Should You Allow a Dog to Sleep on Your Bed?

Before I write another line, I must state that I am in no way qualified to tell you how to work with your own dog, and that other opinions exist on the best way to deal with various dog-related issues. MY only qualification is a life-long owning of GSD dogs. That said, onto the question....

I have a simple golden rule that keeps me out of trouble with most dog situations. If allowing a behaviour with two or more dogs would present issues, then don't allow it with one dog either. Let's look at that in somple terms.

I have one German Shepherd Dog at the moment. As GSDs go, she's not the largest I've ever owned and can easily fit onto our bed, even with my partner and I in it. However, what if tomorrow we decided to get another dog? Then, what if they both wanted to sleep on our bed? It just wouldn't be practical. So, if there is even the slimmest chance of geting another dog, keep yourself out of trouble - if you couldn't work it with two dogs, don't do it with one!

Now, with regards to the behavioural element, with twenty-one years of dog-ownership under my belt, I am confident enough to say that for a well adjusted dog, it doesn't make much difference whether you allow it or not. I don't believe they use the equal height as a dominance mark, which is one common theory, particularly, I must say, in America, where they are, generally speaking, far more hooked on the dominance theories than many other countries.

One thing I do believe is paramount is that the dog goes onto the bed ONLY after it is invited to do so. In my dog's case, it sits at the side of the bed and waits for a "come on then" before jumping up, finding a spot at the bottom, and curling up. It is also imperative that the dog will get off the bed when instructed, and without any pulling or pushing needed by the owner.

If your dog has any existing posession issues, then I would perhaps be less inclined to allow it to take residence in the bed. Failing that, I really do feel it's a case of personal choice and circumstance. In our case, we allow it because (a) she's a shepherd and they typically like to know that everyone is where they should be and that all is well before they settle, and (b) she only stays on to see that we're both settled in for the night, and then goes to lay on her proper bed, on the floor, about ten minutes later, and (c) we rescued her after her trust of humans had been severely abused, and so we have to grant her a little more interaction than we would perhaps otherwise do, in order to ger her used to the idea that human contact can be a good thing.

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