Do babies wake up to dog barking?

MissMeegs · October 2013

Dog-owning baby havers: Does a baby learn to sleep through dog barking? I don't so much mind that our dog has hysterical barking fits any time a solicitor (of which we get 2-3 weekly) sets foot on our property. I mean, one of the reasons we got a dog is that extra level of home security.

But I have a feeling I'll mind a *lot* more when there's a sleeping baby upstairs! Some of my friends say that babies sleep pretty deeply and probably either won't even hear the dog or will get used to him. Is this true, or should I start now trying to train the dog to bark less?

MiaMyPuggle · October 2013

My son must have heard my dog bark while in utero bc he wasn't phased by it when he was born. He was rarely startled by her barking.

KEfam5 · October 2013

Yeah they sleep through it especially if they've heard it in utero. My dds room is right next to the yard we keep our big dog in and he frequently barks at the people working on the house next door; it never wakes her. However, IMO it's always a good idea to train a dog to only bark at real threats if possible.

nbbride06 · October 2013

Mine has never learned to sleep through it unfortunately. She's just a light sleeper and even with a fan on in her room constantly for noise, she will still wake up to the tiniest sound. If I open her door, she's up. Flush the toilet, she's up. Hoping this LO will be a deeper sleeper!

PS - we did not limit noise in our house when she was a baby. We thought she would have to "get used to it." It didn't work.

ccip82 · October 2013

I think a lot will depend on how your LO's personality/behavior develops.

DD slept through Max's barks in the beginning, but they now wake her up.

ac1259 · October 2013

Yeah we never limited noise when DD was really little and she always slept fine through noise. I do have a big dog who rarely barks though. But DD's room is right next to our living room with a TV and stuff so she's always been used to it. She's getting a little bit more sensitive to noise when she's sleeping now though (at 1 year). It really depends on your kid.

HappyDoc · October 2013

May I recommend...

No Soliciting/Shh Baby Sleeping /Please Do Not Disturb Sign/Handpainted/YOU Choose Color

MissMeegs · October 2013

Thanks all, guess we'll just have to see. Thought of it because the dog has been 10x more obnoxious today than usual (he's honestly driving me CRAZY, I even cried at one point, hello hormones) and I started wondering how this would play out if the baby were here!

moosebaby2011 · October 2013

My son never woke up when our dog barked. She's a small dog (a pug) but she has a pretty loud bark, and she barks often, but it never seemed to bother him.

Krelpie · October 2013

Op- I feel your pain. My dogs drive me to madness as well. One dog does not bark at all and the other barks at Everything!! Neighbors mowing the lawn, dog walking by, bird chirping, you name it. And they go nuts when someone is actually on our property. They are very territorial. Thanks for the question since it concerns me too!

waterlily2k2 · October 2013

I agree, I think it really depends. DS will sleep through one or two barks, but any more than that and he's awake. I highly encourage No Soliciting signs. Saved my sanity. He did sleep a little more solidly at first, but has been increasingly getting to be a lighter sleeper.

JuliaH21 · October 2013

DD got use to it. I don't allow my dogs to bark, but I have lots of neighbors who allow their dogs to bark their silly heads off. It was funny, when she was really little, the familiar dog barks never fazed her (guess she got use to them in utero) but once a small dog barking on TV startled her awake. Trains never seemed to bother her either, but her door clicking open would (and still does at 22 mo) make her pop awake. White noise may help if it's a problem.