Phoenix Babies
Tips for the new baby vs. the dog?
We're expecting a new baby early next year, our 1 year old puppy is very curious about what's going on in the room we're making into the nursery. He won't even come in it now, any tips for training your dog for the new baby?
My biggest fear is he will bark at the baby and not adjust.....
Tips?
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Re: Tips for the new baby vs. the dog?
We just let our dog discover B on his own. No real introduction, I wanted the dog to not feel forced into the new person in our house. He sniffed him out slowly and that seemed to work out really well. We did give him DS's hat that he wore right after birth to pick up the scent. I have no idea if that made a difference or not. GL!
There are many, many things you can do - and breed doesn't matter, so don't listen to anyone who says "you should get a lab" or whatever. It just depends on the dog. I could list it all here, but just google "introducing dog to baby" and you'll get tons of suggestions.
It's more likely that a dog will be afraid of a baby which is often a cause of aggression, vs. barking at it all the time. They will adjust with proper care and attention.
I have three dogs - one pretends my son doesn't exist (which works fine), one could care less if he climbs on him and rides him (yes, they do that - very funny) but the third was always very afraid of him. We did a lot of positive reinforcement - giving him lots of love when DS was around so he realized baby = lots of pets and treats. Once DS started walking he felt much more secure. The crawling just freaked him out. I probably have to be more careful than families without dogs, but he is learning how to be safe with dogs and love animals, so it's worth it. Contact an animal behaviorist (not just a trainer) if you have any problems. They can asses your dog for how they might react with kids (resource issues, touch, etc.) and give you suggestions for your particular dog in one session. You can PM me for recommendations if you go that route.