Is it good for my cat to sleep with me?

Sleeping with our cat is common among humans, but do we know if it is healthy?

Those of us living with cats know that it is common for them sleeping with us at night or wandering around our bed and waking us up. But it has been proven that sharing those moments (the relaxing ones) with our cat is a way of strengthening bonds of friendship and of reducing stress and anxiety thanks to the feeling of physical and psychological security they bring us.

But we must bear in mind that, if ours is an outdoor cat, when sleeping with it, it can unintentionally bring home fleas, ticks, mosquitoes that carry diseases, etc. Among these illnesses - whether from sleeping with your cat, of from having been licked or scratched - are drug-resistant staphylococcus, respiratory or allergy problems, which I will talk about further on, and/or sleep disorders. That is why it is more than essential to vaccinate our cat whether or not it is outdoors.

Cats are nocturnal, which is why, according to researchers, humans who sleep with cats take longer to fall asleep and wake up several times during the night.

As far as allergies are concerned, according to Gema García Sánchez, head allergist at the Allergology Service of the Sanitas la Moraleja University Hospital, if we sleep with our cat, the allergens stay in the mattress and there is no way to fully clean it.

On the other hand, it is well known that both short-haired and long-haired cats tend to shed large amounts of fur, and it is necessary to remove it frequently from the bed, especially if we have allergies. Nevertheless, we must consider that allergens can also be found in the saliva and urine remains that our cat might leave behind.

Solution: There are anti-dust mite covers that are sold in pharmacies that cover the mattress completely. It would be a more hygienic solution, as they can be easily washed: at temperatures above 65º Celsius.

In short, the answer to the question of whether it is good to sleep with our feline is that it is a personal decision.

Alba Serrano, canine and feline psychologist and Master in Clinical Ethology from the UAB, @enlamentedelosanimales.