As cute as a dog and baby are together, it comes alongside a huge safety concern, which is a huge concern for many soon-to-be parents!
Not only are routines changed, but there’s scary new objects in the house and soon there’ll be a lot of new noises too!
And how do you know how your dog will react?!
Will he be too excited and stick his nose in the baby’s face?
Will she be frightened and bark at the poor baby?
Will he be too clumsy and trip over or trample on the baby with his big feet?!
The go-to solution - isolating the dog - usually makes things worse. How will your dog learn to get better around the baby if they don’t have the opportunity?
With safety as a top priority, here are some tips to help you prepare your dog for a baby!
1. Noises
New noises can be scary for many dogs, and babies make lots of noise, from crying and screaming to laughing and playing!
Find videos from YouTube of babies and play these noises to your dog regularly. Even better, Sounds Scary have a babies crying CD or downloads which can be really useful!
2. New objects
Babies come alongside a fortune of new things, such as baby carriers and toys! But it’s likely a dog may have never seen those items before, so make sure to introduce him to them before your baby comes if possible. That way, your dog is only having to cope with one new thing at a time!
3. Carrying Baby
Most dogs are very much used to getting to follow you around and approaching you for a cuddle and attention. However, when you are carrying a baby in your arms, a dog getting under your feet or jumping up at you is risky!
It may sound silly, but carrying a doll or bundle of blankets around the home before your baby comes gives you chance to practise training your dog to stay at a distance when you are carrying a baby.
Make sure that everyone who will carry the baby practises this - not just mum!
4. Safe Space
It is crucial dogs and babies are ALWAYS supervised when together, and this supervision must be with an awake and alert adult. However babies are hard work so this isn’t always possible…
Even when they are in the same room but separate, it’s easy to get distracted. But if your dog smells the food and gets a little too close to your baby, or if your baby starts crawling over to your snoozing dog…
Often the result of this is a telling off to either the dog, baby, or both! This can quickly create a negative relationship, when we are wanting a long-term, positive bond!
Give your dog an area they can go, such as a crate or pen, that they can stay safe in. Ensure your dog ENJOYS going in this area. To do this, start training now!
5. Similar Routine
It is incredibly difficult to have any kind or routine when you have a baby, and no one is expecting you to keep things the same. However it is important that your dog has some kind of predictability in their daily routine.
A regular walk a day might be difficult for you, but perhaps you could get a dog walker to come at the same time every day?
Could you set an alarm to ensure you remember to feed your dog at the same time every day? Or give them a daily Kong to keep them busy for an hour whilst you rest!
Could you set aside time where someone else looks after your baby for 30 minutes so that you can spend quality relaxing time for yourself and your dog, even if that's a snooze on the sofa!
Congratulations on your baby, and good luck!
For more information, or for help with your dog, book a FREE discovery call today! https://calendly.com/muckypupsdogtraining/free-discovery-call
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