Cats are finicky about maintaining a routine in whatever they do. They hardly like any change. More so, if it is drastic and would affect their schedule and the attention they get from their owners. For instance, introducing a new family member can certainly affect your cat. Therefore, it is important that you train your kitty months in advance when you are still pregnant. This way she will acclimatize to the changes and the new living situations easily, once the baby arrives. In order to make this transition smooth for you and your kitty, follow these tips that are certainly best to make her accustomed.
5 Ways To Prepare Your Kitty For A New Baby
- Introduce A New Schedule And Maintain Consistency
The arrival of a baby will consume more of your time in taking care of him. It will also change the time you used to feed your kitty and do other chores like scooping, etc. So, it would be better if you introduce the schedule in advance, and gradually. However, make sure you maintain the consistency of the timings once the change has already been brought. It shouldn’t vary thereafter.
- Keep Your Kitty Indoors While You Are Pregnant
This restriction is just to safeguard you and your new baby. Keeping the kitty indoors will restrain her from contacting the neighborhood kitties which will ensure that she doesn’t contract any kinda parasitic infection from them.
- Move The Litter Box Inches Away From The Baby’s To-Be Nursery
This tip is for people who have the litter box kept at the place that is going to be a nursery. If the litter box is there, shift it from that area a little every day towards its future location and replace the old location with some heavy object. This change should be brought gradually. Do not shift it right away else she would spoil the old location.
- Do Not Give Extra Attention
When you give extra attention to your cat, they expect you to be the same all the time, which won’t be possible when the baby arrives. Therefore, give only that much attention which is sufficient. Anything extra would be taken as an expectation and would annoy your kitty if you change the spotlight to the new baby. Do not caress or cuddle her too much when you are pregnant.
- Introduce Kitty To The New Nursery, Baby Smells, And Laughter
Once you have decorated your nursery for the baby’s arrival, let your cat have a look at the new room at least once a day. Simultaneously, play videos with baby laughing in it. This way she will get accustomed to the voice of your baby. Other than that, rub some baby oil to your body so your kitty gets comfortable with the smell of the babies.
Training the cat will help you ward off unnecessary attention as to how your kitty will react after the baby arrives. And moreover, proper training will also ensure that she doesn’t get annoyed when the attention is shifted from her. If at all she seems anxious and bothered once you have delivered and brought the baby home, calm her down with anxiety releasing treatment.
The arrival of a baby is definitely exhilarating for the family and consumes most of the parents’ time, but do make sure to take good care of your pet kid as well. All her supplies and routine must not be disturbed when the change has already been incorporated.
