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  3.94 (May work) from 23 votes (280 Visits) |
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Saying No To Animals In The House |
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This advice is a follow on inspirated by conversation generated from the article called "Little Ones Grow Up fast, House Work Can Wait".
Saying No To Animals In The House
Do you have animals at home? Do you animals live in the house? Are you about to be a new Mum? Do you have a child that is asthmatic? Do you have a family history of asthma? Are you already a Mum and have animals like cats and dogs? What about your kids, do any of them have a respiratory related conditions? Read ON!
Long before my son was born I simply banned my two cats from the house. It meant no more cat fur and the endless vaccuming and the ruined funiture and occasional smelly unwanted gifts, no more cat fur on my couches and on my clothes! And I loved it! I do like my cats very much but I realised that my motto has always been humans before animals. My sanity before animals! I choose to house my cats in a RSPCA approved cat cage at night. I choose to not waste my precious time cleaning up after them in the HUMAN house. I enjoy having nice non cat fur covered clothing and a house that does not smell of animals. I enjoy being able to invite all my friends and family to visit and not be worried about any allergies etc
When discovering that I was to become a Mum I investigated what my newborn my have a tendancy for. This was asthma and ezcema.
As many of you know Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways in the lungs. It is NOT age specific in when it first is noted. However often it is reported as often beginning in childhood or adolescence. It may also may first appear in adult life. In my professional acute experience as a RN DIV 1 in respiratory nursing, Asthma is now NOT uncommon in infants. It is heart breaking and very stressful for these parents to deal with. I knew from my experience that I wanted to minimise the risk to my newborn and to thus reduce the likihood of hospital admissions and medical intervention required to treat him. I wanted to avoid trauma for him if I could. Plus I wanted to avoid the heatbreak and stress related to asthma triggers that I as a responsible Mum could reduce. A simple measure of housing my cats outside was the sensible option.
Asthma is a chronic inflammation episode that causes the airways in an Asthmatic to narrow. It can produce that characteristic wheezing and breath-lessness sometimes to the point where there is gasping for air leading to respiratory distress. It can lead (in extreme cases) to death. Please do note today, that it is rare for a child not respond to professional medical intervention. This airway obstruction either stops spontaneously or responds to a wide range of treatments . Continuing inflammation makes asthmatics hyper-responsive to such stimuli as cold air, exercise, dust, animal fur, pollutants in the air, and even stress or anxiety.
So I decided to reduce the triggers at home where I reasonably could. I purchased a great vaccum cleaner, I vaccum every room once a week. I already had the cats outside and that is their home. A good idea is to make your house a pet free zone long before a newborn baby comes home. Naturally most responsible cat owners would want their cat to be happy and not jealous of the newborn so having established that the felines are outside long before baby is born would be a good idea. I maded sure that my cats had a safe and weather protected cat home. All theirs and not a play ground for my baby boy. No shared items.
When vistors bring their animals I insist they DO stay outside. It can be hard to enforce (especially when a female may baby her dog and cat and think it's too cold to be outside) but I have reminded her that I have a young child. I also have to remind them that I am responsible for the condition of the child and house and that this is my house and not theirs. As a Mum/parent you have to be really strong and enforce what you believe in and not give into things that are just not ok. For me cats and furry animals being outside my house is expected.
I do have one such friend that lets her cat and dog stay in the house and defecate, urinate and destroy her house. I think as a result of this that she has contributed to her social lonliness, acute anxiety and is more depressed. She can't keep up with the mess these two animals make. She gets exhausted and then gets more depressed as the mess and stink gets worse. She is isolated by the state her house is in, as no one wants to visit her in that house. It is very hard indeed to tolerate the smell. Plus she will not invite anyone to her house for she is ashamed of how it is. Plus there is NO chance I will let her baby sit my son in her house... ALL because she insists that her animals stay in her house. My friend treats her cat and dog as babys. She even babies the dog and uses nappies to clean up after it and gets it 00 size clothing to wear!
My point is animals do NOT come before your precious ONE OF A KIND newborn, toddler or child. Your child deserves the best environment you can provide. An environment that is not harmful and that does not pose a risk to their health. Needless to say, my friend is single and childless so such concerns about an asthmatic prone newborn do not concern her. Nor does it come into her thinking that it might concern others with children.
Sometimes when I think about letting my two cats in for a while, I recall the state of her house (and others that are not so bad but still have cat fur on couches etc) I decide instead to take myself and my son outside to play with them instead! Afterall being outside is best for animals and being outside and playing with our two cats is a double treat for my son. Plus my house remains free of any unexpected surprises.
Take Care,
Lavendalady
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| ADVICE RATING |
3.94 (May work) from 23 votes |
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
Hi there Mumof2b,
Thankyou for taking the time to add your comment. 
Please do not think I'd EVER refer to you as a bad Mum. We each (as parents) make our own decisions on the available information we have, our life experiences, career, advice and our inside knowledge of what is the best solution for our child and family.
Your child is emotionally attached to the dog. The dog has been well trained to not lick your child. You are fully informed of what your child has an allergy to and have choosen and option that works for you, your child and family.
In my case, my son is not attached to an animal. He is under 1 year of age. We have a strong family history of asthma in the family and one family member has died from it. The best option for my family is to house the cats outside in their RSPCA approved cat cage and limit the cat exposure time.
I hope your son is doing better and not too affected by the recent seasonal change.
Take Care,
Lavendalady
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
Hi there August88,
Thankyou for your comments.
I plan to have a serum blood test done on my son after he is 12 months old. It will determine if he is allergic to (dust, animal, Etc about 350 things he could be allergic to). If he is NOT allergic to animal then I too will have not so much of a concern about my cats coming into the house on occasions and with the same conditions that you stipulated.
The title is about being able to say no to having animals in the house. Being able to for the benefit of yourself as a new Mum (less animal related house work) and the benefits to the emotional and physical health of your family.
Take care,
Lavendlady
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
Hi there IImunchkin,
Thankyou for your comment. I always welcome comments. I was rather surprised by the amount of comments this article has recieved. 
I do agree that their are breads of cats and dogs do not shed their hair. My two moggy cats do shed their hair, as does most other every day moggy type of cat available in Australia. I too have never owned a pet that I have not house trained to the standards I want. Yet I am aware that there are some that do not house train their pets as well as others. Some people do allow their animals to behave "badly". I gave the ONE example from my network of friends. I also am aware of the television show "It's me or the dog" that does highlight examples of some people that have not trained their dogs well or let them do many things most would deem unacceptable. Have you seen this show?
I wonder what really is "good sense" or "Common sense" anyway? Some would say removing the pet from the house long before a child is born is common sense, others do differ. For me it was a case of wanting my newborn not to be exposed to my cats at a very tender age due to the very real risk of asthma being triggered.
I do really wonder how someone really keeps a pet such as a cat in a "pet zone" in the house. Are they locked in? I'd imagine even a well trained pet would stay in the area deemed theirs only most of the time... Yet in my case, I much rather have my cats roam free during the day outside and then be snug and safe in their RSPCA approved cat cage at night. Once again my preference.
I agree that I don't think it unreasonable to ask that a pet be removed from the house. My baby boy will have ample opportunity to slowly get to know the two cats. It will continue to be a supervised time outside with me and my partner. There will be no surprise animal visits from animals for my son at the tender at of 9 months to have to deal with since they live outside.
Being a person that has been trained in respiratory medicine I can tell you that it is acutally very strongly associated with air pollution.
As you are probably aware, asthma can be brought on by many triggers such as exercise or heavy breathing, cold air, airborne irritants such as dust, pet hair and molds, smoke, viral infections, allergic reactions due to pollen or food and pollutants. That being said, it is very hard to isolate exactly what caused an asthma attack. However as a parent, one can do their best to limiting exposure to these triggers to avoid such an event for their child. That is exactly what I choose to do.
Take Care,
Lavendalady
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
It's not just the potential mess of untrained pets, but the serious health issues that you are pointing out and I applaud you for that. I have a dog that is fully house trained and makes no mess what-so-ever, except leaving a bit of fur on the carpet in the loungeroom. He does not go in the bedrooms, he does not get on the lounges or beds, and he is not permitted in the kitchen when someone is cooking, eating, or handling food. I also bought an expensive alergy and asthma safe vaccuum cleaner. If I didn't have such a vaccuum cleaner, I wouldn't allow my dog in the house at all. Allergies and asthma is not an issue for anyone that lives in my home, fortunately, but if it was, I would prioritise the health of my family over the comfort of my pets.
There is also a huge risk to the unborn children of pregnant mothers and young babies from coming into contact with cat faeces. Consequently, I will not go near cat faeces whilst pregnant, and I would never allow a cat inside my home that was not properly house-trained, or any cat while a newborn baby was in the house.
As for visitors, if someone with asthma or an alergy to my animals came to my house, I would, in courtesy to them, put my animals outside and thoroughly clean the house before they came.
The other risk that people don't think of regarding cats and kids is that cats do love to curl up near warmth. A sleeping newborn makes a good hot pack to cuddle next to as far as many cats are concerned. Babies have died as a result of the family cat deciding to sleep with the baby and lay over the babies face.
All kids and pets should be closely supervised when they are together. However, having an animal-free home does not mean that children can't have or interact with pets. Pets are great company for kids and are good for teaching kids how to behave around, be gentle with, and treat animals. If having pets outside is what is best for your family, then by all means, do it.
Of course, your house is your house, if someone was to insist on smoking in your otherwise non-smoking house, you wouldn't be questioned if you said no. Why then do people kick up a stink about someone not allowing pets into an animal-free home? It just makes no sense to me. My home, My rules, Your home, Your rules, people should respect that.
And yes, when pet mess gets to be too much, social isolation becomes an issue as most people do not want to visit a home that reaks of animal faeces and urine, and is rotten with fur and fleas. I've been unfortunate enough to live in that kind of condition and NEVER AGAIN! I don't like visiting people who won't bother to house-train a pet or won't change a littler tray when it needs it either. I can't imagine any decent person that would go to a home where the people didn't know how to use a toilet, why is such pet mess more acceptable? It's not.
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
Hi There DarkenedAngel!
Thankyou VERY MUCH for your insightful comments regarding my advice. It really does encourage me to read that a member can see that my advice is about the serious health issue that pets in the human house can pose to a new born baby. In my case it was about the trigger risk animal fur etc to cause an asthmatic reaction in my newborn. I do hope other members can also understand this and not see it as some sort of attack on those that choose to have their animals in the home.
Your first paragraph is exactly how I'd behave if allergies and asthma were not an issue in my family or if I didn't have a baby son to care for. My son's grandfather has had severe asthma all his life and his younger sister tragically died from it when she was only 22 years old. Allergy and asthma are a big concern in our family.
Agreed re the unborn baby. It is a huge concern! I would not go near cat faeces either when I was pregnant. I would too never allow a cat in the house with my newborn baby. I always worried about the idea of them wanting to snuggle ontop and thus would never allow even a chance of that.
Yes I too would be mindful of visitors with allergies. I would go to an extra effort for them. I am after all being mindful of their health and comfort while in my home.
Agreed an animal free home does not mean children cannot interact with pets. In fact my son and I go outside to see them together (yep supervision) and we both enjoy being outside with them.
Agreed re the "My home, My rules, Your home, Your rules, people should respect that" I think in the case of my ONE example I used she has is learning to respect my decision. She now always leaves them both outside in my backyard when she visits me and my son.
Agreed re the social isolation! I have have been helping her father to arrange for cleaners to come into her house and contractors to really get ontop of things. The plan is that when she returns from being in hospital for anxiety and depression that she will have a clean house to come back to and if all goes well a doggy house and a cat house for her animals.
Lavendalady
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
Hi there Peachynowamum,
Thankyou for your comment. I always welcome comments.
I have carefully reread what I have written in my advice. I have carefully read your duplicated comments.
My reply is as follows:
I have NOT stated that I would suggest to a Mum that she should be "wrapping them completely in cotton wool and not allowing any exposure to germs". I have simply stated that my cats are outdoor cats long before my newborn came home. It was my decision to do this. It is also my advice to any new parent to purchase a proper cat house and put the cats in that at night and not have them in the HUMAN house. This advice is especially for any parent that may have an asthmatic child. I have stated the reasons why I suggest this from my professional and actual Mum experience. It is a sensible option solution that may be considered by a new Mum.
Naturally removing animals from the house also does not equate to "wrapping a child in cotton wool". The house as you may be aware is an ample area for a child to get exposure to germs and all sorts of hazards if you so wish :p
Plus I stated the pro's of the reduction of house work time when a Mum does not have to clean up after furry animals. I also used a real life example of ONE person that keeps her animals indoors and does not manage the furr, smell and animal waste in her house. I did not state in my advice that "having an indoor pet does not make yoou an outcast with no friends..."
Please do take the time to reread the advice and note that your comments have been unfounded.
Lavendalady
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
Hi Peachywoman,
Thankyou for you retraction of the duplicate comment. It really was not necessary.
The ONE example I gave is a person whom prior to insisting that her cat and dog remain inside her house day and night had a very tidy unit. No she does not have a serious aversion to housework. She has too much housework caused by insisting that both animals stay in her house. She treats the animals like they are humans. I do agree with you about her dog not being trained very well. It is an issue that will be followed up by her family.
If the dog was outside it would not have a problem as it could be free to dig up and defecate in the garden as a dog should instead of wherever it wants in the house.
I have looked carefully at both sides of the animals indoors vs animals outdoors debate. I am busy Mum who does want what is best for myself, my baby and my family. Not having my son develop asthma at such a tender age is my intention. I could afford a cat cage so my cats live in that at night. My actions carefully thoughtout intention to promote the emotional and physically health of my asthmatic prone son and family.
I have NOT insulted anyone who chooses to leave their pet indoors. That is your choice. It is my choice to house my cats outside.
Lavendalady
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
perhaps i should not have taken offense so easily but the article whilst well written is very one sided argument... i know you probably dont agree but perhaps you can still write about what you did and the benefits and how it impacted you whilst still showing the other side of the debate (not that you could realy call it that) in a more posite light as the only example you gave was very negative...
I agree that you do not need to have your son develop asthma at a young age perhaps you could tell us just what type of pets you have long hair or short....
maybe you could write at the end of it those that chose to have indoor pets wich one you would recomend breed species long hair, short or even hairless......
you know elaborate... so its not just one sided....
I am not saying that your opinion is wrong or that there is anything wrong with it but perhaps approach it in a different light.... with out losing your original idea... concept.....
After all I do believe it is important to share our experiences and as it stand being so one sided i still believe it to be inflamitry to some small degree.....
I am sorry if have offended with my comments.... and as i do not know this woman you spoke of i retract the comment about having a serious aversion to house work...
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Re: Saying No To Animals In The House
Hi there Peachywoman
Nice to hear from you again. Thankyou for the comment stating that the article was well written. Thankyou for your suggestions as to how I can make this article better. It is much appreciated.
My intention with this advice was to faciltate (empower really) a new Mum to be able to ask for no animals in her house. For the new Mum to be able to tell her possibly resistive partner and possibly resistive friends. I provided the reason why I choose to have no animals in my house. I also informed my friends that I would not allow their animals in my house and why.
The advice is mainly intended for a new Mum who has a newborn (etc) that has or is prone to asthma. It is meant as a precaution that might very well save her and her family lots of heartbreak, anxiety and tears. As we all know it is easier to prevent a situation than have to cure it. This "prevention is better than cure".
I cannot really comment on having animals in the house with a newborn present as I simply do not have that life experience. I would not choose to have an animal in the house with a newborn. All I do know on that option has not been positive in terms of housework, time involved and allergy. None of the Mothers in my Mum's group even have animals. I am the only one with animals.
My cats are both domestic short haired moggy cats. I am also at present having to care for my friends cat (while she is away in South Africia), a domestic long haired cat. All three shed their hair.
I think you have a great idea re cat species and advice on what animals would be great as indoor pets. Yet again I really cannot give great comment on this as I am not Dr Harry (Vet on Tv). Plus I would still have reservations about any animals not 100% contained having access to my newborn in the house and would still reccomend against it.
I am sorry that you do find that my advice is "inflamitry to some small degree". I have not intended my article to be infamitory to any degree. My article represents my advice on my experience. It is not meant as an essay to debate and then explore pets in the home verses pets outside of it. It it was that I most certainly would have had a title to reflect that intent.
Apology accepted re my friend. She simply at this stage in her life is not coping with many things and one of them is the mess her two house living animals generate. She is now on holiday in South Africia post being in hospital for emotional help and her family will be helping her fiancially and emotionally with her life choices.
Take Care,
Lavendalady
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Related keywords: airway, allergies, animals, asthma, asthmatic, asthmatics, breath-lessness, cats, felines, house, lavendalady, lonliness, minimise, mum, newborn, parent, responsible, stressful, vaccum, wheezing | |  | | | Related ContentAddNo related content has been added Related TagsAddairway, allergies, animals, asthma, asthmatic, asthmatics, breath-lessness, cats, felines, house, lavendalady, lonliness, minimise, mum, newborn, parent, responsible, stressful, vaccum, wheezingBookmarksNo bookmarks found | |  | |  |
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(August 2007) (
