Practice walking with the stroller, is it weird?

michellabanana

My hubby and i walk my dogs everyday, but do you think it would be weird practice walking with them with the stroller?  It might look weird, but I just want to see if it could work... And safer to do empty, than with a tiny baby in it.  

I just know that all our neighbors will think we're crazy lol.  And what if someone comes up to see the baby...and suprise there is no baby in there lol.  I guess I could put a doll in there but that would just make it even weirder.

But I would think it would be good practice for my dogs.

Bltbear82

Sometimes I push our stroller while DS walks with DH and people always look when it's empty, but I live in a city so I can't go 2 feet without seeing someone. But do what makes you feel confident and comfortable walking the dogs while pushing. 

I practiced in our apartment pushing one handed with the leash in the other. This goes without saying, but never ever attach the leash to the stroller regardless of how big or small your dog is. 

kbrands7

If you're worried about the dogs tangling around the stroller or jumping up on it, it may be good practice for them to walk with it. Yeah, you may get some weird looks, but a quick explanation would probably suffice if you really felt like you had to explain yourself. I never practiced with the stroller because I always had DH to walk our dog while I pushed the stroller, but I did practice getting the carseat in and out of the car and stroller attachment a few times before the baby came-- and that was really helpful.

js8812

I plan to!  I would leave the stroller empty and if anyone asks just tell them that you're getting your dogs acclimated to the stroller.  We set ours up yesterday and I was pushing it around the nursery and my dog was actually a little scared of it. 

I'll probably do it a few weeks before my due date.  I don't think it will take more than a few times out for her to get used to it.

balamama

I'm a little shy about taking the stroller out of the apartment for a test run (also my doormen know the baby isn't here yet and I'd definitely have to explain myself...) but I've totally taken it for spins around the apartment and practiced folding it down and removing the bassinet, etc.

kp90

Can't be any more weird than when in the movie We're the Millers they use a bag of weed as their baby. Now that is awkward. But as others have already said, its nothing a simple explanation can't explain (not that you even owe them one) If you walk your dogs often then I think its very smart getting them accustomed to the stroller now before you actually have your LO in it.

Knottie1433777995

I just laughed out loud picturing myself walking around the neighborhood with a doll in my stroller. Haha! But it's kinda become tradition to test all of the baby stuff with my French bulldog, so it wouldn't surprise me if he ended up in the stroller at some point

LadySamLady

We are definitely going to take our dogs on a few walks with the stroller before the baby is born. We haven't put ours together yet but I think it is a good idea to try and get them used to it a little bit before their whole world changes. I'm sure we'll get some strange looks but that's okay. 

TheThornBird

I just talked with a woman the other day who did this with her dogs for a few weeks before the baby came. She said it was great for the dogs (they were terrified of the stroller at first) and good practice for her, but she warned that everyone will come up to you excited to see a baby.....and then there's no baby, and yore just a crazy lady pushing an empty stroller around

michellabanana

Knottie1433777995 said:

I just laughed out loud picturing myself walking around the neighborhood with a doll in my stroller. Haha! But it's kinda become tradition to test all of the baby stuff with my French bulldog, so it wouldn't surprise me if he ended up in the stroller at some point

Your puppies are adorable! They look like they love it lol.   I was thinking my one dog will probably want the free ride in the stroller.

Thanks  everybody, for making me not seem weird but just prepared.  I'm sure neighbors will understand, but I'm sure they will still make fun 

Jenly17

I have a 60lb pit bull mix and I hold her leash in my right hand (dominant hand) and push with my left. I was nervous at first but it's easy to get the hang of! It will probably be even easier if your dogs are little. 

mrstmoose

Yes, we will practice walking our dogs with the stroller on a fairly regular basis. Our shepherd is a little skittish around new things and our husky has ADHD (seriously, she can't walk in a straight line to save her life), so practicing is a must. If anyone looks confused as to why there is no baby in the stroller and not notice my huge bump, well that's their problem. 

I always comfort myself by thinking there are people doing weirder things out there.

kwrightnb

This dog is in for a rude awakening when baby arrives. 

khochanadel

I'm planning on doing this too! I don't care who thinks I'm a crazy lady. 

Chappy_jr

Oh, yes.  I did this in my first pregnancy. It made our first walks much easier because the dog knew what side of the stroller to stay on and I was able to figure out adjustments I needed to make to keep her at a relaxed heel and the best way to hold the leash (since I wasn't going to tie it to the stroller!).  Now our poor dog is too old and her hip hurts too much to go on walks.

jenashawn

I hadn't really thought of doing this, but now that someone has mentioned it, I think I definitely will as soon as I have the stroller. I probably should get the dog used to it

dsmith211

DH are probably doing this this weekend. We're planning on practicing folding up the stroller, putting it in the car, and going down to the park we usually walk at with the dog. He sometimes gets uneasy around new things at walk time (runners, bikes, etc.) so this is a must for us so that he can get used to it. We've already walked with it around the dog around the backyard and it doesn't seem to bother him on its own... Just hoping walk time goes as well.

BlueJuice

I don't even have dogs, but if I saw you walking with a dog(s) and an empty stroller, and you told me you were preparing them, it would make total sense to me. Way less crazy than trying to handle the chaos that would be a newborn, a stroller, and unprepared dogs after the baby gets here!

peregrinefalconx

It may be less weird if you put a giant doll in it.

But seriously, if it helps the dogs, you and the future baby, who cares what anyone thinks? I don't think it is weird.