Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

We have an 18 month old male doberman, adored by my wife and I. We have recently had our first baby and the dog is now showing signs of jealousy and is being very difficult. We always have and still do make a fuss of him, but it does not seem to make a difference. He is very forceful when sniffing the baby and bunts him with his nose. He has never jumped up in his life, but now he is doing this when she has hold of the baby. He is also barking at her when she is on the phone, and trying to get onto the chairs when the baby is feeding

He has never shown any aggression and is a complete softy. Although previous he was not excellent around the house, it was managable. Now he has gone like this, I am firstly concerned for the baby and my wife, but also the welfare of the dog. If these are signes of potential aggression, I do not want to leave him in the situation that is going to force the issue, and ruin his life.

I am desperate to find a solution that ensures we keep him, as he is a cherished family member, but his behaviour is very worrying. Our house is not a large one, so maybe the answer is to move and get more space ??

Hi Nick

The forceful sniffing and butting are not aggression but curosity and not realising his own strength - can you teach him what the word "gently" means. My first Dobe was also 18 months when my daughter was born and I remember some of the problems we had.

If he is really being a nusiance - shut him out of the room for a short time.

Once the baby has been put down then get your wife to sit down, as she would if the baby was still with her and start to teach him some manners. (Does he come near you when you are eating or drinking or has he been taught to lay down at this time - if he has been taught to lay down then try the same thing when the baby is with you.) Otherwise you could try this: hold a doll or teddy in a blanket or clothing that smells of your baby and a glass of water. As he comes up to sniff, firmly and quietly say "gently" the calmer you are the calmer he is likely to be. Praise when he is gentle and tip a few drops of water on his nose if he is being a bit rough - repeat as often as necessary till he gets the message.

Did your wife do everything for him before the baby was born? If so then try to arrange it so that she can still take him out on his own occasionally.

Crates were not widely available when I had my baby but if they were I would probably have put my bitch in one, right beside me when I was feeding the baby if she had continued to be a nusiance. If I were you I would use one anyway and put the baby in it when s/he is asleep as it is NEVER advisable to leave any dog and baby alone together.

Jumping up - tell him to sit rather than off - off is a neutral command whereas sit is telling him exactly what you want him to do. If necessary let him know exactly what you want by you holding him on the lead and the moment he starts to jump then tell him to sit, if your wife then "shows" him the baby and lets him sniff him/her while you are both there it is appease his curosity about this new thing in all your lives and you also have control via the lead.

With our old suite my first dog was allowed to have two legs up on it (her choice as to which two) and when I was feeding the baby she generally "sat" tucked in beside me with her front feet on the floor and her head twisted round onto the part of my lap that the baby was not on <g> Since then no dogs are allowed on the furniture at all.

Hope this helps a bit - you don't want him to think he is being punished around your baby just that he is not allowed to do more than sniff and if you can encourage him to sniff hands rather than face so much the better.

Christine

I dont know a great deal about Dobermans though I would do much the same myself with the bull terriers. I dont think anyone could add much to christines post

Mick

I would only add that it is natural to be protective of the baby, and it could be that you have never yet given him the opportunity to satisfy his curiosity about the baby.

When you are both there and you have the dog on lead, let him see the baby after a bath, so that he can smell the naked little person unencumbered by clothing etc.

My first dog a Belgian shepherd (quite highly strung) was fascinated by the baby to the p[oint of over excitement, and I thought she would sniff him up her nose!!!!

I very calmly allowed her to thoroughly investigate him (though she knew exactly what gently meant), after that she was not as interested in him, and would just lay her head on my knee while I breast fed.

I know it isn't the same but I have found a similar over interest in my other dogs (who haven't had the experience before) of a new litter. they keep wanting to sneak up to see what is going on, but once the pups are downstairs and they have had a chance to see they loose interest.

Christine and Barbara are excellent with their advice here.
I just wanted to add that last week there was a study that was published proving that children who had dogs/cats in their house during the first year of life had a bit better chance of having less allergies than those who did not have pets by the time they were 7 years old. Those who had 2 or more pets experienced a significant decrease in allergies than those who had no pets.

So please don't think your dog will pass along diseases and dirt that will hurt your baby :) It's now proven to be healthy for your child....after you get through the behavioral issues, of course. :) :) Perhaps you might allow your dog to have an old baby blanket or towel in his bed, just so he can get used to the new smells of baby :) :)
regards,
Sara