How did cave women look after their babies?

[Lorddenning1]

Ok so I have a 6 week old baby and he has lots of stuff, a crib, Moses basket, cot and a a pod/nest, this is all for sleeping, don't get me started on a pram car seat, feeding stuff...
Back in the caveman times how did the ladies take care of the babies, like in winter how did they keep them warm, how did they keep the babies quiet so they didn't get eaten or killed by other tribes. What about nappies, was colic around then?

I often sit and wonder about these things, also how babies were made, did they just figure it out and then make the connection that everything they had sex, 9 months later a baby would appear,,,

Does anyone else think about these things or do I have cabin fever and need to get out more?

Fascinating thread, Op

Read the mother of all myths by Aminatta Forna.

Babies were raised by their female relative, mostly grandmothers. They were carried in slings and breastfed frequently.

A toddler carried like this would cry very little. Don't qomen also sometimes hang babies in trees while they work ? Will google.

🙄🤣seriously have you never seen any animal, bird or fish suddenly see its offspring for first time as new “mother”.

and as for where parts go? Single cellar ancestor reproduced, they evolved in more complex organism with very basic sex organs, that then evolved…etc etc. a caveman didn’t rock up one day with a newly evolved penis out of no where, wanging it around and saying “where do I put this?” to cavewoman having a prod at her newly acquired vulva and vagina that had developed Overnight.
but the image you conjure up is 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

I suspect most cave children knew a bloody sight more around birth, death, sex etc than children do today- they have seen animals reproduce, witness their young being born, seen animals slaughtered. And seen babies being born and dying in their caves. If group livingvtheyd been aware of cuddling adults and a few strange noises. I’m sure adult cave people wanted to protect children from the sadness and horror in the world just as much as now, but it would have been much more within the confines of society and hard to miss .

Even very early human societies would have communicated to successive generations about growing belles and babies pretty much as soon as they could do basic communication. Especially when humans grew heads big enough for complex brains meaning birthing needed assistance of at least one other person generally for a positive outcome. We’d have died out as species pretty bloody quickly if other experienced women had not been on hand to help birthing mums, even if communication was still basic at that point. There’s pretty good evidence amongst mammals they have knowledge passed through generations that a “baby” is hardly a surprise to the group. Apes don’t look at a newly born ape with expression of shock and startlement and generally “what the fuck is thst and where’d it come form?” , generally they express curiousity and excitement - they know exactly what it is. Same with elephants getting very excited and agitated while a member of their herd is birthing. Jeez, do you never watch zoo programs or David Attenborough ?

This is the background into why CIO is so damaging because babies are wild animals and have no understanding that they are not going to be eaten when left.
That's why they cry, their instinct kicks in that tells them the safest place is in mums arms.

Apparently an 1800's thing

https://marionrose.net/the-cultural-history-of-carrying-babies/#:~:text=In%20Sweden%2C%20and%20in%20pioneering,get%20on%20with%20their%20work.

I’m not sure fish are known for having a particularly strong maternal bond with their zillions of spawn! 😅

I had an absconder in my eldest.
I guess they developed reins very quick- deer gut or hide …or a bit of leaf weaving?
”Necessity is the mother of invention" - literally 🤷🏼‍♀️

We are still animals now, so we definitely were back then as well!

Mega interesting! Thank you for this x

The car seat comment made me laugh

You do realise that we are animals, right? We are mammals...

My toddler would go batshit if I locked him up like this!

Some fish, are very maternal…and even paternal

or how’s about this spider even 😱

I thought about this too when I had my LO. Obviously they kept the babies on them a lot, particularly for sleeping. It made me realise how normal co-sleeping and breastfeeding is; if you didn’t have your baby sleep on you it would perish. I imagine the toilet trained very early!

I once visited a park in New Mexico where the native tribes lived in caves. At the start of the trail they were a few feet up, maybe 5 at most. But at the end was a massive cave about 140 feet up which was from an earlier time in the tribes evolution. There were two ladders bolted to the side of the sheer cliffs, but of course when the tribes lived there, they would have simply climbed up and down the cliff each day. I spent ages wondering how they stopped babies from falling out of the opening.

@Dartwarbler thank you for your informative reply, and yes I do watch zoo programs, my thread is meant to be a little lighthearted, obviously we figured it all out as we stand here today with our babies and all of our crap we essentially do not need, but thank you for teaching me stuff

I have to go to sleep tonight but thanks! 😱😅

I don't mean to sound rude, but did you not learn any history at school? 'Oliver Twist period' (aka The Victorian era...) took place many, many thousands of years after 'cave men days' (aka The Stone Age).

I read somewhere that they carried the babies around with them. When they sensed that baby wanted a poo, they held him/her away from them at arms length until the poo was finished. So, no need for nappies. I imagine they cleaned baby with water and a rag.

I was also not being that serious.. I like the image you created with caveman wandering around with his new toy wondering where the hell to put it 🤯🤣🤣🤣🤣

@IdgieThreadgoodeIsMyHeroine I didn't go to school much when I was younger up to high school for reasons I won't discus here, i did go to university though and get a degree.

Also I wasn't referring to the olden days as the cavemen days, I was talking about two different time periods with another poster, she asked what I would consider as olden days etc

Ooopps…sorry ..,should have put a trigger warning.., for what it’s worth it’ll probably come back in my nightmare too!🫢

Don't know what they will make of my skeleton. Broken arm, broken shoulder, dislocated shoulder, broken ankle, broken bone in foot. I wonder what story they'd come up with, probably not such uninteresting, and non violent things as falling when decorating, playing crazy golf, slipping on a step. Maybe they will think I broke my ankle and a bone in my foot kicking my husband about.

@Dartwarbler without sounding too crass, it was more did he see a naked women or a boob and his willy got bigger and he thought what the hell am I meant to do with this now or did they have a cuddle and things worked out as they should 😳