How to Prepare Your Cat for a New Baby: Before and After the Birth

The plan at a glance: what to change, and when

VCA’s guide to children and pets notes that for cats, adjusting to changes in the home is often harder than the baby’s sights and sounds: new furniture, a new place to eat or sleep, a crib or room that is suddenly off-limits. Spread those changes out so each is old news by the birth:

1. As soon as you know: hand over the litter box, book a routine veterinary checkup, and decide where the nursery, the bassinet and your cat’s things will go.
2. Four to six months out: if the litter box sits where the nursery or baby gear will go, start moving it a few inches a day, then move the bed, scratcher and bowls. If your cat won’t be sleeping in your bedroom once the baby comes, start that change too.
3. Three to four months out: set up the nursery furniture, start playing baby sounds quietly and start using the baby lotion and wipes.
4. One to two months before: make the surfaces you want kept cat-free unwelcoming, get your cat used to a closed nursery door and, as the ASPCA suggests, switch any cat care that will change hands after the birth (meals, brushing, play, bedtime) to the person who will do it.
5. The last few weeks: arrange who feeds and scoops while you’re at the hospital, and who brings home a blanket the baby has used.
6. The first weeks home: a quiet first meeting, the usual meal and play times, and supervision whenever cat and baby share a room.

Give each change a week or two to settle before adding the next.

What you need

• A helper for the litter box, plus disposable gloves for any day no one else can scoop.
• A second litter box (optional), to set up in the new spot before the old one goes.
• Double-sided tape for surfaces that will be off-limits.
• Recordings of baby sounds, crying included.
• The baby toiletries you plan to use: lotion, wipes and diaper cream.
• A retreat bed and a scratcher for your cat’s new spots.
• A door that closes on the room where the baby sleeps.

Who scoops the litter during pregnancy

Cat feces can carry Toxoplasma, a parasite that can pass to an unborn baby if the mother is newly infected during pregnancy. The CDC’s page on cats and people’s health says pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems should not clean litter boxes, if possible.

• Hand over the whole job (scooping, litter changes and washing) as soon as you know.
• If no one else can, the CDC says to wear disposable gloves and wash your hands afterward.
• Scoop daily. The CDC’s toxoplasmosis prevention advice explains that the parasite doesn’t become infectious until 1 to 5 days after a cat passes it.
• Feed commercial canned or dry food, or well-cooked table food, never raw or undercooked meat.
• Keep your cat indoors. The ASPCA recommends it during pregnancy, since cats can pick up the parasite by eating small mammals or birds.
• Wear gloves for gardening and cover outdoor sandboxes.

None of these steps involves rehoming your cat; they’re about who handles the litter, and how. For questions about your own risk, ask your doctor or midwife.

Months before: moving the litter box, bed and scratcher

Anything your cat uses daily that sits in the future nursery, or where baby gear will go, needs a new home well before the birth. The litter box is the move most likely to backfire if rushed: the ASPCA’s advice on cats and babies warns that a cat whose box moves too quickly may go back to soil the old spot.

The litter box

• Move it gradually. The ASPCA suggests starting several months ahead and moving the box a few inches a day. For a move to another room, a second box set up in the new spot lets your cat switch over before the old one goes.
• Plan for the crawling months. Choose a quiet place a baby gate can close off later, away from food, water and noisy machines, so the box only moves once.
• Change only the location. Same box, same litter, same depth.
• If your cat goes back to the old spot, clean it with an enzyme cleaner, then block it; the ASPCA suggests a solid object such as a dresser or diaper pail.

Whoever takes over can follow the daily and weekly routine in our cleaning checklist for cat homes.

The bed, and the bedroom at night

If your cat sleeps on your bed and the bassinet will be in your room, decide now whether the cat stays; a closed bedroom door is far easier to teach months ahead than in the first sleepless week. International Cat Care’s advice on cats and babies is to make that change gradually, while you still have months to do it. Make the new bed appealing and reward its use; our guide to choosing a cat bed your cat will actually use covers shapes and placement.

The scratcher and the bowls

Put a scratcher in each place your cat is moving into before you take the old one out of the nursery. Move the bowls if they sit where the changing station or, later, the high chair will go, and keep them well away from the litter box.

Setting nursery rules and teaching them early

The ASPCA suggests setting up the nursery furniture early and letting your cat investigate it for several weeks, then, at least a month before the due date, making the surfaces you want kept cat-free unwelcoming.

• The crib and bassinet are the fixed rule. The ASPCA’s reason: a cat seeking warmth may curl up against a baby’s face and make breathing difficult.
• Close the door while the baby sleeps; it’s the most dependable barrier, and the ASPCA suggests a temporary screen door for a nursery without one. International Cat Care suggests a net over a pram or baby basket; use one made for that product, as its maker directs.
• Make surfaces unwelcoming with double-sided tape on the crib rails and changing table; the ASPCA notes cats tend to avoid sticky surfaces. Remove it before the baby uses them.
• Offer something better nearby, such as a warm bed or window perch just outside the nursery.
• Stay calm about exploring. Lift your cat down without scolding and reward it on its own bed; a cat punished in the nursery learns to be nervous there, not to stay out.
• Fold or shut away baby gear such as the stroller, car seat and bouncer, which make tempting beds.

Introducing baby sounds, smells and gear early

Pair each new thing with something your cat enjoys, at a level it can ignore.

• Sounds. International Cat Care suggests playing recordings of a baby crying at a low volume and raising it gradually. If your cat leaves, flattens its ears or stops eating, go quieter next time.
• Smells. Start using the baby’s lotion and wipes. The ASPCA suggests rubbing a little baby lotion on your hands before something pleasant, like brushing or treats.
• Gear. Let your cat sniff the crib, swing and stroller in its own time, and run a motorized swing from across the room first. Another iCatCare tip: rub a soft cloth on your cat’s cheeks and wipe it on new items so they smell familiar.
• The baby’s scent. Before the homecoming, have someone bring back a blanket or item of clothing the baby has used, and leave it where your cat can investigate.

A retreat your cat can always reach when the house gets busy

The first weeks bring visitors and crying at odd hours. International Cat Care lists good hideaways: cardboard boxes, shelves and perches, cat trees, igloo beds, the tops of furniture and under beds.

• Quiet and out of the traffic, away from the nursery and front door, with water and litter reachable without crossing the busiest room.
• One high, one hidden, so your cat has a choice; height matters more once the baby crawls.
• A baby gate across a doorway keeps a crawling baby out of your cat’s room, provided your cat can hop over or slip through.
• Off-limits to people: nobody pulls your cat out, and baby supplies are stored elsewhere.

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Keeping play and routine going when time is short

Routines are the first thing to slip with a newborn, and cats notice. Protect the parts that matter most.

• Short and often beats long and rare. Two or three short sessions a day with a wand toy keep the habit alive; food puzzles and a window seat fill the gaps. See our indoor cat enrichment ideas.
• Make the baby predict good things. Humane World for Animals’ guide to introducing pets to a new baby advises pairing the baby’s presence with treats, praise or affection, so give your cat attention while the baby is in the room, not only during naps.
• Keep meals on time. A feeding time written on the fridge survives a sleepless week better than a habit.
• Add a toy that doesn’t need you, as a top-up to your play, not a replacement. Our rechargeable motion-activated rolling ball wakes when your cat touches it and gives about an hour of play per charge, best on hard floors or short-pile rugs. Use it away from the nursery, and put it away once the baby is on the floor.

Coming home: the first meeting and the first weeks

1. Send the scent ahead: the baby’s blanket comes home a day or two before the baby.
2. Greet your cat first. The ASPCA suggests a few quiet minutes with your cat in a calm room before the baby and everyone else come in.
3. Let your cat come to the baby. Sit calmly with the baby and let your cat sniff at its own pace. Don’t carry your cat over or hold the baby out to it.
4. Reward calm interest with a quiet word or a treat. Walking off or hiding at first is normal.
5. Keep the old rhythm: meals, play and bedtime at the usual times.
6. Supervise every time, with the nursery door shut for naps and at night.

Over the next weeks, ask visitors to leave your cat’s retreat alone, and keep your cat’s nails trimmed so an accidental swipe does less harm. Once your baby starts to crawl, the focus shifts to gentle hands and high escape routes; our guide to cats and kids picks up from there. A dog in the house too? See how to prepare your dog for a new baby.

Mistakes that make the adjustment harder

• Saving every change for the last few weeks, so a moved box, a closed room and a crying baby all arrive at once.
• Moving the litter box in one jump, or switching litter at the same time.
• Shutting your cat out of family life. A closed door at nap time is a sensible rule; keeping your cat out of every room the baby is in cuts it off from its own home.
• Scolding a hiss or a sniff, which teaches your cat that the baby predicts trouble.

Signs of stress, and when to call your veterinarian

Humane World for Animals lists hissing, withdrawing, hiding, loss of appetite and not acting normally. Litter box accidents, spraying and overgrooming can also follow a big change. Slow down and keep the routine steady, then troubleshoot:

• Accidents outside the box after a move. Call your veterinarian first, since a change in litter habits can have a medical cause. Then go back a step, or add a second box near the old spot.
• Keeps getting into the crib or bassinet. Keep the door closed and put a warm bed just outside the room.
• Cries at a closed door at night. Don’t open it for the noise; fit play and a meal in before bed instead.
• Hides most of the day, or stops eating. Fewer visitors and a slower pace can help, but a cat that stops eating needs a prompt call to your veterinarian.
• Hisses or swats at the baby. Increase the distance, never punish, keep them apart when you can’t watch, and talk to your veterinarian, who may suggest a synthetic feline pheromone diffuser or a veterinary behaviorist.

For beds, scratchers and toys, browse our cat essentials.