Should cats be kept away from pregnant women?
What I would like to know is if it's true that cats should be kept away from pregnant women?
I'd like a mixture of fact and opinion borne of experience) if possible :)
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M$4 Answers
The reason some people think cats are dangerous to pregnant women is toxoplasmosis. Toxoplasmosis is a disease caused by a parasite. In adults, there usually aren't any consequences of infection - at most, it'll cause flu-like symptoms. In newborns, however, the parasites can cause serious illness - and a pregnant woman can get infected and pass the parasite on to the baby.
Cats with this parasite will shed it in their stool, so coming into contact with cat feces is a risk for pregnant women. They don't, however, carry it on their fur, so just petting a cat is no problem.
However, the risk of infection is fairly small, and there's no reason for a pregnant woman to give up her cat if she takes some simple precautions...such as keeping the cat indoors so that it doesn't get infected by other cats, not feeding the cat raw meat (which can carry the parasite), changing the cat litter frequently and wearing gloves/washing hands thoroughly after changing the litter - or better yet, getting someone else to do it.
Maybe I'm biased since I don't have kids and I do have a kitten, but giving up my kitten to further minimize an already minuscule risk seems way over-the-top to me. (But I would totally use it to get someone else to clean out the litter box!)
There's more in-depth info on toxoplasmosis at the sites below.
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M$
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M$
I have two cats that are indoor cats, They do not go out side at all. I also have twin girls that are perfectly healthy and adorable. The cats were about 6 months old when we found out I was expecting a baby and about 8 months old when we discovered we were expecting twins. At no point were we advised too keep the cats away from me. The only thing i could not do was use the flea killing powder that I like to put down once every 6 months as a precaution and to stop fleas from even beginning to become a problem.
So as far as I would say, no you do not need to keep cats away from pregnant women. If they have an allergy to cats then there could be some side affects that are not desired while pregnant so it is best to speak to a doctor if there are allergies involved.
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M$I am also now 8 weeks pregnant, and have four cats. And I love my cats. I was speaking to my aunt yesterday, who is a medical specialist, and she has tole me to be careful of the cats as they have Toxoplasmosis which can be transfered to the baby, even while I am pregnant. Therefore I should keep my distance and should wash my hand if I do have contact with them. As it is my first pregnancy (after we had some problems) I would rather play it save and stay away. Maybe your friend should also play it save... I have found a webpage to clear it up a bit... Hope this helps
http://www.mamashealth.co/pregnancy/cat.asp
Regards
Johannie from Cape Town SA (cattzster@gmail.com)
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M$
Thankyou - that makes it a lot clearer for me, I think I just heard someone mention it in the past and I had forgotten all the details, just remembering it was something about cats and pregnant women.