Why it is Important to Give Your Dog its Own Bed

Dogs are some of the most unique creatures in the world. Almost everything they do is a behavioral reaction to their environment. Dogs don’t “think” in the traditional sense. They simply allow what occurs to occur and let their instincts and what they have learned cause them to act accordingly.

Your dog is born with a variety of instincts. Many of these instincts relate directly to pecking orders – hierarchies within a group of animals that affects how the pack makes decisions. If you own a dog you have most likely heard the term “alpha dog.” Alpha is the term given to the dog that is the leader of the pack. Every other pack member has its own place after the alpha dog. That means that no two dogs are considered equal. Each dog has its place in the canine leadership hierarchy.

How Does Status Get Earned?
How dogs figure out their place in the pack is also instinctual. Dogs have a number of behaviors that help them figure out who is first, second, third, and so on. The most common behavior is aggression. Dogs often play fight and show aggression to figure who is the strongest, and the strongest is the one that gets to be first in line. The remaining dogs fight it out until their place has been decided.
However, there are far more subtle ways that dogs figure out who is in charge as well. Dogs look for clues in their environment to help them understand their place. One example of how dogs figure out who is alpha is by sleeping arrangements.

How do Sleeping Arrangements Affect Pecking Order?
The alpha dog is the dog that is always in charge. When the alpha dog walks, other dogs are supposed to get out of its way. The same thing holds true with where the alpha dog sleeps. Wherever the alpha dog wants to sleep, that becomes its sleeping area, and no other dogs are allowed to sleep in that area.
If you invite your dog onto your bed to sleep with you, you are telling the dog that you are not necessarily alpha, because if you were alpha dog your bed would be off limits. In addition, it is very unlikely that you are going to sleep in your dog’s crate, so suddenly it appears to your pet as though its bed is off limits and your bed is fair game. If your dog is unsure if you are alpha, it will perform other unwanted behaviors as it tries to figure out its place within the pack.

You want to keep your dog out of your bed at all times. No matter how much your pet whines or how cute it looks, your bed is your bed, and your bed is off limits. Instead, you should get your pet its own bed to sleep on. This will provide it with a comfortable sleeping location that is all its own (which is useful for your dog’s comfort within your home) but ensures that your dog understands that you are still alpha dog in the pack.

What if You Want to Sleep With Your Pet?
If you really want to sleep with your pet, do so in areas that are already open to your pet. If your pet is already allowed to sleep on your couch, for example, then you should sleep with your dog on the couch. Just make sure that your primary sleeping area is always off limits to your dog to reduce any likelihood of bad behaviors by your pet.