How do you prepare your dog to be around a new baby?
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How do you prepare your dog to be around a new baby?
1. Desensitization to new noises and experiences:
Walking with the stroller (When actually walking dog with stroller & real baby, have two people - one to pay attention to/walk dog, one to push stroller)
Playing baby noises on your phone during meals and randomly throughout the day while treating/playing fetch/training (sounds like crying, laughing, gurgles, etc)
Carrying around a fake baby and pretending to fuss over baby - can advance to this once they're used to the noises alone. You want to make positive associations by also rewarding for staying on all fours while walking around/sitting down/etc!
Moving parts items/new items - want to desensitize before baby is in them (Ex: Mamaroo moving seat/rocker - want to start by just leaving it out for a few days not moving, then start to let it move slowly and let dog get used to it, eventually they won’t care.)
2. Start shutting yourself in baby’s room for short periods of time, let them get used to the fact that they’re not always going to have access to you.
3. Put up physical boundaries/gates - you’re going to want to be able to rest and relax with baby without having your dog right in your face. They’re not doing anything wrong, but may need a physical boundary to be able to have somewhere you don’t have to worry about both at the same time.
4. Strengthen "Place" work as much as possible (duration, distance and distractions) and add in baby-specific distractions. Place is a very helpful cue to teach them to settle away from you/baby.
5. Strengthen your "Drop it" and "Leave it" cues to apply to baby's clothes, bottles, or food that is dropped on the ground.
We also recommend to not have your pup at your home when you're first getting home from the hospital for a few reasons:
Sending your dog on “vacation” to stay at friend or family’s home for the first week or two can help you to adjust to your new life and schedule, and it can be much easier to not have to worry about taking care of your dog for the first week or so of settling in with the new baby. (You can also feel free to have the dog be back for a day or two, and then go back to “vacation” for another week. Don’t feel rushed to have baby and dog meet and be around each other all the time!)
You don't want there to be of excitement or stress/anxiety surrounding the initial meeting of dog and baby, especially if you aren't sure how your dog will react to a newborn.
Our private trainers can help you to break down each individual skill and guide you through the process, or you can sign up for one of our many classes that teaches the skills that are relevant to prepping your dog for a new family member.
Below, we'll go over what to start doing if you already have a toddler who's on the move!
Safety for dogs and on the move toddlers
When considering how to go about baby-dog safety, you should take into account a few different things: your dog's personality, your baby's personality, and your home setup, as well as your options for physical separation and boundaries. If your dog is very friendly and excitable, you'll most likely need to work on teaching your dog to show calm, controlled behavior around the baby (working on place, settle, and leave it cues). But if you have a dog who might be more indifferent and independent, you may not need as many boundaries for the dog as you'll need for your child. The most likely issues you'll run into will involve reading your dog's body language and creating/upholding boundaries.
BODY LANGUAGE:
Try to to avoid letting your child get too rough with your dog. Things to look out for will be your child attempting to hug the dog, grab their tail, touch their face or put their face up to the dog's face, taking the dogs toys away from them, sticking their hands in the dog's food and water bowls, not listening to your dogs cues to back off, etc.
If your dog is showing subtle (or not so subtle) signs of stress around your child (licking lips, yawning, tight facial muscles, freezing in place, etc) that may lead to your dog feeling the need to create space and snap at your child, you may need to set a hard boundary and create some space between them yourself. Until your child is old enough to understand, YOU are the advocate for your dog , and your job is to keep everyone safe. Once your child is old enough, you can teach them how to nicely interact with your dog as well as show them how to pay attention to the dog's body language. These body language cues are crucial to teach your children about, and it can avoid unnecessary accidents.
CREATING AND UPHOLDING BOUNDARIES:
Putting your physical body between the dog and the baby when on the ground (for tummy time or when baby is crawling/exploring)
Baby gates to separate and make sure no bad habits are being practiced when you can't pay full attention. Not allowing your child to crawl/walk directly at or near your dog when they're resting and/or sleeping.
The most important thing about dog and baby safety is being proactive with your choices and management, not reactive. If you feel like you need to put up a physical boundary at first, you can always phase out the boundary when you and your dog become more comfortable with the baby having more access to your dog and vice-versa.
If you have any questions or would like specific help and advice, feel free to contact your SSDT trainer, or contact us on social media!!
If you have not worked with us before, but you’d like to have a private session to begin your training process, and start working on your dog's basic obedience or other training needs, our virtual training sessions are a perfect place to start!