Art and I have become those people- the people who spoil their dog, treat him like a person and let him sleep on the bed. We require very little of Buddy and, thank goodness, he is fairly self-reliant (which is why we don't have children). He only sits if you have a piece of cheese and I have no idea what his bathroom schedule is as he just uses the dog door as needed. Buddy refuses to eat just plain dog food- there must always be something tasty (leftovers, cheese, etc.) mixed in (and Art always warms it up in the microwave because God forbid his food be room temperature- or worse!- cold). He has to sit between us on the couch whenever we watch TV or a movie (seriously- in the middle. If I sit next to Art, Buddy just looks at us until one of us moves- which we always do). He has dog beds both downstairs and upstairs, which is somewhat unnecissary as he sleeps on the bed.

We are those people who will apologize profusely for the dog hair on the couch which will inevitabley end up on your clothes, but we will still let him on the furniture. Art complains about the dog hair on his comforter, but he never tells Buddy to get off the bed.

Unfortunately (for Buddy, at least) the sleeping-on-the-bed thing may have to end. We have a king-sized bed, which you would think have ample space for two people and a dog, but Buddy likes to spread out. It's quite normal for Buddy to occupy more space on the couch than Art and I (which we allow) and the bed is no different. When he isn't lying up against me and scratching or kicking Art with his feet, he's on my side of the bed, half way down so that I'm allowed only enough space to curl up in the fetal position. Last night, I tried to shove him over with my feet but he wouldn't budge, so I ended up just laying my legs on top of him. He still didn't move (Art slept wonderfully, though).

While I will feel guilty for no longer allowing Buddy to sleep with us, I have to remind myself that 1) he has a dog bed, 2) he can always go sleep on the couch downstairs, and 3) he's a dog.