In almost 40 years of having cats I never believed this until I got my new kitten from the ASPCA. He has always slept on my face! Now that he's 8 months old and weighs 8.5 lbs, I wake up gagging all of the time having to push him off of my face to breath. If he did that to an infant, he would smother it! What have you experienced, know about and believe?
2007-03-29 02:41:45 · 19 answers · asked by Grace 4 in Pets ➔ Cats
It's an old wives tale but some cats prefer the pillow and have no fear of cutting off your air supply. I always train a cat not to even jump on the bed or if it insists only lay at the foot of the bed. They will learn its not the place to bother you if you are firm. You should have trained him as a kitten now it might be harder but its doable.
2007-03-29 02:47:34 · answer #1 · answered by Tapestry6 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Basically, an old wives tale with a smidgen of truth behind it.
Do cats deliberately smother infants? Of course not. But, as you noted, cats may snuggle up to a warm body when they're sleeping, and many of them like to nap or sleep curled up on someone's head or against the face. Infants don't have the ability to roll or move away when something is pressed up against its face -- that's the reason why the use of crib bumpers is discouraged by the American Academy of Pediatrics, etc. An infant might be getting some air and breathing, sure, but it might be taking in too much of its own exhaled carbon dioxide when it inhales, leading to suffocation.
I'm sure the "old wives tale" -- which is what it is -- stems from real and legitimate instances of it happening.
Many people with pets use "crib tents" to protect their infants and keep the animals out of the cribs. Its advisable even when the infant isn't also in the crib, to keep pet hairs off the crib sheets, etc.
2007-03-29 02:48:39 · answer #2 · answered by ljb 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The reason the smothering babies can be true is that they are smelling the milk on the babies breathe. Not all cats do this but if you have one that likes to be in your face or sleeping near your face, it is best to keep them in an area of the house away from the baby. I have two cats, one has a habit of being right in my face while sleeping, and I wake up and have to push her off, my other cat has never done this.
2007-03-29 03:12:18 · answer #3 · answered by catmomiam 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I've lived with cats my entire life. Since I was born there was always one or more cat in our household. Neither me, or my two siblings were ever smothered by any of them. The wivestale is that they will "steal the baby's breath".
I guess it really depends on where the cat chooses to lay. A baby certainly couldn't move an 8.5lb cat of off itself. I had a overweight cat that liked sleeping on the pillows. She was hard to move when I was half asleep.
So, "stealing" breath I believe is a wives tale. I do believe a large enough cat with the gumption to sleep on a babys face, could smother it.
2007-03-29 02:48:39 · answer #4 · answered by cocacolachickee 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's a dumb wives tale.
According to snopes, there are lots of crazy tales about babies and cats, but no substantiated ones. A much more likely scenario is a parent sleeping in the bed with a baby rolling over on it and smothering it, and yet people take their infants into their beds all the time.
2007-03-29 02:49:23 · answer #5 · answered by ? 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The old wive's tale is that cats suck the breath from infants and kill them. The truth is that they will lay on the baby's head and smother it. Cats do not suck the breath from the babies, but they will lay on it's face. Since newborns lack muscle control, they are unable to move away from the cat or push it off and that's why cats can smother infants.
2007-03-29 03:36:10 · answer #6 · answered by redrum42482 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I have had cats all my life also, and I have had ones that did want to sleep on my face or head. I think it's just for the warmth and closeness, if they were to smother someone it would be by accident. We always put them in the basement at night, they have everything they need down there and can play or wrestle and we can get some sleep. When our kids were babies we always kept the door closed so the cats didn't have access.
2007-03-29 02:50:37 · answer #7 · answered by mom of 2 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Oh Good Lord.
Can ANYone actually document a case of a cat suffocating an infant? I think not.
Why would a cat even choose to sleep with an infant? Babies are noisy, squirmy and often stinky! If this were to even be an issue, it's as easy as closing the door to the babies room...which is what my expectant daughter and son-in-law plan to do (they have three cats).
2007-03-29 03:24:20 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
The cat gravitates to you as an adult. While they might like to sit with an infant, the crying and noise generally teaches them that the infant is to be avoided.
Theoretically it is possible for almost any animal to do this, including a dog. The actual proven cases of it happening are pretty much non-existent.
Parents with concerns should shut the baby's bedroom door at nights to keep their cat out, and use nursery monitors to keep an "ear" on the baby's activity.
2007-03-29 02:48:20 · answer #9 · answered by carraigcreative 3 · 4⤊ 0⤋
tell him to finish somewhat study - even with the parable that cats smother little ones or the elderly, there is not any longer a unmarried case of this ever truthfully taking position. All those father and mother who've gotten rid of the relations cat were regrettably misinformed. dogs biting little ones - now it extremely is intentional and actual!
2016-10-17 21:56:40 · answer #10 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋