Having a baby is the most exciting thing in the world. Very few pleasures of life come close to the joy of bringing your bundle of joy home with you. Needless to say, your life will change after the arrival of the new baby.
But if you already have one baby at home you will have to start by getting him ready to welcome the new addition to your family. The baby I am talking about here is your dog or puppy. To begin with just like an older sibling your dog will have a hard time accepting someone who gets more love and attention than him. So let’s talk about a few things that you can do to put your dog at ease.
If you suddenly bring a small baby or child into your puppy’s world in this case his home it is a very daunting and intimidating prospect for him. A good way to ease his anxiety would be to keep him in the midst of young children. This will give him a chance to socialize and be friendly with them. So when your child arrives he will not feel insecure or defensive around him.
Even if you don’t have young children of your own you can always ask your friends who have young children to send their kids over. This will be a learning experience for you as well as your pet. Some puppies may be a little aggressive towards children in the beginning but you can help solve this situation by asking the kids to carry doggy treats in their hands. This way, your pup will start associating children with treats and will accept them as his friends.
Dogs are no different than children and it becomes very difficult for them to decipher the changes that may take place in the house with the arrival of the new baby. So it’s very important that as far as possible you stick to the same schedules that you followed with your dog in the pre baby days. In other words try not to alter his feeding or walking time. Give him as mush attention as possible this will help him to not feel neglected.
If you play aggressive games with your puppy like tug of war or play wrestle try to tone it down a little. Even though these games are usually harmless, with a new baby around that makes all sought of sounds your dog might mistake it to be a play thing. So be careful for the first few months once your dog gets used to the baby then it will be smooth sailing for you, your baby and your pet.
Posted under Dog Tips
This post was written by admin on June 9, 2009
