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People with dogs
Hi
I've got a dog who's 9 years old and I've had him from about 6 weeks old so he's always been no 1 and he's a real human sort of dog, he loves people and is not always too keen on other dogs but he's not used to babies or children at all. My daughter is 13 weeks old now and I never leave them alone, I have to keep shoving the dog outside all the time, which is a right pain but I would never risk leaving him alone with her just in case. I just wondered how other people have got on with having a baby after having a dog for a long time? He has licked her hand 2 or 3 times, (I've washed them afterwards btw!), I think a couple of times when I've been holding her and then he licked her hand the other day after a blood test so I guess he could smell the blood as she'd got a bit of cotton wool on it. Do you think the licking is affection or something else? I normally know my dog really well but I couldn't suss out why he licked her. He's not really a licky sort of dog although sometimes he will lick mine or hubby's feet or something and that is always affectionately but I just can't tell with my LO. I will never risk leaving him alone with her but I was just interested what people think. I do get a bit nervous with him and I find myself getting annoyed with him for making my life more difficult by having to watch him all the time but I know it's not his fault, bless him, he doesn't understand.
Thanks
I've got a dog who's 9 years old and I've had him from about 6 weeks old so he's always been no 1 and he's a real human sort of dog, he loves people and is not always too keen on other dogs but he's not used to babies or children at all. My daughter is 13 weeks old now and I never leave them alone, I have to keep shoving the dog outside all the time, which is a right pain but I would never risk leaving him alone with her just in case. I just wondered how other people have got on with having a baby after having a dog for a long time? He has licked her hand 2 or 3 times, (I've washed them afterwards btw!), I think a couple of times when I've been holding her and then he licked her hand the other day after a blood test so I guess he could smell the blood as she'd got a bit of cotton wool on it. Do you think the licking is affection or something else? I normally know my dog really well but I couldn't suss out why he licked her. He's not really a licky sort of dog although sometimes he will lick mine or hubby's feet or something and that is always affectionately but I just can't tell with my LO. I will never risk leaving him alone with her but I was just interested what people think. I do get a bit nervous with him and I find myself getting annoyed with him for making my life more difficult by having to watch him all the time but I know it's not his fault, bless him, he doesn't understand.
Thanks
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Replies
I am due in a few days and we have a nervous rescue dog- gentle as anything but she loves routine, so obviously we've been seeking advice about introducing our newborn to her.
I found this article very useful for advice;
http://www.my-dog.info/getting-a-dog/newborns_and_dogs.asp
Like you, we will never, ever leave the 2 alone in a room, I just would feel better if I knew there was never a risk.
Dogs often lick things they don't recognize, they use their tongues to explore the world, so I would not worry as long as you wash babys hand.
Hope the article helps
Good luck
MG
38+6
My little one is now 18 months old with another one on the way. I have 2 dogs one small breed one medium.. both spoilt to death before we had kids.
You will learn to relax.. dont worry. Obviously they are never left alone together but the 3 of them are the best of friends! They play together, she feeds them but they know to only take food from her if she says its ok, she cuddles them and strokes them and tells them off when they bark lol.
They put up with her really well! We have had no problems.... when she was tiny it use to annoy me when they would sniff and lick her or go near her toys but honestly i think its good for the babys immune systems!! My little girl has never been ill... the worst she has had is 1 ear infection, shes never had a tummy bug and at 18 months old considering she has 2 dogs licking her who when she often gives a biscuit to them and then takes it off them and eats it when its already been in there mouth its very good
You will stop getting annoyed with him ... honestly i felt the same but once your little one loves the doggy you will see how workable it is My daughters first giggle was because of the dogs! xx
Just take it one day at a time
xxx
We have a 2 year old yorkie who is absolutely fab with Riley. I never left them alone when he was a tiny baby but I do now. She's such a softy, she even sleeps in our bed with us! She goes up to Riley and licks him and he couldn't really do much about it when he was younger but now he'll pull her fur and she's so soft she just takes it! We try to tell him not to though, but now she tends to keep out of the way especially when he's in his walker cuz he goes straight for her!
I think you'll relax a little as lo gets older but I think you should try not to treat the dog any differently. We treat ours the same as we always had really and they get on really well. x
I have a 10yr old dog who dotes on us & vice versa. We've still fussed her as usual so she doesn't see our baby as competition. She doesn't particularly bother with him at all and only approaches him if we're with him. I don't force my baby on her trying to make her be friends, I let her go at her own pace. She sometimes licks his hands or the top of his head and my LO giggles. I don't let my dog get too close as my LO now grabs at things. I don't think she would bite but I don't want to put her in a situation where he's suddenly gripped her fur by surprise. I must add I don't leave them alone either. I think it is possible for babies/kids and dogs to co-habit but I also believe supervision is necessary.
I've worked with dogs for over 10yrs now and I would never 100% trust any dog. They cannot communicate fully or tell you how they feel. It's just too risky, especially where a baby is concerned.
I personally think it's good for children to interact with animals. I believe it can help their development plus I've heard that kids brought up with animals are less likely to have allergies. Yay!
Shell xx
They concluded that they had far less allergies because their body actually had something to fight, rather than to attack itself and cause allergies. Becase of that reason I am not stopping our cats interacting with our lo. (they run when he gets to close) I also don't stop him from getting close to the dogs of PIL. The dogs do lick his hands and try to lick his face, but they also do that to me, so not much going I am worried about. I do keep an eye out though and never leave them alone. (one of them sometimes starts to nibble rather than just lick)