New baby and dog

XxXciaraxXx

Hi all, just looking for a bit of advice from people that have/are in the same situation!

We are expecting our first baby in 6 weeks and have a 2 year old JRT bitch! She is an indoor dog and is very attached to us! I'm just wondering if any of ye have been in this situation and how did ye make it an easy transition for the dog to get used to the new arrival?

My 1st instinct when we found out i was pregnant was that my OH is gonna bring home a baby grow or blanket that the baby has slept in while I'm in hospital so the dog can get used to the scent! I have no intention of changing her routine dramatically, I know there'll be little changes, or no intention of getting rid of her or making her an outdoor dog all of a sudden! Just any little bit of advice would help because all I'm hearing, from people that don't have/arent very fond of animals, is 'oh you'll have to get rid of her, put her outside, she'll get very jealous and snap at baby'!

Any info/advice from people that have gone through this is very much appreciated!

kylith

You can get cds of various noises, including babies crying. I know a few people who used it to train their dog to a) accept the noise and b) to go to their bed/crate when they hear it. They did this by starting the cd and throwing food into the dog's bed, this way the dog learns that when they hear a crying baby it's the cue for food appearing in their bed. This means that the dog doesn't bark when the baby cries, and automatically takes itself out of the way too.

mymo

My family had dogs before babies and never a problem, I think its good to start preparing now though. Set up a few rules that may help, and bring in baby stuff(cot, pram, etc) before baby.
Do you know any friends with babies? maybe get them to call in so dog can see and hear a baby, give it a chance to get used to the noise especially, as I think thats what effects them most.
Best of luck and congratulations:)

XxXciaraxXx

kylith wrote: »

You can get cds of various noises, including babies crying. I know a few people who used it to train their dog to a) accept the noise and b) to go to their bed/crate when they hear it. They did this by starting the cd and throwing food into the dog's bed, this way the dog learns that when they hear a crying baby it's the cue for food appearing in their bed. This means that the dog doesn't bark when the baby cries, and automatically takes itself out of the way too.

Never heard of those kinda CDs! Thanks for that, well definitely look into it!

mymo wrote: »

My family had dogs before babies and never a problem, I think its good to start preparing now though. Set up a few rules that may help, and bring in baby stuff(cot, pram, etc) before baby.
Do you know any friends with babies? maybe get them to call in so dog can see and hear a baby, give it a chance to get used to the noise especially, as I think thats what effects them most.
Best of luck and congratulations:)

All baby stuff is in the house where it is going to be and she is very much used to them thank god! Unfortunately my friends that have kids won't let the dog near them! Not just my dog but any animal in general which I find very unfortunate!

mymo

Unfortunately my friends that have kids won't let the dog near them! Not just my dog but any animal in general which I find very unfortunate![/QUOTE]

I know, its a shame, growing up with a house full of pets is great for kids. My daughter grew up around pets and everyone comments on how considerate she is of small children and animals, I honestly think its due to learning at an early age about caring for pets.
Maybe try the cds, bring the dog to the park past the playground at busy times etc.
But if the dog is well trained I don't think you'll have any problems. My grannies dog slept under the pram when we were all babies, we all learning to walk, held on to him at some stage and played football with him etc. He was 2 when the first granchild arrived and we had 16 great years with him, and the numerous other dogs, cats, rabbits, guineas, gerbils, rats.....I think you get the picture:D Only ever had one bite in the family and that was from an angry rabbit.
Don't get me wrong, we were never left alone or allowed to do anything to hurt any of the animals, but they were always a part of our lives.

TooManyDogs

I have 6 dogs and had my first baby in Feb so was in the same boat.

Personally I didn't bother with cd's, I think the sound would have driven me nuts! I worked mainly on training. I re-enforced all their basic obedience, particularily the 'leave it' command. I was stricter with them that they weren't allowed on the sofa without invitation and that 'get off' command was obeyed straight away. I worked hard on their lead training so they didn't pull me at all. When I came home from the hospital I kept a wide distance between them and the baby (I saw how much distance my foster dogs demanded for their newborn pups and that there was no jealousy/resentment because of it). One of my dogs used to stare at the baby in the first few weeks which made me uncomfortable so as soon as she started staring I'd put her out of the room, she could come back in when she was relaxed again.

I don't allow them in the baby's room, again you could start that now so it's not a big change. I walk them all with the buggy so now they think the buggy is fantastic! I keep treats in my change bag so if they're nice and calm while I'm changing her and stay in their beds then they get a treat.

All your neighbours/friends and family will be offering to help you, if they do then hand them the dog leads! Believe me you won't have energy to do the laundry never mind walking the dogs. If you can keep the dogs tired in the first month or so until you get your energy back it'll make your difference to your patience and it will make it easier for your dogs to accept the changes in routine with people visiting etc.

Good luck with it!

mymo

Definitely keep the dog tired, I had a great teenage neighbour who walked the dog daily for me for free....apparently dog was a babe magnet:D
Also try not to scold the dog, but praise the good more than ever.

boardbrowser

great book for practical advice and how to obedience and management exercises. 'happy kids, happy dogs' by Barbara Schumannfang- available from www.dogwise.com

CreedonsDogDayc

Great advice there from Too Many Dogs.

Id also suggest that when the hullabaloo dies down on day one, let the dog have a good sniff of the baby (when the baby is asleep). Have your partner hold the end of the dogs lead, have her sit, then being the babies bum down to her level and let her have a really good sniff until she's bored.

My jack russell is obsessed with my sisters 3.5 month baby, and was since day one, so you'll have to manage things carefully, they can be quite obsessive dogs. But all the advice here is very good, and its great that you're putting a plan together now.

My sisters CKC isn't too fussed about the baby, was very curious at the start, but now just gives her a few licks and leaves her be.

Definitely teach the dog not to jump up on furniture anymore though.


One of the problems with dogs and babies i find, is dogs are usually very obsessed about things our of reach up in your arms, thats why its never recommended to pick up your dog when passing another.
When the baby is up in your arms, the dog will try to get to it and become vey excited, so when the dog is calm or sits on command, bring the baby down to their level as much as possible (obviously when safe to do so!).

Best of luck with the new baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Vel

Can't really add to any of the good advice given. We didn't bother with the cd's either as I think each individiual cry is different so while they may become used to the sounds on the cd, they may react differently once the crying is coming from within the room.

I will say, don't panic too much at your dog's initial reaction. When we brought our 18 month old home after he was born, our 2 dogs at the time reacted quite strongly to the crying. The ears went up, there was crying and they were searching the room for the noise. I was really tired and hormonal and a bit worried about their reaction but after a few hours they settled and were fine! We now have a 13 day old baby aswell and none of the dogs even batted an eyelid when she arrived in screaming the house down.

I think someone else mentioned that if you plan to stop them from going into certain rooms once baby arrives do it now rather than once baby is here so they are used to it. Also, you are eventually going to be putting baby gates up once little one is more mobile, so I would recommend you do that in the next few months to get the dog used to it. We have an open plan living room/kitchen area and have a massive baby gate across it. When our toddler is up and downstairs, the dogs spend time on their beds in the kitchen with the gate shut but once he has gone to bed we open the gate and let them have free run of the room.

I think another important thing, as hard as it can be in the early days is to try to stick to the dog's routine as much as possible so they don't become too unsettled.

Good luck with baby and let us know how you get on

Deeanimallover

XxXciaraxXx wrote: »

I have no intention of changing her routine dramatically, I know there'll be little changes, or no intention of getting rid of her or making her an outdoor dog all of a sudden!

Just wanted to say thats so refreshing to hear

I havent kids yet but soon hopefully and have 3 cats and 2 big dogs and thats all I hear aswell "oh sure you'll HAVE to get rid of them all when u have a baby" :mad::mad::mad::mad: Its so ignorant, I will love all my pets as much as I love them now when/if I have a baby. We all grew up with lots of animals too so could never imagine raising my kids without animals either.

Oh and best of luck with the new arrival

Jinxi

XxXciaraxXx wrote: »

I have no intention of changing her routine dramatically, I know there'll be little changes,

Without being harsh, your routine with the dog is going to be the last of your worries.
As someone said, get someone else to walk her for the first few weeks etc. You guys will be too busy eating changing and sleeping. Although, when my brother-in-law loved having the dog to walk as a bit of alone baby-free time. If your partner is going to work, it might be a good idea to alter the routine now to a walk after he comes in from work etc.
The jealous dog thing only occurs when a dog is not already sure that she is the lowest on the totem pole in the house.
Also, within months the baby will need on the floor time with a baby gym etc, so it may be a good idea to buy a baby blanket and train the dog to avoid it at all costs.
Other wise the whole initial introduction avise is good.
Let us know how you get on, because this is an adventure my partner and I will be getting into shortly:D