Do cats know when a woman is pregnant: yes or no?
When a couple discovers they are expecting a baby, they usually organize a special time to tell relatives and friends about it. With pets this is not possible but, very often, they are the ones to find out for themselves. It happens, for example, with cats.
Particularly sensitive animals with a highly developed sense of smell, cats know when a woman is pregnant. They understand that an important change is taking place in the woman and modify their habits, their attitudes, their behavior towards the mistress.
Cats discover pregnancy earlier than a woman
It may even happen that cats find out even before women. When the woman is still unaware of the pregnancy, when she has not yet done any tests or she begins, perhaps, to suspect that she is pregnant, the cat may already have understood it.
She certainly does not know that it is pregnancy, but she senses that something is changing in her mistress's body. From here they generate a series of changes also in the animal which can manifest itself more affectionate, more nervous, more jealous.
Let's see then, what can cats do differently when a woman is pregnant and what the woman can do to help the pet get used to a new reality and, subsequently, to the arrival of a new "tenant".
What does a cat do when a woman is pregnant
It happens, for example, that usually solitary and detached cats, sensing the change taking place in women, begin to rub themselves, to purr only to the expectant mother, like never done before.
Cats perceive the smell of hormones which, we know, increase in pregnancy: there is a greater production of progesterone, estrogen, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG hormones). Not only that, with their hypersensitivity and strong sense of smell, cats can also perish temperature variations of the body.
The cat also senses the change in the woman's habits, her different movements and begins - usually - to behave strangely. Don't be surprised if the cat watches you more, if you always have her eyes on you. During pregnancy he can become more cuddly, as in the example above, or even more jealous.
Usually affectionate cats, on the other hand, could detach themselves, avoid the mistress during pregnancy, sensing that something is changing, from smells to the woman's positions (arched back, slower movements).
Pregnant woman: how to deal with a cat at home
In the 9 months of pregnancy, if you notice abnormal attitudes in the cat, it is good not to neglect it, but rather help the pet adapt to this new situation.
For example, if the cat is neglected during pregnancy, it may not accept the arrival of the baby well and could, consequently, start doing unpleasant things such as needing in the house or teasing of various kinds. Cats, therefore, should not feel excluded, put aside, but treated with same attention as before, even during pregnancy.
This will allow the cats, little by little, to adapt to this new reality, also accepting the arrival of a new little master, or little mistress in the house.
Cats and pregnancy: precautions
Cats are often referred to as dangerous in pregnancy and carriers of toxoplasmosis. So how should a pregnant woman behave with a cat and what precautions should she take?
First of all it is good to know that the toxoplasmosis it is a disease that can be transmitted to the fetus from cat feces, if the latter are infected (feces with non-sporulated oocysts). It is good, therefore, that the woman always wears gloves and surgical mask when she cleans the litter box and other things of the cat (bowls and toys).
It would also be preferable for someone else to take care of the cat during pregnancy, however, finding a way not to let the animal live the detachment from the mistress which, as anticipated, could generate jealousy and non-acceptance of the incoming baby.
