Busted, now I go back to helping with Kitty Poop

TugboatSheila · December 2013

So I was listening to a Podcast (from Pea in the Podcast) about what was safe and not safe. It was only 20 minutes long, I'd totally suggest it. Some of the things I held to be true were not.

It was really interesting and covered Sushi, Listeria, Painting, Medicines, Food and the like. I'm ashamed to admit a lot of the things they said you can do I thought were not allowed based on complete here-say and nothing my Dr told me. My Dr told me in our first appointment that he was not convinced by all of the reports on what to eat and not eat so he always tells his patients just eat things in moderation and use common sense. Since he did not strictly forbid me to not eat or not do any specific thing I have been falling back on the things I had heard from friends' previous pregnancies.

I was always under the impression that doing the kitty litter was a big no no while pregnant. The DR on the podcast said it was safe, explained why and mentioned that if you wanted to be extra safe you can wear gloves while you do it. DH walked in on me listening to the podcast. Now I'm BUSTED!

I'm going back to helping him with the litter but I am going to wear gloves and a mask because I'm a crazy person.

Anyone else doing the kitty poop?

Was there anything you thought to be true/false that you later learned was incorrect?

rattlecanqueen · December 2013

my personal doctor said no to kitty litter. I'd not take medical advice from a podcast/ internet source that isn't congruent with what my doctor says.

am7rice · December 2013

Don't let my DH find out!! I hate doing the litter box. Lol

jalicenixon · December 2013

If I have to wear gloves & a mask to do a task, it's probably not that safe. I will let my husband continue to change the litter :-)

earichar23 · December 2013

I actually got conflicting advice on this at the dr office. The nurse who went over no-nos said no litter box duty but when the dr came in he said just wear gloves to be safe. Luckily my DH is an overprotective daddy and thinks if I have to wear gloves it can't be that safe!

this+gamer+chick · December 2013

My doctor said absolutely no dealing with litter boxes (not that I even own a cat). I wouldn't listen to some internet source either. I would much rather listen to a medical doctor. Also, my doc has a line for pregnant women to call the OB nurse with questions. I've called them twice and they are very good about answering. Does your OB have a service like this? If so, I would ask them. One out of 2 times when I called, my doctor disagreed with the internet advice I had read.

Ylvelill · December 2013

Same here, dr said no litter

i did read an article a while back that explained what lowers the risk but it's a chance I won't take. As someone else said.... If I have to wear gloves and a mask to make it safe....

Plus I do all the food and cat puke in the house now so

hgtvmom · December 2013

If I have to wear gloves to protect myself, why would I do it unless there was I other capable person in the house? Plus I couldn't get near the smell. Id be puking for sure.

BPer · December 2013

My doctor is also in the anti-kitty litter boat (not that we have cats), but she's one of those "everything in moderation is fine" doctors.

Sushi, the occasional glass of wine after first tri, lunch meat, coffee, all okay. Litter boxes, no. So there's that.

biglewzer · December 2013

Basically every irrational fear that is blasted on here every 5 minutes. It's why lots of posters get frustrated with the fear posts.

TugboatSheila · December 2013

Hey Guys, I had already put a call into my OB to get his opinion after listening to the podcast.

Waiting for him to call back now! I thought I was just trying to be light and funny by saying I was busted/was going to wear a mask and gloves

Ylvelill · December 2013

When you are pregnant almost everything is irrational!

michellexm · December 2013

I still scoop, but always with gloves, and hand washing afterward.

I don't really worry about it because I have an exclusively indoor cat, and contact with rodents (which can harbor toxoplasmosis) is very very rare for her. Toxo is shed in cat feces for a very short time only once in their lives after exposure, and only gets out of feces after over 24 hours of sitting in the catbox...I figure my odds are really good that I'm safe, especially if I scoop often

That said, you do not want to get toxoplasmosis while pregnant as it can kill a fetus. I take the risk because it seems very small in my situation. If my cat went outdoors, I wouldn't do it.

flajewel · December 2013

This is so interesting! Everybody has been acting like cat poop is deadly for a pregnant woman! I'm going to keep letting my husband scoop but thanks for posting.

TugboatSheila · December 2013

michellexm said:

I still scoop, but always with gloves, and hand washing afterward. I don't really worry about it because I have an exclusively indoor cat, and contact with rodents (which can harbor toxoplasmosis) is very very rare for her. Toxo is shed in cat feces for a very short time only once in their lives after exposure, and only gets out of feces after over 24 hours of sitting in the catbox...I figure my odds are really good that I'm safe, especially if I scoop often That said, you do not want to get toxoplasmosis while pregnant as it can kill a fetus. I take the risk because it seems very small in my situation. If my cat went outdoors, I wouldn't do it.

That's the situation I'm in, my cat is only outside when we take him, in his carrier, to the vet. He has never and will never step foot outside otherwise, especially because he is terrified of leaving the house. When we open the door to go outside he runs away, poor thing.

TurtleMonsters · December 2013

OMG really, you got your dh's to do it? I think the cat scare is crazy. A. if you have had a cats for a long time, you've been exposed and have antibodies...but I'm not a doc. so I suppose I don't have a study to back that.
B. do you eat the cat poop? Do you not clean your hands right after? Soap does marvellous things- and not antibacterial- that stuff is dangerous and harmful to everyone!! I'm sorry to be snarky over this, but avoiding cleaning up after a cat is just total BS if you follow decent hygiene practices.
You do realize your cats are standing in the litter to poop, they have it on their feet. Unless they are neat freak cats, you clean their feet, and mop right after they use it, you probably have it on the floor in that space. You walk through it and spread it about your house. There should be an epidemic at this point, if all that hype was true.
The fear mongering of society creates more dangerous stress then the listeria effects our fetus.
/rant.

MalLanning · December 2013

My OB told me heck no on the litter! He went as far as saying if I didn't have anyone else who could do it to get rid of my kitties..DH Does it happily every day. :-)

Myanswer true · December 2013

My husband is the paranoid person in this pregnancy... so I'll go ahead and let him keep on scooping the litter.

allardr · December 2013

Every doctor has different opinions so you have to listen to all sources I think and make your own educated decision.

I personally always play it safe.

AMcLaws · December 2013

In my first pregnancy, my doc said ideally i wouldn't change the litter, but if I had to, use gloves and a mask, and wash hands/forearms very well afterwards.

tealowl · December 2013

I still clean the litter box, and wash my hands afterwards (which obviously I did before being pregnant). My cat is 11 years old and has been an indoor cat his whole life. I'm not worried about it.

My midwifes nurse told me I shouldn't do it, and I told her the exact same thing above, and I that I feel my risk of toxo is very minimal.

Plus, cats stand in litter boxes, so they have it on their paws and walk through the house. I'm a neat freak, but unless you wash your cats paws everytime after he gets out of his shitbox, you got that to think about too.

alyssa719 · December 2013

I read the same as @turtlemonster is saying - if you've had cats before (outside and/or who eat vermin) you've probably already been exposed and can't be infected again. I havent been to the doctor since I found that little jewel (and also don't have cats) so I haven't asked them. It also said that they can test to see if you have the antibodies in your blood already. Oh yeah, and that cats can only be infected once in their lives also.

SuperTinkerham · December 2013

My RE said it was fine for me to change litter. I told mister if I have to get shots in my ass, he can handle a few poops from kitties.

argonne · December 2013

I cleaned out the litter box when I was pregnant with DS (cat has since passed away). DS only had one extra arm when he was born. That was easy to take care of.

Seriously, though. Unless you're eating cat shit or sitting there inhaling the poo dust, chances are you're not going to get toxoplasmosis. Actually, chances are you've already had it if you've had cats for a while.

My MW and OB both told me just to wash my hands thoroughly after cleaning out the box.

argonne · December 2013

MalLanning said:
My OB told me heck no on the litter! He went as far as saying if I didn't have anyone else who could do it to get rid of my kitties..DH Does it happily every day. :-)

Wow. What an overeactive OB. Get rid of your cat?! Really!?

JKGordon · December 2013

"Do you have cats?" was my OBs first question when going over things to stay away from/do in moderation.

The safest course of action is to stick with dogs. (-:

iris427 · December 2013

We don't have cats anymore, but we did in my first two pregnancies. I made my husband change the litter, except for a few times where it really needed changing and he wasn't around. The risk is small if your cats are indoors and you've had them awhile but 1) congenital toxoplasmosis can be serious, and 2) an excuse not to change cat litter for 9 months sounds good to me. Toxoplasmosis freaks me out--parasite-filled cysts in your body for life? Shudder.

HokieLaw · December 2013

My OB said to wear gloves and try to limit the breathing in of the litter while doing it (so to use a mask if I had one). He also said to wash hands immediately which I thought was a no brainer.

this+gamer+chick · December 2013

Even if you feel comfortable emptying the litter box and have an indoor cat, there's nothing wrong with going by what your doc says and milking it so your SO has to do it. One of the few benefits to being pg! Just saying...

cuntasaurusrex · December 2013

One of DH's conditions when I wanted cats was that I had to do the litter. Now that I'm pregnant he's finally changing the box for the first time in his life, and I am gleefully letting this happen for as long as I can get away with it. You all better keep your mouths shut

JEChester · December 2013

I thought being pregnant was our free pass for not cleaning the kitty box! Dear lord I hope my husband doesn't find this info out!

TugboatSheila · December 2013

I had put a call into my OB after the podcast and they said it was fine if I had to do it but it was preferable if someone else could do it.

jamboree jess · December 2013

My nurse educator said no to cleaning the litter box, and she even said that I should always wash my hands after petting the cat.(yeah, right)

alyssa719 · December 2013

They say you're supposed to wash your hands after petting your cat/dog normally, and especially before eating. I'm also pretty sure that you're not supposed to mouth kiss them.

cakebatter27 · December 2013

The very first thing my doctor asked was if we have cats and said DH must change the litter. I'd refuse. DH is doing it or no cats inside.

cuntasaurusrex · December 2013

alyssa719 said:

They say you're supposed to wash your hands after petting your cat/dog normally, and especially before eating. I'm also pretty sure that you're not supposed to mouth kiss them.

Fair enough. However, the only way to ensure the litter box is clean is to give it a through licking.

coachg · December 2013

My husband didn't have a choice, lol. I figure if I am the one who gets to go through all the physical fun and sacrifices, then the least he can do is take care of the litter for a year. I feed the cats every day, so it's all good. He's actually happy to do it

TugboatSheila · December 2013

aliletz said:

alyssa719 said:

They say you're supposed to wash your hands after petting your cat/dog normally, and especially before eating. I'm also pretty sure that you're not supposed to mouth kiss them.

Fair enough. However, the only way to ensure the litter box is clean is to give it a through licking.

I keep picturing this and laughing to myself.

)

thecatsmeow1972 · December 2013

My OB said no to changing kitty litter even though the risk is really low especially with indoor cats who do not hunt for their food. The vet said one is more likely to get toxoplasmosis from eating contaminated meat than cat litter. And I guess they can test cats for it as well

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