first post and would like furkid advice

mandyjac18

My husband and I are looking at adoption of a child and were wondering about the effect it has on the furkids (dogs) in the home.  Obviously there is nothing that will make me give up my furkids I just want to make it an easier transition for them and I know it's similar to bringing home a baby but I feel that the furkids are there to see the transition and understand a bit better what is happening, plus we are looking at adopting more a toddler aged child who may already be on their feet which changes things. We also don't have any friends or family who have young children for them to be around (though I know for sure one of our dogs loves, loves, loves children and the other is just perfect with people but generally just ignores kids). Both dogs are crate trained and have their own space, so other than having a trainer come in and help with certain behavioral niceties and manners any other suggestions???

and thanks for any help.

iluvhimso

We have three small dogs and when we brought our LO home we made sure to let the dogs sniff him, etc. but we set boundaries so the dogs would not hurt him.  He is now 19 months old and two of our dogs love him and the third just keeps his distance most of the time.  I now let our LO give the dogs their treats and he is learning how to pet gently, etc.  One of the dogs occasionally nips (not hard at all) at him but I do not fault the dog because I need to protect the dogs from the toddler just as much as I need to protect the toddler from the dogs and when our son is trying to rip the dog's ear off, I don't blame the dog for correcting our son.  Ironically this is the dog that our son favors the most - they are best buds. 

 We also make sure we give the dogs lots of attention, take them on walks, etc.

Jermysgirl

When we brought Edith home, Lucy ignored her the first day, and was her best friend from there on out.  When people would come over, Lucy would stand between them and Edith until we told her it was okay.  She is very protective of her kid and the love between them makes me love my dog even more.

Ambie0611

We have two furbabies, but they are around children all of the time. Stitch LOVES kids, all he wants to do is play, Lilo doesn't want anything to do with them and she gets jealous when I am holding a baby and not her.

What I have been doing, as crazy as it sounds, is holding a baby doll wrapped in a blanket and teaching her that when the baby doll is in my arms she can't be in my lap. It has been slow going, but I really think that this is helping her understand that she has to share me. Another thing that I heard was to get them used to the smell of baby wipes and baby powder. I don't know from experience if that works or not, maybe I should wipe the baby doll with a wipe, lol.

May want to see about taking them to a playground since they aren't around kids that much, see how they react with the screaming and running. Hope this helps and GL!