[/caption]Carol Forsloff - She’s saffron blonde, has a great figure, is a good bit younger than I am; and he told me he knew in a dream she was right for him. Now she sleeps between us, and I have to wonder if that’s a good thing.
How many people sleep with their animals? It turns out a lot of people do. In our case, both cats find their way into the bedroom almost every night. The luscious saffron blonde just described is a tabby named Mandy, almost seven years old. She is a quiet sleeper, hardly making a mew in the middle of the night. Jack, our male cat and two years old and counting is the restless one, taking his place at the foot of the bed and making sure we know he’s there by biting a toe now and then.
But what happens with everyone else when it comes to nocturnal habits of pets and people? I set out to find the answer in a world where cats are the kings and queens of domestic pets, taking over from dogs because of those time and work factors that interfere with people time. In other words dogs are far more trouble, requiring walking, much attention and not easy to teach responsible bathroom manners. Cats, however, bathe themselves, can walk unaided thank you, and the nearest litter box becomes the sacred place for taking care of business.
The names of the participants in this survey have been changed, as many old people said they sleep with pets because they feel lonely; and pets make them feel they still have a mate.
Molly G is one of those folks. At the age of 75, she has lived alone since her husband died six years ago. She says, “We didn’t have animals much when my husband was alive. Actually he was allergic to cats. But after he died, the bed seemed empty. I had adopted a cat from the Humane Society, and that cat soon became a real companion around the house. Suddenly there was another living creature around, so when the cat decided to sleep with me, I thought, ‘Why not.’
Bill is in the same boat, only his reasoning is a bit different as his wife is still alive. He said, “We stopped cuddling much in bed after my wife finished menopause and said she was all dried up years later. That doesn’t mean we don’t have our moments, but since the cat started sleeping with us, my wife seems easier to love. In fact, she has those baby names for the cat she makes up almost every day and tells me she almost feels like a young mother again. For an 82-year-old, if I get a little, well that’s a lot.”
But here’s the negative in a news selection from CNN, “The risk of contracting something is rare, but if you’re that person who gets a disease from a pet, rare doesn’t matter that much,” says the paper’s co-author Bruno Chomel, a professor at the University of California-Davis school of veterinary medicine and an expert in zoonoses, the transmission of disease from animal to human. “I know this will make me unpopular, but pets really don’t belong in your bed.”
Still, experts tell us that catching a disease from a pet is rare; and those most at risk remain the elderly and those with diseases like diabetes.
What do the veterinarians think about sleeping with animals? The American Veterinary Medical Association tells us folks need to use common sense. In other words, if Fido or Fifi live outdoors, what indeed might they drag back?
One veterinarian puts it this way. “I’ve been in practice for 40 years and I see the bond between people and their pets and the positive effects pets can have on humans, which I believe outweighs any risk, whether you sleep with a pet or not,” says Larry Kornegay, a veterinarian, who admits to the fact that the family’s miniature Schnauzer sleeps with his own teenage daughter.
Would you take the risk and believe in doing so you are “sleeping with the enemy?” With the medical news stretched to include everything from dust mites to sugar lumps in our food and the environment we share with our felines (and other animals as well), it gives a person pause.
Betty L answers the question firm enough for the rest of the folks around, “If the chances of getting a disease are rare, well I’ll just take my chances. Besides it doesn’t seem like the people talking made a distinction between those animals who live exclusively indoors and those who wander outside. I’ll keep my dog and cat around until I’m not around, and that’s enough for me.”
