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Pregnancy

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

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Original poster

Any cat and new baby success stories?

33 replies

R1cciteddy · 21/06/2021 16:12

I absolutely adore my 2 cats. They are such sweethearts, very kind natured and love to be near me most of the time! I’m due for our first baby and I’m worried that they will be sad. If they are scared or uninterested it’s okay, my worry is they will get depressed. At worst my mum would take them but I really don’t want them to leave. But if they are sad I would have to. Any success stories? I know baby will be more important but I can’t help but feel worried about my original babies!

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Eggling · 21/06/2021 16:19

Hi @R1cciteddy I'm early days and interested to hear the responses you get! DD is almost 4 weeks old, and DCat has been mostly ok. We got a feliway plug in that we switched on when I was admitted to hospital, which might have helped with the initial disruption to the routine. Cat has been a bit distant and isn't snuggling with us in the evening at the moment, which I miss, but obviously DD is usually in my arms anyway! Otherwise cat seems fine, we've been careful to keep her feeding routine up and I am giving her lots of attention when I do see her. I'm hoping in a few weeks she'll snuggle on my knee again 🤞🤞

Original poster

R1cciteddy · 21/06/2021 16:20

Also just to add that we don’t live in a huge house, so the baby will use each of the rooms from day 1. But we plan to make a couple of hiding places for the cats, somewhere dark and den like

OP posts:

Original poster

R1cciteddy · 21/06/2021 16:22

Ah thanks that’s really good to know. Sounds like she’s doing okay and will get used to it soon. Hoping you get your snuggles soon and congrats on your new baby

OP posts:

Sully84 · 21/06/2021 16:32

I had two cats when I had my daughter and later on my son and to be honest they were completely indifferent, and as the children got a bit older the more chilled out cat would sit near the toddler and let it stroke her etc, the other more highly strung cat would still snuggle with me but just keep a distance from the children, tended to spend more time with me once the kids had gone to bed.

TerritorialPissings · 21/06/2021 16:38

I had 2 cats before I had my first baby. One of the cats slept right at the foot of the baby’s bouncer almost immediately. It was lovely.

From a young age, the cats would sit on / next to my children on the sofa. It’s got to the point now, where the cat I’m closest to will actually step over me to sit on my 7 year old’s lap 😂

Also, be prepared in the early days to feel like you’re not giving your cats as much attention as usual; I found the baby all consuming to start with. However, this will improve over time.

ineedaholidayandwine · 21/06/2021 16:41

My 2 cats didn't care at all when i had my daughter, still came and sat with whichever us us didn't have the baby, would sniff at her then ignore her.
They liked her day bed in the living room, had to get a cat net to keep them off.

Smartiepants79 · 21/06/2021 16:52

Our cat didn’t care at all when either of my 2 girls were born. Took no noticed whatsoever.
She avoided them once they started being able to chase her but came round to them as they got older.

Poppins2016 · 21/06/2021 17:04

I have 3 cats. All were curious but pretty much indifferent when my DS was born. The cats ended up snuggling on my lap while I was breastfeeding and will allow my DS (now 2.5) to stroke them (took a while... they were rather wary of the small unpredictable noisy human!). The feisty cat lets him get away with things we adults wouldn't! Now my DS is older we let the cats nap on the end of the bed with him, but I did shut them out of the bedroom when he was smaller.

What I found really intriguing from a psychological perspective is that as soon as I set eyes on my cats when I got home from the hospital after giving birth, they all looked much more "feline"... and less "cute" than I remembered. I suppose the "fur baby" status was temporarily suspended while I had an actual baby! Fur baby status did return eventually... 😁

I'm currently expecting baby number 2 and I don't have any concerns based on last time. Hopefully that's reassuring for you!

ClawedButler · 21/06/2021 17:08

I had two cats when DD was born. One was soft as clarts and has never hurt anyone. The other one was a hissing ball of claws and fury, so I was quite worried. However, ever since we brought DD home the Evil Cat has calmed down so much and is now the cuddliest cat - she adores DD and follows her around the house and tolerates being picked up and heaved about like a ragdoll. Before DD, I'd have betted on her against a Doberman. Now she's just a fuzzball.

Hughbert · 21/06/2021 17:15

My cat adored dd. When I was pregnant she used to sit on my bump and as soon as dd was born she was like her protector- followed her around, lay next to her. Used to attack us as we walked past, but let dd hoik her into buggies and play tents, though she drew the line at the paddling pool. Best buddies until she was PTS last year.

periwinkle86 · 21/06/2021 17:46

Thank you so much for posting this OP, as I have been worried about this as well. I’m also really worried the baby will be allergic to the cats. DP has a cat allergy - he tolerated mine initially when we first met and has now got used to them and they don’t bother him, but obviously I can’t just let a newborn suffer through the allergies until they get used to it! Just really hoping the baby gets a love of cats from me rather than the allergy from DP!

Original poster

R1cciteddy · 21/06/2021 17:58

Thanks for all the responses… feeling very reassured. The little critters may just end up loving the fact there’s another person to annoy. Thanks again

OP posts:

Nat4392 · 21/06/2021 20:00

I had my baby 3 weeks ago and so far my cat is fairly indifferent. He still sleeps at the foot of our bed despite baby being next to us which is reassuring that he’s not stressed. I feel I have very little time for him now which I feel bad about so DH has been giving him extra snuggles and treats and he honestly doesn’t seem stressed at all.
Prior to baby’s arrival we made sure we gradually put up the Moses basket, next to me, bouncer etc so when she did arrive, it wasn’t a massive change overnight. My cat will always be my first baby and I wanted to make the transition as easy as possible.

Megan2018 · 21/06/2021 20:07

We had 3 cats when DD born, all adjusted perfectly well to her in days. We sadly lost 2 in her first year (one was elderly, the other was run over), but the remaining one adores our toddler, especially because she feeds him ham and cheese on demand. He tolerates her clumsy cuddles and having his ears explored. Best friends.

We did use a Feliway for a couple of months, recommend doing that. Two of them were a bit miffed at being ejected from the bedroom (we were co-sleeping), but they got over it.
All my cat owning parents had good experiences.

Reallyreallyborednow · 21/06/2021 20:08

My cat bloody loved them. Had to be on the ball all the time or he was cuddled up with them in the pram or on the sofa given the chance.

As soon as they were old enough he was in. Put them to bed every night, sat and played with them, cuddled them when they were ill.

We all still miss him.

SamMil · 21/06/2021 20:11

We've got 2 cats and no problems since we had a baby. They loved the newborn breastfeeding stage as I was trapped on the sofa for hours, so they would snuggle next to me (or behind her on the breastfeeding pillow ).

They give her a bit more space these days as she is loud & unpredictable but they're still just as happy as they were before and she's learning to be quiet and calm so they'll let her stroke them

RandomCatGenerator · 21/06/2021 20:20

This is such a helpful and reassuring thread! My two cats are super affectionate and cuddly / needy so have been worried about impending arrival of first child in a few weeks too…

Sally872 · 21/06/2021 20:41

I had 2 cats when dd was born, and they absolutely fine when she was a baby. One actually always sat on the floor nearby her (my more sensible cat likely protecting her from my sillier cat)

As a toddler they kept a safe distance on wardrobes or window ledges.

And once she was a little older they were great dd loved them both was gentle and gave them lots of affection.

PurpleFlower1983 · 21/06/2021 22:08

My cats all liked my DD.

PurpleFlower1983 · 21/06/2021 22:09

I only have one left now and she was the most skittish but DD has started feeding her (she’s 2) and she is coming round

dizzygirl1 · 21/06/2021 22:12

My cat is 16 now, kids are 14 and 11.. Her sister (cat) died when I was pregnant with my eldest.
She has always been amazing with them, never scratched them, suffocated or anything.
She loves them, they love her.
Kids have been taught from an early age how to look after her, what to do and what not to do.

Heartofglass12345 · 21/06/2021 22:15

Mine didn't even notice lol. They avoid the kids but they've only ever scrammed them if they have made them feel spooked or something.
I've always warned them the cats will scram them if they annoy them or get too close, so they learn the hard way if they don't listen lol.
I never left them in the room alone for longer than a few minutes when the kids were babies though and made sure their bedroom doors were shut if they were sleeping in their rooms.

EllieQ · 21/06/2021 22:18

Our cat didn’t seem sad/ depressed, but she was unimpressed by the small noisy human, and was clearly Not Happy with us She did her best to avoid DD as much as possible for the first year, but has since become more tolerant and now often goes to DD (who is 6) for a fuss. We think she’s forgiven us!

CorpusCallosum · 21/06/2021 22:43

We have 2 8yo Dcats and a 2.5yo DD. They were completely indifferent to her arrival. We made them beds up high in advance of her arrival so they could always escape. This has been very successful. Now they come and go during the day as usual and always appear for lap time after she's gone to bed.

We also keep them out of her bedroom almost all the time as I was more worried about them sleeping on the baby than their well-being. She old enough now they could be in with her but they're not quite friendly enough foe that.

RandomCatGenerator · 22/06/2021 12:35

Is sleeping on the baby and causing harm a genuine risk? I’ve heard a lot about it but genuine question, is this something that does cause damage?

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