Study Says Dogs Don't Disturb Sleep. Owners Would Like A Word.

Having trouble getting quality sleep? Snoozing with Fido in your bedroom doesn't appear to make sleep worse, according to a 2026 study in PLOS One. Then again, maybe you're not convinced your snoring, shedding, slobbering pooch will improve your zzzs. Before deciding, let's explore the study in greater detail.

The study outfitted pet owners and their dogs with special sensors to wear at bedtime for four weeks. The owners also reported their perceived sleep quality in a survey. After analyzing the objective and subjective data, researchers discovered that when owners slept in the same room or bed as their pups, there were no significant differences in their measured sleep duration or efficiency. Nor did the animals' sleep location affect how the humans perceived sleep quality. Also, when the humans awoke in the middle of the night, they were more likely to disrupt their dogs' sleep instead of the reverse. When asked his opinion on the study, sleep medicine expert W. Christopher Winter was pro-canine, citing dogs' routine consistency as a reason to sleep with your dog. Said Winter, "Dogs want things done on a certain rhythm, and that can be really positive for people who struggle with that" (via NBC News.)

This wasn't the first study to highlight human-canine sleep benefits: A 2020 study in Animals tracked an average of 10 nights of dog and owner co-sleep activity using clinical sensors and individual human sleep diary entries. In this study, the human participants tended to move when their pets did, but rarely reported that co-sleeping disrupted their sleep. Still, many internet-based dog owners believe keeping your dog out of your bedroom will ensure a better night's sleep – and there's evidence to support their dissenting views.

Plenty of skeptical pet parents are sharing naughty nighttime furry-friend stories on X in response to the 2026 study. For instance, one owner said his oversized pooch treats him like a body pillow. Another said her small breed dog once bit her breast, ostensibly while she slept. In other words, they're saying "no go" to pup co-sleeping. And there are studies to support their arguments.

Take the discoveries from a 2024 study in Scientific Reports, for example. Questionnaire data from 1,591 human participants showed that pet parents who co-slept with their dogs were more apt to struggle with poor sleep and insomnia. Another study from 2023 that was published in Human-Animal Interactions came to a related conclusion, finding a link between dog ownership and disordered sleep. That said, the link didn't necessarily prove the dogs caused the sleep issues, but the association was noted.

What's the answer? Should pet parents let sleeping dogs into their bedrooms? More experiments are probably warranted based on the inconclusive and contradictory findings. In the meantime, you might want to base your choice on your pet's stage and general habits, as well as your number of pets. As sleep researcher Lieve van Egmond explained to NBC News in 2023, "The age of the pet has a big influence on whether or not they keep you up at night," adding that if you have many pets, they might "egg each other on."