Kitty and Baby

[Vertigo]

Hi all,

Wondering if you could provide me with some advice concerning my 2 1/2 year-old neutered male cat, Kaiser.

Kaiser lost his sister back in December and had been a little bored and was doing little devious things, such as knocking over his water bowl, going through the bathroom garbage for Q-Tips, etc. He's stopped most of that (except for the Q-Tips; he just loves those!), but now he seems excessively lonely and has started some new behaviors

If he's in the house, he's whining and/or stuck to me. When I sleep, he's an inch from my face, swatting me if I don't pet him and sometimes BITING me when I do.

I was finally thinking of getting a new kitten for him, but to complicate matters, I'm pregnant and due in November. On one hand, I'm worried that if his boredom continues, he will think it's appropriate to swat and bite the baby. So I should just get him a playmate so he's not so lonely. On the other hand, I'm all alone, so I'm already emptying litter boxes, which I'm not supposed to be doing and having a new kitty will make that chore even more frequent. I've never thought of myself as someone who would get rid of a pet, especially one I love so much, but I don't know if I'll be able to trust him with the baby and I don't know if now is the time to integrate a new cat into the household. What do you think?

[KatBudz]

Cats and babies should never be left alone in the same room. At night close the babies bedroom door so the cat doesnt get in. If you do decide to get another cat, you do have to go through the slow introduction period though, which does take patience, and then you will obviously have to get a second litter box. The general rule is 1 litter box per cat plus 1 extra. With scooping the box, you should invest in one of those dust mask things so you don't inhale any of the dust from the litterboxes, thats what my friend did when she was pregnant. Also, since your cat is already used to other cats, the introductions will probably go a lot smoother than if he never lived with a cat before, I would suggest getting a female instead of another male though. Good luck with your decision!