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Ask A Childbirth Educator
Questions and Answer

Q. My wife and I recently have discovered that she is pregnant!!! We are incredibly excited and looking forward to beginning our family. We both love children. The nature of this question has to do with pets, specifically cats and the associated litter box. We have heard from a number of sources that kitty litter and cat waste can be hazardous to the developing baby. Is this true. Why. Do the cats themselves pose any risks outside of the litter related issues. Does this mean that I have to change the litter from now until the end of time?

A. There is a lot of misinterpretation and misunderstanding concerning these poor kitties and their litter boxes!

It is not the cat who is harmful or the litter. It is an infectious disease caused by a parasite. Toxoplasmosis is an organism that can be excreted by the cat in its feces. Toxoplasmosis can cause a mild infection in the adult, which usually has no symptoms. or may be confused with a cold or flu. At certain stages (mostly in the first trimester) of fetal development it can cause various malformations in the fetus, some very severe.

Once you have been infected with toxoplasmosis, you develop antibodies and are not susceptible to contracting the disease again. A titre test is available if you are concerned to know your immunity status. Many women who have been cat owners for years tend to already be immune though it is theorized that more than half of women are still susceptible to the disease.

If your wife does not have the antibodies, she and the baby are susceptible to the infection. This is why advice is often given that she should not clean the catbox. Handling cat feces is a common route of infection.

If a pregnant woman must clean the catbox, because there is no one else to do it for her, she should wear rubber gloves and avoid touching the feces, washing her hands thoroughly with soap and water afterwards. Women who have outside cats, or have outside cats in the neighborhood, should also wear gloves while gardening, as a gardening plot or flower bed might also be used as a latrine for the cats.

Just so that our feline friends don't get all the blame, you can get toxoplasmosis also from eating undercooked meat. Make sure your meat is cooked thoroughly, and that you wash your hands with soap and water after handling meat, and before eating.

So to be on the safest side, you should clean the litter box for your wife right now. Nine months isn't too long, and speaking from experience, the cleaner you keep the litter box, the easier it is to clean.

Karen Klimsak-Ungar, CCE has been a certified childbirth educator for Birth Works® since 1996. She is currently Managing Editor for the Birth Works newsletter, sits on the Birth Works Board of Directors, and serves on their National Trainee Review Committee. A happily married mother of two, she also continues to teach Birth Works classes as well as private classes.

Karen will answer your questions on fertility, pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and babies. Her advice does not take the place of your practitioner. Personal answers will not always be possible.