If you are wondering whether or not you should let your Labrador sleep with you, this post will help you decide.
So, can my Labrador sleep with me? Research has shown it is not problematic provided that the dog is healthy and without behavioral issues. However, if it does have some behavioral issues such as aggression, resource guarding or separation anxiety then it might make them more pronounced.
When deciding on whether or not you should let your Labrador sleep with you there are a number of things to consider.
Reasons that letting your Labrador sleep with you might not be a good idea
Below are some reasons why it might not be a good idea to let your Labrador sleep with you.
It might contribute to separation anxiety
One reason why it might not be a good idea could be that it might contribute to its separation anxiety. By sleeping with you, your Labrador will be around you even more which will get it even more used to being around you. If it currently has separation anxiety, this could make it worse.
If it does have separation anxiety, it would help to take measures to reduce its separation anxiety before letting it sleep with you.
It might make it harder for you to sleep
Another reason why it might not be a good idea to let it sleep with you is that it might make it harder for you to fall asleep. This is because your Labrador will move around during the night and this could bother you.
With that being said, you could try letting it sleep with you for a few nights and seeing if it makes it harder to fall asleep or not.
It can aggravate your own allergies and transmit diseases
It is possible that letting your Labrador sleep with you will aggravate allergies and there is a risk of transmitted diseases. However, this is a very rare occurrence (source) but it is something to be aware of.
It might increase resource guarding
If it currently has behavioral issues such as resource guarding, it also might not be a good idea to let it sleep with you before dealing with the issue. This is because it might begin to guard its spot on the bed.
It might be difficult to get it to stop if you change your mind
Another reason why it might not be a good idea is that it might be difficult to get it to stop sleeping with you if you let it do it for more than a couple of nights.
Reasons why it is not such a bad idea
Below are some reasons why it might not be such a bad idea to allow your Labrador to sleep with you.
It improves feelings of companionship
One reason why letting your Labrador sleep with you might not be such a bad idea is that it could improve feelings of companionship between you and your Labrador. Also, Labradors were bred to work alongside their owners and they are usually a lot more comfortable when they can be around their owner as and when they please.
It might make you feel safer
Another possible benefit is that it might make you feel safer having your Labrador around you. This could help you to fall asleep more easily.
Research has concluded that it’s not so bad to let it sleep with you
In the past, people used to say that people shouldn’t let their dog sleep with them for reasons such as it causing the dog to feel like the owner is no longer its leader.
However, recent research has concluded that the pros can outweigh the cons when letting your Labrador sleep with you. It also found that there is not a significant issue with doing it if your relationship with your Labrador is a healthy one.
Things to consider
Below are some things you can consider when deciding on whether or not you should let it do it.
Whether or not it has behavioral issues
If your Labrador has behavioral issues, letting it sleep with you could worsen the issues. Instead, it would be important to deal with the behavioral problems before letting it sleep with you.
How old it is
It would also help to consider the age of your Labrador. If it is still a puppy, it might cause it to be more likely to get separation anxiety when it is older since it will be around you all the time if it sleeps with you.
If you do notice that it begins to become anxious when you are leaving, it would be important to start taking measures to reduce its separation anxiety right away.
You could get it to sleep on the floor beside the bed instead
Instead of letting it sleep in the bed with you, one option would be to let it sleep on the floor in your room. By doing this you will be able to reduce how much it keeps you awake by moving around and to reduce the likelihood of it becoming possessive over its spot on the bed.