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Original poster

Baby Walkers - What are your honest opinions/experiences

30 replies

LittleMan · 27/02/2007 21:19

Ds is now 9 months old and climbing out of his inflatable ring, is out of his bouncer chair and can't be left anywhere alone as rolls all over the place (not yet crawling) and gets his little fingers in places they shouldn't be!! Lots of friends, my mum and MIL as well as SIL have all suggested baby walkers, said they were great and the kids loved them. Mentioned them to the HV today at ds' 9 month check up and she poo-pooed them and said she would get them banned if she could. She had lots of reasons for this but the main one was the fact that it keeps the child in an unnatural position where the hips are splayed, and the child walks or pushes by leaning forward and using tiptoes, which in the professionals opinion has led to many cases of the shortening of the achilles tendon preventing the child from walking properly. Along with the safety factor she was really against them.
Just wondering what others out there think or have found.
Ta!

OP posts:

CanSleepWeirdShifts · 27/02/2007 21:21

Agree with your h/v - she's not making it up, research has, I believe, proved this. They should be banned.

massagemum · 27/02/2007 21:21

I have 3 children all of whom have used baby walkers and they have loved them. They are able to get around the room and be occupied and independant - i have never had any probl;ems with them.

My mum is also and childminder of 27 years and also used to foster young babies - again she has used the baby walkers and has never had a problem.

DeviousDaffodil · 27/02/2007 21:25

My Ds's used them and walk fine now. No accidents. They used to love getting about in theirs.You can get static ones too if you are worried about tipping over.

bristols · 27/02/2007 21:26

I think they're OK if used in moderation (as with all things, really.) We have one for DS as he just loves to be upright and to see what's going on. I put him in it for no longer than half an hour at a time, maybe a couple of times a day. This seems to give him enough respite that he's then happy to go back on the floor. I had also heard that the use of walkers can impair childrens' walking ability but I think this happens when children spend a lot of time in the walker.

pucca · 27/02/2007 21:27

My ds (29 weeks) uses his and loves it, my dd (3 yo) loved hers too, and her walking is fine.

EmsTomot · 27/02/2007 21:29

Massive debate on walkers - I have been told that they cause head injuries (felt that this would only really happen if baby was left unattended and careered down some steps for the thing to topple over) also told that as little ones can not see their feet, they can't associate them with movement and it slows development (felt that this could be true if baby was left in the walker ALL of the time!) and was also told that it can affect their hips etc (the ones I have seen have really good soft seats that allow baby to weight bare a little and sit comfortably when not)
We actually got a Take Along Hip and Hop from Fisherprice given to us. It is not a walker, our baby sits in it and can bounce up and down to his hearts content setting lots of music and lights off. He goes in it occassionally for interactive play and spends the rest of the time playing on the floor with us, walking around (with us holding him up!) or in his travel cot which now acts as a play pen.
I don't think walkers are necessarily bad, they give your baby a sense of movement and confidence, but do agree that they could give your baby an easy option to move around instead of learning to do it on their own on the floor. I guess it depends really on how long they are going to spend in them.

Rowlers · 27/02/2007 21:34

Honestly? I don't worry about it. Unless you are going to leave your child in one all day every day while you sit on your backside boozed up watching Jeremy Kyle, I think they have a place.
DD used one when she was little - short spells at a time. She loved racing around in it and being upright.
She crawled for about 3 days and walked when she was 11 + 1/2 months old.

sweetkitty · 27/02/2007 21:38

When DD1 was born I was totally against them for all the reasons mentioned on here. My mother thought this was terrible I wasn't getting one and that I would "scar" DD1. Her friends even suggested that they needed them to strengthen their legs for walking (talking utter rubbish). I lived in a small flat when DD1 was little and another big plastic thing was all I needed. She never had one and walked fine at 12 months.

When DD2 came along at 7 months I ended up getting her one after being dead set against it. She really loved it. She was only in it for about 30 minutes at a time and had loads of time on the floor without it, I never fed her in it either. When she started to pull herself up to begin to walk I took it away completely. She walked about 4 weeks earlier than DD1 as well.

I know one baby who would get up , get changed and fed and would be put in a walker all day apart from naps and nappy changes. I hate that seeing little babies in them all the time and being fed in them (don't know why).

EmsTomot · 27/02/2007 21:39

Wow, I can't remember the last time I had a drink, let alone watched Jeremy Kyle!!!
We decided against a walker and chose the stationary bouncing thing mainly because, 1 -our house is tiny with no garden and 2 - we were given the stationary bouncing thing!
I agree, if your baby enjoys being in the walker and has lots of fun, that can't be a bad thing can it?!

wannaBeWhateverIWannaBe · 27/02/2007 21:43

ds had one and loved it. he was only ever in it for approx 30 mins at a time and that was fine.

I think the damage can be done more if they're left in them all the time, and the safety issues are with regard to people who let their babies in them upstairs and the baby ends up going down the stairs in it. if you have an ounce of common sense then this just won't happen

"they should be banned" is a massive overreaction IMO. lots of things can be damaging, car fumes for one, and I don't hear calls for cars to be banned.

mawbroon · 27/02/2007 21:44

Agree with your HV.

This is what ROSPA have to say about them

and there is a load more info if you Google.

BibiThree · 27/02/2007 21:46

DD loved hers, I think as long as you're sensible and don't leave you baby in there for an age, they enjoy the view and freedom and your arms can enjoy a 20 minute rest now and again!

JanH · 27/02/2007 21:48

I think they are fantastic for a child who can't yet sit unaided, or move around, and who gets frustrated lying on the floor (on front or back) because things roll out of reach; no different from sitting in a high chair with toys on the tray.

The non-moving kind they have now must be safer than the wheely kind though, and I would stop using one once the child could sit up/move independently.

sweetkitty · 27/02/2007 21:50

mine was a godsend sometimes when DD1 was potty training and DD2 was tearing about. Also good for outdoors I would put DD2 in the garden in hers for a bit she could zoom up and down the patio, you just have to watch up for your ankles!

I think they are great for LOs who are nowhere near walking but once they are starting to pull themselves up they shouldn't be in them IMO.

tortoise · 27/02/2007 21:51

I have always disliked walkers and never used one for any of mine.
DD2 had the static hop and pop and loved it.

malaleche · 27/02/2007 21:55

I've never used one, for my dc that is, but a friend had one and her kid fell down the stairs in it. After that i started hearing a lot of similar stories. If you don't have stairs and your dc is not in it for long periods i suppose it would be ok. Wouldn't a play pen give them more possibilities in terms of positions to be in? When dd1 was that age we just childproofed one (very small living)room and put a gate on the doorway so she could roam about to her hearts content inside.

hercules1 · 27/02/2007 21:57

Never used one and would never either.

Bellie · 27/02/2007 21:58

DIdn't have one for dd, although MIL went out and got her one anyway even though we had made it clear that we didn't want one - it never made it out of the box after seeing the rospa advice (link already on a previous post).
One of my friends had one for their ds and if we were at theirs dd would sit in it for about 30 seconds before screaming that she wanted to come out.

bristols · 27/02/2007 21:58

I would never use it upstairs, or leave my LO unattended it it. I don't leave him unattended in anything, come to think of it!

tassis · 27/02/2007 21:59

the ones without wheels are FANTASTIC...we have an ancient one that have done about 12 wee ones and is still going strong

my 5.5 month old adores it

the newer all singing all dancing ones are even better!

nulnulcat · 27/02/2007 21:59

dd loved hers and used to race round the living room like it was some sort of race track! she was wanting to walk from really early on so used to get really frustrated and was happier thinking she was more mobile! didnt affect her walking in the slightest she walked at 9 1/2 months sometimes think maybe if she hadnt had the walker i might have had a nother couple of months where she couldnt go everywhere!!

EmsTomot · 27/02/2007 22:02

I can't understand how a baby ends up going down stairs in a walker, surely that shouldn't happen - ?

pointydog · 27/02/2007 22:03

dds really enjoyed it. Could pick up quite a speed. Exhilarating.

Not all the time of course - use your bonce.

chocolatekimmy · 27/02/2007 22:13

My third is using one now, she is almost 8 months and has been using it for about the last 5 weeks. She goes in it several times every day. She also plays on the floor, or sits up on the sofa playing or on my lap.

I think its important to have a mixture of activity. She loves going off on her own in it to other rooms to explore, its great seeing her making her own choices in that respect.

Never had any accidents with it, even use it on the patio when I am out there too. Both my older ones walked at about 11 months and have had no difficulties.

I think the key thing is to limit the time spent in it.

Original poster

LittleMan · 28/02/2007 20:22

Hi All
Thanks for your posts, as I thought a mixture of opinions. The other problem we have is that we live in a 3 story town house and the lounge and ds' bedroom is on the middle floor where we spend a good proportion of our time! Don't really think our house is designed for walkers, but perhaps one of the static kind would be suitable. Thanks again.

OP posts:

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