Cat is positive with toxoplasmosis

Ash115 · May 2015

We just found out our cat has tested positive for the parasite & I'm kind of freaking out a bit! She was previously an outdoor cat but is now indoors in this tiny apartment we had to move into while our new house is being remodeled (why we had her tested in the first place seeing as her litter box is right near our living area now & she's tracking litter around). I know not to change the litter & my husband has been good about keeping up with it & she's also being treated with an antibiotic, plus I've been vacuuming like crazy! But when I spoke with my midwife about having blood drawn to test for immunity she completely blew me off & told me it wasn't necessary! She said I would have miscarried earlier on in my pregnancy & even if I have it currently there's nothing she could do for it! What?!? I'm 17 weeks & from what I've read doing research is that the chance of passing it to baby rises during 2nd & 3rd trimesters. Am I crazy to be this concerned about it & feel like I need to get a second opinion?! Has anyone else had a positive cat while pregnant? Thanks in advance! & sorry for the long post!

Laurakat81 · May 2015

I'd get a second opinion from a MD. Midwives are not experts in infectious diseases/parasites.

Ash115 · May 2015

She told me she talked with the high risk OB and he said it's not necessary to do anything....blew my mind but what do I know lol I actually contacted my primary physician & just heard back finally. She is willing to do the blood work for me so we will see!

AshleeM7784 · May 2015

I'm so sorry you're dealing with this! I don't have personal experience with it but I have thought about it since we have a cat (though I have not had her tested). I would consider it a good sign that your midwife doesn't seem overly concerned. Also I'm sure there are lots of people in your same situation who don't even know it (haven't tested the cat) and things turn out just fine. That said, in your shoes I would probably look for a second opinion and/or see if a family member of friend could take your cat until the reno is done/baby is born. Hope it all turns out ok!

MargaretC5 · May 2015

I have volunteered at a cat shelter for 10 years so my dr tested me for the antobodies. She said if you have the antobodies you are all set and do not have to worry about your LO. To her surprise I did not have the antobodies. She still was not really concerned, just told he to continue to be extra careful when eating around the cats. And of course no litter boxes. I continued to volunteer thru my first pregnancy and this one. So long as you are aware of it and make sure to wash your hands before eating you should be ok.
If it was me I would follow up with your dr on the blood work so you know if you had the antobodies or not.

cbolton19 · May 2015

Like the previous poster, you may already have the antibodies if you have been around cats before you got pregnant. I have grown up around cats and we have 2 currently. My parents also had cats when they my mom was pregnant with me and my siblings. I haven't touched the litter since we started trying as a precaution, but other than that we have done everything else the same as usual. I still love on my kitties. When I mentioned we had cats, my midwife wasn't worried. If your midwife isn't worried, I wouldn't be either, but if you are still anxious about it, it may help you to talk to someone else. Do what you need to feel better!

Edit: better wording.

katrinasmith17 · May 2015

I think your midwife is misinformed , you can get toxo at anytime - it's in the feces . As long as it's not you cleaning the poop - your risk is low. Also because the kitty is being treated , your risk is even lower . I work at a vet so my doctor tested me for it automatically . You should find a doctor to test you , it's just a simple blood test , and if by chance you are positive - they can take precautions and start treating you. Also the veterinarian I work with says that the poop needs to be sitting in the litter box for more than 24 hours before you can get toxoplasmosis. If it's cleaned right away, the risk is low as well. Good luck !!!!!

DrMommaDVM · May 2015

OP you need to speak with someone who went to medical school regarding your risk and what testing you should have done.

I'm also curious how did your vet diagnose toxo? Fecal sample or antibody titers (blood sample)? Was the cat sick or was it found just on routine screening? Because it's not always an easy thing to diagnose. If by fecal sample, several parasites are very similar in appearance and difficult to differentiate by just looking at them.

Also @katrinasmith17 is correct the feces needs to sit for 24 hrs before the parasite becomes infective.

AnnamariauDoris · May 2015

I told my OB that i don't own cat's so i don't worry about toxo...he just flat out told me: you can also get it from unwashed fruits and vegetables. My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets...

poupoule · May 2015

So in france, if you are negative, they test you every 4 weeks for it. You can catch it from raw meat, dirt/earth, cat litter.

So any badly washed vegetable can have some.

I am negative and they tested me, at my request, when I was 6 weeks. And I have been careful since.

You should definitely insist and talk to a Ob/Gyn about it.

Usually they are not worried about catching it through dirt here because the earth is so treated that there is really almost no chance to catch it like that, same thing for the meat.

So your cat is the most dangerous thing in your life right now. IF you had tested negative prior to your pregnancy, I would totally panick. Can you give it to a friend to foster until the end of your pregnancy ?

But there is a lot of chance that you caught it alrteady, prior to being pregnant if you have had your kitty for a while, and in that case, there is no reason to worry, you are immune. My ob/gyn in france had tested me in 2013, and I had tested negative, which meant it was an issue if I was getting pregnant because we had to monitor it every 4 weeks. BUT if I had been positive, it would not have been an issue.

I hope I bring some enlightment. You have big chances to have been positive before getting pregnant, right ?

courtney198078 · May 2015

I'm lurking but is your cat actually showing symptoms of toxo? I'm a Licensed Vet Tech and all cats shed toxo in their feces at some point so anyone that owns cats is at a slight risk that's why they tell you not to scoop the cat litter. Unless your cat is actively sick and showing symptoms then you should be fine. I hope this eases your mind I don't think you should worry about it.

violetigerlily · May 2015

The CDC actually has a nice compact webpage about this for anyone who is interested : https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/toxoplasmosis/gen_info/faqs.html

It has a lot of information about all the other ways people get toxoplasma (I think it's actually more common to get it from undercooked meat or from the soil) and gives nice instructions for living with a cat while pregnant. It also notes at the very bottom that cats only spread the parasite to people in the first few weeks after they've been infected (though they like people will always have it once infected--and will test positive in some types of tests even if they aren't shedding), so if your cat was infected before you got pregnant you're probably at a lower risk thank you thought (although obviously still use precautions). We never tested our cats but since one was a stray I wouldn't be surprised if he was exposed before we got him. I just steer clear of the litterbox and am not too worried. Let us know if your doctor says anything different though. Obviously doctors know more than we do about this kind of thing.

Glad you found a doctor that was willing to talk to you and test you for this. I hope everything works out ok!

Ash115 · May 2015

Thank you all for your input! To answer a few questions.....
We have had our cat for 4 years & she has always been indoor/outdoor cat until recently moving into an apartment when we made her indoors only for the next few months of being here. We had asked the vet to test her since she has always hunted mice/birds but is now strictly inside with us & me being pregnant. It was a fecal test which I questioned the accuracy after reading it can be misread. The vet (even though she says she's unsure how she's actively shedding the parasite since she's been indoors over a month) assured me the vet tech who read the smear saw "toxoplasmosis" & has started her on clindamycin for 2 weeks. I also questioned the antibodies to be drawn on my cat & she said it wasn't necessary. Ive also grown up around indoor/outdoor cats so I'm hoping I already have antibodies to this. I agree, my midwife is definitely misinformed so I contacted my primary MD & she ordered the lab work for me & I had that drawn this afternoon...I should know in 3-5 days. I am thankful this midwife is actually leaving next month so I won't have to go through her in the future & have had a wonderful experience with my last pregnancy with the other midwives in the office. I'm hoping I'm immune & if not I'm hoping the other midwives will have some better insight on where to go from here.

Ash115 · May 2015

**I should add....I'm thinking of getting a second opinion from another vet as well. Not sure if that's necessary but I'm worried that my cat may have some other sort of parasite that maybe they misread during the testing & want to be sure we are treating her properly. Especially since the vet kept saying how she was confused that she just now has this infection & is shedding it, kinda left me feeling uneasy. I too, read that they only shed it during the first few weeks after initial infection.....it's ironic she would just now become infected after 4 years of hunting.

courtney198078 · May 2015

Ash115 said:
**I should add....I'm thinking of getting a second opinion from another vet as well. Not sure if that's necessary but I'm worried that my cat may have some other sort of parasite that maybe they misread during the testing & want to be sure we are treating her properly. Especially since the vet kept saying how she was confused that she just now has this infection & is shedding it, kinda left me feeling uneasy. I too, read that they only shed it during the first few weeks after initial infection.....it's ironic she would just now become infected after 4 years of hunting.

I think this may be a good idea. Sounds like some misinformation somewhere. I don't believe toxo can be seen in a fecal exam. Other parasites can be but toxo is usually tested with blood tests. I may be wrong but I have been in this field for a very long time and we have never checked for toxo through a fecal exam so a second opinion may be a good idea!!

DrMommaDVM · May 2015

Ash115 said:
Thank you all for your input! To answer a few questions.....
We have had our cat for 4 years & she has always been indoor/outdoor cat until recently moving into an apartment when we made her indoors only for the next few months of being here. We had asked the vet to test her since she has always hunted mice/birds but is now strictly inside with us & me being pregnant. It was a fecal test which I questioned the accuracy after reading it can be misread. The vet (even though she says she's unsure how she's actively shedding the parasite since she's been indoors over a month) assured me the vet tech who read the smear saw "toxoplasmosis" & has started her on clindamycin for 2 weeks. I also questioned the antibodies to be drawn on my cat & she said it wasn't necessary. Ive also grown up around indoor/outdoor cats so I'm hoping I already have antibodies to this. I agree, my midwife is definitely misinformed so I contacted my primary MD & she ordered the lab work for me & I had that drawn this afternoon...I should know in 3-5 days. I am thankful this midwife is actually leaving next month so I won't have to go through her in the future & have had a wonderful experience with my last pregnancy with the other midwives in the office. I'm hoping I'm immune & if not I'm hoping the other midwives will have some better insight on where to go from here.

Yep. It's difficult without knowing all of the details but this is just not making a whole lot of sense to me for a number of reasons, and I agree you should definitely seek an additional veterinary opinion.

Sounds like you're on the right track with the MD as well. Good luck!

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