Am I brave or stupid?

[H007]

I come from an animal loving home and would love my own dog, have had dogs before but due to work commitments didn't think this would be possible. However I am currently 3 and a half months pregnant and will finish work around 3 months prior to baby's arrival. In my head I am seeing being on a block of annual leave and maternity leave a perfect opportunity to get a dog? Would I be mad in doing this?

Would getting dog prior to baby be best or after me and baby have routine?

Any advice?

Is this your first baby?

Even if it isn't, I wouldn't get a dog just before a baby arrives. The last thing you'll want to do when you're utterly exhausted is take it for a walk, let alone any training it might need.

What will you be doing at the end of your maternity leave?

If you are going back to work, you will need plans in place for the dog as well as for your dc.

We got our first dog when youngest dc was 3, so I don't have experience of dogs & babies at the same time. I imagine it could be quite stressful, although I suppose plenty of people manage both perfectly well

Congratulations on being pg :)

First, congratulations

Secondly, personally I would say if this is your first baby, definitely wait before getting your dog. My own dog died just when dd1 was conceived, and I missed him so much I was desperate for a doggy whilst pregnant....dh and friends talked me out of it, and they were (I would never have believed it at the time) totally right.

I would wait and see how you feel once you and your baby have a routine...apart from anything else, you just don't know whether you will have a baby who sleeps well, eats well, bounces back from colds etc well, etc etc. My second child had reflux: no way would I have had energy or time to think about/walk/care for a dog at that point!

This is my first... At present my one aim post birth is to go outside for a little walk everyday.

With regards to return to work either it would be 2 days a week or not at all.

My OH is very supportive and we are moving really close to our retired parents so I will have lots of support. I hbe recently moved out of home where I had a dog and I miss her like crazy!

I can hear it
I was exactly the same when pregnant, maybe wanting to nest made me want a dog more....
It does sound as though you have lots of support, but still....your dog would still feel like a new baby, in terms of 'bedding in' with you...and then another one would arrive who needed your attention pretty much all the time for a while. It would be like having two babies, one a few months after the other - would you do that?

Its hard to imagine how you'll feel when you don't sleep much, too.

Sorry, I'd still say take time to plan your next doggy, enjoy the process, but wait till your baby has arrived and settled a bit before taking an irreversible step.

Sorry, another one who thinks you should wait.

Puppies are hard work, so are babies, putting them together would be exhausting.

Believe me if you are awake most of the night with crying baby the last thing you'll want to hear at 5am is puppy howling because he's woken up and needs your attention.

Remember, dogs need walked in all weathers and its not much fun having to take a baby out in the pram when its blowing a gale and pouring with rain.

What will happen if the puppy needs out but the baby decides the need fed & changed at the same time.

I do understand where you are coming from but when my last beloved dog passed away, I waited 4 years for another one because I was either pregnant or had a small baby for all of that time and remembered from first time round how much time/effort a puppy takes.

please wait. for all your sakes. babies are stressful enough and puppies are just mayhem for a few months. you don't know how the birth will go. you might need extra help afterwards and then the puppy could become a bone of contension for whoever (your DH) has to pick up the slack and walk it/feed it/train it etc. wait until your baby is older.

Rationally, waiting makes lots of sense I agree with the others (as an outsider looking in) that waiting would be the better option.

As one prone to fits of sheer madness as far as such things go (4 children and 4 animals later!), I would still say it may be best to hold on. Both of my rescues were ditched (one at 5 months and the other at just under a year old!) because their previous owners had babies and couldn't cope.

I am going to be straight to the point here.

You are mad and do not do it.

You will soon have a baby that is reliant on you 24/7 and you want to add a dog to the mix.

It would be unfair and unreasonable on both the dog and the baby. Just because YOU want a dog do not let them suffer.

WAIT !!!!

Yep. Understandably mad, totally understandably mad, but mad

Honestly, time will fly and you'll have both baby and eventually doggy before you know it.

I would probably wait a while - not sure if you're considering a puppy or an adult rescue dog, but you'd have a problem either way - I think a puppy and new baby at the same time would be a terrible idea (you won't be able to give both the time and attention they need, and usually it's the puppy that suffers and ends up being rehomed or worse in these situations), and while an older dog with basic training in place would be more manageable, I doubt a rescue would be happy about rehoming to you when you're about to have a baby.

Thank you for all your advice. We haven't entirely made our decision yet... However will think more about it, am also going to have a chat with the charity we rehomed my family dog from and find out their suggestions as well!