Cats and Preemies-Help!

beyondmycontrol

Hello Ladies,

I am new to this board and I wanted to say hello...My baby was  born at 31w  5d  at 2 lbs 1ounce and my life has centered completely around the NICU ever since. We have had our cat for 3 years and became very concerned when one of the NICU nurses told us that cat dander can be very unsafe for a preemie baby. She told us to isolate him if possible or consider giving him away. Do any of you have cats and if so how have they affected your little ones?
 

TriciaJoy

No offense to the nurse, but she's just plain wrong.

All the studies show that children who grow up with pets have LESS allergies than those who do not.

I was worried about the same thing and asked our pediatrician about it and she very much encouraged us to keep our pets. We have a large dog (boxer) and THREE cats.

FutureMrsDenman

We have a cat and have a preemie who was born at 28 weeks.  We have had no problems whatsoever.  Our pedi hasn't shown any concern and knows we have an indoor cat at home.

meldoo2002

We have 2 cats and though we love them dearly I asked when the boys were first born if we should find them new homes or not due to possible allergies.  I got a resounding no from both doctors and nurses, that exposing children to pets as babies makes it less likely that they would have allergies.  So far we have had no problems.

dmblack

Our DD was born at 26 weeks and we've had a cat for years.  We had no problems with the cat and a preemie baby.  In fact our cat became very protective of her when other people were around.

lstaylor73

That is outrageous and preposterous and I am stunned a NICU nurse would say that to you!  I asked our three Neonatologists in the NICU, the three NP's there, the Head RN there, plus our Pulmonologist and our Pediatrician and EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM encouraged that we had our dogs and said there is no reason that pets shouldn't be in the home of a preemie, even if they are on oxygen assistance.  Infact they all told us, including the pulmonologist, that the dander has shown to help develop their lungs and sincuses to become more tollerent of allergens.

If I were you I would not listen to that nurse ever.  She's clearly uninformed.

ShanaNChris

I had a 31 weeker that was 2 lb 14 oz and I have two cats?I was a little concerned, not about the dander, but more about them bugging her. Everything has been fine with Lily. I even wrote in her baby book that Boots is her BFF, she just loves him and he loves her ? she gets so excited and she even meows now when she sees him. We have taught her ?nice touch? and she pets him?.Beans, on the other hand, has been ready to move out since Lily came home from the hospital?he used to be our baby L

KLyn

we have 2 cats and we haven't had any problems at all. ?The cats treat the babies just like they treat us - one loves them to death and the other could care less that they exist as long as she's getting fed! ?No allergy issues or anything like that. ?I think you should discuss it with the doctor before considering giving your cat away.

beyondmycontrol

Thanks so much ladies. I feel so relieved!! I also got to speak with the doctor today and she said that she does not see a problem with keeping our cat either.

happyhoopla

I'm a NICU nurse....she's very mistaken. Being around animals at a young age is very beneficial for children (including preemies) both physically and emotionally.

AviatorJJ

ditto to triciajoy. i think the "give your pets away" theory is old school. our neonatologist told us not to give our dog and two cats away and not even to bother keeping them away from my son. he said to try and keep the house clean and but keep the animals out of my son's room for safety reasons.

my son is two now and no allergies at all. he has asthma from prematurity but it doesn't act up at all from the pets.