Keeping a Kitten Away from a Newborn

keep the door shut is my only advice. I co slept w/ both of my kids until they slept through the night so I would just close the bedroom door.

I don't personally have any animals, but a friend installed a screen door on her baby's room to keep the cat out.
She said it worked pretty well. That way, she could see and hear her baby, and it didn't feel as closed off as with the door all the way closed, but it did keep the cats out.

Good Luck!
Warmly,
E.

Hi, our two cats were juveniles when we had our daughter, two years ago. We kept the baby's room closed as much as possible, put hard items in the bassinet or a piece of corrugated cardboard weighed down with heavy books over the bassinet when the baby wasn't in it, and these measures were the only things that worked for us. We tried tin foil (our unusual cats liked it!), tape (again, one of them liked it and ended up trying to eat it?!) cat repellent sprays (only worked for about two minutes after spraying), rubbing citrus on items (again, worked for very short intervals), spray bottles (they loved being sprayed and even seemed to do things in order to get us to spray them!), and everything else you can think of.
One thing that worked for getting rid of the cats but we couldn't do because it upset the baby was rattling a tin container of pennies when the cats climbed on the crib or bassinet. In time, my husband and I got very skilled at getting in and out of the baby's room without letting the cats in. And eventually the baby was old enough that the cats were no longer a problem.
I hope your kitten is more typical and responds in the desired way to tin foil, a spray bottle or whatever other method you try.
Best and I hope your labor and delivery go smoothly.
D.

Try squirting it with a water bottle when it gets near the bedroom? That could be kind of a hassle - you would have to stalk the kitten to watch its every move! Or give the kitten its own "crib". Our cat always liked to snuggle up in a basket I had in my dining room. She like to be able to curl in a ball and fit snuggly in it. Worth a try!

IKEA sells a netting that is affordable, we purchased that and used it over our daughters bassinet and crib. It's not hard to work with. We have 2 cats, and it definitely kept them out during naps and overnights. A kitten, though, might try and climb the netting. I would just have a spray bottle handy for when he tries. Even if he rips it, it's not $100 netting.

C., I would be very concerned about having the cat close to your baby due to allergies, etc. Cat hairs fly all over the place and there is a chance that they could end up in your child's mouth and cause choking, especially if the cat spends time in the crib with the baby or anywhere for that matter. I don't mean to alarm you, but to be forewarned is to be forearmed.

S.

Get a water bottle and spray the cat any time it gets near the baby's room (or crib). It won't take long before the kitten learns to stay away.

Hi,
When we had our 1st DD we had a 1yr old kitten who was a jumper too. Our vet suggested putting tinfoil or double sided sticky tape around the mattress for a while. They hate the feeling of those things on their paws. It worked really well with him. Also she suggested not making up the crib until you actually needed it because if it was soft adn cozy they would get used to sleeping in there. He however took up residence in the drawer under the crib :) Good luck!
M.

Pet stores often sell products to keep animals from urinating in the house. Sour Apple is one I remember for my dog - the animals have a stronger sense of smell and it bothers them, but humans can't detect it. Check the ingredients to be sure they are natural, but you might try spraying one of these products around the crib. It's at least a cheaper experiment than the netting! If the pet store has a reliable staff with some knowledge (rather than just a kid who is a clerk), you might get some advice. Check with your cat's vet too.

Most cats hate wet things. I'm not sure if this will work or not but if you can figure out a way to keep the inside of the crib wet, maybe lining it with a plastic liner then a wet towel or large shallow container of water, the cat should begin to associate the inside of the crib with getting wet and it may act as a deterent. It should only take a few times getting his paws wet before he decides that it's not worth it. And since your baby isn't due for at least a month you've got time to experiment. Whatever you do it's going to need to be consistent. Cats are smart and they will test you.

And like another poster said,the cat may only be interested in the stuff and not the baby, that was the experience I had as well. The only thing my cat did was stare at the baby and curl up with her things. Good Luck to you.

I have found squirting water on a cat/kitten as the best method of discipline/deterent from scratching or jumping on counters. It should work well to keep your kitty out of the crib as well. Just get a little squirt bottle and keep it handy near the crib and anytime you see the cat about to jump in (or in the crib) squirt it in the face. Trust me, they hate it and will jump out immediately! The cat will learn quickly, especially if it sees the squirt bottle nearby! Also closing the bedroom door will help, too so the cat is not so tempted (which will be harder once the baby is here!) Good luck! I also have a Dec baby boy- he is going to be 4 this year on the 14th! It's a great month!

We were worried about the same thing. We tried to train the cats before the baby was born with a combination of a squirt bottle and tin foil and balloon's in the crib, bassonette and any other baby toys (bouncers, high chairs, etc) that we thought the cats would go it. i think the tin foil worked best. Cats hate the feeling of tin foil and it scares them so we just rolled out sheets of tin foil and put it on the crib mattress. If they would jump up there when we weren't home, they'd bet a big suprise and if we were home, we tried to use the squirt gun in conjunction. We never had a problem when the baby was born. But to be safe, we always shut the door in his bedroom door whenever he's in his crib.

There is a "temporary' screen door that that you can hang in the door frame. It velcroes shut. I believe they run about $50. I have seen them in mailorder/online catalogs for home/garden stuff.

When we brought our son home we were hounded by old world stories of how cats suffocate babies by sitting on their face...

I was a little wary because our cat (just under a year old maybe) is relatively hyper...

Truth be told...we never had a problem. The cat likes the baby STUFF...not the baby himself. She'll jump in his crib and curl up in a corner AWAY from the baby...and definitely puts her fuzzy butt on ALL his stuff...car seat, high chair, stroller, bumbo! You name it, she's sat in it!

Now he's up and walking and on full scale cat torture detail! Now I'm more worried about HER!!!

Please keep the kitten away from the baby - ours enjoyed his new home on the porch and quickly made it a playplace as we moved all his toys around him. Too many allergies, etc..., that will only impinge on the baby's well-being.

I'd try putting the tin foil or double sided tape in the crib as soon as you put it togther. That's easier than trying to keep the door shut or being there to squirt them. Actually if you have long haired cats, make sure it isn't very sticky tape or you'll have other problems.

We didn't do anything and the cats LOVED the crib before the baby came (so cozy) but once the noisey, moving, unpredictable baby was in the house, they really didn't want anything to do with her.