they help us sleep.

[Tobi]

Misty slept IN the bed! She liked to burrow under the covers and for years that is how we slept, and it was our way. We were sisters. Of course, if ever she got muddy on a walk, she had to have feet and underbelly washed and dried off before she got in bed with me! She didn't like the water-thing but that was the rule!

I can't see that sleeping with a (clean) animal is any more disturbing than sleeping with a human. Lots of people sleep with other people....why not animals?

[Catherine]

A fuzzy pet in the bed is a warm and comforting thing. Having Misty right there under the covers would let your mind and body relax. You knew she would awaken if anything was wrong. I always felt that way about my cats. While they were there I could relax.
Of course they were self cleaning. Dogs sometimes need help. I don't know, do dogs really mind being washed or is it a token resistance just to make a point.
I know a full bath bothers some of them more than others.

[Ruth]

If Suzy jumps in the bed with me in the middle of the night we sleep fine but if she is in the bed when I first go to sleep she sometimes hogs the whole bed and I can't sleep. My remedy is to move her over so I have some room and then I can sleep, too. She loves to cuddle up by my back.

[Tobi]

Suzy looks like a nice lovely warm little fur-ball to snuggle against your back, Ruth! I bet you sleep better in many ways for her being with you.

Haha Catherine....Misty just disliked water being 'put on her'. She didn't mind it if she was racing round the edge of a pond trying to get a stick off Jet!
She never really liked her quick wet wipe-down when she came in at the end of the day, even though I always used warm water. But as it often rains here, she would get mud splashed. I said, "I'm not having a dog in bed in that state!" She endured I think simply because she knew dinner would be next.

[Catherine]

Quote:If Suzy jumps in the bed with me in the middle of the night we sleep fine but if she is in the bed when I first go to sleep she sometimes hogs the whole bed and I can't sleep. My remedy is to move her over so I have some room and then I can sleep, too. She loves to cuddle up by my back.

It is funny how a small dog can take up so much room. I  am sure Suzy could fill a king sized bed if she set her mind to it.

Of course, Misty liked water out there where she could splash and get muddy. She just didn't like warm fresh clean-up water.
Cold muddy water is much more fun.

Sadly my bunny friend has gone home. I shall miss his presence tonight. The little character pulled a couple of ornaments off the tree while I slept last night. I know he was eyeing the tree. For a bunny his age he is so active and playful.

[Tobi]

Haha! Luna Bunny helps you sleep....but then wakes you up again, pulling decorations off the tree! Rotating LOL

I can imagine how much he is missed. He is very lucky to have a Aunty Catherine like you to spend the holidays with.
Does he get on well with the Guinea Pigs?

[Catherine]

Luna Bunny talks to the piggies. They don't go up to each other, but they are in communication. They are all so used to each other that the guinea pigs are part of why Luna feels at home.

This time I really miss him. I keep starting to call to him when I come home and even when I go into the kitchen. I feel startled that he isn't here. I wasn't ready to have him leave yet.

I got used to having Luna beside the bed. I must hear him breathing in my sleep and it soothes me. I don't know when he got at the tree. He was a real stealth bunny. I never heard a thing.