Recently, it has been all over the press the dangers of letting us doggies sleep in the bed with you at night. Personally I think it is hogwash (yes you read that right..a dog used the term hogwash!) because I think it is more dangerous for us than you. But first let me get you all up to speed on the controversy.
An article was recently published in the Center of Disease Control and Prevention Emerging Infectious Diseases Journal (what a long name for a magazine huh?) that states there are risk associated with letting your pets sleep in the same bed as you. The study states that 56 percent of dog owners let us sleep in the bed with them. Some of the dangers t we pose are the pledge if we are flea infected. But my point it isn’t that the flea fault not ours that they carry the plague? Maybe those fleas should be the ones not allowed to sleep in the bed then! Also If we lick open wounds we can infect it or give you MRSA. Cats can also pass diseases on such as cat scratch fever. Finally, with all the recent pet food recalls Salmonella can also be passed on to the humans when they handle our food.
The study states some things you humans can do to help minimize your risks. The most important one is to make sure we get regular professional checkups and care including flea and tick treatment. If you have a person in your house that is immunocompromised then we shouldn’t sleep in their bed and finally if we do happen to lick an open wound you all need to clean it asap.
However, my stance is that it is just as dangerous for us dogs to sleep in your bed! Ok I’m a little dog only 18 pounds and I take my life in my own hands every time I sleep with my parents. First, you all can roll over on me! And without warning! I’m just curled up in my tight sleep ball and bamm here comes mom and I have to have lighting fast reflexes to scramble out of the way before I am squished. You humans think you can just turn over without checking first to see what little white dog is sleeping behind you?!?!?! Next, you humans have big powerful legs. I can’t count the number of times on my paws how many times i have been kicked while asleep. Finally, sleeping on top of the blankets is also dangerous. If the parents decided to pull up the blankets I can be dragged around or even tossed off the edge of the bed if they pull hard enough. And I’m not going to even mention the impossible task of finding any toys in the morning I bring to bed with me. When they rolls over on a chew stick it seems to just be tossed off the bed in hurry with a mumbling dad saying …ough another chewy!?!?!?
But in conclusion, let us stay on your bed but take some precautions to make sure we don’t make our beloved humans sick.
Carma and I so agree with you! We aren’t able to sleep if we are not together. She is 40 pounds and sometimes kicks in her sleep but that is a risk this mama is willing to take.
I so agree that a good flea treatment is a must. She doesn’t like getting bit and neither do I.
First, we don’t have fleas because Mommy takes care of me and my sister. Second, my Mommy saw another study that showed that dogs that sleep with their humans have fewer behavioral problems.
By the way, if we didn’t sleep with Mommy, where on earth WOULD she sleep — in the guest room?!!
I sleep on the bed with mom and dad and occasionally one or two of our three kitties do too. Even if we didn’t sleep in the bed with mom and dad, if we had fleas, the fleas would be everywhere (been there, done that). I think this whole “scare” is a diabolical rumor started by the anti-pet people who are just jealous that our humans love us so much. HAH!