The majority of families I meet have their dogs first before their baby arrives. The dog is their Furry Baby. I attend Baby Expos, and I always ask expecting moms, “Is your dog ready for your baby?” and they tell me, “Yes! My dog loves kids,” or “My dog senses something is going on.”
Right then, I Know they have NO IDEA what will happen to their dogs’ lives. Your dog “loving kids” does not represent what is about to happen. We are not talking about a temporary visitor. We are talking about a full-time crying, sleeping, crawling, all-attention-getting human being that is never going away! I bet your dog never “sensed” that coming.
Now, here you are with baby in hand, and you realize you don’t have any time to devote to your Furry Baby, let alone train them now that you understand there is a problem. The problem is that you must adequately prepare your dog for your newborn’s arrival.
So, what is the instant solution? You start isolating your dog from being around you and your baby. You hate it, but you have to. What are your other options? You can’t have this energetic pup acting the same as they were before the baby came to now somehow magically know their new role in the house.
The problem is that once you start isolating your dog, it becomes challenging for him to adapt and continuously evolve to the developing baby over the next year. For me, the newborn phase was the easiest for my dogs to understand our new life with my baby. This time, it is critical for the dog to see the picture of mom and baby and learn the new rules and boundaries. If the dog doesn’t get to experience this picture because they are put outside and restricted from life with the baby, this only creates more problems.
You will go through periods where you feel guilty and bad for your dog being isolated and will attempt to let him around the baby. Because your dog is used to being isolated from you and your baby, more frustration and energy are pent up. It’s a spiral effect, and your dog is even harder to handle!
You can prevent this by adequately preparing your dog for your newborn. By sharing this information before a mom gets too overwhelmed, you can help educate other expecting families about this topic. More dogs are being rehomed, dropped at shelters, and euthanized in extreme circumstances because of the lack of knowledge dog owners have about dogs and babies.
Reconsider if your first thought is this could never happen to your furry baby. When you are exhausted, overwhelmed, and a new mom who needs a “little break,” isolating the dog doesn’t seem so bad at that moment.
Visit our YouTube page for more information on exercises and preparing your dog for a newborn.
