Putting child to bed in the dog basket

[BellyAching19]

When I was a toddler I used to be put to sleep in the dogs basket. We were living in an old Georgian estate at the time with no heating. It wasn’t our house. It was a big spooky house in the middle of nowhere with an agar in the kitchen, coal fires and obviously no double glazing. Very little furniture. Wind howling through the windows, no neighbours for miles. The theory was that the dog and I would share body heat.

I’m a little shocked but at the same time, AIBU to think the old simple way of living was actually quite romantic?

I assume this is a book or a film?

You’re lucky you are still alive to be fair.

First page of a novel?

My dad used to drive us in the back of his van. No seats let alone belts.

Horrifying now, but so much got done then that would be an absolute no go now!

What kind of dog was it? And was the basket in your parents room?

Sounds barmy rather than romantic. But you lived to tell the tail.

No it honestly isn’t! My grandmother worked at the house and then the owner died so the family asked my grandma to stay on and look after it until they got it sold. So my mum moved in with me for a bit.

This reads like a story. If it’s real I’d be willing to hear more.

I thought dogs and toddlers snuggled up together was quite normal when they share the same living space.

Though it surely made more sense for bedrooms and beds to be shared with people/dogs than a small basket?

AIBU to think the old simple way of living was actually quite romantic

And smellier.

The dog was a working spaniel (the house was part of a farm) I don’t think I stayed in there all night, just on an evening while the adults were still downstairs. The basket was in the kitchen which was warmed by the agar

My dc Nursery has two dog beds for the toddlers to sleep in.

I love old fashioned stuff and I’m still in love with this particular house. It was falling apart at the time but was renovated some years ago.

If it was just in the evening, and you were happy to snuggle the dog for a couple of hours, I don’t see the problem. (As long as you were regularly washed and the dog was friendly!) Sounds like this was fairly short term as well if it was staying where your granny worked? Perhaps the room you were sleeping in was very far away and the adults wanted to keep you close while they were downstairs?

Lol at lived to tell the tail :o

Aga. My dogs sleep with me all the time, so it makes sense.

The house was massive, the bedrooms were huge and spooky (massive fireplaces in them etc were the wind would howl through). The family were convinced the house was haunted so that’s probably why I was never put upstairs on my own (my family believe in woo) plus it would have been freezing upstairs

AIBU to think the old simple way of living was actually quite romantic?

YABU. There is literally nothing remotely romantic about a child being made to sleep in the dogs bed, with the dog.

Drop back to reality OP. It's weird.

Before my sister was big enough to move out of her cot, I slept in a drawer.

@BellyAching19

There’s a picture of me as a baby asleep in a drawer

Before my sister was big enough to move out of her cot, I slept in a drawer.

That was common. Sleeping with the dug, in a room away from the parents, was not.

Being dry humped by a horny dog at the age of 2 was among the least hair-raising outcomes J could imagine.

Fairly sure toddlers often fall asleep in dog baskets. My mum has a photo of me asleep in a laundry basket, my son once did a wee in the litter tray and my sister ate cat food.

Lol you don’t have to believe me, I’m really not bothered! ☺️

I still find it strangely comforting to think that is how we lived for a while. And knowing me I wouldn’t have been “made” to sleep in the dog basket, I would have chosen to sleep there. I’ve always preferred dogs to people

The stove is an aga, agar is the jelly that is used to culture bacteria in.