Snoring, slugs and parasites: is it safe for cats and dogs to sleep on our beds?
打呼噜、鼻涕虫和寄生虫：宠物狗和猫上床睡觉安全吗？
Dogs can carry bacteria and parasites, while cats smuggle in gory "presents". So is it best to lock them out of the bedroom?
狗可能携带细菌和寄生虫，而猫则会夹带血淋淋的“小礼物”。那么最好的方法是把他们锁在卧室外面吗？
Early on the argument against co-sleeping with pets was about its effect on human sex lives. In the 18th century, for instance, when the keeping of lapdogs by women was becoming increasingly fashionable, popular satires depicted it as a threat to bedroom order.
早期反对与宠物同睡的论点是它会对人类性生活造成影响。例如，在 18 世纪，当女性饲养宠物狗变得越来越流行时，流行的讽刺作品认为其会对卧室秩序会造成威胁。
By the late 19th century, keeping dogs off the bed became the pet owner's duty to the dog. The idea was that an outdoor kennel was far better for a dog's health than being choked by a coal fire in a stuffy bedroom.
到 19 世纪后期，让狗远离床变成了宠物主人对宠物的责任。这个想法是，比起在闷热的卧室里被煤火呛死，户外狗舍对狗来说更健康。
As scientific inquiry continued apace, new reasons to avoid sleeping with dogs emerged in the 20th century. We learned more about the threat of disease - parasitic infections of mites and ticks, for instance. We also learned that co-sleeping risks "spoiling" the dog, apparently unlocking a wolf-like desire to overthrow the owner in a bid for "alpha" status.
随着科学探究的不断加快，20 世纪出现了避免与狗睡觉的新理由。宠物可能会带给我们一些潜在的疾病——例如，螨虫和蜱虫感染。也有人认为，与宠物狗共眠有“宠坏”它们的风险，很有可能会让它们为了获得“家庭老大”的地位释放出狼的本性进而试图推翻主人。
The simple answer is: not much. The idea that man's best friend is waiting for its moment to gain top-dog status turned out to have been built on some pretty shaky scientific foundations.
一言以蔽之：我们不必要多过于担心。人类最好的朋友试图争夺最高家庭地位的想法实际上是没有太多科学依据的。
"There's no doubt that dogs can carry bacteria and parasites that could do us some harm, but generally I think the risk is very low," says Prof. James Logan. "You could argue that being exposed to some of these organisms might actually do you some good - people who have grown up with pets and other animals tend to have fewer allergies, for example."
“毫无疑问，狗会携带可能对我们造成一些伤害的细菌和寄生虫，但总的来说，我认为风险非常低，”詹姆斯·洛根教授说。“相反，接触到这些微生物实际上可能对你有益——例如，与宠物和其他动物一起长大的人往往很少过敏。”
"Most vets would recommend not letting dogs sleep near children," says Dr. Jess French. "And dogs that get used to sleeping with you can become stressed when you're away, so there is an argument that having their own safe space is the better approach."
“大多数兽医不建议让狗靠近孩子睡觉，”杰西弗·伦奇博士说。“习惯和你一起睡觉的狗会在你不在时感到焦虑，所以有一种观点认为让宠物狗们拥有自己的安全空间（即不上床睡觉）会更好。”
You'll notice at this point, a distinct lack of talk about cats. Yet there are clearly arguments against having cats in the bed.
此时你会注意到，我们还没有讨论到猫的话题。不过，反对让猫在床上睡觉也大有人在。
There is the obvious risk to young children and cats have shorter sleep cycles and move around more frequently, which might become a problem for light sleepers. Some cats hunt at night and bring to the bed "presents" in the form of prey or slugs stuck in their fur.
很明显，让猫在床上睡觉对幼儿有风险，猫的睡眠周期更短，活动更频繁，这个问题可能会困扰睡眠较浅的人。有些猫在夜间捕猎，并且会将它们的猎物或者夹杂在毛发中的鼻涕虫当成“礼物”带到床上。
According to numerous surveys, though, about 50% of pet owners decide they can live with such drawbacks. According to their testimonies, co-sleeping with dogs and cats helps soothe anxiety and fear, stops them becoming agitated by noises, keeps away loneliness (often in both parties) and keeps the bed nice and warm.
尽管如此，根据大量调查，大约 50% 的宠物主人认为他们可以忍受这些缺点。他们表示，与狗和猫一起睡觉有助于缓解焦虑和恐惧，对噪音的抵抗力变强，宠物和人双方都不会那么孤独，而且宠物还能帮忙暖床，让床变得温暖而舒适。
#让宠物上床需要解决哪些问题?#
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