dog before baby?

[PurplePoppy17]

Hi all, I'm 18 weeks, due in April. Me and the OH have wanted a dog for a good while now and have decided it's a definite yes. The breeds we like are lab or boxer.
I think It would be great to get before the baby so that it's trained before baby arrives, and atleast then it gives me something to get out and about for before and with baby. What do you think? I know some say it's best to get afterwards Incase the dog gets jealous ect but I think if we get one while I am pregnant the dog will be aware that there is a baby to come... (I think dogs are clever like that) a lot of my friends have had dogs before babies and there dogs have been great!! I also don't believe the whole bad dog thing, I genuinely think that the dogs are only bad if they have been brought up wrong ect. I am used to big dogs as my parents have always had collies or need breeds. Just now they have a collie a Rottweiler/German Shepherd and a German Shepherd. I love dogs and can't wait to have my own please let me know of your own experiences and the breeds you have and prefer?

Why would you do that to yourself? Puppies need a lot of attention and patience and you may well find being pregnant leaves you short on both. It takes at least a year if not two to train a well behaved dog, do you want to be doing that bulk of that work heavily pregnant and with a newborn? How will you cope if you are unable to walk the dog due to SPD or have a baby who is a poor sleeper and a young dog that needs a lot of exercise?

Please get a dog when your child is sixteen years old.

I don't even think it's just a puppy/baby issue, even an older dog with under 3s is a pain. I forgot my retriever gets over excited and tries to run through the living room at full pelt which can happen unpredictably whenever he hears a noise which is draining because I have to guard the doc constantly even though baby proofed and yes, when im exhausted the dog has to go out for a long long walk even after we've been out to wear out the children, so now I pay a fortune for dog exercises as well as childcare! If I could do it again I'd have a dog when the youngest was 5 or 6.

I'd think you were crazy and being idealistic. Newborn babies are exhausting. Don't underestimate how tired you'll be, and potentially feeling crap too depending on how the birth goes. Why on earth would you want to throw a puppy into the mix?

I've had a dog for two years and I'm about to have twins. He's four and lovely in the house but quite hard work on walks. However, I know that he is great with kids, follows commands in the house, and has experience with newborn babies from his first owners. I still feel terrible that his life is about to be turned upside down. He is used to having so much affection and attention from us, and I feel awful that his security, routine and place in our family is going to change, and I can't even explain that to him. I am confident that everything will be okay, and I don't regret getting him, but in your position I would wait. There are just too many unknown quantities in the equation.

Also, just to add, our old boy never bonded with our dds like he had with us. He was three when dd1 was born and it seriously put his nose out of joint. He was very much our dog and he didn't really like them. He took no notice of them at all and would actively move away if they went near him. It was a shame for them really because dh and I adored him but they couldn't see it.

Our old boy died last December. Dh and I were devastated but the dds not so much, thankfully. We now have a Labrador pup who is growing up with the girls and loves them to bits and they him. They are now 6 and 8 and they all play together and it's lovely. He follows them about and sleeps on their beds. They're old enough to appreciate a dog now. There's no harm in waiting a couple of years. Then the dog will grow up with the kids and won't know any different.

Very very very bad idea. Newborns are such a massive shock to the system, your whole world turns upside down. You won't want the added stress of having a dog. Wait till you have a baby and decide then.

Terrible idea!!

I would concur with all the points mentioned, but also add that with my last two pregnancies i have had the most ridiculous sense of smell and my absolutely adored dogs have revolted me . The smell of them makes me heave.

It will be ok as soon as dc3 is born as it was with ds2, but in the mean time it is hard on all of us. DS1 and 2 have had to help more as has dh, and dogs aren't quite sure why i won't snuggle up with them as usual. I can barely be in the same room as them without retching.

I'm in the minority but I would, you're clearly a dog lover and have experience.

I've always had dogs and worked with them daily for the last 21 years so having them around is natural, I currently have 5 dogs plus 2 daughters aged 2.5 and 8 months and haven't had a single problem.

My favourite breed is the GSD and although I only have 1 now will definitely have more in the future, their loyalty is second to none, they're easy to train and a great family pet, when I think back to the 5 previous shepherds I've had I wouldn't have had any worries about them aged 7 months.

I 100% would wait until afterwards. You won't have the time/energy as you grow more heavily pregnant (speaking as dog lover and owner) and more importantly they will still be a puppy and will need your attention.

Thanks for all of your opinions... Definitely something to have a good think about and talk to the OH.

I don't want to sound mean but I think there's a bit of naivety in the original post. I'm pregnant with twins (my first pregnancy) so I've yet to experience the joys of what actually having a baby/babies is like just yet but I can tell you that I'm really quite concerned about how my 5 year old rescue (we've had him for 2 years) is going to adjust to it all. We have gone so far as to see a vet who specialises in behaviour through a local university and will also be considering medicating him too. All of this is because we are very committed to the dog - we love him dearly, but he's also boisterous, unpredictable and a clown and all of these things and babies are a risky combo. We cannot bear to say goodbye to him, but equally I will not compromise on my babies wellbeing.

Getting a dog is never the rose-tinted experience that you remember from your childhood dogs. After all you had a mum or dad or both who did a lot of the hard stuff. They paid the vet bills, insurance, and food, they did a lot of the dog walking and training - I bet you don't even remember all the bad things they did, and if you do, you tell them as a funny story not a cautionary tale. Adding all of this to the stress of having a baby is really not worth it. The baby will always win and the last thing you want is to realise when the puppy is 5-6 months old that you have to give it up. Getting a dog should be a permanent commitment and you need to give that dog the best chance possible of your home being its forever home.

Good luck with your decision.x

Nooooo don't do it

Total dog lover here always had dogs, currently have two

Also a ex owner of boxers ,amazing dogs but a handful

Anyway breed isn't my point

My dogs were my world but now I have a 14 mo the old there a nightmare
I have no time for them, my son is at a age he would of given the choice wants to poke there eyes out so for the next year at least I've to keep toddler and dogs separate , again another pain in the bum

Then comes walking them, babies are tiring, having to drag myself out to walk dogs was hard and it still is.

Personally I'd not have a dog until a child was 4/5 years old if given the choice.

I had older dogs when my girls were born. Walks with the pram or sling are not good walks for the dogs. Then stupidly got two puppies as one of the dogs died of old age. Thought best to have the old dog to show the youngsters the ropes.

Reality is 2 fairly badly behaved dogs. I didn't have the time to train them correctly. One child very indifferent. One very attached. I haven't really bonded with one of them even after 8 years.

I have a 3 year old Golden labrador and my little girl came along in June. Pixel (my dog) had been amazing with the baby and my daughter absolutely loves Pixel. She giggles at her all the time and it really is lovely :D

Although, saying that, it is very hard to juggle a baby and a dog. Pixel constantly gets pushed aside for my daughters needs. Before my daughter, my dog was the love of my life, but since having my daughter i give her all my attention. Luckily DP works from home and can take the dog for long walks, but i definitely would wait!

No, don't. And yes I think it's great for kids to grow up with dogs, I have a toddler, baby and 2 large dogs myself.

It works fine - but dogs were 3 years old and fully trained before the first kid came along. This meant weekly dog school, plus training at home for more than a year, you won't have the dog trained in just a few months. Where would you find time and energy for this when pregnant or with a newborn?

And you really don't want to have a young bouncy untrained lab or boxer around babies - one friend cannot visit us any more, as she always wants to bring her lab, and this will knock adults over when running around, not to mention toddlers. Or can you imagine walking the dog, with a baby in pram, dog pulling full strength?

As for the 'something to get out for' - yes, in theory. In real life, if you have been up about a dozen times that night and the baby has finally, finally fallen asleep, and that very minute the dog starts barking and whining and demands a walk - not so much fun as it sounds.

Wait a little, will be a lot more enjoyable experience.

^^^ The barking when you have just got the baby to sleep. MOST FRUSTRATING THING EVER.

It really depends if you have owned dogs before. I would say that a first time owner (or someone who had problems training their previous dog), puppies and babies don't mix.

You have to be prepared to walk the dog twice a day EVERY day, which unfortunately many people aren't prepared to do.

In the past I have re-homed an Irish Setter from a family who ran a nursery for babies. The problem they had was that they couldn't give the time to exercise or train the dog properly and that they choose a every energetic breed to begin with.

Maybe if you are determined to get a dog, find one that will need less exercise and wont be so lively for a first dog?

Also note that happy Labradors can easily clear low tables of ALL items accidentally with their tails... and Retrievers have a constant need to hold things in their mouths at all times, so you will need to teach them to know the difference between their toys and the child's, which is why I have never given a dog a soft toy.

Haven't read the thread. We did dog before baby BUT ensured that puppyhood, training, first year were over before baby arrived.

There's simply no way I would have been able to deal with the puppy when pregnant. Puppy arrived, got trained, settled in, absolutely set in house and toilet habits, and we got done with the relentless work a puppy need BEFORE I got pregnant.

Now with our new baby, it's just perfect. But I wouldn't have been able to handle the puppy stage when pregnant. shudders

And by the way, regarding emotions, no to kg did I not resent our beautiful dog for one moment, DH and I actually find we loved her even more throughout the progress of the pregnancy and as baby arrived. We truly are a family of four, and our fur baby means a world to us both. In fact when we were unexpectedly kept in hospital for precautionary reasons, I got to get out occasionally to catch a break, y first stop always was to check in our dog. Not once did I feel that she had to make way to accommodate my love for baby. dog looks far cuter when baby bawls eyes out at night

You are going to have your hands seriously full with a baby and will be really tired. You and your OH are not going to want to go and take a dog for long walks after you have been up all night with a baby. You are probably just feeling broody, just wait for your baby.

I'm a vet and I think you are absolutely crazy getting a dog when you are pregnant. I puppy sat for 1 week in my 1st trimester and have never been so happy as when I gave that puppy back, it drove me crazy! It was so much work, destroyed my side board, damaged my dining table and peed on my sofa. It was only a little 10 week old pug.

If you still want a dog, why don't you join borrow my doggy and dog sit for someone. It will soon put you off.

We did exactly this. We bought a puppy in December, baby was due at beginning of May.

Best thing we ever did. The dog was trained and settled by the time the baby came, and she kept me active through the last bits of pregnancy.

She was a dream with the baby. We gave her one of his worn babygrows in her bed before I got home from hospital, don't know if that helped, but she loved him from day one. Having to walk the dog every day was great for me too - I put the baby in a sling and thoroughly enjoyed it.

I got my 2nd DDog when I was about 4 weeks pregnant, it has been prearranged for so long and wanted her so we got her.

It was very difficult. Think heightened sense of smell and a dog toileting in the house. Bending down, and from 28 weeks onwards you shouldn't really be straining with a large dog on a lead as it will hurt (IME)

I love my DDogs, but having one adult dog already meant that mine was toilet trained in 2 weeks, not 10 weeks like previously. I hated the morning sickness (HG) because I couldn't be near my two dogs without being sick.

You need to think about how physically demanding this will be with a pregnancy and a small child to look after too.

You don't lose anything by waiting til after baby is here and reassessing how much time and energy you have. Training a dog like a lab or boxer takes much much more time than you have before your baby is here, so that argument is a bit of a non-starter.
If you do get a dog now the worst case situation is that you can't give the dog the attention it needs, and either end up having to manage a frustrated pet or having to make the heartbreaking decision to rehome.

If I had a choice now, I wouldn't even have cats with new baby, never mind puppies... extra mess, jobs, stress and hardly any time to actually dedicate to loving them (ashamed to admit usually annoyed with them more than any other emotion nowadays, unlike before baby came).
Although DD (nearly two) does enjoy them very much, delaying any kind of pets until children are older seems much wiser for all concerned- baby won't remember anything til after 2 yrs anyway.