By Mike Tattersall

When adopting a cat with toxoplasmosis, you should research the disease and then decide if the animal will be okay around the people who live in your house. The disease can affect all humans, but pregnant women are the most vulnerable. If contracted by a pregnant woman, toxoplasmosis can cause severe birth defects or even a miscarriage.

Toxoplasmosis is caused by a protozoan known as toxoplasma gondii. If is a parasite infection that can affect most mammals, even humans, but is most common in cats. Cats are the only known host that the parasite is able to reproduce in. They become infected with the disease by eating prey that has the parasite and then shed eggs, also known as oocysts, when they use the litter box. This is how most humans contract the disease from cats, although in most cases they get it from eating undercooked meat.

When adopting a cat from the shelter, there are some symptoms you can look for. The cat can be lethargic and very inactive, a fever, and a loss of appetite may occur. More severe symptoms can include irritation of the eyes, pneumonia, diarrhea, vomiting, and inflammation of the liver. Signs of liver inflammation may include jaundice (a yellowing of eyes and skin), weight loss, increased water intake, and increased urination. If you find out that the cat you adopt has toxoplasmosis, there are treatments available. Most veterinarians will prescribe one of the following antibiotics: Clindamycin, Pyriemethamine, or Sulfadiazine. The medicines will take a few days to work depending on how severe the infection is, and how long the cat has had it.

You can still adopt the cat even if you have a pregnant woman in your house, but there are some precautions that should be taken. Since the eggs are shed into the litter box, a healthy person should clean the it instead. You should scoop the litter box as often as possible and clean with a mild detergent or bleach every couple days. Also place the litter box in an area in your house which gets the least traffic throughout the day to keep contact with it to a minimum. Wash your hands every time you pet, groom, or handle the cat so the spread of germs is minimal. If possible, do not let your cat out to hunt, and keep all sandboxes covered so the cat can't contaminate it.

If infected, there symptoms you can look for, but many people mistake them for other diseases such as the flu, glandular disease or mononucleosis. Some moderate symptoms you will show are fever, body aches, headaches, and fatigue while the more severe symptoms are seizures, loss of coordination, confusion, jaundice, and pneumonia like lung problems.