As a researcher, I was surprised several years ago when I ran across a study on pets that are allowed to sleep in their owners’ beds. It found E.coli, a bacteria that can cause illness, on the pillows, sheets, and blankets.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends taking precautions to help reduce the risk of getting sick from germs pet can carry whether you’re playing with, feeding, or cleaning up after your pet. Wash your hands with running water and soap.
In addition, make sure your pet gets regular veterinary care. Provide your pet with a good diet, fresh water, clean bedding, and plenty of exercise. Keep up with vaccines, deworming, and flea and tick control.
In addition to hand washing, practicing good pet hygiene can help prevent the spread of germs between pets and people. Keep pets and their supplies out of the kitchen, and disinfect pet habitats and supplies outside the house when possible. Never clean supplies in the kitchen sink, food preparation areas, or the bathroom sink. Pets can contaminate surfaces in your home with germs – you don’t have touch pets to get sick from their germs.
Always remove your dog’s poop from your yard and public places by using a bag, and dispose of it in proper areas. Dog and cat poop can contain parasites and germs that can be harmful to people.
Keep children away from areas that might contain dog or cat poop to prevent them from getting roundworms and hookworms. Cover sand boxes so cats don’t use them as a litter box. Clean the cat’s litter box daily to lower the chances of exposure to harmful parasites. Pregnant women should avoid changing a cat’s litter box if possible.
In summary, if I had a pet, I wouldn’t let it sleep in my bed. Along with germs and ticks, your pet also can disturb your sleep. In addition, it’s difficult to train a pet not to sleep in your bed. It may become necessary as the pet gets older and develops problems such as a leaky bladder.
If you do let pets sleep in your bed, be sure to wash everything once a week in hot water. Fecal matter on your pillow. Yuck.
