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Local class to get pets ready for baby?

sarahneilsarahneil member
in D.C. Area Babies
Anyone know of any classes in the DC area where you can take your pet to get ready for a new baby?  I have a 6 year old maltese who has been the baby of the family for a long time (you would swear she is human) and I want to make the transition as easy as possible for her (and me) when this new baby comes in October.  Thanks!
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Re: Local class to get pets ready for baby?

  • doggylovrdoggylovr

    I never thought of doing a class...what we did and it worked really well.  (we have a 100lb lab and a 50lb mix)

    I bought a cheap baby doll at the store and walked around holding it, pretending to feed it, play with it on teh floor etc...we looked really stupid but it really seemed ot help.  Then my husband left the hospital for a  bit the day after DS was born and brought home the blanket he was in for them to get used to the smell...

    then when we came in the house with the baby, DH carried him (bc he is like the alpha in our house) and we put him on the kitchen table, high enough that the dogs could only smell a bit.  Then we moved him to the coffee table (while still in teh carrier) and then after about an hour, took him out.  DS slept through the whole thing!!!

     

    now at 16 months, the dogs are definitely DS's BFFs!!! they play so well together!!! 

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  • LCCollinsLCCollins

    This is good advice! Thanks!

    We have a 10 month old boxer-mix and are due with our first in August. We also started playing the sound of a crying baby from time to time off my husband's iPhone so he can get use to the sound. I might need to pick up a doll this weekend. :)

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  • belizeitornotbelizeitornot
    imageLCCollins:

    This is good advice! Thanks!

    We have a 10 month old boxer-mix and are due with our first in August. We also started playing the sound of a crying baby from time to time off my husband's iPhone so he can get use to the sound. I might need to pick up a doll this weekend. :)

    desensitizing them to the crying is one of the best moves, esp. if you have "mothering" breed. we neglected that aspect and while our german shepherd mix has been fantastic with H, she did go apesh!t the first few weeks when she really cried hard. i wish we had dealt with that before the kid arrived.

     

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  • I_love_cupcakesI_love_cupcakes member
    imagezerf77:
    imageLCCollins:

    This is good advice! Thanks!

    We have a 10 month old boxer-mix and are due with our first in August. We also started playing the sound of a crying baby from time to time off my husband's iPhone so he can get use to the sound. I might need to pick up a doll this weekend. :)

    desensitizing them to the crying is one of the best moves, esp. if you have "mothering" breed. we neglected that aspect and while our german shepherd mix has been fantastic with H, she did go apesh!t the first few weeks when she really cried hard. i wish we had dealt with that before the kid arrived.

     

    I can remember the first time we gave DS a bath, and he SCREAMED.  Our lab hid in her crate for 2 days!  We didn't really do anything to prepare them for the noises babies make (never occurred to us!), and it probably would have helped.

    While DS was in the NICU for several weeks after he was born, we were able to bring clothes/blankets home for the dogs to start getting used to the smell.  Our smaller dog, who is a bit high strung and I thought might be a problem, has become DS's BFF.  He's SO protective and takes the "playing" really well.  The lab is still a bit nervous around him, probably because she's still so much bigger.  But she has no problem cuddling up to him when there's food involved!

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  • psychoCatpsychoCat
    The Animal Welfare League of Arlington offers a free class called Baby-Ready Pets (a human-only event): https://www.awla.org/events.shtml
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  • UseonfireUseonfire

    imagepsychoCat:
    The Animal Welfare League of Arlington offers a free class called Baby-Ready Pets (a human-only event): https://www.awla.org/events.shtml

    We took this class and loved it! 

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  • umdbrideumdbride
    You all have such great ideas - I wish we did the noises too...but add in gas noises, not just crying!  Our dog did great when the baby came home and all we did was have DH bring the blanket home to her first. Like PPs she did get a little anxious about the crying - she thought something was wrong with the baby and would nudge me and pace around when the baby cried or made even tiny noises. She got over the crying issue after a few weeks but it was a little rough for all of us.  She does still come find us if she hears DS crying loudly but she just checks on us and leaves when she sees everything is fine.  For some reason though, the sound of DS passing gas makes her leave the room still!  Good luck!
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  • garden123garden123

    We didn't have any trouble until our son became mobile and showed a lot of interest in our elderly dog.  Long story short, she ended up biting him (on the cheek - no stitches, but still) when he tried to hug her from behind (he was 17 months).  In hindsight, we knew it was getting harder because he loved her so much (she loved him - just not when he was rough like a typical toddler), but we thought we could allow them to be in the same room if we supervised. 

     Bottom line, be vigilant in reminding yourself of the risk factors for bites and what to look out for.  Yes, you love your dog, but you will love your child more, trust me.

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