Cat Acting Naughty

I know it will be hard but if my cat started to act like that I would have to get rid of her. Maybe give her to an older couple with no kids. Since she has been accustomed to being the "baby" she will probably be extremely jelous.

S.,

Congratulations on your baby - you are almost there!

I wouldn't worry about Shads until you need to. It's amazing how our pets can sense our excitement/anxiousness/etc. and how it affects them.

See if your husband can bring a blanket from the hospital with the smell of the new baby before you arrive. I've heard from other people if you put the blanket where your pet sleeps, then they feel like the "new person" is non-threatening to their environment.

When you bring your baby home (how exciting!!) just make her part of the process. Put the carrier down so your kitty can smell and look at the baby. When we brought our son home, our cat took one look at our son, wasn't even interested, and walked away.

I would suggest taking things in stages as your little one grows, too - one day he/she will be crawling, walking, running! If our cat doesn't want to be around our son, she goes where he can't reach her. We try to give her time - extra pets/cuddles when we can.

Whenever she would come around our son laying on a blanket we'd always welcome her to "check things out". She seemed more interested in his toys anyway and I knew she wouldn't harm him.

I think the most important thing we've taught our son, is that we LOVE our cat and now he LOVES her. He treats her (for the most part) gently and lovingly and I think to her, that shows she's an important part of our family and hasn't lost her "queen" status.

Good luck - have so much fun with your new addition!

p.s. - We are due w/our 2nd baby in 3 weeks and as I was making up the crib tonight, our kitty came into the baby's room and I just made her part of the process - welcomed her in and gave her some belly rubs and scratches...let her check things out - I think she's more concerned about her sleep being disturbed then anything else.

There isnt any reason to get rid of the cat right now...however, you want to correct the behaviour now because when the baby comes she will be jealous and may even get a little nasty sometimes. Our cats are almost 5 and they have been great with our son, he loves them...he pulls their tails, tugs the ears and what not but they dont mind. Everyone once in a while they might nip at him but it never hurts.
Before our baby came we made sure to be a little rough with the cats, pat them harder than normal, tug at the tail, hair, ears, etc. this got them used to what would be to come.
It sounds like your car is somewhat territorial and is already jealous, you might consider getting a crib tent to help keep the cat out of the crib, ours were very curious but never did any harm.
When you have the baby make sure you bring home a blanke tthat the baby has been wrapped in, have your hubby bring the blanket BEFORE the baby gets home so the cat can get used to the new smells of a baby before you get home. Let the cat sleep with it or lay on it, whichever.
I guess I dont really have any other advice about how to keep her from being naught at times...maybe give her a treat or two when she is being sweet or well behaved. (it works for dogs)
Congrats on the baby!

I had 3 cats and a dog before my daughter was born. I also worked at a Humane Society up until she was born and saw way too often people bringing in animals because they are having a baby. I am glad you are wanting to work on this. It would just break my heart that people think of animals as "dispossible" and would bring them in at any sign of trouble. My animals are my children, and I couldn't imagine getting rid of my daughter because of a slight behavior problem.
Getting the animals ready for the baby was something I was very worried about and now I have to worry for a second child! The cats were very jealous, and still can be if I don't give them attention each day. My eldest cat has taken to sleeping on my pillow, which I much rather have than sleeping on my legs. I had to push him away many times, and I know he was mad, but he got over it. Cats in general are very adaptable, they just have to make a fuss about everything. We did have some behavior problems to work through, we still are, but patience is the key.
I tried to include the animals in everything. When I would open a box I would show them what was inside, let them sniff it, but not let them get inside. Letting them know it was for the baby. Talking to them is a very good idea. I treat them like toddlers letting them know what is going on. Other things I did was to hold a wrapped up doll and hold it. Then they got use to me holding something. I would also "rock" the doll in the rocking chair so they were use to that moving around. Anything I could think of to get them use to sights and sounds of the baby. Oh, and I sprinkled baby powder around the house for the smell. If possible, after the baby is born, have your husband bring home a blanket or shirt the baby used for the cat to smell. She will probably hiss at first. I then had my husband put the blanket in the dogs kennel along with one of my shirts so he could associate the 2. You could do that with the cat if she has somewhere special to nap.
I am sure many people will think I am a little crazy with all the things I did to prepare the animals, but I am glad I did. I never had any problems with any of the animals toward my daughter. There might have been a little hissing at first, but nothing to worry about. Now that she is a toddler it's a little different, having to teach her boundries and such. Like I said before, my animals are my first children and there isn't much I wouldn't do for them. If you have any more questions I will be glad to try and help!

My husband had a cat before we met and when we first started dating she didn't like me at all. She was very jealous of the "new woman" in her man's life. When we found out we were pregnant with our first child I was very nervous about how she would react. She was just fine. She jumped in the crib a couple of times but never when the baby was in it. And she still likes to lie on the changing table because it's under a window. Our oldest son is almost 2 now and loves to give his kitty lots of "kisses", she pretty much gets tortured daily (we're still working on nice touches). He can be pretty ruthless without knowing it and she does just fine. She still doesn't like me and won't let me pet her, but so far so good with our son. I agree with the post about at least giving the cat a chance. Every animal deserves that. Good luck!

Hi S.,
Our cat was the focus of mine and my husband's life for over 7 years before our son was born and, of course, a lot of that has changed. Mongi, our cat, has taken it in stride and has learned to accept that he isn't number 1 anymore. He still gets a lot of our attention because he has diabetes and we have to give him insulin twice a day. I know he's jealous, but he doesn't show aggression unless provoked. We used to find him sleeping in the crib when we weren't home, but never when our baby was in there. I would just kick him out (not literally) and change the sheets. If anything, it caused me to clean more often. Our kitty never goes in the crib anymore, although that may be more a symptom of his age and health condition.

My advice is to wait and see what happens. Your cat deserves that chance. If it doesn't work out, please find her a home yourself rather than bringing her to the already overextended Humane Society unless you have to.

Another couple I know has 2 cats and they adjusted better than ours because they have each other. I'm sure getting another cat right now is about the last thing you want to do though. We thought about doing that, but with all the medical expenses our current cat has it is out of the question.

Good luck with whatever you decide. I just wanted to know that you don't need to jump the gun yet.

Wow that sounds like my cat. I had a kitten who grew with us as a family. She was my baby and my fiance and I spoiled her.

She was awesome during my pregnancy and she knew I was pregnant they can sense that and would lay with me all the time and comfort me, I had gestational diabetes, and preclampsia, I was in poor health. We too had cribs, and clothing coming in not a big deal. I was rushed to the hospital in a ambulance and wasn't able to get the house ready or grab anything. I was in the hospital on bedrest and so forth and was gone 10 days. While being gone my fiance would come home everyday, pick up around the house, feed the cat, give her some attention etc. Well the cat who was a perfect cat flipped personalities and urinated in the baby's crib, clothing anything related to the baby. We ended up having to throw the crib mattress out. I wanted to give the cat a chance I was very attached to her but her behavior wasn't getting any better and the baby was still stuck in the special care nursery not even home yet, so my family pursuaded me to find her a new home. She went to my sis-inlaw's where her behavior didn't improve at all and she became out a outdoor/rarely indoor cat. The cat is in good hands and happy but she never returned to her old self. I feel bad even writing this she was the perfect cat at one time. I think alot of it was we never had her around any children ever. So this was 6 years ago exactly August 2001 and my Sammie Cat is still a changed animal. I hate to bear bad news and wish I could say it all turned out for the best but it didn't. I atleast know where she is at and that she's safe and happy. My family kept telling me you have to put the baby first, the baby comes before any animal which is entirely true.It was so hard to convince me to get rid of her. I was attached to my cat I begged for someone to sneak her in the hospital to come visit me. -never happend!

I had a polydactal cat(more toes than normal) looked like a grey tabby but we swore she was part bob cat too. She was the light of my life, had the greatest personality and was perfect. I named her Samantha Rose my Sammie cat and I miss her deaply but wouldn't risk having her injure my daughter or ruin our home urinating so you gotta do what ya gotta do it's hard. I'm betting if your cat is having problems it will only get worse especially once baby comes.

Once you have your baby in your arms it will be alot easier though and you'll concentrate on the baby and slowly it will get easier.

I am sorry people are telling you to get rid of your cat...which is completely unnecessary to do. Animals are a part of your family and when you take in an animal you should consider that you are taking in that animal for its lifespan.

All of our animals have acted very differently in the last few months of pregnancy. Your body 'smell' is even different. So yes, she does know something is going on. Maybe instead of kicking her down from your belly or legs, move her to your side and give her a good belly rub. She will act differently until the baby is here.

Do watch the cat once the baby is here...they like to lay with them and they don't actually steal their breath, but they love the baby smell and you don't want the cat to lay on the baby.

My cat loves to sleep in the bassinet...which I don't mind at all, I just call him my big baby and take him out...he would sleep in there so much, that instead of getting upset with him..I put his blanket in there after I would get my son out. It is the smell.

When you in the hospital, just as we did with our two dogs and cat, I had my soon-to-be husband bring a baby item home that the new baby had already worn and had the animals smell it and get used to the new smell. Once the baby was home, things were fine. It is like they were all OK again since they found out what the fuss was about...

Your cat and new baby will be fine, probably end up being best friends.

I would suggest talking to your cat as if she were a person. Pretend she's a toddler with a new baby on the way and help prepare her for the change. Tell her she's going to have a little sister/brother now and you'll need her help when the baby comes. Cats really understand and they need their feelings acknowledged just like humans especially when big changes are about to happen. Do this when you have some quiet one on one time with her and she's in a calm mood to she can really absorb it. They pick up on your tone and your intentions. Let her know you still love her.

That's what I did with my two cats and they adjusted well to the new baby. There was a period where they didn't get as much attention as they wanted and I had to acknowledge that and then gave them more attention but they've been great with the baby!!

Hope that helps,

P.

My cat was the same way. I don't know what to tell you except that we ended up giving her to the Humane Society because she kept sleeping in the baby's crib and then not using the litter box when baby was home. We should have never let her be in the baby's room as soon as we knew we were expecting. Other than that I don't know. Good Luck!!!! and Congratulations!!