Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Oh hail no! I have a friend that allows her cats to jump all over the kitchen while she is cooking. I will never eat her food again!
Reminds me of an old aunt who allowed her cat up on the counter. Nothing more appetizing than seeing a big bushy cat tail wagging in the butter! Trouble was I was a guest and had to eat her food.
As for my bedding, I just have a sheet with a duvet and a throw that my dog sleeps on. So I just have to wash the throw every week. Besides, she doesn't smell, doesn't shed, doesn't snore and always has clean paws. Nicer to have next to me than some men I've known
Kinda sounds like you are. Or you certainly should be if these other things wig you out so badly. Do you ever sleep in a hotel/motel bed? Dogs allowed or not, I'd betcha a dog's been in that bed.
As to cats, I expect 99% of cats are cleaner than 100% of humans. Even those 'cat litter paws'.
LOL. Nope. I'm definitely not. Never have been.
I agree that cats are cleaner - that's why I always have never minded cats in my home. But the cat hair, the cat litter mess...it's too much for me to deal with.
I've always understood dogs 'sleeping in the bed' with their peeps as pack behavior. Since we are his pack, he's welcome to cuddle up.
I'd bet most of us on this forum take very good care of our animals in terms of cleanliness or bugs. I'd never let him on the bed dirty - actually, he doesn't come in the HOUSE dirty.
You are a rare bird then. I know very few people with a dog that I can't smell it the minute I walk into the house. My sis had a dachshund, most of the time I couldn't detect any odor, but man she had to bathe him all the time. When he died a couple of years ago, at the grand old age of 14, she said no more.
You are a rare bird then. I know very few people with a dog that I can't smell it the minute I walk into the house. My sis had a dachshund, most of the time I couldn't detect any odor, but man she had to bathe him all the time. When he died a couple of years ago, at the grand old age of 14, she said no more.
Is this "element of smell" a factor of where we live?
That is, I like smelling deer out in the wild for it helps me see where they are (how do you know where to look, how to look, if you don't know they are there?).
I like the smell of my cats, I like the smell of dogs. Is it because I live out in the country now that I am so conditioned? That question doesn't need to be answered but rather......
.......are we more accepting of how animals smell if we don't live around civilization? (and, of course, more accepting to having them in bed with us)
Is this "element of smell" a factor of where we live?
That is, I like smelling deer out in the wild for it helps me see where they are (how do you know where to look, how to look, if you don't know they are there?).
I like the smell of my cats, I like the smell of dogs. Is it because I live out in the country now that I am so conditioned? That question doesn't need to be answered but rather......
.......are we more accepting of how animals smell if we don't live around civilization? (and, of course, more accepting to having them in bed with us)
I don't live "in the wild" so smelling animals is not anything I care about being able to do, LOL. And certainly animal smells are not my idea of how a house should smell. No idea what you like or dislike. I personally dislike a "doggie" smell and I would never want my home to smell like one. I would feel the same no matter where I lived. I don't like having to clean animal hair off of my clothes and furniture -but maybe you like that adornment. I damn sure know that cat pee is one of the foulest odors there is - and it is quite impossible to remove completely from upholstery fabric or carpet. If you don't mind that smell, that's fine, it's your house. Have your animals wherever you like and as many as you like.
But don't be surprised when you have a guest over and they stop and wrinkle their nose when they enter your home. I've entered a few homes with that odor and I could barely stand to stay inside more than a few minutes. Perhaps I have a more sensitive nose than most.
Last edited by ChessieMom; 02-16-2024 at 11:37 AM..
My son has been doing that forever. Sleeps with the dogs in front of the fire.
I see that 'senji!!!
In the past my dogs always slept with me. After we got married, it got a little crowded with my hubby, me, and three dogs. We decided to let the dogs sleep together and not on our bed. With bigger dogs that worked okay. But we have teeny dogs now and one who liked to hide. My dogs now sleep in their crate together so I know where they are if I need to grab that crate in a middle of the night emergency.
The crate is only for sleeping at night though. Day time "naps" are shared!
I never understood this. Raccoons have the same biological needs as humans as well but I bet you won't invite one of them into your bed. Humans typically wear shoes outdoors. Dog will often lie outside or on a dirty floor. Don't even get me started on cats walking in litter boxes and then walking on counters where food is prepared. I doubt that too many people bathe their dog every day or every other day like humans do. I hope washing your bed regularly means every day but that seems like a lot of work. Germaphobes rarely catch colds or the flu. Maybe you should try it sometime.
Well, this wandered into the bizarro world fast! There are many reasons I wouldn't have a house raccoon and it has little to do with where they sleep. I can usually convince my dogs to do as I bid them to, to tolerate any grooming and bathing they might need. A raccoon? Not so much! Still, raccoons groom themselves just as any cat or dog does. Just because some animal isn't "domesticated" doesn't mean it's less hygienic than a domesticated one! Can't speak to cats...I've never lived with one because I'm allergic to them. The idea that one can stroll through a litter box then stroll across my kitchen counters doesn't appeal to me either. Still, I clean my countertops before and after putting raw food on them.
As for grooming and cleaning, as already mentioned I'm no germaphobe. I groom myself in a typical, socially acceptable manner. My house and its contents are cleaned routinely, just not excessively. As for being nose blind, all you need to do is leave the house for a while and come back in to detect something that might be lurking in there. Despite a tolerance for ordinary microorganisms, I don't tend to get the bug du joir circulating through the local human population either. Can't even recall the last cold or flu I've had. I've shared my house with multiple animals of varying types most of my life. Can't recall ever picking up any illnesses or infections from any of them.
Last edited by Parnassia; 02-16-2024 at 02:01 PM..
In the past my dogs always slept with me. After we got married, it got a little crowded with my hubby, me, and three dogs. We decided to let the dogs sleep together and not on our bed. With bigger dogs that worked okay. But we have teeny dogs now and one who liked to hide. My dogs now sleep in their crate together so I know where they are if I need to grab that crate in a middle of the night emergency.
The crate is only for sleeping at night though. Day time "naps" are shared!
Sometimes I miss having a Basenji, but not too often lol. When we had just the one Basenji she would sleep on the bed. They're remarkably clean and very little odor. When we got another one? Nope- kicked to the crates. They would fight over the premium real estate on the bed- usually between the legs when given the opportunity.
They are heat seeking missiles. Our first Basenji would sleep under a blazing wood stove.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
