How Many People Share Their Beds with Their Pets?

Posted by
Jennifer Copley
Apr 17, 2009

According to Roger Tabor (Understanding Cat Behavior), a U.S. survey of 10,000 households with pets conducted by Barrie Sinrod found that 60% of all pets are allowed to sleep on their owner's beds. Young women (aged 18-34) are the most likely to snuggle up to their pets while they sleep, whereas married men who are over 45 years of age are the least likely to cuddle up, and are more inclined to tolerate a pet only if it sleeps at the foot of the bed.

A 2007 Harris Poll found that 69% of owners shared their beds with their pets. When broken out by age, it was found that Generation Xers (aged 31-42), the age group that were the most likely to have pets, were also more likely to snuggle up to their pets than those of any other age group, with 74% sharing their beds.

Of the lucky pets accorded the privilege of sleeping on their owners' beds, cats came out on top at 78% versus 70% of dogs, though this is more likely due to the size of some dogs than any particular favouritism directed toward cats. The Harris Poll percentages are significantly higher than those reported by Sinrod.

The majority of owners view their pets as part of the family and enjoy the closeness of sharing their sleep space, but there is evidence that a few unlucky owners may be losing sleep over the practice. Dr. Shepard conducted a survey of several hundred Mayo Clinic Sleep Disorders Center patients and found that of the 300 patients who participated, 52% had pets and 60% shared their bedrooms with them. Only 1% thought that their pets disrupted their sleep for over 20 minutes each night on average. However, participants also reported snoring in 21% of all dogs and 7% of cats.

For more cat surveys, facts, and statistics, see: