I had a pet dog who had to sleep in bed with me. Problem is he’d spread out and dig his claws into my back. There was a period of time when I had two twin beds in my room, and I’d move to the other when he’d start monopolizing the bed. He’d wake up, realize I was gone, and move to the bed I was in.
Of my three guide dogs, my first would hop up on the bed for about 10 minutes and then get off. My guess at the time is she got hot, but she showed similar behavior elsewhere, wanting to check up on me and then leave. My second was a velcro dog. She slept at the end of my bed, and would even hop on the bed if I so much as sat on it to tie my shoes. My current dog has a small social battery that he drains by seeking occasional cuddles and scritches, but never more than a minute or two, then he’s off hiding again. The only time he’s on the bed is when there are fireworks going off outside, when he’s trying his hardest to get under my skin.
We had a pet cat once. Never would sleep with anyone, at least not me, but one night I woke up to him sucking on my arm.


Yes. Pets’ worlds are typically extremely small. They only experience what you allow them to. For an indoor cat, that’s basically just the inside of your house, and whatever they can see outside the windows. Dogs are only marginally better, because they get walks and time outside. Why would I essentially restrict them to the inside of my house, and then restrict them even further by disallowing them from sleeping where they want?
My cat is sleeping on my knees as I type this in bed. The dogs can also sleep wherever they want; one prefers his crate (the door stays open so he can come and go) and the other usually prefers the couch or his bed. They’ll sometimes curl up on the bed, but it’s usually during the day when my partner and I aren’t already there.