Do or did you own a cat or dog.

[kiny]

This is for people with confirmed crohn's disease in their ileum.

Did you or your household own a cat or dog before or during diagnosis.

Thank you, you can detail below if the animal was ever sick if you like to.

 

[kiny]

this is why I ask if anyone is interested http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3165260/pdf/zam5813.pdf

 

[rollinstone]

Woops, I got crohn's colitis only, so plz exclude my vote

 

[kiny]

np, can I ask if you voted cat or dog though Josh

 

[DustyKat]

+ another vote for cat.

We had one cat, it died a few months before Sarah was diagnosed. It was an outside cat but was never sick, it died from a snakebite.

When Matt was diagnosed we had two cats. They too are predominately outside cats and had never been sick at that point.

Dusty.

 

[rollinstone]

I voted for dog

 

[emmaaaargh]

We had no pets before diagnosis - I only got my dogs 3 or 4 years after I was diagnosed. The study really interests me, though!

 

[DougUte]

We had both. We have a dog only right now, but had cats before my diagnosis.

 

[Jam300]

Had a dog from birth to when I was around 10 i'm guessing. I was diagnosed a few years later, but began exhibiting OFG maybe when I was 11.

The dog was got mange from a fox when I was younger and then was put down as the result of a stomach tumour.

 

[Catherine]

I vote for cat, but we had both.

 

[shamrock15]

I think you need an option for both. I had a dog about the time that I had what was my first attack, but wasn't diagnosed until several years later. Possibly coincidentally, my crohn's disappeared about the same time as the dog. When it returned, we had both a dog and cat in the house.

 

[Clash]

+ vote for cat.

 

[CrohnsChicago]

Crohn's Colitis in colon and terminal ileum.

I actually started getting oddly sick not too long after I first got my cat. I wondered if/was afraid at some point early on that she was the cause but put it to the side as the only issue I was aware of with cats was that kitty litter has a negative effect on pregnancy.

I used to volunteer as a caretaker at a cageless cat shelter for sick, abused, feral cats regularly. That is where I got my cat. She had a history of feline herpes and she seems to have a sensitive digestive system herself (at one point I thought she had kitty colitis which is a real thing).

Very interesting that you bring this up Kiny.

 

[CLynn]

Had both, it won't let me choose more than one.

 

[Ihurt]

I have not been diagnosed yet, not sure if my vote counts, but I grew up with dogs and Cats. I have had a dog living with me all the time since I was 10 years old. Not sure if there is a connection or not as My husband is healthy as well as my brother and father and they were around the dogs all the time as well.....

 

[Amy2]

We got a dog when my son who now has Crohn's was 6 and although he was diagnosed at 16, he's probably had Crohn's since he was 13 or 14. We got a second dog from the pound on black Friday of last year when my son was already quite sick. Our older son had 2 cats living in our basement for a couple of years, when my younger son, who has Crohn's was 13 - 15.

 

[Karen]

We have always had outdoor cats !!!

 

[SarahBear]

I voted dog, but we had both. We always had three dogs and one cat. I have a dog now, as well.

I don't remember them ever being sick, honestly. The dogs were inside / outside pets and spent most of their time outside. The cat was an inside / outside pet who spent most of her time inside. About three years ago, the cat developed and abscess at the base of her tail and had to have that treated, but I don't know what caused that (and that was shortly after I had moved out). That's the only issue I can remember, aside from them getting into things outside that just made them throw up.

ETA: Up until I was about thirteen we had a dog who had had distemper as a puppy.

 

[ASM]

It had been 2 or 3 yrs since we had pets when I got sick.

 

[Jennifer]

We had cats. Dunno how many. My dad sometimes brought home a kitten from work (he worked at a winery) and we'd raise the stray kitties. My parents didn't have the money to take them to the vet so they never had any shots and weren't spayed or neutered. They were mostly kept outdoors but often stayed indoors while they were young. I'm sure they got sick from time to time and certainly had fleas and worms.

 

[Dobermonster]

Two cats and a dog before diagnosis. The dog had parvo (a not uncommon but dangerous virus) as a puppy.

 

[helena101]

Crohn's in colon and terminal ileum. Adopted a cat 3-4 months before symptoms started. She was never sick though.

 

[sanni]

I had a cat at my main home before diagnosis, but my dad lived on a farm and I spent 1/4 of my time there too with (farm)cats, dogs and horses and other animals too.

Now I have cats and a dog.

 

[lizzy16]

Agggg, sorry Kiny I was too quick before I read it all and voted for dog, but my Crohn's is in my colon not ileum - please disregard my vote :redface:

 

[afidz]

I had both, one cat 3 dogs. (for some reason that was always the ratio ) but i voted for cat

 

[xX_LittleMissValentine_Xx]

I have had my cat since I was 5, and I was diagnosed at 16, I'm almost 22 and he is still going strong
I don't think he has ever been unwell. Well, been to the vets a lot for getting into fights/injuring himself and now he has arthritis (bless him).

 

[Pi143]

We have two cats.

 

[Jmrogers4]

Dog only when my hubby was diagnosed and cat and dog when my son was diagnosed. voted dog. Both have Crohn's located in ileum

 

[RZman]

I have a 6 pets which include dogs and cats. My dog Sammy had mild Colitis. He passed away 6 months ago. He was 16.

I want to add that having animals helped me though some very tough times. When I'm ill they lay with me, lick my face, and do very cute things that make me smile. They're a big responsibility but the rewards out weigh the effort it takes to feed them and play with them.

 

[hetzbaby]

I had cats a long long time ago but now I've had dogs post DX and pre DX. I also work in an animal hospital

 

[jonique]

You did not give the option of both dog and cat. We had both when I was diagnosed. Now I just have a cat.

 

[buttons]

I have had dogs my whole life. One of them was (she passed away) a poodle and she sometimes bled. My Yorkshire terrier is fine as far as I know and my shcnoodle has a very sensitive stomach. Like, we had to bring her to a kennel when my family went to New York. She came back so sick from the dog food there.

 

[Starlight]

We have had animals since before I was even born. Never lived a day in my life without one( cat and dog). I vote cat though since I more of a cat person. Lol currently have 5 cats, 3 dogs( my parents) and if you want to count the 10 hermit crabs, 7 rabbits, 13 ducks and about 35 chickens I live in a mini zoo. Lol!

 

[shanni]

Interesting study. My family (for several generations back, sadly no longer) used to be farmers in the midwest, primarily corn/beans and hogs. A few years before I was born, they had a horrible sickness spread through the hog lots (awful bloody D, etc) and lost a good portion of the livestock to it. Not long after that, my mom first started getting really sick. She was eventually diagnosed with UC and tried to tell her doctors about the similarities between what she was experiencing and what she witnessed on the farm. They all thought she was nuts. Maybe she was onto something after all.

 

[my little penguin]

We had a dog but outside dog . She was not sick and was gone four years before DS was dx.

 

[monterey]

ok this is interesting to me. I didn't own one but used to years ago. but come in contact with them at relatives and friends alot. Does that matter?