Hi when I was pregnant I had many cats, I have never been told it was bad to have them or that it would hurt me or my child, yes the only thing you can not do is change or clean the litter, something with the urine or feces in the litter is very harmful to your child, relax your ok

Actually cats carrry a disease called toxomaplasma (may not be spelt right).Anyway it is carried in their faeces.When they go in their litter box,tthere paws are standing in there poo.This gets trapped under the nails.If your cat is climbing and walking on work tops then I would say it is vital you disinfect your surfaces,and do not touch their litter box xx

Hi
i am pregnant and have 5 cats. The only thing I don't do is change their litter tray or do any gardening in case their faeces is in the soil. As cats lick themselves in theory they could be contaminated anywhere so even handling them may pose a risk but it is unlikely. Not all cats carry toxoplasmosis and if you ahve been in contact with cats over the years before getting pregnant it's likely you may have been infected before and are therefore now immune. Just make sure you wash your hands after you have been handling your cat but do not get obsessive! The likelihood is that your cat poses no risk to you whatsoever and as there are so many things to worry about in pregnancy anyway, I wouldn't waste time worrying about this. Just take basic precautions of washing your hands regularly and get your partner to always do the litter-tray!
Jane

We had a post on this topic a while back and there were a lot of facts in it.

Like the above post said, if you have had cats before and have changed their litter box at all then you already have that toxi.......Thing....It is only dangerous if you get subjected to it for the first time while pregnant.
Chances are that is not going to happen.
The article said that this toxi.....Thing doesn't even develop until the cat's poo sits for two to three days. So, if you change the litter daily, no worries. But, still use gloves and wash your hands directly after changing. But if at all possible, just have someone else change the litter.

Cats do step into their litter box, but with as much as they groom, I seriously doubt that you will get it from your cat. But, better safe than sorry.

Ok alot of toxoplasmosis talk but not another concern that I experienced 1st hand. Eight months pregnant my first child, I had a cat who was a housecat. Well, one fact I didn't know about cats, is that when they escape out side - the way they use their nails to sift through unmentionables (feces, carcasses . . .Etc..) other lovely things attach themselves to them and come inside, uninvited! I found out the hard way, that because your immune system is so different when you are pregnant you are very prone to such things as feline carried ringworm. Oh yes, the cat didn't get it....Nor my husband, but within 2 days my entire belly was covered, along with parts of my arms, hands and face...All the places he loved to "snuggle". This was awful, not to mention horribly embarrassing for someone known to shower 2x a day and scrub the floor on my knees frequently!

Oh my goodness. That is horrible!

The main risk is toxoplasmosis.
If you have been around cats before getting pregnant chances are you have already contracted toxoplasmosis and are now immune to it.
However if you become infected for the first time in pregnancy it can be fatal to the unborn child (in worst cases). There is a blood test available but this is only useful if you have a before and after becoming pregnant test as it only tells if you have anti-bodies not when they developed. So if your first test was after you became pregnant there is no way of knowing of you already had them or if you became infected after you got pregnant.
There are also a few other things to watch out for:
ringworm (as stated - but this can also be a risk without cats and/or while not pregnant)
cat scratch fever (again also a risk when not pregnant)
allergy to flea bites (possibly more likely when pregnant due to effect on immune system but also viable when not pregnant)