Elle C asked:
They are 33 weeks pregnant and preparing for the arrival of our little one. I have 2 cats that I like very much and I have no intentions to deliver. I was wondering if anyone out there had experience of their cats and how they reacted to the arrival of your newborn. One of my cats is very bold and studying everything, and can jump up over the things that are four feet high! Like your cats have responded to a newborn, and what is your advice to conserve them from the child?
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Tags: Advice, Cats, Four Feet, Love, Newborn & Baby
cats gotta go~
mine was very protective of her…….you do hear of babys smothering babys cos of the smell of milk but i never had that prob at all with mine
My mom’s cat when under the bed for a month and licked all the fur off her body when I was born
Best of luck!
Don’t worry to much you just might want to make sure that they are no where near your baby while he/she is sleeping because they can suffocate your baby. But you shouldn’t be to worried about your cats freakin out. They might just get jealous.
My cats really didn’t pay much attention…be careful though with the cat around the newborn…they don’t do it intentionally, but if they sit on or near the baby to sleep, they could cause the baby to suffocate…true story of one poor family…just watch,,,they adjust quite well as a rule..
I can tell you now that your cat should stay outside. You won’t give a damn about the cats once the baby’s born.
when i had my son in october 2005 my cat was very curious and kept going up to him and thigns,, its very worrying i know.. but after a few weeks my cat got used to my baby boy and everything was okay but if your cat doesnt get used to it talk to the vet and see what they can do for you to help or if not then give that cat to a loving home..
good luck hun xx
My daughter is almost 3 weeks old so I’m sure there’s still some adjusting in there, but in the beginning one of our cats, the girl, she’s the bolder of the two, was a bit curious. She would sniff her and check her out, and now she could care less. She’s rubs her face on my hand while I’m holding the baby, but that’s about where her interest stops.
Our second, the boy, was scared out of his wits for the first week. He’s just finally checking her out with sniffing and what not.
I’m sure there will be tons more stories when Eden actually starts to notice the cats.
So both of our cats could care less. There’s absolutely no reason to get rid of them just for being cats.
I would suggest letting your cats fully check out your new baby (while you’re there, of course) that way they’ll be less likely to try and go behind your back to see what he/she is. Best of luck!
My daughter’s cat, an only cat and worse than an only child, was very accepting of their newborn. In fact, she was very curious during the first few weeks/months after his arrival and was very accepting of him–right on up until he started walking and chasing her in order to pet her!!! But she was adept enough to dodge his attempts until he got old enough to be taught how to pet her. Now, at age 3, she is again accepting of him and I have a feeling that one day they are going to be great friends, if she lives long enough. She’s 14 to his 3!
You can’t really keep a cat away from a baby, but don’t believe those old wives tales about cats taking a baby’s breath away! That’s just pure BS. Your cats will probably want to investigate the new arrival but, more than likely, they’ll be afraid of the baby and will keep their distance.
Good luck.
There are folk tales about djinn or evil spirits coming into cats and sucking the life out of newborn babies. I would never have thought it was true except that I watched it happen. My cat’s eyes turned red and she was glaring at my baby, who then died in my arms as I was nursing him. 19 hours old, he got the highest Apgar score after birth, and he just stopped breathing.
So, if you are going to keep your cat, do all the magic rituals you know against the Evil Eye. Also, when my second kid was born, my cat was always trying to scratch his eyes out (She used to be a good cat but became jealous). He has a scar next to his eye still. I discovered something called “SoftPaws” that you can buy online which a vet can glue onto the cat’s claws once every 6 weeks. It saved my kids.
But also be aware of potential allergens. My second kid turned out to be allergic to cats but I didn’t realize it. He cried far more than he would have if we didn’t have a cat.
If only I had found a new home for my cat when I was pregnant the first time. I really loved her, but maybe someone else would have loved her too and I’d have enjoyed being a mother a lot more.
My cat is and was older when my daughter was born. He ignored me for a few days (I think he may have been jealous because she took up his lap space) but he was ok with it after that. I never had a problem with him licking her bottles or her face or anything. He would however sleep in her bassinet but only when she wasnt in there. If he saw me get up to put her in he would jump right out and watch her sleep while he sat on the arm of the easy chair. Waiting for her to wake up so he could go back in there. Wasnt really a problem except she would wake up with some cat fur on her jammies sometimes. Now this new kitten we got is terrible. He chewed the nipple off one of her bottles when she had dropped it on the floor, tried to steal one of her pacifiers once, and pooped in a box that we were keeping some of her old toys in. Grrrrrr!!! But the good thing about both those cats is my daughter’s getting to the age where she likes to pick them up and carry them. The kitten she has no problem with and he just takes it. Never scratched her or anything even though she’s held him upside down and stuffed him in the cupboards. The older one runs away when he sees her coming now.
Sorry for rambling…anyway, just keep an eye on your cats. Cover bottles if you’re going to use them, get pacifiers that have the removable covers on them. Keep them away when your babys sleeping. Theres really no way to train them to stay away from the baby as cats are usually very independent and are going to explore what they want to explore so just keep an eye on them and their behavior around your baby. You could also pick up a net that can go over a childs bassinet or crib to make sure the cats stay off her when you’re asleep. They’re mainly used to keep flies off but I’m sure they’ll work for cats too. Or just keep the door to whatever room she’s sleeping in shut so the cats cant get in.
When we first brought our daughter home, they sniffed her and didn’t know what to think. They were very cautious and careful around her. Now, she’s 9 1/2 months old. They let her pet them and play with their paws. They love her. When they’ve had enough, they just walk away.
Before I had her, one of them jumped in her empty crib. I spanked that cat so hard and told her no. She never did it again to this day.
You just have to lay out boundries with the cats. Let them get used to the baby – don’t force it!!
My husband and I are cat lovers and have never had any intentions of getting rid of our cats. We have 3. When we first brought baby home they seemed to be afraid of him. Then they started checking him out a bit more while I was feeding him or when he is laying on my lap. We have had no problems at all. I would say to let the cats check baby out but be right there to make sure nothing happens. Now as my son is getting older, he is watching them play and laughing…..I think as he grows up he will love the cats and the cats will love him. They do also have a tent you can put on the crib to keep the cats out if that becomes a problem but I think baby and cats will be just fine. Good Luck
My cat handled it by running and hiding, lol. He was petrified. I just let him go because he would go close to my baby by creeping along the ground on his belly and if my daughter twitched he jumped so high in the air, really funny. He used to sleep on our bed all the time, but when baby was on the bed he would take off.
Now I have a son who is 10m and my boy can pull this cat around and pinch him and shove him and the cat just walks away and tries to give my son a wide berth.
Take an item of clothing into the hospital with you and have your baby wear it, then your partner can bring it home and let the cats sniff it to get used to the baby’s smell.
I also found having a mosquito net over the cot kept my mind at rest during the night so the cat couldn’t get into the cot with the baby (he wouldn’t either because he was a scaredy cat, lol)
Let the cats sniff the baby if they want to, but draw the line at climbing on the tiny bubba. Just use good judgment. If you don’t feel comfortable with what the cat is doing tell it off.
Cats are usually good with babies. We have dogs too and they have been really good.
when my son was born in november of 2003 we had 3 cats and the 2 youngest cats were fine with our son but our older cat was very very protective. She would sleep at his bedroom door and if someone other than me came into the room she would start hissing and growling. She was like that with our son right up until she died a yr ago. It was like she was his protector, even when strangers came into the home she would scratch them if they came near our son. I wouldn’t keep the cat away from the baby, let the cat sniff the baby out under your supervision.
Hi there, My at was abs fine when my daughter helena arrived home. I thought the cat would probably be very curious of her, but actually she was the total opposite, she is abs petrified of the baby even now ,, and helena is now 8 months old. she doesnt dare go near her. I think you should just go with the flow really. youll know what to do if the cat does get curious. good luck with the rest of your pregnancy and all goes well with the birthxxxxxx
I have 2 cats and they were curious at first, but it only lasted for a couple of weeks. They never once tried to harm my baby or hurt him in any way. Now they couldn’t care less. My one cat seems to like my son though and follows me whenever I carry him throughout the house. I keep his door shut at night though..just in case one fo the cats decides to jump in his crib. I don’t think they will (or can!) but just to give me a better piece of mind.
Cats are pretty independent and aren’t as needy as dogs. You can always send your husband/boyfriend home with one of your baby’s used receiving blankets to let the cats sniff before you bring baby home. This lets the cats get used to his or her scent before they arive home:)
Ours was ok…he still isn’t completely trusting, but he just kind of avoids the baby. I make a point of holding them near each other once in a while, though, becuase I don’t want them to be afraid of each other. I just make sure that the cat has understood where he doesn’t belong…he only tried climbing into the bassinete once (when it was empty), and I just had to say no and he stayed out from that point on.
I too was worried about this situation because my little kitty is apart of my family as much as my new baby was and I really wanted them to get along! To my surprise, my cat really wants nothing to do with my newborn. My cat actually sleeps in her nursery because my daughter is in a cradle in our bedroom. I think the cat believes that “room” was made special for him! My cat is definitely very curious and has to investigate anything new but really could care less about the baby (as long as someone still feeds him!). I have actually even tried to bring my daughter down to the cat and let her “pet” the cat and the cat just runs away. I did get a cute photo one time of my daughter laying on the couch and the cat happened to jump up beside her and lay down, but the cat never touched her or got too close to her…just went to sleep. My cat cares more about the babies toys than he does about the baby! I was afraid that the cat would try to jump into the babies bassinet or crib or something like that so I went out and bought a “net” that keeps bugs off of strollers and it was large enough to stretch over the babies bassinet (just in case) but my cat never tried to jump into my daughters bed, so now I don’t worry about it!
We have two cats, and didn’t worry much, and didn’t have to worry.
One’s very social and inquisitive; she gave cautious sniffs at first (and some sniffs near my breasts, and sort of put the two together, I think…); one’s a fraidy-cat, and he took a while to come around — now, almost two months into it, he moseys up for a careful hello now and then.
The social one occasionally licks my daughter’s head. The first time I saw this I tensed — sandpaper tongue; surely not pleasant for an infant? But, no. She smiles.
They both like to stand guard when there’s a diaper change going on, and the odd time my daughter’s crying for a spell, we get “help” from the social one; she hovers around. Quite sweet.
I wouldn’t worry at all if they’re well-behaved house cats.
That said, you can convince a cat to never get in a cot (bouncer, whatever) again by gently forcing him into it a few times. MrAOW!