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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Newborn and a one-year-old cat?

15 replies

kjh5 · 06/01/2014 20:24

I just wondered if anyone on here had advice about new babies and pets. I'm pregnant with my first who is due at the end of April. We have a very spoilt and much-adored kitten who will be about 1 when the baby arrives. At the moment the cat has our undivided attention 24/7 and I'm worried about how he is going to react to the baby. He is exceedingly curious and wants to be involved in everything DH and I do (he tried to get in the bath with me the other day). He is playful with us and, although he is getting better, uses his teeth and claws when he wants to play OR if he feels we are annoying him. He doesn't really go into the bedrooms but I'm mainly worried he's going to bite or scratch the baby. Anyone have any helpful advice or experience with this or how to introduce them?

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Queenofknickers · 06/01/2014 20:29

My kitties were the same and then our two babies came along in quick succession! Our relationship with the cats temporarily became more distant as they stayed out of they way but then after a couple of years they all grew up together and loved each other for 13 years until we lost our lovely boy cat to cancer with all four of us holding his paws. It will be fine

MrsCharlieD · 06/01/2014 20:36

Im in the same boat. we are expecting our first in June but we have a 3yo cat and a 6 month old kitten. Both are spoilt rotten and we absolutely adore them. I plan on getting a cat net for the Moses basket and will be putting the cats outside if it all gets a bit much sometimes. We're also planning on putting them in cattery gore a couple of weeks when dc arrives so ee can get used to things a bit x

Queenofknickers · 06/01/2014 20:50

We bought cat nets and never needed to use them - cats had no intention of dealing with the babies! Still, gives you piece of mind .

dimdommilpot · 06/01/2014 21:27

Our 2 turned 1 just as DD was born. They were fine when she was born. No issues at all, its now shes 3 and always wanting cuddles that they get a bit pissed off with her, theyve never scratched her but they try and hide unsuccessfully
Honestly it will be fine, DC2 is due April and i can just imagine the cats face when we get home, they often look at me with 'why have you done this to us' face x

MissSlackPants84 · 06/01/2014 21:33

Im in a similar situation. I have my kitten, two adolescent dogs, two rats and three tarantulas. As you can tell we are animal mad in this house! I'm not concerned about the spiders or rats with baby as they wont come into contact but my spoilt kitty amd boisterous dogs are another thing!!

MesM · 06/01/2014 23:24

I'm interested too. We have a much loved and very much too spoilt 2year old cat and wondering how he will cope with a baby. He is normally scared and runs away from our friends children but he obviously won't be able to with a baby. I've not found anything online about the best way to make things work with both and acclimatise the cat- so looking out for any top tips.

Plateofcrumbs · 06/01/2014 23:47

Depends so much on the cats. My last cat hated children (hated most things really) and used to regularly lacerate our arms for any perceived misdemeanours. We adored her but quite glad she didn't overlap with a baby.

Our current cat is a soft old thing. Not actually sure he's aware he has claws and loves attention of any kind, even if that involves getting mauled by toddlers. My main worry is that he has no self-preservation instinct and will probably just sit there whilst having marbles shoved in his ears or being covered in paint.

MummyPig24 · 07/01/2014 06:19

When I had ds my cat was about 7 months old. He didn't bat an eyelid. He's now 6 and has stuck around through 2 children, they adore him and vice versa. He's very good natured so we have been lucky.

When the children were a bit younger he would often hide upstairs but he ventures down a lot more now, if they get too rowdy he disappears again.

neontetra · 07/01/2014 06:34

I have two cats, one of whom is fine and one who is a bit feral - though much better than she was she still doesnt like being picked up and will hit us on occasion. We had both, and a dog, when Dd was born, and basically you just have to be careful to never allow the pets unsupervised access to the baby. I firmly believe this is true with all pets, whatever their temprament.
At 20 months my dd now loves the pets, and none of them, even the fierce cat, have ever tried to harm her. We have taught her to stroke them gently if they are ok with it, and they just move off when they've had enough. But we still supervise closely whenever she is with them, and would expect to for some time.
Good luck with the baby!

AnnaBanana25 · 07/01/2014 07:44

Same. Our cat is very attached to us. Recently, he found a box from a Christmas present and he naps in it every day. I wonder if it will help to find something that is very much 'theirs' so when the baby comes around, there is somewhere to retreat to? A theory now but hoping it will work!!

HazleNutt · 07/01/2014 09:00

we have 3 cats who all simply ignore the baby. None of them has scratched him or tried to sleep anywhere near him. They will, indeed, try to sleep in his bed, car seat, buggy etc, but never when baby is in there as well.

cadidog · 07/01/2014 09:22

I'm a week away from having my first baby and have two cats. I haven't bothered to buy cat nets but keep them out of the baby's room already - they have free run of the rest of the house in the daytime but won't be allowed in the nursery for a few years.

One of mine already tries to sleep in the car seat and pushchair cot attachment which is annoying cat hair wise. I suspect one will be interested in the baby when he arrives and the other (Princess Tiny Cat) will just ignore imperiously. I don't plan to leave them alone together but longer term they are going to need to suss each other out and live together. I'm just hoping this baby isn't allergic.

Grumblelion · 07/01/2014 09:31

We put up the Moses basket in our room a couple of months early so the cat (then about 8 months) could get used to it. When DD arrived, we let the cat sniff her worn clothes/muslins & we made a big effort the first few months to cuddle/play with her when DD was asleep - even relaxing the rules about her sleeping on the bed so she could have some time with us. She's been absolutely fine with DD but a bit more scratchy of the furniture when she wants attention. Not sure she's quite as thrilled now DD is crawling!

CaipirinhasAllRound · 07/01/2014 10:20

We're having our first baby mid April and have a 4 year old cat that can be lovely but then flip and grab our ankles with teeth and claws, he can be really vicious. He's normally scared of children so am hoping he won't go near the baby but I'm more worried about when the baby is a toddler and moving.
We have some Feliway spray to stop him scratching the stairs and this is recommended for if the cat is going to come into potentially stressful situations such as a new baby or moving house.

Original poster

kjh5 · 07/01/2014 13:33

Lots of good advice! Thanks everyone! Glad I'm not the only one in this situation either. Seems a bit silly worrying about it really, I grew up with dogs and cats and it was never really an issue! I'm not sure I'd fancy tarantulas though MissSlackPants! You must REALLY love animals!

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