How do I prevent my 'canine baby' from being jealous of my 'human baby'?

[AgBag]

I'm expecting a baby in October. I have one dog, a 3 year old whippet X bedlington terrier, she has been completely pampered and treated as my baby since I got her as a puppy. Shes not the possessive or excessively jealous type... but I don't know how she will be once I have a baby. She is a generally well behaved dog, apart from she gets excitable when greeting people and can jump up, she soon calms down though. She does also sleep in bed with me. Once my husband gets out, she gets in, properly in. Shes a complete teddy bear.

I understand that things are going to change hugely when the baby arrives. But as this is my first baby, I havn't really got a clue what to expect.
Does anyone have any tips on training I should start now?

I'm told dogs in bed with babies is a bad idea. I'm really going to miss my morning cuddles. I think I will probably find it harder than the dog. Is it really necessary to ban dogs from beds with a newborn (?!!).

If anyone has any tips or guidance that would be greatly appreciated!

um, yes! In my very humble opinion of course. Personally, I could never sleep with my dogs in bed, as I like my sleep too much! The baby will be up and down all night, and I would have thought that would stress the dog out more. Could you introduce sleeping downstairs now, as you would a new puppy? When I was pregnant, I also stopped our dog from lying on the sofa with us, with lots of treats and praise. I didn't want to be sitting feeding with the dog jostling for attention. Just think about all the things that could be dangerous when you're holding a baby e.g. jumping up at you. Those are the things you need to sort now- they're never too old to learn new things.
Dogs and babies can be managed just fine, but for me it was a lot easier when the dog had some strict boundaries.

i'd recommend getting someone to nip home before you & baby are discharged with something that smells of the baby- a wee sleepsuit, a blanket etc- and let the dog have a good sniff, so when you come home dog already knows baby's smell.

i allowed both my dogs to continue sleeping on our bed, but i didn't really have the baby in the bed.
(although, for the 1st week or 2, i slept in a single bed in the babies room, until i was certain the dogs were fine with the wee one.although, they just came & kipped on the single bed with me, leaving dh to the nice big double on his own. so i shifted the moses basket into our room,we never had any problems)

obviously, though, every dog's different, so it depends on how you think your dog will react/ how the dog reacts etc

another thing i did when pregnant, was train the dogs to only sit on one couch. that was their couch, the other was ours. made it so much easier when feeding etc, as there was no chance of the dogs jumping onto the couch & bumping the baby accidentally.

congrats on your pregnancy, hope everything goes well for you, baby& dog :)

I stopped my bed sleeping dog getting on the bed when I knew I was pregnant so that it cdnt be associated with new baby,also found the 'sounds soothing' cd invaluable as by the time dd arrived my doggy was chilled about crying babies and still if either dds cry in the night he comes and finds me then lies down and sleeps.definately 2 good walks a day with your baby help your doggy loads and I had to retrain dh to always greet new baby before dog! Dogs are very happy being bottom of the pecking order as long as that is consistent,good luck,our rescue doggy has done so well I'm really proud of him.

I wouldn't worry too much, but simply put in place any changes that will happen once the baby is born in place now, before baby arrives. So, if you walk or feed the dog at regular times, make the routine slightly less strict so the dog knows she gets fed/walked when you're ready, not when she thinks it should happen. I personally would not have a dog and any child asleep in the same room, let alone a baby (and my dogs do/have slept on my bed) for the same reason I would never leave a dog unsupervised with a child, you just never know what could happen.

I would also probably try and sort out the jumping up issue now, it will be a pain if at first your dog is trying to jump up at your baby.

I looked after my friend's two week old baby yesterday. I have four dogs and I have to admit, as far as I can remember, they have never seen a baby. They are however, used to all sorts of changes and people coming and going, including other children of all ages. They were quite interested to see what the little thing I was holding was, but otherwise they didn't bat an eye and weren't bothered by him being whingey while he was waiting for his bottle to warm up at all.

I'm expecting myself and tbh I just expect my dogs to accept my baby, (not to say I won't be cautious when baby comes home) not because it is mine, but because the are used to all sorts going on and not stressed out by things.

Good tips, thank you. Introducing her (the dog) to the babies scent before the baby is a good idea. I do need to crack the jumping issue asap too.

I guess its the moments like mornings when I expect I'll be propped up in bed breastfeeding when the dog usually joins me in bed too. And if I go to bed in the afternoons I always take the dog.

I suppose hygiene is my main concern, not that the dog will harm the baby...

I wouldn't worry too much about hygiene, or at least you will for the first few months, and then you will catch your lovely little clean baby licking the floor or sharing a snack with the dog! Or maybe that's just my toddler .

In terms of hygiene, make sure your dog is treated for worms every 3 months as a minimum and treated for fleas (they form part of the worm cycle so worming alone isn't enough), and don't let it lick the baby's toys - other than that I wouldn't get too obsessed. Obviously be fastidious about poop-scooping the garden if baby will be going out there too. Toxocara canis (the parasite that can cause blindness in children) isn't a problem in fresh dog muck, just any that's been lying around for a while - so as long as you pick up as soon as your dog has done it it's not a risk. My dog hasn't been a problem at all so far with my baby, who's now 6 months old. I am very careful to spend time with the dog when the baby's in bed, and I try to make him see the baby as a positive thing - eg he associates the baby going in his pram with a walk now!

If your dog is in regular contact with children under 10yrs old he recommendation is to worm your dog every month (and if you're pregnant)

Hi, I worm and de-flea my dog regularly...

Thanks for the tips and suggestions.

OK, seriously... I bought my French Bull Dog when I was 4-5 months pregnant and from that day she slept in bed with us... we moved to a new house 2 weeks before my little one was born and we (me & my partner) both said we can not have the dog in bed with us cos the moses basket was so close she (our dog) could jump in on top of our baby so... our beloved dog was banned from the bedroom, BUT!!!!!!! there was only 1 night of crying and then she got used to it... just like that..!!! and it was so nice to be in a clean bed again, no dog hair, no trying to feel where the dog is before you turn over (being half awake the whole night). Your dog is not meant for sleeping on the bed, as much as YOU love it and they do too but they are a dog at the end of the day and I LOVED our dog in bed with us but I like my 'comfortable' sleep better... so now our little one is in her own room we compromise with our dog and we have a dog bed in the bed room (well holding our bedroom door open in case she wants to wander off or have a drink or what ever) and our dog loves it... she knows when bedtime is, she knows our bed is not her place, but she loves her dog bed and it's all good... everyone is happy..! doggies are not meant for your bed, especially when you have a baby, you HAVE to show the dog they are NOT the head of the house, it's so important. your baby is obviously head of the house (in the dogs eyes) and they come first, if the dog is on the bed and eats before you all they think they rule the roost and have no respect for the baby. my dog is now SO good with out little one, who super torments the dog, but our dog is so good... but I have never given in or made her queen for a day, our daughter is queen and our dog knows that.. it's the only way...! and then everyone is happy,... you enjoy your dog as part of the family, cos believe me we all have serious doubts about having a dog when you first have a baby and rightly so... but you must be strong, persist and tell the dog who's boss, which is BABY!! good luck my love xx

um, sammyjo, in my house, I'M THE BOSS, not the baby. i wouldn't allow any child to "super torment" any animal either. that's how accidents happen.

SammyJo, no child should be allowed to "super torment" ANY animal, let alone your family dog. That is a shocking thing to do.

Also, please don't think that a dog sleeping on the bed or eating before you is a sign of dominance - it isn't and those theories have been completely discredited. A dog on the bed is a dog on the bed - no more and no less.

Please keep your dog and your child separated, and teach your DD that dogs should be respected and can be played with but only gently and only when a responsible adult is in the room with them, and that they should not disturb them when sleeping or resting. If your DD is taught good dog manners with your own dog, she will then not be at risk with other people's dog who may not be as tolerant of her "tormenting" as yours. - I'm sure her safety is important to you.

HopeForTheBest. That is interesting and great that it works for your family.

My dog only sleeps with me in bed in the mornings once my husband has gone for work. If I go to bed in the afternoon she joins me too.

Although I worm her regularly, I suppose I cant control what she might have stepped on in the park and could potentially bring into the house/bed.

I've now set up her own sofa in the bedroom for her which she seems to quite like. But she loves to be under the bed covers with me.

I've been very ill with severe morning sickness recently, so I really want to keep her with me for comfort. Perhaps when I start to feel a bit better I'll encourage her to spend less time on the bed and more on the sofa.

Thanks everyone for your comments and tips

haha the paw-rinsing story is amusing. I'm not sure I could be bothered to do that!

My dog is also being very comforting. I've been very ill with hyperemsis, she knows somethings up, so shes been a great support.

Poor you AgBag, hope it stops soon- I know how miserable it feels! Take comfort in knowing it must be a strong healthy baby to be making you feel so sick

Thank you :-)