Do you have a new puppy in your life? You want to start bonding with your bundle of joy as soon as possible, and that includes sleeping together!
While expert advice in the past said that sleeping with your pet is a bad idea and ruins your sleep, science is coming to the rescue and showing the advantages of sleeping with your new bff!
A new study found that women who sleep with a dog sleep better than women who do not sleep with one. The results also indicated that women slept better with a dog than with a cat or even another person.
So how do you make the adjustment so that you and your new family member get optimal sleep? There are several tips to help both you and your new puppy sleep soundly.
Sleeping With You Will Help Your Puppy Sleep
He is getting used to a new environment and could be anxious while you are away at work.
Just as you are comforted by the presence of your puppy, he will feel more secure with you there at night.
Sleeping with you can help relieve that separation anxiety and bond more quickly with you.
This makes sense when you think about how dogs sleep in the wild. They are pack animals, and puppies will sleep in piles.
The study on the sleep quality of women who sleep with their pets also found that those who slept with their dog had stronger feelings of comfort and security.
Using a White Noise Machine Will Help You Both Sleep Better
Now that your puppy is in its new surroundings and your comfortable bed, he will have to get used to the noises during the night in your neighborhood.
Honking horns, loud people talking, and sirens can all make your puppy anxious. That can lead to barking, which disrupts sleep for both of you.
And we all know that anxiety is no fun! One way to manage the issue of these unwanted sounds is to start using a white noise machine.
Your puppy will still have an emotional response to these noise triggers if he hears them, but the white noise may mask the sounds that are upsetting. And if all goes well, both of you will soon be sleeping through the night!
Prepare Your Puppy for Bed
Rituals like reading before bed or brushing your teeth help you prepare for bed, so why not do the same thing with your puppy?
Making sure your puppy had enough exercise before bed is critical for you both to get good sleep. If he doesn’t get enough stimulation during the day, being amped at night may be the result.
Exercise your puppy a few hours before bed. It will give him physical and mental stimulation, and he will be able to crash and go to sleep.
You can also play games with him before bedtime. You can play hide-and-seek or throw a toy.
Another thing that could help is to get a piece of clothing from his previous home and put that next to him while he sleeps. The familiar scent should help him adjust to his new home, and he will sleep better. And therefore, you will sleep better!
And how you can you not refuse to sleep with such cuteness? Breeders typically wean the pets from their mothers and find homes for them when the puppies are eight weeks old. This is about the same time that their mothers kick them out of the den.
A 2018 study by a psychology professor who is the director of the Canine Science Collaboratory at Arizona State University found that people found puppies to be the cutest at eight weeks – right when they are available to take home.
Part of the reason that your new puppy is taking some time to adjust to your home is that he will be lonely for his mother. And part of this adjustment period is not sleeping through the night!
By using the tips in this article, you may have a sleepy puppy in your bed in just a few days.
If you’re interested in contributing to our blog, email cynthia@newyorkdognanny.com.
