Cats and babies.

[itsazoohere]

My mother is "terribly concerned" about the new baby being smothered by one of our cats. They ARE very friendly, and one does like to sleep on (or worse, in) our bed. Can I get a cat net for a moses basket? Should I be worried-or is this just an old wives tale?

I would err on the side of caution, I have a very affectionate cat too that is young and stupid and can jump high and I wouldnt put it past him jumping in a cot.

Think may be safer to get a net incase which you can get for cots and cribs - or keep the cat locked somewhere overnight liek the kitchen if is indoor, which we may have to do.

you do need to be careful about cat trying to sleep with baby.

You need to make sure that the cat and the baby are not left alone together and that when your baby is asleep that you are either with them or they are in a room the cat can't get into.

DOn't have the cat and the baby in bed at the same time if you are sleeping.

Babies are warm and cosy - cats like to sleep in warm and cosy places.

Also animals can become jealous of the new baby.

It worth taking precautions.

Hi, itsazoo, you can get catnets for cribs/prams/moses baskets. We got one before ds was born, but TBH the cats were so sh!t scared of the screaming writhing bundle they stayed way clear (in fact one of them disappeared for 3 weeks after ds came home!). But I think it can happen.

shut the cat out of the room that the baby is asleep in at all times.

we had cats before ds1 and kittens when he was 6 mths old - it really isn't a problem if you keep them apart for the first yr

our cat now sleeps on the kids beds whenever he feels like it - they are 7 and 5

agree with teh Armadillo - I was busy typing

This might give you some info.

they recommend that you allow the cat into the nursery before the baby is born so that they know what is in there... as you are probably aware, cats like kids will try and get anywhere that they arent allowed or havent been before.. also when you bring the baby home put the moses basket with baby in on the floor so cat can have a little sniff and become acquainted... Am sure you will be ok, as someone said they are more likely to be frightened of the screaming LO...

Thanks for advice. We've also got two dogs that
I'm going to have to be very careful with. It's
just annoying because my bedroom is the cats safe haven from the dogs and now got to find somewhere else! Also got kittens expected-it's a race to see who gives birth first, me or Reg.
Can you see why I chose this name now?

Message withdrawn

my cat liked to sleep in the ( empty) carrycot and the cot if he had the chance, and I didn't want teh muddy footprints or fur, so had to keep doors shut at all times.

most cats like confined spaces like carrycots or moses baskets, whether or not the baby is in there

doesnt sound as bad as "my dp prefers animals" on the relationship thread... most amusing.. not as bad as you are all thinking!!

one of my cats uses cupboards as her 'safe space' from the world. I make sure now ds is a toddler that he doesn't get in them.

Have you got a cupboard or anything they could get into that isn't disturbed?

Got an airing cupboard, but would be nice to keep that cat hair free. Watching them now, think they will manage to find some space somewhere. Will encourage the one that sleeps on our bed to sleep with older dds.

Know I'll be alone here, but I have two cats who I thought would be v jealous. We treated them childrden before DS arrived. So I read lots and my decision was 1) When was the last time you heard anything other than hearsay about any cats anywhere hurting a baby. Dogs yes, cats no. the media would be all over stories like that if it were true.
2) So on that basis we let our cats sleep in the moses basket before the baby arrived. They tend to adopt places for a while and then change and cats also liek to put their smell on new things because they don't smell right. We probably did this two months or so before Ds arrived. Worked a treat and cats had long abandoned moses before baby came. They also didn't like the instability of the stand when they jumped in it.
3) To be on the safe side we had a pretty hook and eye type lock that we could lock DS in but with enough of a gap for air but not enough for the cats.
4) They still occasionally sleep in his big cot but can't get out quick enough if DS turns up asleep or awake. Have v cheap Ikea blanket that I cover cot with and wash often to keep them off his sheets.
5) Cats and DS now 18 months have lovely reltionship. He ignores them mostly and they sleep wherever they are unless he actually touches them which he doesn't because they're part of the furniture. When he does touch them at the moment he's incredibley gentle, which has to be a nice lesson in life. Sorry for waffling.

When I had DS1 we had 3 cats, all very affectionate but one imparticular that loved to sleep in bed with us given half the chance.
They never once tried to get into the pram or cot ith DS1 but one of them did seem tho think it was ok to try to get into the pram/cot/moses basket when the baby wasnt in it
You just cant take any chances though, and anyway I found the cats were more of a danger when DS1 got to the toddler stage and kept trying to get hold of them.
I did actually buy a cat net for the pram and never used it mainly because the cats seemed to dissapear when the baby was around.

It can and does happen. You can never be too careful when it comes to children. As soon as I found out I was expecting my first child the cat was banished from sleeping on our bed. Start as you mean to go on and set up the cat with a lovely new cosy bed of their own, always keep bedroom doors shut and never leave the cat alone with the baby. Our cat has been fine with numbers 1 and 2 but has gone for number 3.

IME it's the cats that fear the kids not the other way around. My 3 cats used to sleep on the bed preDD1 but we stopped them doing that when she was born and they have been fine with it although they will sleep on the bed when we aren't around. They know that she can't get to them through the stair gate so upstairs is their haven (or downstairs if we are upstairs) they have tended to take it all in their stride, once the DDs go to bed they descend on us for their time. Two of them actually quite like her now she is old enough to pat/feed them. They stay well clear of the baby.

My sister got something called the "Scat Mat" before her first was born. She put it in the crib and turned it on. When cat jumped in the crib it gave a small shock (like a static shock) so cat would jump off. He learned pretty quick to stay away.

Am due v. soon and only got moses basket today (not good at forward planning), so not much time to get cats acclimatised to it. Should add that dd2's first word was miow-she'd call the kitten and he would come, but we didn't get him till she was older and able to push him off her if necessary in her sleep. Not sure why am more concerned this time-maybe it's the thought of having tiny baby in the house when used to larger louder more boisterous 11 and 6 yr olds?
It's a comforting point that if cats caused serious harm to babies we'd be hearing about it.

I've got a cat net for my moses basket, it's actually one for a pushchair.
I was also told by a work colleague to use a stair gate on the baby's room door and put a blanket over it to stop the cat getting through. My SIL has said this worked for them too.
I think our cat will take one look at the baby and will not be impressed!! but there is some good advice on here. Thanks

I don't think my cats would have any problem junping over a stairgate! I'm just going to have to remember to keep the bedroom door shut at all times.