How to introduce your baby to a cat? – 7 Tips

Translated by Nick R

Is a baby coming to your home soon but you’re worried about how your cat will react? Let me show you the steps to make introducing your baby a success.

Importance of introducing your baby to your cat 

If your cat has never been exposed to babies or young children, this is going to be a very strange thing for him. The mere sudden presence of a baby will put him on alert. Suddenly the cat will feel the stress of the environment with new smells and noises, which will put him in a high level of stress and anxiety, acting hostile or nervous.

Such changes in behavior can be dangerous for the people in the home. That’s why introducing a cat to a baby is so important to avoid tension in the environment or extreme behavioral changes.

What must you teach your cat first? 

It’s important that your cat behaves nicely before meeting the baby, patience and perseverance are required for him to learn to act calmly and abide by certain rules.

• Reinforce good behavior with snacks so that your cat knows when he is acting well, always caring for his balanced diet.
• When teaching your cat or training him, try to do it in a space free of distractions to make his learning process more successful.
• Because of their instincts, cats like to climb, hunt or scratch so they will climb on certain things they shouldn’t or will want to scratch something fragile. When that happens, just tell him firmly “no” and then take him to a place where he can do his stuff. This way he’ll understand that he shouldn’t do that in certain places.
• Cats can be hurt very easily, their pride is very strong. That’s why it is not recommended to punish him or confront him to avoid any psychological damage. When he does something wrong, as I said before, just say NO and take him to another place.
• Every time you introduce a new environment or people to your cat, do it little by little so that he gets used to it and feels comfortable with time. If a new person will arrive, you can give him some clothes so he can sniff them and get familiar with their smell, and with the place, you can leave him for about 5 minutes to explore a little bit, then you will increase the time. This is to avoid the cat creating a rivalry with a person or feeling alert and acting hostile in an unfamiliar environment.

What routine will your cat have now? 

Your cat can keep their usual routine, as they are independent, it is easier to let them go their own way. However, if you are the only person in charge of your cat and you are having a baby, you need to adjust your cat’s schedule to give him the attention he needs.

Change your cat’s routine gradually from the minute you know a baby is coming home. The best is to do this process in advance so that the cat can adapt better. Likewise, reduce the time you spend playing and interacting with your cat, so that when the baby arrives, he doesn’t feel that his attention was suddenly taken away.

Cats are active in the morning and at night so you can take advantage of these hours to play with your cat while you take care of your baby if he/she wakes up early. On the other hand, at night, while your baby is asleep, you can use that time to interact a little more with your pet.

Regarding food and changing the litter box, try to keep it the same way you have it so that the cat doesn’t feel sudden changes in routine. And, again, as cats are more independent in their activity, always leave them toys to entertain themselves and let them sleep when they want to.

Your cat needs proper hygiene and health 

To avoid accidents or any health problems that the cat could transmit to the baby, the animal must be in good health in every way. Mainly, his vaccination schedule must be up to date and he must be protected against external parasites (fleas, ticks) and internal parasites (worms).

Their nails are also important for cats, so take care of them to make them safe for the baby. Also take care of their fur if they shed a lot, as some people are allergic to cat hair.

Try to take the cat to the veterinarian to get the best possible solution. Also, keep to the schedule of visits to avoid any surprises with a disease that may be developing.

Risks of having a cat and a baby

Children in their early stages of life are more prone to acquiring diseases associated with animals. Therefore, their interaction is limited or non-existent when they are still babies. The risks that a baby may have are:

• Breathing problems: since cats tend to shed hair, they should not roam or stay in the baby’s room to prevent them from releasing hair into the environment and the baby from inhaling it.
• Infection transmissible to people: Cats can transmit infectious diseases either by scratching, through their feces, or by contaminating a place they have touched. The baby can get infected by touching the contaminated object. That’s why it’s vital to wash your hands after interacting with the cat. Some diseases that can affect you or your baby are:

– Toxoplasmosis: an infection caused by the parasite Toxoplasma gondii. In infants, it causes rash, jaundice, among others. In the case of pregnant women, they can pass the infection to the fetus and will have symptoms such as fever, headache, sore throat, etc.

– Cat scratch fever: it’s also transmitted by a bite and causes inflammation of the lymph nodes, fatigue, fever, etc., and it’s caused by the bacterium Bartonella henselae.

– Toxocariasis: caused by a type of worm present in cats and dogs. This infection causes fever, visual disturbances, asthma, and more.

Attention for your cat 

You must not forget your cat now that you have a new member of the family. Make gradual changes for your cat to get used to it. Don’t change your attitude towards your cat so that he doesn’t feel left out when the baby arrives.

If you are unable to give the necessary attention to your cat because caring for the baby takes up more of your time, it’s best to ask someone you trust that the cat also knows and gets along with to help you look after him.

If the situation gets too complicated, either because no one is taking care of the cat or the cat’s reaction to the baby is hostile, it would be better to think about giving the cat up for adoption to a family that you are sure will take good care of him.

You must be very responsible so you can have a good relationship with your cat without interfering with the baby’s parenting time. For children to grow up with animals is a great way to know the value and care they must give to animals.

How to introduce a baby to a cat? 

For a successful first interaction, you’ll follow two phases, one with anticipated measures and the second one when the baby arrives home.

Advanced measures

1. Let your cat explore the new environment as you set up the baby’s room. The cat should explore the new furniture and all the things that will be placed in the room so that he doesn’t feel left out. Make sure he makes these inspections when you are there.
2. Once the cat has adapted to the new space, clean the room very well and leave it isolated so that the cat no longer wants to go there and stops being interested in that place. This will make him forget the place so he won’t bother the baby when he arrives.  You can take actions like putting up a screen so he can see the room, but not enter, or spraying scents that he dislikes to keep him away.
3. Play baby sounds such as babbling, crying, and all kinds of sounds that a baby makes for the cat to recognize the new noises that are coming and not take them by surprise. To make this process easier, play with your cat a little bit and then play with the sounds, so it will associate them with a pleasant time.
4. Let your cat sniff some of the baby’s clothes such as socks to familiarize him/her with the smell that will now frequent the house. You can also use baby powder or lotion so that your cat will recognize more smells from his master.

Measures to take on the day of arrival 

1. On the day you arrive with your baby, make sure the place is quiet, without distractions or loud noises. Greet your cat in a calm manner and stay for a few minutes while he connects with the environment.
2. Then lay down a piece of baby’s clothing for the cat to start sniffing and become familiar with the baby’s scent at the moment.
3. Then call your cat being careful not to get too close and with one hand pet the cat with the baby’s recently worn socks. This will help the cat identify the baby as a new member of the family.
4. Now let the cat sniff the baby’s feet by moving very slowly and gently closer to the baby’s position. While making these contacts, remember to praise your cat so he knows he is acting well and reinforce with a snack if you can.
5. From then on, praise your cat when he interacts with your baby so that he associates the baby with positive things.
6. Finally, never leave your baby with a cat alone unsupervised. Cats should not for any reason sleep with a baby, wander around the baby’s room, and certainly not interact with the baby’s objects without completely disinfecting them afterward.

*The only time the cat has contact with the baby’s clothing is for the recognition of someone new. After this, the respective disinfection of the baby’s belongings should be done.

Now that you know how to introduce a baby to a cat, you can be sure that they will have good reception and an excellent coexistence from then on.