Cat and dog hair?

kernow62 says on Oct 26, 2005, 17:39:

If she isn't allergic to the cat then there should be no problem.

I have heard the old wive's tale about a cat sucking the breath out of a baby, but not the one your wife mentions.

My wife from Bogotá is still alive and our cats occasionally curl up on the bed with us.

Perhaps you could buy her a respirator and let her sleep with that on. ;-)

I just went in the kitchen and asked my wife if she had heard that tale and she said she had, but then added that most people don't believe in such nonsense.

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harocha says on Oct 26, 2005, 17:58:

My mom and Grandma They used to say that the cat's hair is not good for a pregnated woman, if they breath it and it goes into the system (lungs) it can cause abortion. If that is truth or not I don't know, however I know a case where the Pregnate wife almost lost the baby and she was hospitalized for 3 months, the doctor asked the husband to get all the cats out of the house before the wife goes back there.

It has something to do with a rare type of allergy that is cause by the hair inside your system, not all women have this problem but is very common to hear that the cat's hair cause pregnacy troubles.

In my opinion I don't dislike cats but I find kind of ugly to have an animal who lick his/her parts after doing number 1 or number 2 and then lick the rest of its body and after that end up going to your bed and sleep on the same sheets you put your face and hands on, or ending on your arms. It is just me. So I respect what others do.

Harocha

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bbattiste says on Oct 26, 2005, 18:02:

I've Never Heard of Either The cats hair in the nose or a cat sleeping in one's bed.

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sylvester says on Oct 26, 2005, 18:31:

Regardless of whether the wife is allergic or not, she does not share your affinity for sleeping with fur bearing animals. Why should she be subjected to spending the night with your cat ?

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dtapia says on Oct 26, 2005, 19:12:

Exactly Sylvester.... That is a good point Sylvester....

First of all, My crazy society tells me that smoking cigars and cigarettes damages my lungs... Has anyone else heard this appallingly grotesque fib, must be an old gringo's tale.

Second of all, Colombians are for the most part clean people. Extra dust, cat piss, moist hairballs, are all turnoffs. As per Encarta: Dander, scales of hair or feathers: minute particles or scales that are shed from the feathers, hair, or skin of various animals. They may be the cause of some allergies, especially asthma.

Sometimes an old wives' tale is not so much of a tale...

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jediknight says on Oct 26, 2005, 19:31:

i cannot believe this i can't believe that you called your wife crazy because she wont allow an animal to sleep in the same bed, give me a break, i'm sure you love your pet but your wife is number one, your cat will get used to the basement.
JK

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kernow62 says on Oct 26, 2005, 20:06:

I was worried that my cat might be allergic to Colombians, luckily she has not shown any ill-effects.

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Brians says on Oct 27, 2005, 05:09:

Calm Down Guys I called my wife crazy in a loving way. She was watching me type it and we were laughing because it is a joke between us. Of course my wife is more important than the cat. I bought the cat for her because she loves them. I had just never heard of anything like this and I have clients who are doctors who never heard of anything either. I wanted to see if it was a common thing in Colombia that's all. As for the cat getting used to the basement of course he will. The problem is she screams (Not Meows) because my wife babies her all day and then puts her in the basement. I just want quite but she would let it stay with us. So that's it nothing severe just a question:)

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kernow62 says on Oct 27, 2005, 05:53:

Just let the cat go out at night, cats normally enjoy hunting at night. Unless it is freezing, then they like the company of humans to provide a bit of warmth. Here in Florida my cats hardly come inside until the temps drop to about 50 degrees F or cooler, then gradually I see more and more of them.

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Tinto (Moderator) says on Oct 27, 2005, 06:11:

you must not be a friend of the Audubon society or the Bird Conservancy, as they claim domestic cats that are allowed outside kill millions of songbirds and migrating birds per year.



"The American Bird Conservancy has launched a citizen education and action campaign to end the massive and unnecessary loss of birds and other wildlife to predation by domestic cats. Scientists estimate that free-roaming cats (owned, stray, and feral) kill hundreds of millions of birds and possibly more than a billion small mammals in the U.S. each year."

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quan3 says on Oct 27, 2005, 06:15:

yesss sirrrrr cat hair can get into the lungs.. cat hair can float around in the air buddy with heat or air blowing from the vents.. as for the cat sleeping in the bed get her used to sleeping on the floor, I had to retrain my cat not to sleep on the bed anymore. I bought a cat bed for her and everytime she jumped on the bed I put her right back in hers and out of my bed it was funny though.. by the time I went to sleep she caught the point and was happy with her spot..

every other time she jumped up I told her no and she'd get back on her spot.

you don't want cat hair all in the bed with you while you and your wife are lying in it do you?

also just vaccum alot that helps with the cat hair.. really I don't think its the hair that makes folks sneeze and get runny noses and watery eyes.. its the places the cats go and get dust all over the furry coats.

Also some one mentioned pregnant women can't be around cats.. I know its the cat litter they can't be around, never heard of them not being able to be around the cat.

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Brians says on Oct 27, 2005, 06:26:

Wow I can't believe how many people really believe this thing about cat hair. Anyway I'll do whatever my wife wants as she is the boss:) If there really is a risk then why is it OK for the cats to live in the house at all? Is this mysterious "Cat Hair Aliment" only contageious at night? Why with all the millions of cat owners in the world have I never seen a medical report on television about this problem? I would think a 20/20 or Primetime who would report on anything to sell commercial time might have run something:) Anyway fun discussion. I will let my wife know she is not crazy:)

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Oct 27, 2005, 06:53:

It doesnt matter if Cat hair goes into your lungs or not I personally wouldn't let any Animal into my bedroom or kitchen, I like them but I think is not hygiene at all.

engage brain before opening mouth

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kernow62 says on Oct 27, 2005, 14:32:

Personally I don't think humans are any cleaner than most animals. Sure we may cover up our natural odors a bit better, but there are probably as many or more germs on us than on the cat.

I don't let my cat jump on the table or countertops, but if it did I wouldn't go crazy worrying about the possible germ that jumped off.

If people only knew what was in the kitchen of the restaurant they eat in, or the little critters that scurry about at night in their homes they wouldn't worry about a cat, an animal that has lived with man for years. Do you wash your hands every time you touch something?

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kernow62 says on Oct 27, 2005, 20:20:

Tinto, I love all animals, not in the way Elmo does, but I love them all the same. However as quickly as mice and rats and other small mammals reproduce I am not worried about them disappearing any time soon. Every year mankind does more harm to various animal populations than domestic & feral cats do.

I would rather have a cat take care of mice than the use of harmful chemicals or cruel traps. Cats have helped mankind a great deal with pest control. Same with having a rat terrier to take care of the rat population. As a child, as much fun as it was to play with the rats we were glad we had a rat terrier to snap their necks on occasion when the rats looked like taking over.

I watched a BBC documentary a few years ago, the topic was the effects of domestic cats on small mammal and bird populations, and the figures were quite amazing, but they never said what percentage of the population of these various animals were killed by the cats, only the actual figures. It all depends on how many remain and how quickly the numbers reproduce. I would think with the numbers of cats in Muslim countires these countries would be devoid of any birds and small mammals, but I know this isn't the case.

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kat1 (Moderator) says on Oct 28, 2005, 03:07:

I love animal I don't like them to suffer, but I am not a person that can have one. My daughter wants a puppy, but i've told her thatis better when she grows up and can look after it herself. If I have an animal it have to live in the shed no in my house. I make sure is a warm shed and comfortable. the thing is I can't touch them and i don't like the way they smell. sicological thing :O MAYBE!!!

But to tell you the truth many people in Colombia doesn't like Cats while here in the UK people love them I have friends that got 2 or 4 Cats at home.

engage brain before opening mouth

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kernow62 says on Oct 28, 2005, 04:02:

I noticed that in Colombia too Kat1, it seems like tropical birds are the pet of choice in Colombia. My wife's tia in Bogotá has an apartment with a few cats, a dog, a rat, some wild birds, copetones (sp?), doves etc. all loose in the apt. For some reason they all get along, there has never been an attack on one animal by another, in fact the only time something happened was when a heavy art book fell on a rat and killed it!

My ex from Medellin always had a parrot as a pet and now she has a ferret and a snake. She would never own a cat.

The opposite extreme with cats are Muslim countries where dogs are considered unclean but cats are everywhere. For any cat lovers I recommend they get a copy of "The Cats of Lamu" by Jack Couffer ISBN 1-55821-675-8 it is a photo book about a huge colony of feral cats living on the island of Lamu off the coast of Kenya. It documents how the cats live just like lion prides in their social structure, and how they live side by side with the human population in harmony. Are you listening Nato?

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harocha says on Oct 28, 2005, 18:19:

Kernow Personally I don't think humans are any cleaner than most animals.?????
Well I can talk for me I don't know you, but I definitly don't clean my butt with my tounge after i go to the bathroom, and I clean my hands with Sterilazers Lotions any time i touch someone or something that does not come from my house if I can't watch them with soap and water right away.
So again I don't know you, but I am much more cleaner than a cat and a dog.

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Desideria (Moderator) says on Oct 28, 2005, 18:25:

yeah, kat "Mum please, I want to have a puppy! I love dogs, you know. I promise I'll take care of it. I'll take it out three times a day, bathe it, feed it, cut it's nails, brush it's hair, feed it, you know me Mum, you can trust me!"
Oh yeah, she got her puppy. Guess what? Guess who got to take care of it, feed it, walk it, bathe it, cut the nails, take it to the vet, everything. Not the little missy, I promise. It was Mum:)

Dogs are wonderful.
Cheers,
Desi

"I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them."-President George W. Bush

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poco says on Oct 28, 2005, 18:38:

Problem Solved I’d suggest viewing this 1 meg. advertising video for a FORD SPORTKA

The problem should go away in less than a week.

"Violence is the first refuge of the incompetent" - Isaac Asimov

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harocha says on Oct 28, 2005, 18:50:

POCO That is a good one! =)

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kernow62 says on Oct 28, 2005, 19:37:

Ha ha, saw that one eons ago, forgot about it. Thanks for digging that one out of the vault. And the Ka is crap too.

Harocha, how do you manage to function? I mean if I had to use sterile lotion everytime I touched a doorknob or picked up an item in a shop that someone else handled for fear it had a germ on it I think I would just end it all. It is quite possible that by making yourself too clean you are actually hindering the ability to fend off germs when the time comes. Currently there is talk about anti-bacterial soaps doing as much harm as good.

I still think just based on the surface area of a cat versus the surface area of the average human there are more germs.

I have had cats all my life and other than foaming at the mouth a bit I show no ill-effects.

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kernow62 says on Oct 28, 2005, 20:07:

Brians, I talked to our vet today and he mentioned a possibility of contracting Toxoplasmosis which is a protozoan which can be spread from cats and a wide variety of other sources to humans.

A pregnant woman who contracts toxoplasmosis risks having a baby with congenital defects. (According to a site GOOGLE turned up)

Perhaps this is where your wife got the idea from, but it isn't from inhaling a hair. In fact parrots are more dangerous when it comes to passing airborne disease to humans than are cats.

There is of course cat-scratch fever which usually is spread by kittens not grown cats. I believe 40% of cats in California carry the disease in their blood. I have been scratched thousands of times and never contracted the illness. Cats do also carry rabies occasionally, however in the US, bats and dogs are the primary causes of cases in humans, there hasn't been a case of a cat passing it to a human in the US for a number of years.

The cat's saliva actually kills some germs on the cat's body and is also a natural deoderant. Chances are if a cat smells then it is quite sick and should see a vet quickly.

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