Do cats get weird around pregnant women?
 

My cat is getting pretty strange lately... Natalie (my preggo gf) is just about to pop. The closer we get to the due date, the stranger my cat gets.

He's never been agressive, always very friendly... but now he's hissing at everyone, and has even hissed at Natalie herself!

Tonight, he walked into the room hissing at her... walked right up to her, sniffed and then turned and walked out. Totally dissing her.

He's also hissing at my family members, who he's known for a long time and always been friendly with.

I don't get it.. what's up with him?

Maybe he is getting jealous..I think cats are usually attention whores and hate kids..keep the cat away from the newborn.there has been instances they smother the baby by lying on top of it's mouth

Yeah, I've heard about that too, a lot actually. So we have everything set up so that there's no real any way that the cat can get to him (at least while he's in bed).

However, we fully intend to keep a very close eye on them at all times anyway. If the cat is protective, or jealous... there's a risk and I refuse to take that risk.

Cats are a pain in the ass, how anyone puts up with their drama instead of a dog is beyond me.

My brother's cat just bit him last week, they've owned it for years, and I thought "wow...if a cat ever bit me, it wouldn't be able to make that mistake ever again."

You're smart Stuart, I'm still always surprised by how few cat owners understand the danger they are to new born babies and fail to take precautions.

i don't know about cats, but i hate what your cat is doing. that would annoy me too.

they say animals can sense things..maybe he's sensing the little person inside the big person he's always known and it's freaking him out.

that's what I'm thinking... he's sensing a pregnancy... on an instinctual level, and can't figure out what's going on, or who he should be protective of... and it's freaking him out. I wish I could figure out cats.

Mako, I understand what you mean and yeah, it's been waying heavily on my mind. But you have to understand.. you can't understand how people get attached to dramatic cats. Some people can't understand why someone would want a drooling dopy dog. But the fact is, they're both pets and if you have one for a while... you grow to love it. And it just isn't easy to get rid of a pet "just like that" after so many years.

Don't get me wrong though either... whether my pet was cat or dog, one wrong move towards my new born and it'll be gone. I won't put up with it, and I will be watching like a hawk. There's no way my cat gets into the same room as the baby without me watching closely.

Way to dilute the gene pool even further.

no maybe your wife is getting all the attention now, and the cat gets none, so its pissed.

Just give him more attention and hopefully the kitty will just adapt to the new member of the family

Forget wondering about the cat, when YOU start making weird grammatical errors THAT is cause for concern! :Oh crap

Once the baby comes, if the cat is still being agressive it may be time to find it a new home. :(

:helpme

It really is like introducing a younger sibling to your only child, lol. I don't think you'll have anything to worry about until the baby starts grabbing things...and then kitty better watch it's tail, lol.

Let's just continue to hope that you never try to reproduce.. and we should all be fine. :thumbsup

ack... you're right. It's not like me to make errors like that. Ugh, to much going on!!! :Oh crap

And yes, you're right... I just hope it doesn't have to come to that :(

its a jealousy issue, protective (by nature) & frankly, just kinda pissed off LOL he might be pissed off for not recieving nearly as much attention as before. its probably just a mix of emotions.

when your girl has the baby & brings the lil miracle home for the first time, have the cat around it to get familiar with him/her. it will smell him/her for a while, then most likely, wont be any problem.

kittens & younger cats are hard to have around newborns. its the older "i dont give a fuck about a baby" cats that are great around babys LOL :)

Unlike yourself who is a picture of stability.

Nurture or Nature, Stuart? What's your nature? Better hope it isn't nature that determines personality in offspring. The World hardly needs anymore clinically depressed people ready to kill themselves because they can't find a woman to complete them. You'd better pray for nurture, that much is for sure. :2 cents:

Yeah, cats are very jealous. They demand a LOT of attention. Keep it away the baby... and if its not declawed, get it done.

I have 7 cats, all declawed and fixed. They are afraid of people who visit... so I'm hoping they don't go psycho one day around babies.

If you have a cat for years, and it bit you, there's probably a solid reason for it.

Never ever hit a cat, because he/she trusts you.

Declawed....WTF?!?!?

They use their nails to climb up their cat furniture and stuff.

Why on earth would you declaw a cat, thats like pulling out of your teeth. To save your oh so precious furniture? It's only material. I hope they do not come outside with no claws.... :(

you know if you cats get outside, they're dead, right?
without claws to defend themselves & hunt (mouses, snakes, etc) to survive, they'll die.

im not critizing you for having them declawed, most cat owners choose that option. i, however, didnt. I clip my cats nails once a week so that his nails are dull but he can still climb furniture with very little damage & if he somehow got outside, he would live (even if its not with me.)

Pfft... I love my cats but I'm still higher on the food chain. I take care of my animals and I think it beats the alternative of them being in a shelter or put to sleep because of overpopulation. They are happy, safe, and healthy.

I think it's kinda funny how so many people freak out about declawing cats, yet have no problem circumcizing their male children. Insanity!

My cats have gone outside everyday for 5 years. They also have no problem killing all sorts of small animals and leaving them scattered all over the driveway and sidewalk.

I guess she was catching so much attention.

Good point!

One of the best replies ever! I just spewed my drink on my monitor.

:1orglaugh :1orglaugh :1orglaugh :1orglaugh :1orglaugh

p.s. - I still have my claws, other things got trimmed. :Oh crap

I think the cat will be just fine when the baby comes along. Cats may be fickle creatures but give so much love when cared for properly.

As far as the declawing topic, I'm totally against it. I'm not going to preach but I would NEVER do it to my own cats. We did, however, find a declawed cat while on a walk last year and took her home with us. She had no tags nor a collar. There was no way we were going to let her stay outside, defenseless. She's been a wonderful part of our family ever since.

Is it the cat or is it you who thinks strange about them? Maybe you are just acting too protective to your pregnant gf.. ;)

Maybe they are just worried with the strange change of size on her master's womb... ;)

maybe your cat needs therapy.

Hate to say it, but I have heard the same.

Besides, cats are filthy animals and you don't want it anywhere close to your newborn. . . . the cat knows his days are numbered.

I have to ask if you have ever had a kid, and a cat, and put the newborn by the cat the day you brought it home from the hospital?

When I read your last post I thought, "what an idiot" but I decided to say nothing.

After reading this one I could not restrain myself.

So you stole a cat? Interesting.

Get a pittbull to get rid that darn garfield of yours.

When was I ever "clinically" depressed? You do know what that term means right? Sure, I was done with my life, didn't want to continue it any further, but I was having tons of fun and doing well at the time. What's funnier is that it was then and this is now. I'm happier than I ever was and happier than you'll ever be.

Again, you speak out of turn and don't know what you're talking about. I am flattered that you are trying ever so hard to make me feel bad or something though. Taking shots at me must be the best part of your day, so please do keep it up. You will have to try harder though. Telling me something (albeit wrong) that I already knew will hardly phase me much. But it is entertaining watching you flip around like a fish out of water :1orglaugh

Yeah, he's always been very friendly... he's a sucky baby all the way. He always has been. But this sudden little aggressive side has me concerned.

PixeLs, I am pretty sure our cat is sensing changes in us but nothing that should make him hiss or anything. He hasn't hissed at me... just everyone else.

Exactly.. and make sure you involve the cat from minute 1.

Keeping them seperated for the 'first few days' would cause for the cat only to have more reasons to be jealous.. Just acting like its business as usual solves all animal issues..

so true :1orglaugh

No, we didn't steal a cat. The cat was dirty and hungry, which led us to believe she had been abandoned and outside for quite a while. So, we took her home with us.

We called the city animal control and were told that if no one claimed her within 5 days she would be put to sleep. We didn't want that. Plus, if her previous owners didn't care enough to keep a collar and tags on her, or keep her safe inside, they didn't deserve to have her. She's better off with us.

We also found out after taking her to the vet that she had never received any vaccinations. Her previous owners spent money on having her declawed but didn't worry about vaccinations? Again, she's better off with us.

My 8 year old cat Smokey did that for a while when we introduced the first new cat into our family. He acted as though he felt slighted. He would hiss at you when you walked by but has never hurt anyone. He was just jealous. I always make sure to hang out with just him once in a while so that he knows that I still love him. We also make sure he's given treats first, etc. He was here first, so he gets things first. It has taken a little while but he has come around. He's (almost) back to his loving, cuddling self. It just takes time and patience.

You have to remember that anything new in a fickle cat's life disrupts his normal flow of things. They get very attached to people and the slightest change may make him act a bit strange. But, like I said before, I'm sure everything will be fine. Good luck to you!

This is so ridiculous. Aren't you aware that this is an urban legend?


"It's a popular misconception, though, that cats suck out a baby's breath or intentionally smother babies. "I've never seen anything about cats smothering babies in the pediatric journals," Kenneth Polin, M.D. a pediatric specialist with Town and Country Pediatrics in Illinois, notes. "It's one of these urban legends."

Cat Meets Baby

Cat Sucking Breath From Newborn/Smothering Newborn Urban Legend