Does Your Dog Sleep In Your Bed?

I’ll be the first to admit that my gun dog is a bit spoiled. In fact, one trainer, while gently telling me to be a little tougher on Pritch said, “Dave, she lives better than some middle income kids.” Well, she eats good dog food, has a warm roof over her head, gets plenty of exercise and training, and is the center of attention. Yes, she’s got a good thing going.

But there’s one place Pritch is never allowed, and that’s my bed (except for the above photo). For one, I wake up enough as it is worrying about shrinking bank accounts, deadlines, and life’s other niggling concerns. I don’t need a dog kicking me in the night so it can get some more room. And while I’m also not an alpha nut, I do think there’s something to making certain spots off limits to the pooch. Finally, you can’t really expect your dog to be conditioned for the harshest of hunting weather (both hot and cold) if it spends too much time indoors.

Still, plenty of gun dogs sleep in their owners’ beds and wake up raring to go chase birds. In fact, in my very own non-scientific survey of gun dog owners my pool of four was split down the middle. (For the record, a Springer and a Lab had bed rights, while a Golden and a Boykin were on the floor. One non-gun dog, a dappled Dachshund named Dexter, not only slept in the bed…he practically owned it.)

For now, Pritch is allowed on the couch in the evening where my wife loves to snuggle with her. But that’s where it stops. How about you? Do you let your dog in the bed. Or do you think a dog in the bed is a gun dog training faux paus? Let’s hear it, gang.