Sleeping with Pets May Pose Health Risk

Several years ago, my husband Marty and I relocated from New York to Florida to escape the bone-chilling bitter cold, snow and ice. And for the first few years we lived here, the winter months were filled with radiant sunshine, clear skies and balmy temperatures. But for the past few winters, we have been experiencing some extraordinarily record-breaking cold snaps, having to turn up the thermostat and break out those extra quilts and blankets. In fact the past few weeks have brought to mind the name of that famous rock-group, "Three Dog Night." But since felines, with their normal body temperature of 101.5, at our home we use the expression, "two cat" night. Without our kitties snuggling under the covers, our heating bill would be a lot higher for sure! Recently I happened to mention to my doctor that our kitties sleep with us. Not being an animal lover, he frowned and commented he thought we might be putting our health at risk. And, "coincidentally" the other day, I ran across an article on Yahoo.com, discussing this very topic. I just love these little synchronicities, don't you? According to the article, pet owners are quite upset with the findings in a research paper to be released in full in the February 2011 issue of The Journal of the Centers for Disease Control Emerging Infectious Diseases. It's titled "Zoonoses in the Bedroom," by Bruno Chomel and Ben Sun. Researchers found that between 14-16 percent of pet owners permit their dogs and cats on their bed at night. But sadly, based on their research, it is possible that sleeping with pets may carry some serious health risks. Most pet owners are aware that even healthy pets can carry bacteria, parasites and other microorganisms that can make us sick. During the course of their research, Chomel and Sun looked at some fairly extreme cases, including a 9 year-old boy who contracted the plague from fleas infesting his cat and man who allowed his dog to lick a surgical wound from a hip replacement, and as a result contracted meningitis. Listed on the Centers for Disease Control's website are other Zoonoses, diseases that can pass from animals to humans. To mention a few are Campylobacter, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Rabies, ringworm and tapeworms. Both the CDC Zoonoses site and Chomel and Sun's paper stress that to help prevent getting infected by a pet it is essential to observe good hygiene and prudent animal care. They advise using safe veterinarian prescribed flea control products to prevent flea borne diseases and recommend that the very young, the elderly and the immune-compromised take extra precautions when handling pets. But even though I fall into two of these cat-egories, I will continue sleeping with our kitties, just using common sense practices. Do you sleep with your pets? Share by leaving a comment. Image Source: Flickr user dkjd