Archive · 10 Oct 2026
Study Finds Humans May Move Dogs During Sleep
Researchers studied how people and their dogs moved while sleeping.
They followed 25 people and 38 dogs for four weeks.
The people wore sensors on their wrists, and the dogs wore sensors on their collars.
In many pairs, a person's movement and a dog's movement were connected.
More often, the person moved first, though sometimes the dog did.
The study did not find that sharing a bed with a dog changed how long or what kind of sleep a person had.
Many participants said that sleeping with a dog made them feel comforted or safe.
The study was small and included only Huskies and Malamutes, so more research is needed.
A study tracked nighttime movement among 25 people and 38 dogs in or near Ontario, Canada.
Researchers monitored participants with wrist sensors and dogs with collar sensors for four weeks.
Nighttime activity was significantly associated in 61% of human-dog pairs; human movement preceded dog movement more often than the reverse.
Sharing a bed with a dog was not linked to differences in the human's sleep duration or type.
Researchers caution that the small study involved only Huskies and Malamutes and was conducted during COVID-19 lockdowns.
- Who
- Researchers studied 25 people and 38 dogs, including Huskies and Malamutes.
- What
- The study examined links between human and dog nighttime movement and whether bed-sharing affected human sleep.
- When
- The participants and dogs were monitored for four weeks; data were collected during COVID-19 lockdowns.
- Where
- In or near Ontario, Canada.
- Why
- Researchers investigated whose nighttime activity was linked to movement by the other.
- Participants
- 25 people and 38 dogs
- Human participants
- 21 of the 25 participants were women; the group's average age was about 39.
- Dog breeds
- Huskies and Malamutes
- Monitoring period
- Four weeks
- Movement association
- 61% of human-dog pairs showed a significant association in nighttime activity.
- Movement sequence
- Among the reported patterns, human activity preceded dog activity in 45%, while dog activity preceded human activity in 18%.
- Bed-sharing finding
- Sleeping in the same bed with a dog was not significantly linked to human sleep duration or type.
- Comfort
- 72% of participants said sleeping with a dog provided comfort or a sense of security.