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How is it that we fall into a pattern that is both comforting and annoying at the same time? Yes, I know, we all have habits that are both good for us and bad for us. The battle against the bad for us is often overwhelmed by the battle of what’s bad for us. Why do we like thing that are bad for us? Wait, that is a topic for another day…

Anyway, I have been sleeping with this one thing that is bad for me. Rather, I may not be sleeping enough because it is sleeping with me. The bad habit to which I refer is sleeping with the dog on the bed. It is both comforting and annoying at the same time!

I once had cats that slept on the bed. It was nice and all, but I found I had adjusted the way I sleep for them in fear that I would wake or disturb them. As it turned out, after I kicked them off the bed, I slept better when the weren’t on the bed. So, I kicked them off permanently and they no longer even think about sleeping there.

But now there is little dog that has wormed it’s way into my heart and it now sleeps on the bed. I say little because it isn’t big. It’s a Shih Tzu, so it needs help to get onto the bed and back off the bed. But, for a little dog it sure takes up space! It likes to sleep right up against you and it kicks and squirms and wiggles and licks and scratches and snuggles…there is a little comfort in knowing it is there. One, for a small dog it produces a huge amount of heat! So it can keep me warm at times. I have also discovered that it doesn’t ever go to the bathroom on the bed. When it stays in the living room and sleeps on the couch at night, there have been times where it will go to the bathroom in the house. If it is on the bed, there are no accidents and in most cases do I rarely have to get up to let it out at night. It’s weird that way.

Anyway, it is getting to the point where I don’t really want it on the bed any longer because I have noticed the old habits with the cats have come back. I am more worried about disturbing it than how it has affected my sleep habits and pattern. So, can I sleep with it any longer or do I need to continue to sleep on it and not rock the boat?

What do you think? Do you have similar issues at your house? Do you sleep with pets and how does your slumber suffer because of it?