Can you have a cat at home when you are preparing for pregnancy?

Pregnant women are not recommended to keep cats during pregnancy preparation to avoid affecting their own health and the health of the fetus after pregnancy. Cats can carry bacteria and viruses such as Toxoplasma gondii in their feces. Toxoplasma gondii is one of the major teratogenic intrauterine infections during pregnancy and can be zoonotic. Frequent contact with cats and their feces during pregnancy preparation can have a negative impact on conception. If a woman is infected with Toxoplasma gondii, it can be transmitted to the fetus through the placenta and contaminate the amniotic fluid and enter the fetus’ gastrointestinal tract, causing intrauterine infection and affecting the normal development of the fetus, which can cause fetal malformation in serious cases. For those who want to prepare for pregnancy and have cats at home, it is recommended to avoid too close contact with pets and try not to touch pet feces, clean and disinfect the home carefully, and temporarily board the pets elsewhere if possible. Before pregnancy, you need to go to the hospital to have blood test for Toxoplasma gondii infection. If Toxoplasma gondii infection is present, a professional doctor’s advice, combined with other relevant tests, can be taken to decide whether the pregnancy needs to be terminated for the purpose of eugenic reproduction. In addition, in addition to cats, dogs, rabbits and other pets should also be taken into consideration for women preparing for pregnancy. Avoiding animals that carry the toxoplasmosis virus can effectively avoid the above-mentioned risks.