Feeling towards pets when have baby

[anotheronettc]

I feel slightly horrible writing this post and want to stress first, I love animals and would never do anything to hurt one. I wanted to know if anybody has been feeling the same though .
Before I had my son my cats were literally my babies and I adored them. Now, it's a completely different story, they wake me up in the night meowing and they wake my son up just when I've settled him. Whenever I lay anything out for my son to play with or any kind of activity mat the cats always get on it and sharpen their claws on things. I just feel so frustrated at them that sometimes I wish I could give them away but I know I love them too much to do that. Has anyone else found their relationship with their pets has changed since having a baby / children. X

@anotheronettc I felt the exact same, I had dreams when I was pregnant about giving my cats away. It lessened after the birth and the feelings have gone now. I knew all along it was the pregnancy because I went from adoring my cats to irrationally disliking them.

@anotheronettc the weird thing is, I became more protective of my dog 😂 I had a Homebirth and I wouldn't let my partner take her to my mums when I went into labour. I was worried she'd be upset. So she ended up snoozing in her bed whilst I gave birth to my daughter in a pool in the lounge.

Honestly pregnancy and birth are just crazy 😂

You can give a cat a good home without loving them or allowing them on your bed.
We got DS a cat when he was 13. Turns out I am very allergic to cats but DH loves his cat.
11 years later DS has left home and I still have the cat.
He has a cat flap and a warm bed in the kitchen. He is shut in there at night.
During the day he can go and sleep on DS's bed (even though he doesn't live here).
He is allowed in one sitting room and will sit on DH's lap occasionally but not allowed in the room I use.
He is fed and cared for but not adored.

Why don't you put them outside at night they are cats for goodness sake

I didn't feel any differently towards our cats when dd was born, but dh did and his mum certainly did. The cats were obviously well aware of this, so needed a bit more attention and love from me, which was fine.

In fact, our cats became very protective of dd, they also kept her amused - never used claws, but would play 'bat the cat' with her when neither dh nor MIL were around, which was delightful and dd enjoyed v much. They would guard her while she was asleep, nuzzle and purr at her when cried.

She's now on her 20s. She is known generally as 'the cat whisperer' locally.

I'm sorry to say but this post has had me in stitches. I feel exactly the same. We had 3 cats, we rehomed one of them and I wish the other two would run away!!

stitches of laughter?

Some of the posts on here are just horrible

Being a crappy pet owner is so hilarious.

Just find new homes for the two cats and then vow never to get a pet again.

Yup 100%! And when people who don’t have kids say they love their animals like children they really do!

I think once we have a child obviously that love navigates elsewhere. The love has grown again now that DD is 5, but in comparison to before it’s honestly like I couldn’t give a shit (I obviously do and they are looked after!). I even recently considered getting a kitten, but then I began questioning whether I would really find it so much fun at this point in my life. I didn’t care when previous kittens were climbing curtains etc but I just don’t think I’ll find it as funny now so not going to go ahead with that plan.

Thanks guys, interesting answers.

Please please don't think that I'm a bad owner I literally feed my cats freshly steamed meat every day lol. And I do give him affection every day and I'm trying to introduce him to the baby. It's literally just a meowing at night waking us up that is driving me mad I know I would never rehome them because I made a commitment to look after them. I just wondered if it's normal to feel this way and it seems that a lot of people do find animals a little bit frustrating when babies come into the home. However it does sound like this feeling goes away and I'm looking forward to trying to reconnect with my a little bit more x

@Suzi888 yes I agree with you. I guess the thing is that you never know how you'll feel after having children. I feel like a different human being! it's not just the pets, I have little patience for people too lol. But I do love them x

@tunthebloodyalarmoff this made me laugh haha. Yeah I know what you mean, it's just that they have always come in and out as they please I think if I suddenly shut them out they'd run away or something - which despite this post - I really don't want

@MissHavishamsMouldyOldCake that's really not what I want, I love them, I just am finding aspects of their behaviour challenging since having a baby. I think surely it's best to be open about things and hear other peoples stories. For example, nice to hear people have found their normal love return for their pets after a while. I know it's horrible but sometimes these feelings can be helped, my cats are still very loved, I'm working on it. I mean parents find stuff their children do annoying sometimes doesn't mean we should immediately give our kids away?

These poor animals being adored before kids arrive now almost despised. It's really sad. The pets must be confused wondering why they were loved but now their owners seem irritated by them. It's horrible to read. For gods sake, just rehome them where they will be loved and valued again. People like these should never ever get another pet.

Just to add to my previous post - yes I find my cats more annoying (because I have more responsibilities and less time and space) but I would never, ever rehome them or hope they run away. I love seeing my son stroke them and interact with them as he grows up, and we'll always have a cat in the house.

I just agree that I was surprised how my feelings changed towards them when I had a child. It is hard work having pets in a house with small children.

No, I don't recognise this feeling at all. My cats were never my 'babies', but I loved them, and still felt the same when my children were born. One of my cats used to sit next to me when I was feeding - it was nice.

No that’s spreading misinformation.

The reason rescues won’t home to people with children is because they don’t know the animals background or can’t vouch for it or the ex owner won’t provide the information. If you volunteer, bond with a dog/cat (obviously within reason, not if it’s an XL bullie/guarding breed) then they will absolutely let you rehome an animal previously deemed unsuitable. I’ve helped rehome a Rottweiler to a family with children, he had an amazing affinity with DD. He literally bowed to her, he was previously adult only home.

The problem is people won’t give their time for a few weeks to build a bond BUT believe they have time for a pet. This thread proves they actually don’t or can’t be arsed.

People are extremely often lazy, dress it up any way you like but that’s the truth.

I grew up around dogs, cats, rabbits, fish and birds. DD has grown up around our dog and absolutely adores animals. She is kind and respectful and has no allergies.

If you ever feel the need to push a dog out, you can cause some serious issues with jealousy - your better off rehoming a dog than sticking it in a crate or room away from family members.

It’s not funny to acquire an animal and then get rid of it, treat it like shit because you got bored.

Get a pet gate on your landing / at bottom of your stairs and shut it when you’re going to bed. Will double as a baby gate too.

Re home the cats where they can be loved. Big animal lover here, I never felt like that when I had my children, but you are being honest

I don't hate mine but i am more frustrated with the cat care since having my daughter. Thankfully the cat has her own room, the utility room, has plenty of space to climb and a few beds in there so is happy and i don't have to stress about fluff everywhere or cat smells in the rest of the house.
I don't wish anything bad on her but when she passes i won't be getting anymore pets.
I hope feelings improve for you OP

I think people are getting confused on here. Some may have used some harsh words for their cats.

I think what OP was saying, and in my personal experience as well, is that I literally loved them like children. It was the same love that is now reserved for DD. OP’s cats I imagine are still very much loved and looked after.

Despite my feelings changing I have a purring cat next to me right now and am very happy about it. Everyone saying ‘well rehome them’ is being fairly dramatic.

@yerdaindicatesonbends that's exactly it thank you. I mean my cat slept on my lap last night purring away so I'm not bloody abusing or neglecting then. People are aware that cats are eaten in some countries right? and yet I'm being told I should never own a pet for saying they can be annoying sometimes haha. Blimey. I love my cats guys I promise.

@Bbq1 my cats are definitely not despised. They are spoiled rotten in fact. Wow can't people get advice for anything without being made out to be the most awful human being.

@Amiagrinchh will they not just jump over? X