Introducing Baby and Doodle

[Cooper's Mommy]

I am due with our first baby in about 6 weeks. We have an 18 month labradoodle whom we adore. Even though he has a wonderful disposition and is really gentle with kids I'm a little nervous about how everything will play out namely because he has a ton of energy and we don't want him to accidentally hurt our baby. Also, the times he has been with kids has generally been on leash and with older kids (e.g. toddlers +) though the breeder has 3, including one who was only a few months old when Cooper was born. Anyway, just want to hear from others including your tips (we've been reading up on this on general dog bogs/sites) and getting tips from the vet and pedi too.

TIA

[Adina P]

OOoh OOooh Oooh PICK ME PICK ME!!!

Congratulations on your upcoming baby! You're gonna have so much fun (between the exhaustion =))

I feel like a new expert in this! When my 6 month old (first baby too) was born in November, I had THREE big dogs! And I was nervous too. I had visions of my otherwise gentle doggies squashing my baby or stepping on it while I was changing it on the floor as they ran to the window to bark at skateboarders on the sidewalk =)

But with proper supervision and if you have training behind your 18 month old doodle you should be just fine!

Here's what we did. The day after Natalie was born, or maybe it was the same day (it's all blurred together!), Clark went home to check on the dogs and he took Natalie's newborn hat with him. He let the dogs sniff it to be familiar with her scent. I have no idea if that actually does anything meaningful to aid in baby acceptance, but we learned something very interesting by their response to the hat!

Each of our three dogs responded to the hat EXACTLY how they responded to the baby.
Cass (our border collie who was 14 at the time) sniffed it gently with interest but lost interest quickly.
Rosco (our 4 y.o. labradoodle) sniffed it energetically but then calmed down.
Thule (our then almost 5 year old labradoodle) sniffed it super energetically, licked the heck out of it, and wanted to adopt it.

That is precisely how they responded to Natalie when she came home. I don't know if this is an accurate assessment of future response for anyone else's dogs but this was for our dogs. When we came home, my husband went in first to take the dogs out back. I came in with the car seat carrier and plopped it on the sofa. Then Clark came in with one dog at a time (at least one of the dogs was leashed), to let each dog sniff the baby in the carrier.

For the first few weeks your baby will be almost exclusively in your arms, in a crib/bassinet/packnplay...so there really is very little time that your dog will have access to the baby without you there or a barrier. Just never leave them alone together and perhaps get a baby gate (if you don't already have one) for the baby's room. At first you can nurse and deal with diapers, etc with only the baby gate closed so your doodle can watch and get used to the idea.

If your dog has obedience under his belt, then use what he knows. Put him in down-stays near you and baby, for example. Overall, if your dog is friendly, accepting/tolerant of most others and has decent obedience you should do fine. Just always supervise dog and baby together.

[Adina P]

Oh something else I discovered (because Rosco's heeling started slipping when a stroller got involved). If your dog doesn't walk great on leash but you still want to go on walks with baby in stroller and Cooper...practice in your backyard. Then, if your stroller has good shocks and can manage on a grassy area, practice in large grassy areas (parks, college campuses, etc) because you can let go of the stroller and it won't run away if you need to deal with doggy in any moment.

[Kendra K. Rhoton]

Love this post Adina... even though I'm not a mommy yet, nor do I plan to be one in the near future... I often think about this situation. Loved reading it and learned a lot :)

[The Berry Oaks Doodle Ranch]

Hi Cooper's Mom, You will have to keep an open mind. These dogs are great with children, there very gentle but, they still need attention and training to keep them that way. Labradoodles & Goldendoodles need lots of exercise as your Doodle friends will tell you. But, you can make it work..join some of our groups /// Puppy Madness, and Does your Doodle! I seen alot people give up there dogs when a new baby arrives....hang in there..there's dog parks...doggie day-cares .

[shelly]

Congratulations Cooper's Mom on soon becoming "Someone Else's mom". We had a golden retriever for many years before our first baby. We did everything that the newest DK mom, Adina just reported. With the proper preparations and training, watching children and their dogs react together is just beautiful and soooo touching!

OOO, ADINA ~ I just thought of a new slide show topic (knowing you , you probably already used it, but...) How 'bout Doodles and Their Child Pals"

Again - Good luck Cooper's MOM!! This is such an exciting time for you - enjoy every minute as the years go by way too quickly!!!

[Leigh & Allie]

Way, way, way too quickly. My son is 11 and just yesterday I was breast feeding him........(well not literally, but 11 years ago)

[Leigh & Allie]

That was my attempt at humor. I hope everyone GOT it.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Got it! Humor is good.

[shelly]

LOL GOT IT!!! Funny subject here.... some people joked that I was going to send my 12 year old to kindergarten still nursing.... NOT!