When I got a dog, I had this perfect image of her sharing the bed with me every night: sleeping on my feet, and taking up the perfect amount of space… I tell people I let Olive sleep in the bed with us, but really, we’re lucky she even gives us enough space to sleep. I upgraded to a queen-sized bed when she grew up, thinking it would be big enough for the three of us (me, Olive, and my boyfriend), but I should have known better!
The nightly battle for space
Some nights, I’m woken up by my boyfriend either tugging on the blankets that Olive has stolen, or pushing me because Olive has squished us so much he is almost off the bed. Other nights, I’m waking them up when Olive has fully stretched out, and in doing so, kicked me in the face and pushed me halfway across the bed. It’s kind of perfect though. She may take up way too much space, but it fits the role she plays in my life. If I’m busy, she can do her own thing. If I’m down or lonely, she’s right in my face, making sure I’m as happy as possible. I like to think her place in the bed is similar: she fills the empty space with warmth and snuggles.
Not our bed, her bed
I thought a queen would be big enough for two people and a pup but I underestimated Olive. Did I mention she has her own pillow? We spoil Olive beyond belief (I can’t help it!) but it’s never enough for her night-time habits. She has started claiming our pillows too, and her favorite thing is to hop directly onto my boyfriend’s pillow when we tell her it’s bedtime. When this doesn’t work, she settles for sleeping on my pillow, making a half-donut shape and sleeping perfectly around my head. Asking her to move is no small task. If she’s comfy when we ask her to move, it won’t happen without a lot of grumbling and the most dramatic display of exhaustion I’ve ever seen.
Good morning, Sunshine
Our morning ritual consists of Olive getting her payback for being kicked out of her favorite spot by waking us up bright and early every morning so we can feed her breakfast as soon as possible. And I mean bright… Olive literally pushes apart the curtains, flooding the room with morning light and waking us up. I can’t really be mad about this one because I’m sure she thinks she’s taking up “guard duty” so we can sleep in.
When the tables are turned however, and we happen to wake her up, she is less than pleased. (It’s not as if she spends over half her day sleeping anyway.) If we so much as crawl into bed late or try to talk while she’s sleeping, she grumbles like a cranky old man. Her angry grumbling gets even louder if we don’t shut up, trying to drown out the sound of us talking. If we wake her up too early, she lays on top of us to insist “5 more minutes!” This one is pretty dang cute, but it’s obvious who calls the shots in this house, and it’s not me or my boyfriend.
My favorite cuddle buddy
Sharing “Olive’s” bed with her may sound like chaos, and it is, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. I love having a cuddle buddy every night, and I love using her as a pillow when she steals mine. My absolute favorite thing is every morning, once my boyfriend gets up, when Olive takes his spot and we cuddle. To top that, she always waits for me to get out of bed first. It doesn’t matter if she’s awake when Noah leaves, she waits for me and we get up at the same time. It’s her little way of letting me know I’m still her favorite. So if you’re considering the pros and cons of sharing the bed with your dog, it is SO inconvenient, but worth every inconvenience.
Do you share the bed with your pup? Do they have any funny night time rituals? Share them with us at whatthepup@spotandtango.com!
