Going back to this point....we have a whole body of tradition based on this verse:
Luk 2:7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
1. It's surmised that there were animals all around him.
2. It's surmised that he was in a freestanding structure.
3. It's surmised that they were turned away from a public lodging place.
There are many other assumptions that are made concerning the whole story. Leaving off "assumed" and "speculated" from the traditional story doesn't make the traditional explanation any truer. It's tradition.
And all of these arguments do nothing but take away from the fact that God took on human flesh.
Doesn’t matter one bit if there were animals there or not.