Hi, I’m hoping someone can answer this. I’m a mom-to-be, and I’m trying to guage whether I’m worrying too much about our current house arrangement. With not a lot of room, we’ve put our kitty litter box directly under the platform that works as an intake vent for our air conditioner. This unit is next door to and handles the air that will go to our nursery. The cat litter box is covered (plastic dome with about a 9" by 10" opening for the cat). My mate says no big deal, I worry about ambient dust, germs, kicked up by the cat’s use and changing the box. Am I being overly fastidious? (I know new mothers are prone to extremes of nesting). Thanks for any advice
Read the warning on the container.
Mine says:
We want to remind those with suppressed immune systems and pregnant women that a parasite sometimes found in cat feces can cause toxoplasmosis. Please wash hands thoroughly after handling used cat box filler.
It looks like you as a Mom-to-be need to be careful.
Pregnant women should NOT handle cat feces or deal with litter boxes. You should be posing these questions to your OB.
Jill
Sorry, clarification, the reason I posted this to pediatricians, is because I’m wondering about the general effect of cat litter on infants. I’m aware of the risk of toxoplasmosis on me, have had myself and cat screened. (Actually, it might be this is what got me started in thinking about its hazards). I know that only future screening will keep us sure of cat’s status. In the mean time, I’m wondering about other possible hazards for baby, since I have heard newborns can be sensitive to dust in general. It does sound like both of you agree with me that a cover on the box isn’t keeping the dust from hitting the air handler. Anyone else?
[[Sorry, clarification, the reason I posted this to pediatricians, is because I’m wondering about the general effect of cat litter on infants.]]
Then I amend my earlier recommendation to encourage you to please speak to your future child’s pediatrician. He or she can search the literature and find you the latest info. on this. If s/he is not willing to do this, find another doc.
- Jill
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Here’s a link to my favorite search engine. http://www.google.com
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A Google check for “toxoplasmosis infants” reminded me that the risk from toxoplasmosis is to all homo sapiens, not just the pregnant ones. Presumably cute lil baby homo sapiens can get it, too, if they should come in contact with cat feces. The CDC on toxoplasmosis. Infants are usually infected in utero, but I don’t know enough about the life cycle of the bug to say whether or not it would be active on fecal particles being blown around your house.
Toxoplasmosis, Human Pregnancy, Infants and Cats, infants and cats - zoonotics
They’re talking about ringworm and intestinal parasites, but I don’t see why toxoplasmosis wouldn’t be included. Was me, I’d move the litter box away from the intake. Do you really want to be the “test case”, the ones responsible for the Consumer Product Safety Commission blowing the whistle? Besides, you don’t really want kitty litter dust and germs being blown all over your house, do you? 
Peg, here is another good (and brief) link about toxoplasmosis:
http://www.tica.org/vet/vet204.htm
Of course, there are other things to be concerned about besides toxo - making sure your cat is indoors-only can greatly lessen the chance that the cat will pick up something nasty to pass on to you or the new baby.
I don’t know if you should be concerned about any disease being transmitted by through the air vents - I’m pretty sure ringworm spores can be transmitted that way, but I don’t know how much risk there would be from viruses or bacteria.
Most clay-type cat litters are silica-based, and I have heard of problems (in cats, anyway) associated with inhalation of the dust - mostly pneumonia in very young kittens, or allergic reactions. You might consider changing to a different type of litter that is not clay-based - maybe something like Feline Pine, which is made of ground, pressed wood, or one of the paper-based litters.
Something that I highly recommend are the new ‘crystal’ litters. I’ve been trying it out here, and it certainly works as advertised - no dust, no urine odor, and very little feces odor, because the crystals suck much of the moisture out of the fecal matter between scoopings. It’s a little expensive for someone who, like me, has a ton of cats, but is VERY economical for a household with only one or two cats.
If you decide to try the crystal-type litter, I suggest avoiding the ‘pearls’ version - I hear that the little round beads track badly and will be scattered all over your house. The newer versions are made in irregular chunks that won’t roll if they are tracked out of the box.
Make your litter change gradually - mix some of your old litter with the crystal stuff at first, so your cat will know it is meant to be peed/pooped in! It’s very different from standard cat litter, so you want to avoid any confusion at first.
Duck Duck Goose and coosa, thanks for the helpful info and links (my cat thanks you, too, coosa)
JillGat, you’re absolutely right about consulting a professional.
it helped to get some immediate feedback and reference over the weekend from a forum my hub respects as impartial, knowledgeable (with good reason). Regards, pegosaurus
Good deal, Pegos. I totally support the sharing of anecdotes and “neighbor over the back fence” support and info. a message board like this can provide. I get nervous when people start diagnosing and treating, though! Sometimes it’s a difficult judgment call for me. Kids are gonna be immersed in germs, dust and dirt from the time they arrive. But these are good questions you’re asking. One thing I would suggest to all cat owners is to use very little “litter” in the box and clean it at least once a day. That stuff stinks!
My feeling is that consulting a professional about this is slightly extreme since the risk of toxoplasmosis is pretty low as long as you tke sensible precautions. Toxoplasmosis, cat scratch fever, allergens and tinea capitis would probably be your biggest concerns – none of these is that common.
To minimize toxo exposure during pregnancy, cook meat to greater than 150 deg, wash fruits and veg, don’t touch mucous membranes on handling uncooked meat/raw veg and wash hands after exposure, wear gloves while gardening or handling cat feces, minimize exosure to cat litter boxes and get your partner to disinfect them regularly with boiling water for 5 minutes.
[WIlson CB et al, Pediatric Infectious DIseases, 3rd ed. Phil. WB Saunders, 1992, p.2068]
Cats are a vector for the fungus infection tinea capitis. This is not very contagious and easily treated.
Cat dander is found in the 25% of US homes with a cat. Fel d I is a major contributor to allergic rhinitis and bronchial reactivity. HEPA filters and cat washing may be helpful, but in serious allergies felinectomy is the best solution.
Cat bites can be serious and should be taken to an emergency room to treat for Pasturella infection.
Cat scratch disease is a lymphadenitis caused by Bartonella.
But allergy is a much bigger concern than toxo.
Dr_Pap, MD
[[My feeling is that consulting a professional about this is slightly extreme since the risk of toxoplasmosis is pretty low as long as you tke sensible precautions.]] Dr. Pap
A mother(or father)-to-be should feel comfortable consulting with her(his)pediatrician about any and all concerns about the health of their coming baby. Calming down nervous parents-to-be is part of their job.
You’re welcome, Peg - and I just noticed that you are new here, so wanted to add a Welcome to the SDMB! Give your cat a head-rub for me.
And your post has brought to mind a question I would like to ask about colostrum and passive immunity, so I’ll be starting another thread!
Calming down parents is indeed the biggest part of the pediatricians job and I was not suggesting anyone with pressing questions should feel uncomfortable consulting a professional. However, I assure you the pediatrician is unlikely to say a lot more than has already been said. If a sick child was involved, I would obviously recommend a pediatrician. Theoretical, low probability concerns may also benefit from pediatric counsel but the need is obviously less pressing.
As many here know, I am doing a Canadian family practice residency. In Canada, this is the only form of primary care and in addition to running emergency rooms and doing low-risk deliveries, we see many, many kids. I don’t doubt that if the parent is anxious its always worth the reassurance. But I also know whereof I speak.