When I was pregnant with my youngest son, I was nervous about how our dog, Katie, how she would handle a young baby around the house. She has been a member of our family for several years and was used to being an only dog. In fact, I was afraid that when my baby started being mobile that he would attempt to pull her tail. Once he was born, I used the techniques that most dog trainers use and slowly introduced her to the baby. A few months later we got a second dog so that my youngest would have a buddy growing up. As soon as my youngest son was old enough to pet the dogs, we showed him how to gently pet them so that he could understand that they are friendly. This worked out great and for the most part the dogs get along great with my toddler.
Pets are usually very tolerant and enjoy playing with the children. Diana Smith wanted to share with you some tips on how to ensure that your dog and baby bond. She has some great ideas and I hope you enjoy her tips.
Arrival of a newborn baby in a home with a dog is not a problem but there is some stuff that needs to be done in order to maintain the household harmony. Keep on nurturing your dog regularly, the only thing you can change is brushing and cleaning your dog more often.
Keep your Place Clean
Even if your baby is small, especially when it begins to crawl, the dog should be brushed regularly and his paws should be cleaned after a walk. Keeping you place clean is the priority number one when the baby arrives so it is very important to vacuum the dogs sleeping place. Make sure you don’t have stuff that your dog can knock over while playing in your house. When cleaning you floors do not use strong chemicals that can be dangerous to your baby’s skin. It is wise to restrict your dog from jumping on the furniture before your baby comes around. Put a pet bed near so your dog doesn’t feel less important because of the new family member.
Start New Habits Before the Baby Arrives
Bringing a baby home usually means less attention for the dog so it is necessary to remember to pay attention to the dog even if its only for a few minutes a day. It would be wise to accustom your dog to new habits by reducing the number of walks and making them shorter. Try pulling his tail or his ears when he does something wrong and rewarding him if his reactions are good. You can apply different methods to prepare the dog for the arrival of your baby depending on the nature of your dog. Bring used diapers of your newborn child from the hospital or play a recorded baby cry sound from your computer. If you plan to restrict the dog’s access to the baby’s room it is important to do it before the baby comes so the dog doesn’t focus his dissatisfaction on a new family member.
Comments
2 responses to “How to Ensure Your Dog & Baby Bond”
I have no children but back when I had dogs plenty of my friends had infants who turned into toddlers etc etc. My dogs had no problem at all adjusting to these sometimes visitors and protected them as if they were their puppies! One of my dogs actually taught the neighborhood kids how to treat dogs–she would not allow them to pet her (talk fluffy white Eskimo spitz here)-until they sat on the ground quietly. Those kids learned pretty quickly!
That is so cool that a dog was able to teach the children. I think animals are a great partner for kids. I know that my youngest son loves our dogs. I have taught him how to pet them gently and will have to remind him when the dogs are letting him know that they are done playing.