Hi All

I am due to have a baby in February and am beginning to think about the best way of preparing Sox, my 4 year old Staff, for the arrival of his little brother or sister. I have no real concerns about how he will be with the baby, even though he doesnt really spend any time with children, because he is really loving and since his castration, is a very calm dog. However, I do appreciate that it will be a big change for him and I dont want to underestimate the effect that it could have on him. Having said all of this, I dont want to make a huge deal out of something that he potentially wont be at all worried about. I guess what I am saying is that I would like some sensible advice on anything that you think I could be doing now (if there is anything) and also how I go about introducing baby and ensuring he isnt left out etc.

I should say that I have lots of support around me and between us our goal is to ensure that Sox's routine doesnt change too much when the time comes and that he doesnt get pushed out, which is where perhaps problems could arise. Although we enjoy lots of cuddles, games and play time together, we have really clear boundaries in our house and Sox has his own bed and place to sleep which is not our bedroom (although we do sneak off for the occassional afternoon nap together :) ).

Many thanks in advance
Caroline

Congratulations - you must be really excited!!

I don't have experience of a new baby with a dog but one thing that would seem to make sense is to invest in baby gates.  You're going to need them in the future anyway and if you are planning on having no go areas for the dog it might be kinder to start early.  That way, the dog won't associate the baby with loss of access. 

My sister in law keeps one completely dog free room and the dogs no longer have access to upstairs.  Mind you that was a quick decision after she saw one of the dogs half way down the garden with a dirty nappy in it's mouth - yuk!!

My friend had a baby daughter in July and was worried about her lad Rodney's attitude when she was going to be born etc...Rodney is a 2 yr old white boxer and complete loon very bouncy and lovable. When my friend arrived home from the hospital like about 6 hours after having the baby had been born! I went round to see everyone, and her sister in law went and fetched Rodney who had been at her house for a few hours. When she let Rodney in I was holding onto the baby, he came straight up to me and I told him sit down first, and said to him  gently / steady every time he tried to shove his face into the babies face, and just trying to sniff her, he didn't have a clue what it was so I made him stay back for the first couple of minutes. We were worried he would knock her, after about 4 minutes he did become frustrated staring at the baby and making small whining sounds, he wanted a big hello from me- so I pasted baby to mum and then gave him lots of loves. That was it- whenever he got to close mum just put a hand up to his face and said no gentle would make him stop think rather than be boisterous, He has been great with the baby since, after about an hour of the first meeting after he got used to the little sounds babies made he came in from the garden and gave her a little lick on her leg... so sweet:)
Don't leave baby in the room alone with your dog though for the first 3 months as they might try and climb onto him/her for a cuddle even in the cot.
If your spending a few days away from your dog while in the hospital, make sure you say big hello first to your dog, before introducing the baby let it all be calm and settled . You will be nervous at first but be loving to your dog and they will grow to love the baby as well.  If she already listens to you when you tell her to sit etc there will be no problem. Good luck with your new addition.

> so I pasted baby to mum

:) :) :) LOL!

Just  to wanted say congratulations ,
I am also due to have a baby beginnining of febuary and have 5 dogs . I have two children aged 9 and 7 so
they are used to kids but will be the first young baby in the house for 4 of the dogs.

Hi, congratulations :) I had my 2nd baby in June and when I brought him home I introduced him to my 2 Mastiffs, let them have a sniff of him and then just carried on with my life as normal - exactly as I did with them when my first son was born 3 years ago. I think that it is important that you do try and carry on with life as normal and don't exclude them from everything just because you will have a baby, otherwise it could lead to jealousy. Obviously I don't leave either my baby or my toddler unattended with the Mastiffs in case of an accident but they all live together quite happily and the Mastiffs love the children to bits and vice versa :)

I've been thinking about this a lot lately as my OH and I have just bought our first house together.  I've got to miniature poodles dogs, entire, and very laid back.

My way of thinking goes like this, I want the newborn baby to be a no-go area for the boys, not when I am trying to change nappies, bath or feed the baby, or when he/she is lying on the floor with the multi gym.  However, I want the boys to know that this is a new member of the family to be fully integrated and respected.  So my idea would be the floor mats you use for babies, to set it out in the middle of the floor and whenever the dogs go to step on it or sniff it to say No and make them leave it alone.  I would do this daily leading up to the birth so that when you do bring the baby home he/she can be placed on the mat safely, with the dogs knowing they can come close happily, but only so far.  I would also not allow the dogs into the baby's room, so they get the message that baby is not someone to mess with ;)  I guess it's all about boundaries for the dog.  That's just the way I would be tempted to do it.

Obviously you wouldn't leave dogs alone with babies or young children :)

When I brought my daughter home (she is now 14, so a long time ago ;-) ) I entered the house first and said hi to the dogs (all 6 of them!) My husband then brought the baby in to the house in her pram. The pram was left in the middle of the room and the dogs went to sniff it. After a while, once they were all settled down again, I lifted her from the pram. They all came to say hello again, but not as manic as when I first came home.

So long as you are very careful and lay down the boundaries early everything should be fine. It helps when the dogs can see the pram, cot, etc, long before the baby is born. That way the dogs aren't worried about new things as well as a new baby. If you have to stay in hospital for a day or two (or longer) then it would be a very good idea to bring home somethng that smells of the baby (bedding, clothes, something like that)so that they can get used to the smell.

I had a baby doll that I carried about and put in the pram a few weeks before the birth just to give the dogs the idea that I'd be carrying something about! We also practiced walking with the pram.

When I was in hospital I sent home the baby clothes that my son had been wearing and told hubbie to let the dogs have a sniff, they were quite interested and spent ages going over them.

When we got home I made a fuss of the dogs first and again let them smell the used baby clothes.  Then I put my son on the floor and sat with him and the dogs came in one by one to have a look, they just had a sniff (my GSD had to have a little lick!). If your dogs are lively you might want to sit on a low chair with the baby on your lap. Anyway we never looked back. 

Did the same with my daughter - had different dogs by then and I was slightly worried as my Rough Collie can be jealous, but everything was fine.

I gave the dogs attention while the bubs were asleep and they didn't seem to mind. Both dogs would lie under the crib or the pram :-)

Hi

Thanks all for your congratulations and advice. I will keep you up to date with progress!

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