How Cats and Dogs Help You Sleep Better


Sharing a mattress with the furry friend helps to rest and feel less alone and happier

Who do you share a bed with? It is not a survey from a fashion magazine, but the question concerns your dog or cat. If you sleep with your four-legged friend, know that you are not the only one: Three out of five people who have these types of animals at home do, experts say. And not only that. Although there are studies that suggest that this practice can have risks, those who share a mattress with their dog or feline claim to sleep better, feel happier and more relaxed. This article reveals the advantages, and some problems, of having a cat or dog as a bed partner .


Do you share a bed with your cat or dog? It’s not the only one!

Do you sleep with your dog or cat? If the answer is yes, you are not alone: ​​six out of ten people who share their life with a furry friend do so. This is the conclusion of the recent study ‘Are cats and dogs in the bedroom a problem?

Many are the people who sleep with their dogs or cats, despite studies that years ago suggested that this could pose a problem . A 2011 investigation found that sharing a bed with a dog could carry a higher risk of some diseases , including a parasite infection.


Advantages of sleeping with a cat or dog

However, a new study conducted this year with 150 patients with sleep problems warns otherwise: eight out of ten people who share a bed with a dog or cat say that their furry companions do not interrupt their rest. Most say that sharing sheets with their four-legged friend helps them sleep better, as they feel warmer, happier, and more relaxed. Some even say that their dogs or cats help them to ward off loneliness . Only 20% of those who sleep with their animals admit that their furry friends have a negative effect on their rest.

Research suggests that cats and dogs may have some keys to help us optimize rest and sleep better.

The benefits of sleeping with animals will come as no surprise to those who share a duvet with their furry companions. For most people, having the dog or cat in bed is comforting: it keeps company, it gives affection and it prevents us from feeling lonely or insecure.

There are cases of children who sleep better near their dog or cat friend, since their breathing helps them to rest. Sharing life with an animal not only helps many children to rest better, it is also a great experience for them. Loving, caring for, sleeping, caressing and playing with an animal implies a very important sensory, mental, motor and emotional stimulation in child development.


Do you sleep with your cat or dog? It is likely to be a woman

The possibilities of a dog or feline sharing the mattress with its human depends, however, on the age and sex of the person. Most of those who sleep with their animals are women between the ages of 18 and 34 . Studies suggest that three out of five women in this age bracket are happy to accept the dog in their bed.

And who are the least likely to share a mattress with their furry companion? Married men over 45 are the most reluctant, researchers say. Although not all of them resist, because two out of ten men of this age willingly accept their dogs or cats in bed.


In bed with my dog ​​and my cat!

But not all of it is good news. Those who sleep with cats and dogs take a little longer to fall asleep. People who share a bed with their can or feline take about four more minutes to fall asleep and, in addition, they are more likely to wake up feeling tired.

But those four extra minutes are, in practical effects, not significant. And not only that, because those who sleep with their four-legged companions, although they say they feel more tired when they get up, say they are less tired during the rest of the day than those who do not sleep with animals.

After reading a lot about sleep and animals my conclusion is clear: if that makes you happy and it also makes your cat or dog happy, go ahead!


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