Cat Litter Box & Pregnancy

Pregnant? Suppressed immune system? Tidy officially excuses you from changing the litter box.

Cats pick up the parasite that causes toxoplasmosis by eating infected animals or raw meat, or sometimes even by swallowing the infective stage of the parasite from the environment. Help protect kitty by sticking to cat food instead of table scraps or letting her hunt in the wild.

Sometimes, the parasite finds its way to the cat’s feces. Tidy would like to point out that it takes several days for the parasite to become infective, so cleaning out the litter box every day can practically erase the risk of infection in the first place.

While toxoplasmosis is relatively harmless for healthy cats or human adults, it can be downright dangerous for an unborn baby. So if you’re pregnant, Tidy recommends you recruit someone else to tackle litter box duty.

The good news? Petting kitty, playing with her, feeding her and even brushing her shouldn't place you at risk during your pregnancy. In fact, most people contract toxoplasmosis not from contact with cats, but from eating undercooked meat like hamburgers (order yours well done!).

Want to see if you (or kitty) has been exposed? Ask your doctor and veterinarian for a blood test. For maximum peace of mind, Tidy suggests you talk to your doctor about the whole pregnancy-toxoplasmosis thing in general.