Bedtime lifestyles of pet-lovers
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Allowing a pet to sleep on the bed with you should be safe providing elementary precautions are taken
I’m in a deep sleep, when suddenly, I’m flying.
No, I’m not dreaming. I’ve been pushed off the bed. Waking up in mid-flight, I realise that Wan-Wan, my poodle pup who’s only three kilos, and Thong, my fat cat who’s over six kilos, have stretched at the same time, pushing me onto the floor with a thud.
I’m all right, just shaken a bit, but awake enough to remember what a reader just said about a recent column, when I mentioned that Wan sleeps on the bed with me.
“In my home,” the reader says, “no animal is allowed to sleep on the bed, not ever.”
He explains that dogs can carry fleas and ticks that can bite a sleeping human and even get into the bedding, where it would be difficult to remove them. In addition, the animals could leave hair, dust and dirt on the bedding, all dangerous to the health.
Also, studies indicate that a person sleeping with a dog or cat might have difficulty getting a good night’s sleep. A sleep-expert once explained to me that an animal moving around on the bed could interfere with your sleep stages, so although you might have a satisfactory amount of sleep, the quality of your sleep might not be so good.
I agree with all the reader’s reasons, but I’ve taken steps. Wan and the cats receive flea and tick treatments every month, and since Wan weighs only three kilos, it’s unlikely that she can push me around by herself, unless one of the cats helps out, and that’s rare.
If Wan were bigger, a German shepherd, say, or a Labrador retriever, I don’t know if I’d be as comfortable. For sure, I’d end up on the floor more often.
I’d never let an animal sleep with a baby or young child, though. As intelligent as your pet is, a sudden noise can make anyone jump, with sharp claws ready to defend.
Some years ago, newspapers reported on a strange, new virus that researchers had discovered in cats. This virus, the newspapers said, could be passed from cats to humans, mainly to children, that could result in death or at least in illness.
I began to receive urgent emails from anxious parents asking if it was safe to allow their children to sleep with their beloved cats.
Because the newspaper reports were so unclear, I didn’t quite understand what this new disease might be until I met some Thai researchers, who told me that the reporters had been writing about cat scratch disease (Csd).
I haven’t written much about Csd because researchers are making new discoveries about it all the time, and what I write may be out-of-date.
This we know: Csd isn’t a new disease, having been identified more than 100 years ago. It isn’t caused by a virus but by bacteria introduced into the body by a bite or scratch from an infected cat. A mild infection develops around the point of injury, and sometimes the lymph nodes become swollen. The infection is easily treated with antibiotics.
As with any animal bite or scratch, you should clean the injury carefully. You should always keep your pets’ claws properly trimmed anyway and, of course, control fleas and ticks. If you or your child develops fever, headache and fatigue, do contact your doctor.
As to whether your child should sleep with the family cat, it’s up to you. Csd isn’t limited to bedtime, and if the animal is gentle, there should be no problem, I think.
