I'm going to have a baby in a few months, and my boyfriend found an abandoned kitten and I would love to keep her i just need to know how dangerous it is exactly to have cats around babies. I've heard all kinds of stories, but I would like to hear from anyone who has a cat and a baby!! thank you!!!
2006-06-29 02:49:00 · 27 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Newborn & Baby
no - cats are unpredictable!!!! they bite and scratch and carry many diseases. cats arent friendly anyway
2006-06-29 04:59:25 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
well when I was pregnant with my last child , we had a cat .. we all loved her very much.. but I was afraid to have the cat around my baby .. I have heard about so many story's.. But as long as you watch the cat .. shut the door when the baby is sleeping , so the cat can not go in there .. at night I would put the cat some were that it could not get by the baby .. I would do this until the baby is 6-7 months old .. over time the cat will learn that it cannot go in there when the baby is sleeping ..
2006-06-29 10:34:41 · answer #2 · answered by blueflowerscs 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, it's safe to have a cat & a baby at the same time. We always had cats & dogs when my sisters were born & never had any problems. The only 2 things that you need to watch out for are 1. If the cat is an indoor cat, you CANNOT clean the litter box while you're pregnant, due to the risk of contracting toxoplasmosis.
& 2. If the cat is an outdoor cat you may find a little welcome home/welcome to the family "gift" under the baby's crib - generally in the form of a dead animal. That's what they do! I know it sounds gross, but it's perfectly normal.
As long as the cat is healthy, you shouldn't have any problems - so Congratulations on both new members of the family!
2006-06-29 13:24:51 · answer #3 · answered by Beanne 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's safe, but you have to be willing to put in the work.
Since you found an abandoned kitten, your first job is to take it to the vet and get it checked over, and give it its shots. You may want to consider getting the claws trimmed/trimming the claws regularly. Since she's a kitten, she can get used to this. Just take a clipper and clip the white part, being careful not to hurt the core (the slightly darker area in the center of the claw). Declawing is cruel, and can result in a cat that bites.
Also, you will want to make sure she hasn't any fleas! You may want to keep her indoors for that reason alone.
Don't ever change her litterbox while pregnant, nor let your baby near it. It can lead to Toxoplasmosis (semicommon in cats, more common in kittens). Since you just got this kiten, you should probably be tested for it-- check with your physician.
The information about cats lying on the baby and smoothering it is a myth. Cat hair can be tough on a baby, though. To keep cats off things like the baby's bed, lay down aluminum foil. The cat leaps up, hates it, and gets off! It's amazing, but true...
2006-06-30 09:01:25 · answer #4 · answered by christina w 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have a 4 month old baby and we have a cat. She is perfectly fine around him. The only thing I would suggest is put up the crib and see if the cat gets in it. My cat got in the crib and we had to break her of that and she has never done it again. So it is a good idea to start putting stuff up and teaching the cat to stay away from it. Also, if it is a abandoned kitten, I would take it to a vet to make sure that it is healthy and is safe to be around. Some strays pick up diseases and such. Good Luck and Congrats!
2006-06-29 17:46:51 · answer #5 · answered by hikerchick 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have 2 cats and a 6 month old son. My cats like to get in his crib but they lay at the opposite end. Also my tom cat loves to lay next to my son and put his paw around him. My son can rip hand fulls of hair out of the cat and the cat doesn't give a crap. The strange thing is if my daughters even tugged on the cats hair it would scratch them. Our cats for some reason I don't know if it's they since he doesn't know or what but my son can do anything he wants to the cats. Well he could up until about a month ago.
Bad thing is my son formed a allergy to the cats so we had to kick the cats outside, luckily they where indoor/outdoor cats anyway.
So I guess I'm trying to say it's worked for me but not all cats are alike and for a while you should never let the cat get around the baby if you aren't there to make sure everything goes well.
2006-06-29 10:00:12 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think you should be very careful about putting a stray cat around your new baby. They carry a germ which can cause a disease called toxoplasmosis. Toxoplasmosis can cause blindness and other horrible conditions. The germ is usually transmitted through their feces. So if you have a litter box you have to be extremely careful. Another problem with cats and infants is that they can jump in a crib and lay on the infants face, which will cause the baby not to breath. If you want a cat why not just wait until the baby is older. Believe me you are going to have enough to do with a new baby and enough to worry about without having the added stress of an animal. Good luck and congratulations!
2006-06-29 10:03:21 · answer #7 · answered by SusiQ 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
as long as you know that your cat is good with kids and is updated on all medical things it should be fine. actually if a baby is around a cat or any other animal from birth they are less likely to be allergic. just keep the house clean because there is a desease, i can't remeber what it is so you'll have to check with your doctor. i don't think it's harmful and i think it's one of those that once you have it you won't get it again. also you should get a crib top net to keep the cat from laying on the baby. cat's like warm places and babies are very warm. i've had cats around both my children when they were born and they got powder puffed (the cat's were front declawed) a few times,but they did fine.
2006-06-29 14:27:04 · answer #8 · answered by bcdhowell 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is safe I have 2 cats and also 2 kids. Just be careful being a kitten means that he/she is going to want to play all the time. Just be strike with the cat (in a nice way) from the start so it knows what is wrong when it comes to the baby.
Good luck
2006-06-29 11:41:32 · answer #9 · answered by CityG82 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes you can have a cat and a baby. Just make sure while you are pregnant you do not change the litter box. You could catch something and it is the only dangerous thing.
We set up our bassinette earlier to start getting the cats used to seeing it and since cats like little spaces of course they jumped in so everytime we found them in there we would make sure they knew it was off limits. (they could suffocate the baby if they climb in) When they baby came they were actually a bit scared/curious and pretty much kept their distance. My baby and my cats are fine. Good luck!
2006-06-29 11:22:16 · answer #10 · answered by djgirlkimber2001 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It depends if you can keep the cat away from the baby. The cat will be attracted to the smell of the formula and may climb into the crib and try to lick the formula from the baby's lips. This is where the old wives tale about a cat sucking the breath from a baby's mouth originated. You just have to be careful to watch.
2006-06-29 09:56:59 · answer #11 · answered by underpressure45 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋