How did your dog react to a new baby in the house?

In My Humble Opinion
1

My wife and I are expecting our first child in April. We’ve also got a very outgoing and pleasant 2-year-old Bichon Frise. Our dog has never met a person he didn’t like, and has been tolerant and friendly (sometimes overmuch – he will attempt to lick faces and jump up) with every small child or infant he has come into contact with so far.

My expectation is that our dog will, given time, adjust fine and accept our baby as a “member of the pack”. I may be naieve, but at present, I have no fear of our dog intentionally harming (i.e. biting) our baby in any way. Now, as far as knocking the baby over, or scratching, or scaring the baby through overexcited licking … all seem likely. Therefore, our supervision will always be required when dog and baby are together – which is simple common sense.

I am wondering what to expect with bringing a newborn into the home with our dog. What experiences have others here had?

2

I had an Afghan hound when my sister brought her babies home. Siddhartha (the dog) loved the babies and was endlessly patient and gentle with them, and would be upset if the baby cried and no one went to see what was wrong. The one place Sid didn’t like the babies was when he was under the kitchen table. That was is spot to retreat away from the kids if they got to be too much (pulling ears and tail and hair). He wouldn’t harm them, but he would curl his lip at them if they crawled in after him. We figured he was entitled to his own place and kept the kids away from him there.

StG

3

I think our dog was annoyed at first, but he dealt, and I always gave him lots of attention. Now, our kids going to be 1, and they play together, he licks her face, she strokes his fur … no problems at all.

It’s very nice, actually.

4

I have a German Pinscher, prolly very different in tempermant from your BF. My baby is now 10 months old. As with your dog, I have to keep an eye on them both when they are in any proximity to each other. (which is often, she is an indoor dog)

Cali doesn’t have a mean bone in her body, and would not purposefully hurt the baby, but she is bigger, and lightning quick, and has a very high prey drive, which can be easily triggered.

What triggers that drive? Why high pitched cries or screams, quick movements, and small bodies. Meaning, I keep a really close eye on both of them. So I had a long talk with my vet, and basically gave Cali two choices. She can lay there and take whatever he gives her until he is about 1 1/2 or 2 years old, or she can get up and walk away. Once he is older, she can be less conservative with her behaviour around him. She is my first baby, and I love her truly, but I will not allow her to think for a minute that she comes higher in pack rank than he does (well, the dog thinks that way).

That being said, other than me having to watch, and occasionally divert disaster or pain, they have cohabitated together very well.

Just wait till your baby gets to be this age, though. I’ve rarely seen anything funnier than the two of them trying to play with the same toy. She steals it, he determinedly crawls around the living room chasing her down, until she looks away for a minute and then he steals it, only to start her start it all again. :smiley:

5

A friend of mine, while she was pregnant, walked around the house with a wrapped bundle in her arms, talking and cooing to it. This was to get their dog used to the fact thta such things were going to happen. The dog (which is pretty smart anyway) has never had a problem with the baby.

6

I have a very mild-mannered lab/husky mix female. When I brought my son home in May of 2001 she was outside waiting patiently in the yard. I set down the baby carrier to unlock the front door and Sugarfoot (the dog) immediately started licking Little Guy’s feet. After that, she pretty much just ignored him until he was about 8 months old and more “interactive”. So–in a nutshell–no problems here.

However, my pediatrician did tell me about an infant boy in her care who was brought in after the family Rott started chewing on his dirty diaper. They had to reconstruct his entire penis, and were only partially sucessful. :frowning: Sad story, but it really helped keep me diligent about watching carefully whenever there was baby-doggie contact. As much as I love my dog, at the end of the day she’s still an animal–one with sharp teeth, strong jaws, and limited cognitive skills. Keep that in mind and all will be well.

Congrats on the new addition, BTW!

bella

7

We’ve had no problems with either of our dogs (a Scotty and a Basset Hound), nor did we expect any. The Basset was a little put out that she had been “dethroned” from her #3 position, but that’s life.

8

When I was a baby, my mom had a wire-haired fox terrier that she’d raised from a young puppy. The dog was very protective of Mom during the pregnancy, and afterwards was extremely protective of me, going so far as to growl at an aunt (Mom’s sister) who was going into the same room as I was, to retrieve her own child from the same baby bed.

The dog also insisted on trying to get into the playpen with me, when I was old enough to sit up. There were two particular bars that she could fit between, but no others, and the dog would run around the playpen, poking her head between every pair of bars until she found the set that worked. If my mother put that side of the playpen against a wall, the dog would run back and forth on the three sides she could get at, and finally become anxious and go whining to Mom. She would sit in the playpen with me, and I’d occasionally be horrible in an unknowing child manner - pulling her ears and such. She’d simply whine for Mom to come save her when this happened.

Mind you, pets may still react instinctively to some things - pain caused by injury from the child, child getting near the dog’s food or taking the dog’s toys, etc. Each dog has its own particular temperament, so you need to monitor them carefully. I was lucky in that our dog was very even-tempered and regarded me as a highly valuable member of the family, higher than her on the “pecking order”. Be sure to show enough attention to your dog after the baby arrives, too; not unlike a human sibling, the dog might feel like he’s being replaced to some extent, or like he isn’t loved any longer.

I’ve also heard suggestions like letting the dog get used to odors like baby lotion early on, so that it’s not quite as strange when the baby comes home, but I don’t know much about that.

9

we had a 1 year old pyreneean mountain dog (think bigger, fluffier, white newfoundland) when my baby sister was born.
the dog was a VERY bouncy, excitable thing, who jumped up on adults frequently.

my parents bought the puppy in the expectation of no more kiddies…ooops!

from the beginning Heidi (the dog) was perfect with the baby. she would lie by the pram and guard her when mum went shopping, she would stop her from going near the stairs or the doors and would come and get someone if the baby cried.

Pyreneeans are sheep dogs and i think that had a lot to do with her behaviour, she treated the baby as a cross between a puppy and a sheep!

hopefully if your dog has that sort of temperament you’ll be fine.

is it normally good with kids? does it know to treat them diferently from adults? if it doesn’t, or hasn’t met many children you might want to try exposing it to some.

10

The stories everyone is sharing are pretty common, far more so than any trouble between dog and baby. Bichons are sweet little dogs, and from what you’ve said about your dog’s personality, you’re probably going to have an easy time of it. Just make sure you don’t ignore the dog, or s/he might feel a bit put out. You might want to give the dog a treat or some extra petting when the baby is around, so the dog learns to association the little one with good things. Your own comon sense will be your indicator of hw things are going- obviously you’re going to have to supervise closely all dog/baby interaction for the next few years.

Problems usually start when the baby starts walking and tries annoying the dog with ear pulling, tail-pulling, etc. Of course, some dogs will put up with this happily, but many won’t. The best thing you can do in this situation is watch the baby, and never let him/her treat the dog like a toy. Instill early a respect for the dog, and teach your child to respect the dog’s belongings like food and toys, and not to bother the dog when s/he has clearly had enough. You also might need to watch the baby, too, when s/he gets older- Bichons are little guys, and even a toddler could accidentally injure one.

Another problem I frequently hear about is…diaper stealing. Yeah, it’s gross, but dogs are really interested in poop. Keep the diaper pail out of reach, and don’t let your kid around the dog too long with a full diaper.

Of course, you should talk to both your pediatrician and your vet.

Other than that, the only “problems” you’re likely to encounter are bound to be hilarious and make for great photo opportunities. When the baby starts crawling, and gets into that “everything goes in the mouth” phase, watch out for attempts to eat dog food, chew on dog toys, and chew on the dog. Also, when the baby is crying, some dogs will act worried, and whine, and attempt to calm the baby by licking or by trying to get you to help the baby. Some dogs, on the other hand, see this as a great opportunity to start a group howl.

Oh yeah…more about poop. If you have a yard, and the dog poops there, you need to keep it extra clean and always keep the kid out of the ‘dog area’. Your pediatrician can tell you more specifics, but needless to say, small children and dog poop are an unhealthy combination.

I wish you the best of luck, and congratulations! I’ll keep you, your dog, and your little one in my thoughts. Keep us posted, and we want cute pictures! :slight_smile:

11

Buduardo Rodriguez aka Buddy loves all animals except squirrels. He hates squirrels. He wasn’t around when the kids were born but we do have newborn nieces and nephews. They couldn’t be put on the floor because Buddy loved to sniff and lick them, especially in the face where all that delicious upchucked milk was. And, yes, he loved dirty diapers, too. So we made sure he couldn’t reach the baby.

When the kids got older, our biggest worry was that his enthusiasm would hurt them or scare the bejesus out of them. Buddy gets so excited to greet new people that he can inadvertently knock them down trying to give them a big lick. We are very firm with him but he can’t help himself so he is usually put outside until he calms down and can behave like a gentleman.

Bud is extremely mild mannered so he lets kids pull at his ears, pull on his tail, try to ride him like a horse, etc. He thinks kids are so much fun. The only danger in this (aside from his sharp claws) is that our kids thought other dogs were as loving as ours. They’d walk up to every dog, thinking the dog would be nice. So we had to constantly reinforce with our children that all dogs are not alike and they should never walk up to a strange dog without permission from the owner first.

12

Congrats

This is very unscientific and I can’t provide a cite. I’m not fear-mongering, nor am I the worrying type myself. However:

My mom works for a plastic surgery group. About 7 years ago, before my wife and I had either kids or dogs, she suggested we stop by the office around closing time and speak with the Drs. about having young children in the same house as a dog(s).

Of the 4 Drs. whose opinions we got, the unanimous advice we got was: under no circumstances should there be a dog in the house prior to bringing home a newborn. Each one of the Drs. told us they’ve lost count of how many mutilated faces they’ve stitched back together in their years of practice.

One Dr. went as far as to say it was “political pressure” that kept the ASPS (American Society of Plastic Surgeons) from issuing a position paper strongly advising the public against bringing newborns home to a house with a dog.

That comment seems a bit ironic, now that 7 years later the ASPS and the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) released a statement this May that basically says even though 400,000 children are bitten by dogs annually in the US, you should follow these safety tips[ul][li]Before getting a dog, seek the advice of a veterinarian about which dog is right for your family.[]Socialize your dog so it feels at ease around people and other animals.[]Don’t put your dog in situations where it may feel threatened or teased.[]Follow leash laws. Don’t let your dog roam free.[]Train your dog to obey basic commands such as “stay,” “sit,” and “come.”[]Keep your dog healthy with regular check-ups and a vaccination program tailored to your dog’s needs.[]See a veterinarian promptly if your dog is sick or injured. Illness and pain can make a dog more likely to bite.Don’t play aggressive games with your dog. [/li]Spay/neuter your dog.[li]Confine your dog in a fenced yard or dog run when it is not in the house. Never tether or chain your dog because this can contribute to aggressive behavior[/ul]In my opinion, these tips are just common sense, but should, at a minimum, be heeded. [/li]
Maybe that Dr. was right about the “political pressure.” If guns were more popular, would the medical community and the NRA release a joint statement…I don’t think so.

FTR: We got our 2 dogs after our 2nd child was toddling. A vet friend I asked seconded the Plastic Surgeons opinions. His advice was to get a dog after you’re done having infants in the home. Dogs get their instinctual dominant/submissive caste roles from the wolves they’ve decended from and have a much easier time adapting to their subservant roles when introduced into a home after children are already living there.

The decisions you and your wife make will be based on your own pesonal experiences and how you weight the risks vs. benefits.

Good Luck

13

I read a note in People magazine the other day…I was waiting at the Doctor’s office, so I don’t know which issue and I Googled but couldn’t find it. Anyway, Sarah Jessica Parker is about to give birth, and they consulted someone about how to deal with their CURRENT baby, a dog, when the new baby comes.

He told them to get the dog used to “baby” scents, I assume that means the stuff you are going to use with baby, like lotion and powder and things. Also, he said to encourage the dog to lie next to mom while she is nursing the baby so the dog sees the baby as an extension of mom.

Makes sense to me.

And…CONGRATULATIONS!

14

We had a Chow/Husky when my son was born. She was mostly a yard dog, but spoiled rotten. Upon their first meeting, when baby was a few days old, she tried to see if baby’s head would fit in her mouth. :frowning: She wasn’t aggressive about it, but of course we freaked out. After that, she would just smell him, lick off any stray food, then ignore him.

15

Hmmm. Not having any kids, but having had a dog or two in my time, I’d say, depends on the dog. Don’t know much about the Bichon Frise.

If it were a hunting breed (afore mentioned prey drive) or a breed that was commonly used as a guard dog (Doberman Pinscher or a Rottweiler, for instance), I’d be concerned, although I’d be very concerned, especially a Dobie or Rottie, which are very territorial. Having said that , I’ve known a few people with Rotties, and they can be very sweet, even tempered dogs.

Herding dogs, I’d be worry less- they’d probably be more inclined to be protective of the new family member, rather than see the baby as a rival in the pack heirarchy. If I were ever to have a kid, I would immediately go out and get an Australian Blue Heeler. They have a reputation for being great around kids, protecting them, keeping them from falling down stairs, etc. A lot can happen to a small child in the blink of an eye, so I would feel better knowing there was an extra pair of eyes on the youngun’.

16

Friends of mine underwent this whole strategic approach, which I got to see the video of the end result of.

After the tyke was born, and was spending the usual amount of time in the hospital with exhausted mom, exhausted dad came home to start spreading the good news. He brought the first blanket that the baby was in so their dog would have advance warning of scent. He (the dog) took to carrying it round with him all about the house, and would lay down on it when not carrying it about.

Day or two later when baby was brought home (this is the bit that was taped), mom came in first while dad stayed outside a bit with the kid. Fort (this is the dog again) is all happy-wiggly to see her again, of course, as she’s been gone for awhile. Mom heads back outside, dad re-enters, for restraining over-enthusiastic-dog duty, as mom comes in again with new baby. Fort started forward, stopped, sniffed intently (slow wagging), then all of a sudden wheeled about, darted into his kennel (just off in the frame of the video) and came back out carrying baby blanket, which he dropped at mom’s feet.

I can’t say that really made a difference at all as to how the dog feels about the new kid at all, but it sure made me grin to watch.

17

We did the baby blanket thing with the 2 cats, since they would have more contact with the baby. It just made them think it was okay to sleep and pee on baby’s things.

18

When I was brought home as a newborn, the two family dogs had no problem with me. The Siamese cat Bummer, however, felt extremely displaced by the new arrival. He would wait until my parents finally got me to sleep, and then yowl and screech until he succeeded in awakening me. Finally, he went on a hunger strike and had to be fed through a syringe. One of my early memories is of coming home with my mother and finding his dead body stretched out by the door.

19

yESTERDAY mAN that is one of the saddest things I’ve ever heard.

When we brought our first baby home we had 2 cats. They were very suspicious, crouching to approch and circling wide when the had to walk past. After a while they just ignored the kid.

20

No dog, no kid, no sweat. :wink: