I'm pregnant. Can I adopt a kitten? What safety precautions needed?

There really is very little risk having a cat around during a normal, healthy pregnancy. Just wash your hands after petting her, & if you can have anyone else clean the litter box, this would be a reasonable precaution. Otherwise, good, common sense is all that is needed. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Do not allow yourself or your daughter to handle Minnie's stool. That is the only way you both could contract worms. You would have to get the cats stool in your mouth. The kitten and a stool sample need to go to the Vet this week. They can deworm her, start her kitten vaccines and provide you with a schedule on when to come back. Also since you are pregnant you shouldn't be handling cat stool due to toxoplasmosis risks. Good luck

Nothing can happen through the skin please don' t worry. However, you always need to wash your hands and wear gloves when you handle his litter tray or your clothes which have diarrhoea on it. Make sure the house is clean etc normal hygiene rules. I would recommend to have him checked over so his diarrhoea can be treated, and he can be neutered, wormed so that everything is in order for when the baby arrives.

In my opinion, with the proper precautions it can be perfectly safe. The most common time for the baby to be at risk for transmission is during the women's final trimester, so right now would be your home stretch. However, all information that I have ever learned indicates toxoplasmosis is passed only through the feces (maybe the urine too, I'd have to check on that!) and has nothing to do with the hair, saliva, or blood. Keeping that in mind, the only way you are likely to get in contact with the microorganism is by coming in contact with the cat's poop. Best ways to avoid this are the following: -If you must handle cat litter. always wear protective gear around your face and hands. -Always wash your face and hands after handling soiled litter. -Always wash your face and hands after any extensive handling of your kitty. -Avoid sleeping in the same bed as your kitty. -Don't let your cat rub his butt on you! Hope this helps. Don't get rid of your cat. While the risk is there, I think it is blown completely out of proportion. Then again, I am a male veterinarian. Perhaps a female might answer your differently. I am just giving you the facts. Let me know if you have any other questions.

I would move your heavily pregnant cat to her own room away from the kittens so she can focus exclusively on her kittens. I'd place her in her own room with her own food, water, litter box, and whelping box.

Nursing can take a lot of energy, so making sure your pregnant cat is receiving enough nutrition for herself, the growing kittens and the kitten she is nursing is key. Be sure to provide her with a high-quality kitten food that will offer extra protein and fat to provide enough for everyone. Many cats will adopt kittens from other litters, and some cats have even been known to adopt babies from other species! If this is her first litter, she may want to push away or attack the kitten when her own litter comes, so be sure to have supplemental milk ready if it is needed or if the kittens own mother is not nursing it already. If your pregnant cat does become aggressive, be sure to keep the kitten separated so both mom and kitten can be stress-free. Otherwise, as long as mom and kitten are both happy, she should be fine nursing one more!

Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! Your Doctor can test you. If you are negative then you should avoid gardening or doing things with the soil as toxoplasma lives there as well. Then I would have your husband clean Cecile's litter box or you do it wearing gloves and wash your hands. I would also keep your cats indoors. As a Vet, I have been exposed, who knows when or how, and I had a normal pregnancy. Below is a link to the CDC's page on toxoplasma. It should answer all of your questions! I hope this helps and I wish you the best! https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/toxoplasmosis/index.html