tell me about how your dogs reacted

[newmama8824]

I have a dog who I love dearly and I am fearful of what might happen when baby comes... As in I don't want him to think I don't like him anymore...


Any stories/advice/experience would be wonderful~~~

[turtlewomyn]

We have two greyhounds. They have adjusted fairly well to our DD (who is now two). She is just another pack member. They have acted out in some ways (peeing on the floor for a while) and I do feel that they don't get as much attention as they used to. We try to make sure we go on family walks on a regular basis so that they can be included.
There are a couple good books on the subject:
Childproofing your Dog
Dogproofing your Child (hard to find, it was recommended to me by the greyhound adoption agency, but I have never found it).

I think the key is to make sure the dogs realize that the child is a good thing, and also teach the child to respect the animals. There is always that chasing grabbing phase as the child becomes aware of the animals, it is up to you to keep on the child and teach them to be gentle. Our two year old is great with animals because of this.

[SublimeBirthGirl]

I was a huge dog person before I had kids, and now I wish they would all run away. People told me that would happen but I didn't believe them!

I have 3 and all have adjusted differently to the kids. My doberman's great. My sheltie avoids them, and my catahoula mix lives a constant wary, unhappy life that makes me sad when I stop to think about it.

[Violet2]

Ours were fine, but we have labs which tend to be kid friendly.

Mostly we just tried to keep their day-to-day life the same so essentially nothing changed for them.

We also didn't introduce the baby to them. I know this goes against the 'experts' but there is no real reason,imo, for the dogs to know the baby right away. What they need to know is they aren't allowed to touch and that's been made very clear and so they generally ignored the baby.

Now that she's older, they pay more attention.

My black lab is becoming protective of the baby. It's cute to watch. Just this morning I was trying to pump after BFing and the LO was upset and crying in her bouncy seat and my black lab came out to comfort her before I could get to her.

The yellow lab is a big klutz so he stays in the basement during the day, as usual. He does want to snuffle the baby, but I don't trust him as he often doesn't know his own strength.

As for time for the dogs,it's hard b/c I'm so busy with the baby. But I give them lots of verbal praise and my black lab has figured out if she sits next to me while we nurse that I'll pet her. We also bought them some new toys.

Also these dogs are my responsibility and I take that very seriously. They are innocents who need love and nurturing and I committed to providing that when I adopted them.

V

[salt_phoenix]

My dog was great at my last birth. I think it will depend on your relationship with the dog(s) and the dogs temperment.

There was a recent discussion HERE on the subject, including my response in more detail.

[ShadowMoon]

We have a 3 yo. female staffordshire/american pit bull mix. When I went into labor at home, she refused to leave my side. She would follow me everywhere..it was almost like she *knew* what was going on. After I had the baby in the hospital, dp brought the baby hat and a blanket home for her to smell a day before I went back home. She smelled it and got very excited...running all over the apartment, etc. When i got home, all she wanted to do was smell the baby and smel me. The first few days she was very whiney and vocal..mostly because we were spending so much time and energy on the baby and not on her. After the first few weeks she had quieted down and her behaviors began to change completely. She has always been hyper and a bit of a spaz but around the baby she is incredibly gentle and sweet. She used to consider dp the "alpha" dog of the pack but after the baby it seems that I have now taken on that role. She loves the baby and will stay with him at all times. They really have become the best of friends, I've never felt uncomfortable with her and the baby together. She's my nanny dog! (they are always supervised of course)

The most important thing is to make sure you give your dog enough attention after the baby comes and to always keep an eye on them around the baby. It's hard to do in the beginning but it pays off in the end. At least it did with us Good luck!

[wetcement101]

This is on my mind, too. My friend's dog fell into a deep depression when they had a baby because everyone paid attention to the baby and ignored the dog. I really like the comment posted above about keeping the dogs schedule as much as possible, and not letting the dog get too close to an infant. We are enlisting help from neighbors to make sure our pooch gets some lovin' & exercise for the first week so we can focus on baby. My dog has treated me differently since I've been pregnant. He sniffs my crotch a lot (gee, thanks) is gentler on walks, and won't leave my side when we are alone in the house. Hoping he will be more protective than jealous of baby...

A friend carried a doll baby for three wks before her due date and found this helpful in conditioning her JRT. He attacked the doll, she spanked him, no problems again.

[momasana]

I was worried about how our 3 pups would adjust to the baby. We have a greyhound, a pitbull mix, and a basenji mix. My ds is now 4.5 months and the pups have adjusted just fine. Taking one of the dogs for a walk is the perfect way to spend time with them, catch a mommy-break, and get a little exercise.

[phoebemommy]

Our pit/boxer mix looooooves ds, and has since he first met him. The morning after he was born (homebirth) when he first really cried loudly, the dog rushed over all concerned, like he wanted to help. Then, for a long time, he was very licky and sniffy around ds, and always checking to make sure we still had him when we'd come home from somewhere.

He did get kind of neglected for the first year, but I think he understood why. And he was so interested in ds he didn't seem to notice that ds had replaced him.