There is nothing sweeter than having your little beagle pup come up and burrow into the covers with you for a nap. Or maybe your dog is the type who likes to find blankets and towels around the house and commandeer them for themselves. Either way, burrowing is a natural behavior and nothing to be worried about.

While your beagle might be quite domesticated, they come from a long line of wild dogs, and still depend on those instincts to get themselves through life safely. And, as a hunting breed, these habits and instincts are even more deeply ingrained in them. You can be assured that if your beagle is snuggling up to you, they have accepted you as a part of their pack. That’s a good thing.

Beagles are also natural burrowers in both sleep and during their waking hours. As hunting dogs, they were trained to burrow into holes to sniff out foxes and other smaller animals. Because of the generations of training like this, they have instincts to burrow anywhere, including the dirt, couch cushions, and of course your blankets.

Still, beagle behavior can be puzzling. You may wonder exactly what it is that inspires them to go undercover and whether it’s safe. (Spoiler alert: it is!) Read on to understand more about your beagle’s sleeping habits.

Benefits of Letting Your Beagle Burrow Under The Covers

Not everyone wants their beagle getting so up close and personal, burrowing under the covers with them in bed. But before you decide it’s a bad idea, think about the many benefits it can offer both you and your dog.

• Stress Relief

First of all, burrowing helps your dog to relieve stress. The physical act of digging, as well as the warmth and the feeling of being close to you are both very calming. Even being that close to your dog helps them regulate their body temperature and heart rate, both of which contribute to stress relief and overall health. You’ll also find that – as you might expect – your dog becomes cuddler in the colder winter months, when their burrowing instinct is at its strongest. It feels great to get under the covers when it’s cold, whether you’re a dog or a human!

• Safety

Secondly,  when dogs create a den (this is what burrowing is) they are making a space where they can feel safe. In the wild, dogs are den animals. This is one of the reasons that a crate can have such a calming influence on an anxious dog. They appreciate the feeling of that space closed around them. The den is the place where females birth and raise young. Your dog, particularly a young puppy, will associate a den with warmth and safety – as it is the place that they will have been nurtured by their parents.

• Bonding

And, lastly, it’s your dog’s way of bonding with you and letting you know that they fully trust you, as well as that you really are part of their pack. Allowing another dog into a den is a show of absolute trust. Your dog considers you a safe person and wants to spend time cuddling with you. What could be better than that?

There’s a lot of scientific evidence to back this up too, check out this recent study on the health benefits of cuddling with dogs (for both the dog and the human!)

Can My Dog Breathe Safely Under The Covers?

The short answer to this is – yes. As long as your dog is burrowing themselves, they will be absolutely fine. Dogs know when they are comfortable and will adjust themselves if they are uncomfortable. You never want to put so many blankets on a young puppy that they cannot easily dig their way out, or tuck them in too tightly. But other than that, let their instincts be their guide. You will see that your puppy will go deeper under the covers if they are cold and come back up as needed, adjusting accordingly.

Additionally, how they sleep under the covers can be an indicator of comfort, mood, and temperature too. You can check out my new article on why beagles sleep on their backs here.

Dogs are like people. They all have their own sleep idiosyncrasies and their favorite positions to sleep in. So, let your dog do their thing – unless they are taking over your whole bed! In which case, you might wanna give them a cue to move over.

Should I Encourage Burrowing Under The Covers?

While there is absolutely nothing wrong with this behavior, as we said, it comes quite naturally. Most dogs, and this is particularly true of hunting breeds like your beagle, will want to burrow. Whether or not you let them do it in your bed is, of course, up to you. But either way, you should provide bedding, or at least towels or old blankets in your dog’s sleep area or crate so that they can get themselves comfortable whatever the temperature. Your dog is capable of adapting to the environment and you will see them move in and out of the covers to accommodate their own body temp and mood.

Is It Okay For My Beagle to Sleep In My Bed?

This is a tricky one – and a tad controversial. Many people have very strong feelings about this one way or the other and the answer is that it is really all about personal choice. There are both pros and cons to your dog having their own bed and sleeping in yours.

Some of the major cons of this situation are the obvious ones: hygiene and sleeping comfort. If you are a restless sleeper, you might find yourself in the bad position of not getting enough quality sleep with a dog in the bed. Again, this really depends on both you and the dog. Some dogs are great bed companions – quiet and still sleepers! But others are rolling, snoring, kicking messes. Both dogs and humans need their sleep so consider whether you can get yours with the dog in the bed.

Aside from that, there are concerns about hygiene and dog hair. If you have allergies, this can be a real problem. But, even if you don’t, it’s not a great feeling to wake up to hair in your bed! Whatever your dog has been rolling in during the day will end up in your bed at night, too. Which means much more frequent washing.

Another big con in my opinion is entirely based on your dog’s behavior and habits, but you’ll want to make absolutely sure that your dog isn’t a bedwetter. Some dogs know better than to pee where they sleep, but accidents can always happen. Additionally, if your bed is really roomy, some dogs have no problem wandering to a corner of the bed to do their business, and walk back to sleep by you as if nothing happened – and that’s something nobody wants to wake up to!

When I let my beagles sleep in the bed, I always make sure to wipe them down with puppy wipes, especially their paws, just to make sure that they’re not bringing any dirt or unwanted germs into my bed.

So, how about the positives? The American Kennel Club estimates that just under half of dog owners sleep with their dogs in the bed – so there must be something good about it, right? 

First off, sleeping in the same bed increases the amount of time that you spend with your dog and improves your overall bonding. There are even studies that suggest that dogs have lower blood pressure and better temperature regulation and sleep patterns when they are with their owners. After all, in the wild, dogs are pack animals and will sleep with other dogs around them. If you have a mischievous puppy or dog and can get them on the same sleep schedule as you, you can also keep them out of trouble, knowing that they’re right there with you all night long!

Secondly, there are benefits for you as an owner too! A recent study compiled a ton of benefits that could be worth allowing them into your bed to burrow as they please. Some of the biggest benefits of having your dog sleep next to you include:

• • Reduces rates of depression
  • Promotes theta brainwaves (improves your overall REM cycle quality during sleep)
  • Increases your sense of security while sleeping throughout the night
  • It’s been found to ease cases of insomnia
  • Lowers your cholesterol and triglyceride levels
  • Reduces allergies and allergy development due to increased exposure
  • Shows decreased levels of high blood pressure
  • Reduces cortisol levels and overall stress
  • Improves your overall quality of sleep throughout the night
  • Decreases your own loneliness

Related Dog Sleep Questions

Even aside from burrowing under covers, you might have other questions about how your beagle sleeps. Read on for some answers to ones that I commonly get from beagle owners. 

• Why does my beagle sleep between my legs?

There are a number of reasons that your beagle might be doing this. It really depends on the dog. This behavior is not at all uncommon and is nothing to worry about, but you might want to consider whether there are any underlying issues that warrant addressing.

If your dog wants to sleep cuddled up into you, between your legs or on you, it might be a protective instinct. After all, you are a part of your beagle’s pack. Dogs are also very adept at reading into our human emotions and may get closer to you if they feel you are anxious or need protecting.

Another reason that a beagle might sleep close to you, or between your legs is if they are feeling anxious himself, or are experiencing separation anxiety. If your dog is not getting enough of your time, or seems to want to be near you at every second of every day, you will want to figure out how to ease them into gaining confidence and becoming more self-reliant.

Additionally, it’s been scientifically proven that human feet release pheromones that we can’t even detect, but dogs tend to enjoy them. So you pup could be sleeping between your legs simply because they enjoy being near your feet!

• Why does my beagle sleep on his or her back?

Beagles can get themselves into all kinds of terrifically silly sleeping positions. You might be wondering what they are thinking or how it can possibly be comfortable. When you see your beagle sleeping on their back with their tummy up in the air, that’s a good thing! It means that they trust you and feel comfortable sleeping in a vulnerable position around you. Dogs in the wild will curl up and protect the softer parts of their body (throat and stomach). But when a dog feels really at ease, you might just catch them rolling over and stretching out on their back.

• How Much Sleep Do Beagles Need?

The amount of sleep a beagle needs really depends on their age and activity levels. Dogs tend to sleep a lot during the day, and entirely throughout the night. A full grown beagle can be expected to sleep from around 12-14 hours out of an entire 24 hour day.

This is especially true for puppies, where that range gets closer to the 14-18 hour frame out of a 24 hour day. Though, it can be hard to get beagle puppies to sleep when you want them to, especially at night.

Of course, if your dog isn’t getting walked properly, is eating too much or too little, or simply hasn’t gotten enough attention, their sleep patterns could vary pretty greatly.

• Can Beagles Sleep Outside?

While beagles love to burrow under blankets, they can actually be pretty content with sleeping outside under the right circumstances.

Of course, in the cold winter months I’d highly recommend against this, but if they are given the proper accommodations like a dog house and lots of blankets, they’ll do just fine.

Personally, I prefer to keep my beagles inside, with a doggy door available so that they can go out whenever they need to during the night.

• Why Do Beagles Sleep With Their Eyes Open

This is a question I get a lot surprisingly. For some reason, beagles more than other dog breeds have a more noticeable third eyelid, which makes it look sometimes as though they’re sleeping with their eyes wide open. Their eyelids also don’t close in the same way that human eyes do, so some dog owners come to me with concern that their dogs aren’t ever fully sleeping. However this is perfectly normal, and is just a common little quirk of owning a beagle.

Additionally, beagles tend to get red and watery eyes a lot more frequently than other dogs, especially while they sleep or if they are getting ready for bed or just waking up

Final Thoughts

Beagles are funny little dogs and just like humans, they all have their idiosyncrasies. How your dog and you sleep is really a matter of personal preference and the personality of both owner and dog. Your dog’s natural instincts to sleep in a den will mean that most beagles will feel most secure and sleep best if they are able to burrow under some type of covering.

As long as you are providing your beagle with a comfortable, safe space to sleep, they will work out their sleep routine either way – whether it is in your bed or their own private burrow!