I remember hearing something about pregnant women shouldnt be around the cats litter box?

Question

I cant remember why a pregnant woman shouldnt change/or be around the litter box??

Answer 1

Toxoplasmosis.

Pregnancy precautions
Congenital toxoplasmosis is a special form in which an unborn child is infected via the placenta. This is the reason that pregnant women should be checked to see if they have a titer to toxoplasmosis. A titer indicates previous exposure and largely ensures the unborn baby's safety. If a woman receives her first exposure to Toxoplasma while pregnant then the baby is at particular risk. A woman with no previous exposure should avoid handling raw meat, exposure to cat faeces, and gardening (a common place to find cat feces). Most cats are not actively shedding oocysts and so are not a danger, but the risk may be reduced further by having the litterbox emptied daily (oocysts require longer than a single day to become infective), and/or by having someone else empty the litterbox.

Treatment is very important for recently infected pregnant women, to prevent infection of the foetus. Since a baby's immune system does not develop fully for the first year of life, and the resilient cysts that form throughout the body are very difficult to eradicate with antiprotozoans, an infection can be very serious in the very young.

Answer 2

Many pregnant women have cats in their household. Why should pregnant women avoid coming in contact with cat litter?

Toxoplasmosis is a common infection found in up to 40% of all cat owners. It´s a minor infection that normally does not cause any side effects at all. However, it can be extremely harmful to a developing fetus. For this reason, pregnant women should turn over cat litter duties to someone else during their pregnancy.

It is only the cat stool that carries this threat, so keep the litter box somewhere away from the regular family areas, and have someone other than the mother care for the box during the pregnancy period. Once the baby is born, the baby and the cats can grow up together.

Answer 3

Outside cats tend to kill birds, mice, small insects, those animals carry a bateria called gotti which causes a virus called taxoplasmosis, If a cat gets in contact with that bacteria, whenever the cat poops, the bacteria develops in the cat's poo. That bacteria takes from 1 to 7 days to develop, if the cat litter has not been changed in a couple of days it is more likely that the bacteria is living there already. This bacteria is blamed for causing birth defects due to taxoplasmosis, which can be transmited to the baby if you touched the poo, which is usually present in the scoop. I have 3 cats and I am 8 weeks pregnant. This is what my doctor told me, if you have to change the cat littler wear globes and a mask, and wash your hands afterwards. But if you have someone who can change the cat litter for you that's better. Do not get rid of your cats, get informed, search the net and you will see that getting rid of your cats is an old myth, and still not a lot of people know too much about it. I have done lots of research on this case and you will be fine if you have cats, if they go oitside, try to keep them inside now, you can have them tested at your vets clinic for this bacteria, a simple blood sample will tell you if they are infected. Another thing, you can get the same bacteria from eating raw meat! make sure your meals are fully cooked. Good luck.

Answer 4

Cat litter may be contaminated with toxoplasmosis, which can be very harmful to the developing child. The mother may have been exposed to it earlier in life, developing antibodies to it. However, one doesn't know for sure if she has been exposed to it, so it is better to be safe than sorry and have someone else clean the cat litter while pregnant.

Answer 5

being around or handling cats litter isn't good for the growing baby inside ,

Answer 6

They shouldn't because the amonia is to strong for them and the baby they are carrying. It's somewhat toxic.

Answer 7

toxoplasmosis- can cause miscarrages and still birth