vsrenard Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 My sister will be having her first child in a couple of months; it's the first baby in our family so I want to be prepared as to how to introduce the 2 houndies. I will be interacting with the kid a lot so at some point the hounds will have to meet the child. I've gone the common sense stuff down (I hope), like not leaving kid alone with dogs, and I know infant behavior is a different animal than toddler behavior. But is there anything I should be doing specifically so it all goes as smoothly as it can? Thanks! Quote Missing Zola, my hero and my heart; and Brin, my baby dog, my wisp of love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OwnedBySummer Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 Get hold of "greytluck". She just had a baby recently and she has two houndies. Quote Lisa B. My beautiful Summer - to her forever home May 1, 2010 Summer Certified therapy dog team with St. John Ambulance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greysmom Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 Yes, she's had a really good transition in her household, and her gh girl Corinna has really taken to their new daughter. You might try and expose both dogs to very young children - babies if possible - to see how they react so you know what you have to work on. When the baby is born, bring home a blanket or clothing the baby has worn/used for the dogs to sniff and get used to the smell. Play tapes of baby sounds - crying, squealing, etc.,. Quote Chris - Mom to: Felicity (DeLand), and Andi (Braska Pandora) siggy by Chris Harper, on Flickr Angels: Libby (Everlast), Dorie (Dog Gone Holly), Dude (TNJ VooDoo), Copper (Kid's Copper), Cash (GSI Payncash), Toni (LPH Cry Baby), Whiskey (KT's Phys Ed), Atom, Lilly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vsrenard Posted March 29, 2011 Author Share Posted March 29, 2011 Thank you for the suggestions! I will PM her. I don't want to be overthinking things but do want to be safe. Quote Missing Zola, my hero and my heart; and Brin, my baby dog, my wisp of love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 2dogs4cats Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 I had 2 houndies when I had my baby and everything was fine. I may not be much help though because I didn't do anything special. I let them look at him and smell him which they did for about 2 seconds and then got bored and walked away. They never minded the crying or anything. Now my baby is 3 and a half and loves the big doggies, but is scared of the 4 pound barkers. Whenever one tries to get near him in Petsmart, he's running and crying for them to go away, but wants to pet every 80 plus pound dog that he sees. Even though my 2 were so disinterested, I would still never leave a baby alone with them or any dog. That really was the only rule. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BootsyCollins Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 I second what Mary just said. Don't leave them alone, let them sniff if they want to, take it all in stride. Babies are easy, toddlers just need to be watched and taught, and bigger kids are easy again. Make your dogs comfortable with an ex-pen if they aren't already, just in case you need it when baby starts crawling. Chances are, they won't even care. Bootsy never did. Congratulations, Auntie Quote Christie and Bootsy (Turt McGurt and Gil too) Loving and missing Argos & Likky, forever and ever. ~Old age means realizing you will never own all the dogs you wanted to. ~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greytluck Posted March 30, 2011 Share Posted March 30, 2011 I really didn't do anything special with my dogs either. I read "Child proofing your dog" by Brian Kilcommons which had a lot of common sense tips in it, which I try to follow but quite frankly the dogs have been so good it's hardly needed. It's very short and definitely worth the read though. One thing I do suggest for your situation is that people greet the dogs first before ogling over the baby. That's worked well at my place when we have visitors. The dogs get there loving then usually are content and just lay around while everyone starts fussing over the baby. Quote Hobbes-Ricard Hatch09/23/99-12/21/09 Always loved, never forgotten. Wally TNJ Boy Howdy, GLS Genuinerisk Corinna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vsrenard Posted March 30, 2011 Author Share Posted March 30, 2011 Thank you all, and I didn't even have to PM anyone! I'm so psyched to be an 'Auntie' but I don't want my dogs or my sister's pup to feel left out. Quote Missing Zola, my hero and my heart; and Brin, my baby dog, my wisp of love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest katethegreyt Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 Now my baby is 3 and a half and loves the big doggies, but is scared of the 4 pound barkers. Whenever one tries to get near him in Petsmart, he's running and crying for them to go away, but wants to pet every 80 plus pound dog that he sees. Smart boy! It's those little yappers that will get ya!!! Haha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FastDogsOwnMe Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I have hounds and a baby (now a toddler) and definitely discovered that I have to be MUCH MUCH more selective whom I foster, and especially whom I keep. It's hard to find a truly baby-proof dog, so the best bet is to dog proof the baby, use gates, keep your dogs safe, and prevent the child, especially as he becomes mobile, from hassling the dogs. A few dogs will think a new born held above their heads, especially a screaming one, is prey. Use obvious, extreme caution with such a "curious" dog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomDoggy Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 ...Babies are easy, toddlers just need to be watched and taught, and bigger kids are easy again. ... So true. When my best friend had her daughter, I was concerned how my hounds would be around the infant. They were totally fine with the baby. Alimony, my mamadog, seemed to even really love the baby. She'd get all extra waggy and sweet whenever she heard the baby make a noise. Now that my friend's daughter is a toddler, I am a nervous wreck. I keep my dogs ex-penned away whenever the toddler is at my house. My friend thinks I'm overly protective, but if her toddler someday learns "the hard way" that she needs to respect dogs, it won't be happening on my watch. Honestly, I can't wait for my friend's daughter to be old enough for me to relax around her and my dogs. Maybe when she's 16 or so. Quote ~Aimee, with Flower, Alan, Queenie, & Spodee Odee! And forever in my heart: Tipper, Sissy, Chancy, Marla, Dazzle, Alimony, and Boo. This list is too damned long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest burgerandfrey Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 We have a 9 month old baby who lives with two greyhounds we adopted a couple of years ago. The dogs have been wonderfully patient through all the crying. We still take them for long walks almost every day, and we also take them on day trips to explore beaches, forests, etc.; so their lives haven't been impacted too much. They just know there is now there is this other person in the family, and they have accepted her from the start. Our boy Zeke hasn't paid much attention to our daughter, but he doesn't pay much attention to anyone who doesn't give him attention...and for the first six months of her life our daughter hardly noticed the dogs. Our girl Lola has adored our daughter from the start, even though she didn't get much attention from her. Eventually our daughter started to watch the dogs, and at around seven or eight months she started to reach out to pet their heads. Now at nine months she has started to smile and laugh at them when they make different expressions with their ears, so even Zeke is warming up to her now that she pays attention to him. Of course things will get more complicated when our little girl starts walking and moving quickly about the room. Our boy Zeke has some sleep aggression issues (he has never bitten hard enough to break skin, but he will snap if surprised), so we will have to be vigilant and train our toddler to stay clear of the dog beds. Fortunately Zeke's sleep aggression has gotten less frequent the longer we've had him, but as others have said we will never leave them along together and will have to teach our daughter how to give the dogs their space when they want to sleep. We will also put up a gate between her main play area and the living room where the dog beds are. We did get the "Living with Kids and Dogs without Losing Your Mind" book by Colleen Pelar. It has some good practical advice and I would recommend it to new parents. It has a list of behaviors in dogs that could lead to conflicts with children, and advice for training the dogs and the children. Fortunately our hounds didn't exhibit any of the problem behaviors beyond Zeke's sleep aggression. And I do believe it is important (as this book advises) to make sure your dog doesn't feel like they have been replaced. You need to include the dog in family activities with the baby so they feel like they are still part of the family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BrianRke Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 need i say more? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest june Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 need i say more? :beatheart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenEveBaz Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Of my 5 greys, I've had one who loved kids, one who was slightly afraid of them but behaved ok, and 3 who pretty much ignored them. Welcome in advance to being an aunt! It's wonderful! When my niece was a baby, greyhound Eve adored it when I babysat. But Eve gave me the evil eye if I let the baby cry. She wasn't bothered by the noise, she was bothered by me not attending to that baby. I've seen other GT posters say they have had difficulty handling a baby buggy and dogs on walks, but I never had problems. The dogs walked single file on my left. At first I muzzled them on walks because they were right at eye level with the baby in the buggy and You Never Know, but it soon became clear they were fine. Quote Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sobesmom Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 (edited) Thank you all, and I didn't even have to PM anyone! I'm so psyched to be an 'Auntie' but I don't want my dogs or my sister's pup to feel left out. Side note- you may want to consider taking your sisters dog to your house for a visit, or for walks or something, once in a while, so it gets extra attention. Your sister is going to have her hands full - and regardless of how great a dog-ower she is - a little help (and extra attention for the "old" family member) would probably be appreciated. BTW- I have 11 nieces and nephews, and 17.5 great neices and great nephews - welcome to the club newbie! Edited May 23, 2011 by sobesmom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vsrenard Posted May 24, 2011 Author Share Posted May 24, 2011 Wow I am a newbie! Yeah, my sister's pup is getting special time with his 'crazy aunt' once a week so he knows he is still loved by all. Quote Missing Zola, my hero and my heart; and Brin, my baby dog, my wisp of love. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sobesmom Posted June 1, 2011 Share Posted June 1, 2011 Wow I am a newbie! Yeah, my sister's pup is getting special time with his 'crazy aunt' once a week so he knows he is still loved by all. Yeah, I hold the record among my friends as the "super aunt" - by volume, not by awesomeness. I'm doing much better with my greats though, I was too young to be a "good" aunt to my neices and nephews. I'm 36 BTW - so I have a lot of generations of "great" to go! VERY cool of you to give the pup "aunie time". Try to keep it up for a while. A happy dog is a well-adjusted dog, and this dog has some weird stuff coming at it. A little down time will help it, and your sister, a lot. YOU ROCK AUNTIE!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sweetpea Posted June 4, 2011 Share Posted June 4, 2011 I always make sure that I don't take for granted that the "grownups" are all paying attention to all the things they should. (Because they aren't, and even the crawly kids move faster than you imagine.) It's my job not only to keep everyone safe, but to keep it a pleasant experience all the way 'round. Which sometimes means that just before Sweetpea looks like she's "had enough" I'll take her to her room. She's happy, the kids are happy. (with her in the other room, they can now play with the toys she left behind and throw themselves on the bed she's no longer occupying. Which is evidently the BEST. GAME. EVER!) Good luck, it is so much fun spoiling other people's kids! (And seeing that the first "sign" they learn is the sign for dog....it's awesome!) Buzzy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeylasMom Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Good advice from Buzzy. My big thing with the kid/dog interactions is to always ask yourself whether your dogs are enjoying it or tolerating it. It's a slippery slope from tolerating to fed up and any dog can find a large amount of something to be too much. In all likelihood things will be just fine, and you're smart so I know you'll be smart about how you manage - the only cause for concern or more active preparation imo would be if you have hounds that you know are sleep/startle aggressive. Quote Jen, CPDT-KA with Zuri, lab in a greyhound suit, Violet, formerly known as Faith, Skye, the permanent puppy, Cisco, resident cat, and my baby girl Neyla, forever in my heart "The great thing about science is that you're free to disagree with it, but you'll be wrong." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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