Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

With my newly reinfused stem cells, I have the immune system of a baby. To protect that infant immune system, my nurse practitioner, Barbara, went over my discharge instructions - the lists of daily dos and dont's. I plan to follow the instructions to a Tee because I don't want a repeat visit to Hotel Hope.

I do, however, have trouble with one of the guidelines:

"If pets are allowed to stay with you, you should avoid close physical contact with them and they should not sleep in the same room with you."

First of all, what's the point of having pets if you have to "avoid close physical contact." Second, our dog, Betty, has slept at the foot of our bed for 11 years. Our cat Heather likes to sleep curled up near my face. (Tiger chooses not to join the family bed.)

I'd love to hear from other pet-loving post-transplanters, both auto and allo. How have you handled the "close physical contact" clause? And how do you kick out a dog from its "rightful" place at the foot of the bed?

If you don't feel comfortable leaving a comment, please email me directly at susancarrier@sbcglobal.net.

Thanks in advance from me and the Carrier family pets for any advice you can provide.

UPDATE: I just spoke with Dr. Forman, and he said that this is not an "absolute" since my white counts are high. I just have to make sure that I'm vigilant about washing my hands and that I avoid "kissy kissy" with Betty. I'd still love to hear other pet stories.