5 Essential Tips When Introducing Your Baby To Your Cat

Before having your newborn baby, many people have pets like cats who treat them as a baby. So, it’s not only you and your partner that is adjusting to a new lifestyle but also your cats. A cat’s transition to seeing a newborn in the household could be new and stress them out when everything is sudden. Also, not every cat may react positively to welcoming a newborn if you don’t introduce them to each other appropriately.

As a pet owner, you couldn’t just leave your cat after having a baby. Thus, it would help if you could make adjustments and efforts to help the bond between your furbaby and newborn have a great start. You can begin even before your baby has been born so your cat can be gradually prepared for the arrival of your added bundle of joy.

Also, you want your baby to be safe when your cat is around. Fortunately, this is possible as cats could be taught and trained. As much as possible, if your furbaby and newborn could be best buddies, you want that something to achieve. So, to help you with this issue, here are tips on how you could help your cat accept a new baby into your household and ensure their safety.

Keep Your Cat’s Litter Box Away From Your Infant’s Common Area

Having a sandbox filled with enough cat litter, especially scented ones, is essential in ensuring that your cat has a place to pee and poop, reducing the smell of bad odour in your household. Keeping your house clean and odour-free is crucial if you have a baby indoors. Also, it’s a common rule that once a cat’s litter box is full, clean it immediately, so your cat has more litter space when they need extra litter space.

Since cat litter tends to be a place for cats to excrete their body waste, ensure that it is in a place far from your baby’s reach but still accessible for your cat. Additionally, cat urine can harm your baby’s health since your baby is still vulnerable to many diseases and viruses.

Also, note that cats are territorial with their possessions, so having your baby near your cat’s belongings may not please your cat. Lastly, clean your carpets and floors often as these are places where your cats might pee when they misbehave and could harm your baby’s health.

Limit Your Cat’s Playtime

Playtime with your kitten effectively reduces the boredom your cat experiences, and it’s a great bonding time between you and your cat. But when you have a new bundle of joy arriving in a few months, you must know how to set time limits for playtime.

Sometimes, new parents think they must give more time to playing with their cats because when their baby arrives, their time might be focused more on their newborn. In this sense, your cat could be accustomed to the new routine and schedule you give them, especially during play.

Prepare Your Cat For Baby-Related Sounds

Babies tend to be loud and noisy when uncomfortable or in distress, which could also stress out or annoy your cat from hearing these new sounds every day. So, prevent this by getting your cat used to the baby sounds before they have arrived.

If you have a friend who has a baby, you could try recording their baby’s voice when they are distressed and crying, then play it even days before your newborn has arrived. Start at a low volume, then gradually increase it so your cat can adjust. It will also help if you provide treats when your cat behaves and shows a positive attitude to reinforce their good behaviour.

Allow Your Cat To Familiarize The Smell of Your Baby

If your baby is still weeks old, it’s not the best time to allow your cat to stay near your baby. It could be dangerous for cats to be allowed near a newborn, especially if they sleep, as they could cuddle in your baby’s face, making it hard for your baby to breathe properly.

But, one thing you could do to allow your cat to be familiarized with your baby is through scent. If you have some baby blankets or clothes, you can try showing them to your cat for them to sniff them. Also, you could rub some baby powder on your arm so your cat could recognise it. Having something from your baby that your cat could smell could help your cat accept your baby and is an excellent introductory method.

Separate Baby and Cat Toys

It is undeniable that baby and cat toys are somehow similar – they are similarly soft, colourful, and have a squeaky sound. So, your cat could sometimes mistakenly play with your baby’s toys, thinking it’s for them. Also, your baby may be attracted to your cat’s toys. In this sense, ensure that you keep their toys separated so they will not be confused and will not build a rivalry.

Final Thoughts

With proper introduction and preparation, it isn’t impossible that the bond between your cat and baby could grow. The love and understanding between them could be a great way to strengthen your family and help secure your young one. So, refer to the above guide to how you could effectively introduce your baby to your cat and help them adjust.