introducing dog children to the human child?

encf · February 2015

My hubby and I met at the dog park, so our two pooches are very much our children. We know one of our dogs typically doesn't like children (kids are unpredictable, grab at you, run towards you, etc....I can understand), and the other one is probably okay, but who knows. I had someone suggest that we practice carrying something around in our arms to get them used to the visual, but do any of you have any suggestions or resources to help make the introduction of a wee human to our furbabies any easier and safer for all parties? We certainly won't leave our boy unattended with the dogs, and I am not anticipating that they will curl up together like you see on FB, but I just want us to all live in harmony. I'd love any suggestions any of you can give!!

Also, sadly, they are spoiled and sleep in the bed with us. I intend to use a co-sleeper, so for that reason (and many others), we want to train them to not sleep on the bed. Nothing we have tried has been successful. One starts out on a chaise we have in our bedroom, which is great, but then around 2/3am, he appears on our bed and right between my husband and my head. The other dog stays at the foot of the bed and is generally easy to deal with, but still...he's on the bed. I love snuggling with them, but we need to get them used to not getting up there. Any suggestions?

alcrimmins · February 2015

Let the dogs begin to get used to baby smells. Once the baby is born have your S/O bring home an article of clothing or hat that the baby has worn so they can get used to the baby's smell. As for right now, good luck.

tinybugsmom · February 2015

You could get a baby doll (try as life size as possible) and then use youtube recorded baby noises on you phone. Carry the doll around with the noise, and leave baby on your bed with the noise. See how they react.

Start setting boundaries. So set up the baby gear and teach them now that it is off limits. Run the swing with a doll, so they get used to that. But the most important thing is what you said: do not leave them unsupervised.

My dogs have been raised with my sisters babies and I taught them anything with baby scent is not theirs. We are starting to leave out baby toys and blankets, making sure they respect that space. Seems like a lot of work, but it helps. I know my dogs will give the baby room when it arrives. But still won't leave them alone together.

When baby comes home, have your husband carry him in and you say hi to the pups. Then make sure from the start that they keep a bit of distance. They can smell but no touching.

As for the bed.... if getting them to sleep in the room off the bed isn't working, you may need to have them sleep in the living room or another area. Unless you are willing to have a few weeks of sleepless nights, where you get up and make them get off any time they jump up, moving them is the best bet.

ajgerber · February 2015

We did the bringing an article of clothing/blanket home so the dogs can get the scent of the baby. I honestly don't know if it helped. We mostly just set strict boundaries and the dogs ended up staying on separate ends of the house with baby gates.

I'm not into cosleeping so we didn't have that issue but you probably need to start now. Either use a doll to try various commands to make sure you they stay away. Maybe even play crying baby sounds just to get them use to that. We set up the nursery early so at least they got use to the room and arrangement of furniture. But our dogs are crazy if you move anything out of the ordinary so it was just getting them use to things.

lilitaliangirl · February 2015

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE seek out a specialist to help you prepare for the arrival of your newborn. We had our dog baby for 5 years prior to arrival of DS. He slept in our bed, went places with us and basically was our baby (all 85lbs of him). 2 weeks after bringing DS home we had my aunt and cousin (who was 13 at the time) visit. Our dog went in to protective mode and bit my cousin (got her between the eyes and top of her head). Paramedics came took her to hospital and she had to have several stiches. Animal control came out and recommended we not have him put down because it wasn't common behavior for his breed (Alaskan Malamute). I should have followed my gut, because he bit my son when he was 2 years old. We had to put him down and it was hard for everyone.

kaitlynmaureen · February 2015

I found this on Pinterest a couple of months ago and loved that it's a "dog-lover's guide to introducing your dog and baby." Here's the link https://prettyfluffy.com/home-living/tips-training/how-to-prepare-your-dog-for-a-baby-dog-lovers-guide

I would second he professional trainer though, especially for your pup that's already unsure. I know it can be pricey, but that's something we plan on budgeting for since it's so important for everyone's safety (including your pups).

missjenniebean · February 2015

It is a hard adjustment for all - including animals. Make sure when you child is old enough that you teach the child to RESPECT the dog, no pulling on tails/ears, no grabbing for its food, etc. Dog still needs to be treated with respect and I intend to teach my child to respect my dog and my dog to respect my child. I've done some research and found a couple articles that may be of help. As PP, have said bringing something home with the child's scent on it will help. Professional training may also be necessary. Here are a few articles that I have found that have been helpful:

https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/preparing-your-dog-new-baby

https://www.cesarsway.com/dog-training/socialization/introduce-your-dog-to-your-baby

https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/introducing-your-dog-your-new-baby

KaLikeAWind · February 2015

I agree that you should seek the guidance of your vet and possibly a behaviorist. Some pets transition well with minimal coaching beforehand (the doll, practicing late night feedings, bring home baby items to smell before baby comes home) but some pets just don't, and of course there is no way to tell until you are in the thick of it. Last year when I worked at a vet, I remember a client whose dog bit their 7 month old, and had bitten someone else in the family after the birth (VERY similar to the PP above) and they put their dog to sleep. Later the client told me they didn't feel they had done enough to prepare the dog for its changed life (they basically did the minimal, they brought home a blanket with baby's smell from the hospital one day and brought baby the next day). I think the ASPCA articles above should be helpful (I don't know about the Cesar one, but that's just me not being familiar with that guy). Your vet would also be able to recommend some excellent material or a trainer. Best of luck! :o3

Unknown · February 2015

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JennEpp1016 · February 2015

My vet recommended the website familypaws.com as a resource. I haven't spent too much time on it yet but what I've seen seems useful.

kej0004 · February 2015

We started training one of my dogs to not sleep on the bed starting after the holidays--he liked to sleep right between DH and me and put his head on the pillows. We bought a kennel for our bedroom and had him sleep in it with the door closed for a few weeks. He whined the first few nights, but he calmed himself down after a few minutes. We gave him a treat every night when he got in and every morning when he got out. Now we leave the door open and have had no problems with him getting on the bed at night. (In fact, I think he found out he liked having more space because now he NEVER wants to get out of his bed in the morning. I was originally planning on getting rid of the kennel once he stopped sleeping on our bed, but now he's too attached. haha)

iheartpancake · February 2015

I was wondering this same thing... I have three dogs. A golden, a pit mix and a crazy ass Shepard mutt named Pancake. I have no doubt the golden and pit will be fine, but Pancake has shown before at the park that she is not great with little ones. She attempts to herd them and will nip. We've actually stopped going to the park because I'm just a little nervous that a nip will turn into a bite.

We have started putting Pancake and my pit behind the baby gate at night. My golden sleeps upstairs on the floor in our room, but I've now laid down an official bed for her. That is her territory and the bed is ours. She's docile anyways, so not much to worry about. We are really trying to reclaim, I guess, the house before the baby gets here. No dogs on any furniture, period. All three of my dogs have the habit of being real pushy about getting us to pet them. They'll actually push their heads under our hands. It's freaking adorable, but we're trying to stop that behavior. I don't let any of them lay in front of me in a guarding way while I'm on the couch anymore. I think as long as you can teach them that in your house, humans come first, you'll be better off. It is extremely difficult to not baby them, but I know they need to respect me more before there's a baby. These three dogs have ruled our house for too long lol.

I think dogs can be unpredictable around kids sometimes. I think you just need to be confident and assertive and demand respect from them. With respect comes the boundaries that you'll need! My dogs are always around new people, so I don't know that the whole sniffing something that belongs to the baby will help. It's just a new scent, nothing new.

lacems · February 2015

I'm having the same issue. I have a puppy German Shepherd and a Pomeranian. The pom is my little baby, she sleeps on my bed and I bring her everywhere. I've tried to teach her to stay off the furniture but it really seems impossible. I'm just worried she is going to be a little jealous when the baby comes. She is very tolerant of kids because my sister has 4 and her youngest is 3. He can pretty much do whatever to her. But I'm afraid when it comes to me having a baby and she isn't center of attention she will be jealous.

queequeg09256 · February 2015

I super recommend Caesar milan. I watched and read his books before we got our pup. Who is now the perfect dog. Because we really focused on being the pack leader. Our dog doesn't pull on a leash and can be off leash anywhere pretty much and still listens and obeys. I'm planning on following his advise once again for our little girl when she comes home. Start being a pack leader now and the above links will for sure help

lovethatcolosun · February 2015

I fully agree with the pp who suggest crate training your dog. My 95# lab used to love to sleep on the bed. He would wait until we were asleep then make his move. We put him in his crate at night with a blanket over it (so it was den like) and he ended up loving it. We don't use the crate anymore because he learned what the rules are. I also recommend Caesar. We used his books and a professional trainer for our other behavioral problems. I

When we brought out LO home we used baby blankets at first to identify smells and then let them sniff the baby only for the first few days. We set the boundaries and showed them that he was a part of the pack now. It was a very smooth transition. We also used a bassinet instead of co sleeping. It was safer and we all ended up getting more rest. Good luck!

betsyplunkett12 · February 2015

When we moved to our new house, our dogs became outside dogs since we now have a backyard for them to run and play in. Our lab used to rule our house - slept on the bed and the couch regularly. Now, They come in at night to eat and to sleep in the kennel. In the morning, sometimes they stay outside because it's nice and sometimes in the kennel if it's raining or snowing. We typically give them a treat and/or a toy to play with when we leave. We also do the blanket over the kennel at night. They have known the kennel as a safe place rather than a place they go when they are in trouble. I have also seen suggestions that after you bring baby home to have one partner take the dog on a walk while the other partner takes care of the baby and to try to limit the yelling at the dog while the baby is screaming or crying or they will associate them together. Hope that all makes sense.

andreap525 · February 2015

Great thread. @kaitlynmaureen and @missjenniebean, thank you ladies for the links. I've got my work cut out for me.

Interestingly enough, my pooch actually started out as my nephew dog. When my sister had my niece, my furchild Oliver nipped at her a few times when she was learning to crawl, so sister and BIL wanted to get rid of him. (To be fair, they didn't give him much attention to begin with, so this was probably a wise choice). I loved him to pieces, so my DH (BF at the time) and I took him in. We plan on making this a much smoother transition than my sister and BIL did, and we'll be happy to take the time to give our boy the training and attention he needs during this really intense change in our lives. I couldn't imagine even re-homing our dog, let alone putting him down. So nips, growls, bites, etc will NOT be an option.

encf · February 2015

This is all EXTREMELY helpful. I really appreciate it. The crate idea might just be the winner. There's no way they'd be okay with being out back (plus we have coyotes behind our house, so that'd be a brawl waiting to happen), but maybe we'll try the crate thing and if that doesn't work turn to a trainer. There's one where we board our dogs who has a great rapport with our Chow mix (basically the only person besides me and my husband who is "allowed" to touch him), so we might see if she does house calls.

Thanks again, and I'll let y'all know how it goes!

CurlyMom78 · February 2015

Great thread! We crate trained our standard poodle Kona from day one! It will be a rough, you just can't give in when they whine & scratch at the crate. Crate training and taking her to obedience classes was the best thing we have done! She loves her crate and goes in there when she does not have to. The command "get in your crate" is a good thing to teach and "out of the...."is also good for them to know. Whenever we say get in your crate she knows to go there and stay until she is called out, we do not have to close the door anymore. I might if I'm taking a shower after the baby comes though. Same goes for out of the kitchen or bathroom or whatever room we want her out (sometimes we point to the door) of she turns around and leaves and sits at the threshold of the room and waits. Most of the time she sits there waiting anyways because she knows that she is not supposed to be in the kitchen when we cook. I'm less worried about our dog then my parents mini poodle who has not been trained well.

Hollygolightly87 · February 2015

There is a lot of great advice above. I just wanted to add, check the classes your hospital offers. Mine has a class with an animal behaviorist about how to make the transition easier for you and your pets. It is $25 per couple. We are going to do it. My dogs are great with kids they have been around, but you can't be too careful.

CurlyMom78 · February 2015

I might make that suggestion to my hospital as a class to offer. If your hospital doesn't you might want to check with your community college as they offer community education classes (non credit) or a local community center!

joyfuljenny · May 2015

Rereading back through all the good advice on this thread as we expect to bring home a baby in just a couple weeks (how is it suddenly so close??). Also wanted to add a couple things our vet said this week. Our dogs are usually due in June for their annual check-up and vaccines, but I thought I'd go ahead and bring them this month, so that we won't have to worry about it after baby girl arrives.

Our vet cautioned that if I'm currently the dogs' primary caregiver (I am), then it would be good for my husband to start being the primary one to feed them and let them out, etc, before the baby comes home. He said it's likely that my availability for the dogs will change after the baby's born, and they should learn to look to my husband for their needs as well.

He also recommended allowing the dogs to have some contact with the baby, such as sniffing or licking her feet (obviously highly supervised and only if the dog is calm). He said they'll be naturally curious, and you want them to accept the new pack member and not feel anxious or resentful when baby comes home. He reminded me that dogs are very sensitive to our moods, and if I act anxious about the dog being around the baby, the dog's likely to become more anxious as well.

He also recommended a distraction, such as rawhide (which our dog loves), as a way to keep the dog busy but still in the same room with baby and me, which can begin to build positive feelings about baby's presence.

Ultimately, I think we'll be utilizing a lot of closed doors for safe separation of dogs and baby until things normalize. Thankfully our dogs are already used to this, we close them in the master bedroom whenever we leave the house or if my husband is on a conference call (he works from home), and they're great about being calm in our bedroom for several hours at a time, if need be. I think I'll also use the pack and play as a barrier, if I can be in the same room to supervise but want to set the baby down somewhere (like if I'm cooking in the kitchen); it's tall enough that they could see and smell each other through the mesh but not really interact. For instance, instead of setting baby's activity gym or rock and play on the floor, I can set it inside the pack and play, and then put the baby down there.

I think one of the most helpful things for me over the past few months has been learning the signals dogs use when they're starting to feel uncomfortable, such as licking their lips, and watching for the whites of their eyes or for their ears to be pressed back. All of the resources I've found about dogs and babies/toddlers have said that a dog who bites "out of nowhere" almost never happens -- the dog gives signals that he's uncomfortable and we don't read them correctly or quickly enough, so the dog's behavior escalates. Of course it's so important to teach the child proper behavior and boundaries around dogs, too, in the same way you teach dogs boundaries around children.

I'm still a little nervous about how our 3 yr old lab mix will react to baby, because she's so attached to me and also fairly energetic. I'm thankful that babies don't start out mobile and hoping that those first few months will help our pup get used to baby being around before she starts crawling! Bottom line, though, because I love our dogs and don't want to risk something happening to them -- I will never leave the baby unsupervised with the dogs around, so they'll never have a chance to act inappropriately before we intervene.

Oh, one more resource: I really like Zak George's training videos, and he released this one about dogs and babies recently --

https://youtu.be/UIJpLQrKGPo.

JennEpp1016 · May 2015

My husband and I brought in a dog trainer who specializes in dog/baby interaction and we got a lot of the same advice as PP above (let the dog check out the baby when baby comes home (while supervised, of course); keep treats around that can serve as a distraction while I am breastfeeding; practice getting the pup comfortable being near us but not right on top of us). Good luck, everyone!

kherman14 · May 2015

We have three dogs. Honeymoon; 11months old mini aussie bitch, Bull, 2 years old boston terrier neutered male, and Harley; 13 years old boston terrier neutered male.

I had dogs stop sleeping on my bed because...I don't like having dogs sleep on bed...never did. But my hubby he loves it. Sure, agruments was there and there because I am pregnant and very easy morning sickness, etc.

Finally, we got brand new couch!

Scat Mats are the kind you should use to train dogs off the couch, bed, areas you don't want dogs to pass thru. Order it from Amazon; not any pet supplies stores...expensive!

I had told my husband...ALL dogs are going to be staying in back room for couple days, one dog at a time to get along with the baby.

I wouldn't want to have a fake doll because my husband is very playful with the dogs so they might get wrong impression lol...I have constantly told him DO NOT LET THEM JUMP, ARM HOLD, NIPPING AT HANDS etc....ughhhh... they actually don't do that to me I use dressage whip and I would smack them if they try eventually they lay off. my pup honeymoon she is amazing puppy loves kids. Bull loves kids but we rescued him. So sometimes he would overdo licking kids face...which makes me super super super nervous! Cuz the previous owners hsd him...did not do much training with him and they also had kids. I only know that they didn't want him cuz he was hyper....well....he had leg surgery at 6 months old and crate for two months...YEAH...hyper because he was locked up all the time! Transition training is required for sure. Then Harleys old fart dog...he is fine love kids but I told my dh I don't want him being loose in living room when baby is on the floor...since he is going blind he gets grumpy easily if other dogs walks into his bed or touch his toys, and possible bite or run him over by accident.

mamameghan · May 2015

We have a sweet shitzu that we got as a pup not long before finding out I was pregnant. We have her crate trained at night which made the nights so easy. We kept her in a different room so the baby's crying didn't wake her up...but it probably did anyways lol.

Anyways one things we didn't do was train her to get off the couch. When the baby started crawling it was the only safe place for her! She would perch on the back of the couch if she needed her space and the baby couldn't get to her! Just a suggestion

upandbelow · May 2015

In addition to all these things, so prep work ahead of baby coming can be helpful too! Set up your pack and play, swing, whatever other new baby additions are going to become staples in the house and use them. Turn the swing on and let your pup get used to the smell, sound and movements, put your pack and play out and let your pup sniff and get used to the new addition. This would help to minimize the changes the pup is going to experience when LO does come home!

kayokosaeki · May 2015

I'm confused. Why are all of you preparing your dogs to not sleep on the bed? Is it because you plan to co sleep or is there some other reason I'm missing? I do not plan to co sleep (such a sound/violent sleeper, i'm afraid i'd roll over on baby!) and my 3 yr old shih tzu shares the bed with me, so I didn't plan on training her to sleep off the bed. And any reason you're planning training your dogs off the furniture too? I just don't see the point.

Maybe it's just because of the temperment of my dog that I don't see the point to these two trainings. She loves loves loves people. She wants to become your best friend when she meets you and jumps in anyone's lap that lets her. If you don't want her in your lap, she stays off. She listens when we call her. She drops things she shouldn't be having when asked to drop it. She's not territorial about food or places. She's a little clingy and gets some seperation anxiety when we leave the house, but only in her demeanor (i.e. she's not destructive after we leave or gets sick). She's been very good with my friends' toddler for years now, and we introduced her to a 4 month old a little while ago to see how she would react and the only issue we had was she kept stealing the baby's pacifier. I'm gonna set up some baby items this weekend and teach her how they're off limits to her, but otherwise I don't think I'm too worried about bringing home baby.

Any experienced fur mommies agree with my assessment or am I not thinking of something for which I should prepare?

jessieR358 · May 2015

upandbelow said:
In addition to all these things, so prep work ahead of baby coming can be helpful too! Set up your pack and play, swing, whatever other new baby additions are going to become staples in the house and use them. Turn the swing on and let your pup get used to the smell, sound and movements, put your pack and play out and let your pup sniff and get used to the new addition. This would help to minimize the changes the pup is going to experience when LO does come home!

That's a good idea except for the dog that loves to chew

I put my brand new pottery barn bassinet together and our lab starting chewing on the leg within 10 minutes! It's behind closed doors right now with the pac n play. That dog is going to drive me nuts chewing stuff. She is untrainable when it comes to off limit items.
We're debating having our big dogs sleep in our room after the baby is born. I'm worried they may try to jump on the bassinet when the baby cries.

CurlyMom78 · May 2015

We crate trained our standard poodle and used to put her in their at night but felt bad because she was also in there during the day so we bought her a bed that is in our room. She loves her bed. She only comes up on our when invited while we are watching tv in bed and half the time she leaves to go to her bed on her own 10 min into us laying there watching tv. We have been playing crying noises for her on the phone at random times to see what she does, which she just walks over sits down and and caulks her head trying to understand what is going on. We plan on coming home...I'll walk in the door first with something from LO and spend about 5-10 min with our dog then DH will bring in LO. That is what our OB recommend.

NoSugarCoating · May 2015

kherman14 said:
I have constantly told him DO NOT LET THEM JUMP, ARM HOLD, NIPPING AT HANDS etc....ughhhh... they actually don't do that to me I use dressage whip and I would smack them if they try eventually they lay off.

You HIT your dogs?? What the everloving hell is wrong with you?

HayesRN13 · May 2015

Kherman14- it sounds like you need to find a home for your dogs.. Coming on here saying you hit your pets with a whip? Are you serious?

klkonwi · May 2015

She also called one dog a bitch? Is that a thing?!

NoSugarCoating · May 2015

klkonwi said:
She also called one dog a bitch? Is that a thing?!

It's the technical term for a female dog.

elizab14 · May 2015

I took my dogs to the vet last week. She gave great advice and had them get another deworming pill (they haven't had one for over 10 years) and updated their vaccines. I hadn't thought of deworming them before baby comes but it's one less thing to worry about.

KaLikeAWind · May 2015

elizab14 said:
I took my dogs to the vet last week. She gave great advice and had them get another deworming pill (they haven't had one for over 10 years) and updated their vaccines. I hadn't thought of deworming them before baby comes but it's one less thing to worry about.

Just an FYI - your dogs should be on a monthly heartworm preventative. There are very few areas that are HW free (I guess its possible you live in one of those areas, but the odds are that you do not), and heartworms can kill your dogs. While your dogs cannot pass hw to your child, if you are using one of the major heartworm preventatives (heartguard, revolution, interceptor, sentinel, trifexis) you are also deworming your dog monthly for most major worms (hookworms, roundworms, whipworms) when you use it as per the directions.
Even if you live in an area that does not have heartworms, treating monthly with these products is really easy and fairly cheap when you consider the yearly cost ($50-150 a year depending on the size of your dog). Then you know that no matter what, your dogs are worm free all the time.

IMPORTANT- do not start a heartworm preventative without first doing a heartworm test and getting a negative result. Dogs who are positive for heartworms and are started on a preventative without first receiving can become very sick and/or die.

If anybody in this thread would like more info about deworming using these products or heartworms, you can ask me. I used to do client education on this subject multiple times a day, every day.

(Also, those of us with cats in real bad heartworm areas, the deep south, for example, should consider using a preventative too. Even if your cats are indoors only)

Thank you for listening to this Public Service Announcement

mvargas12 · May 2015

Every time I read the title of this thread I read "inducing dog to human child" and it freaks me out. Every time.

elizab14 · May 2015

@mellymar yes, the vet checked both for HW and we got their meds refilled as well. Thanks for the heads up.

KaLikeAWind · May 2015

@elizab14 yay! Healthy pets make me happy.

joyfuljenny · May 2015

mellymar said:

elizab14 said:
I took my dogs to the vet last week. She gave great advice and had them get another deworming pill (they haven't had one for over 10 years) and updated their vaccines. I hadn't thought of deworming them before baby comes but it's one less thing to worry about.
Just an FYI - your dogs should be on a monthly heartworm preventative. There are very few areas that are HW free (I guess its possible you live in one of those areas, but the odds are that you do not), and heartworms can kill your dogs. While your dogs cannot pass hw to your child, if you are using one of the major heartworm preventatives (heartguard, revolution, interceptor, sentinel, trifexis) you are also deworming your dog monthly for most major worms (hookworms, roundworms, whipworms) when you use it as per the directions.
Even if you live in an area that does not have heartworms, treating monthly with these products is really easy and fairly cheap when you consider the yearly cost ($50-150 a year depending on the size of your dog). Then you know that no matter what, your dogs are worm free all the time.

IMPORTANT- do not start a heartworm preventative without first doing a heartworm test and getting a negative result. Dogs who are positive for heartworms and are started on a preventative without first receiving can become very sick and/or die.

If anybody in this thread would like more info about deworming using these products or heartworms, you can ask me. I used to do client education on this subject multiple times a day, every day.

(Also, those of us with cats in real bad heartworm areas, the deep south, for example, should consider using a preventative too. Even if your cats are indoors only)

Thank you for listening to this Public Service Announcement

Good info and reminder! Talked to our vet about switching heartworm prevention meds... we use Bayer Advantage Multi for one of our dogs right now (Heartgard for the other), and it's been very effective, but the chemical smell and residue from the topical product kind of drives me crazy, and I'd prefer not to mess with it when we've got a baby in the house. We may switch to Heartgard (heartworm prevention) + Nexgard (flea and tick prevention, both are oral tablets) after the Advantage Multi runs out. We'll see!

joyfuljenny · May 2015

Some more good resources to share, so that we can be advocates for our pups and keep things safe and appropriate between dogs and kids! Lots of great info on reading dogs' body language so that as soon as they show signs of anxiety, we can step in and remove them (or the child) from the situation, to prevent dog bites.

https://stopthe77.com - several good videos here

https://www.doggonesafe.com/Signs_of_Anxiety - lots of helpful info under the "learn to speak dog" section

https://youtu.be/mWI0GXToxyM - practical example of watching for signs of anxiety in a dog with a toddler around

netanyadeloach2017 · May 2015

I too am extremely worried about my chihuahua. I have had her since she was 5 weeks old and now she is 10 years old. She is super protective when it comes to me and won't even let our other dogs near me. She has never bitten a child but if they act like they are going to hit her she has snapped at them. I am also planning on co sleeping with my baby boy once he gets here but I don't know what to do about my fur baby she has always slept in the bed with me and it just seems so unfair to kick her out of the bed. I may just have to let my baby boy sleep in a bassinet beside the bed instead of sleeping in the bed.

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