"Baby Proofing" Your Dog

As a mom of a very active husky/lab mix puppy, I feel that preparing him for the baby will make life exponentially easier once the baby is here. Below is what I have been doing to prepare Harley for baby girl's arrival. Many of the ideas are right from the Babies & Beasts Blog. She has wonderful suggestions, and they have worked wonders for our Harley! Here are my steps:

1. Keep your trainer's number programmed into your phone and email on file for any unforseen issues that may arise. If you don't have a trainer, find one!

2. Get Preparing Fido and start desensitizing your dog to the many sounds a baby makes. Start with them on low volume, and work your way up. I treat and praise Harley when he ignores the sound and goes about his usual business.

3. Line up a doggie daycare, a dog walker, or even a doggy playmate. You will need to use these services at least once because you just won't have the time to get out to walk your dog with the new baby. Also, be sure to check the requirements for doggy daycare. For example, PetSmart's Doggy Day Camp can be lined up on short notice, but the Kennel Cough Vaccine must be recent within 6 months instead of 1 year. Get all that paperwork taken care of before the baby comes so that you can relax and just drop your dog off when you need to after the baby comes.

4. Stock up on food, flea and heartworm meds, treats, and any other extras you often buy for your dog. (This is true for all your pets!)

5. Set up everything as you get it! Yes, I mean EVERYTHING. Not just the crib, but the bouncy seat, the bottles, the clothes, the little tubes of diaper rash cream, etc. This way, when you bring your baby home, all the equipment will be old news and you won't have to chase your dog around the house to get the bottle of diaper rash cream while your baby cries in the swing for a diaper change. Your dog will already know: I'm not allowed to touch that. Your dog will also know: That makes music and swings, that vibrates, who cares...instead of "ooo...whats that shiny object! Maybe I can chew on it!"

6. Put batteries into everything that lights up, plays music, moves, etc… and desensitize your dog to them. We turn on the bassinet, bouncy seat, and swing daily to play the different songs and make them move. Harley no longer cares about any of them. He is so used to them being in the living room/bedroom/kitchen and being on at random times that he doesn't even bat an eye.

7. Use baby lotion, wipes, and diaper cream on yourself so the smells aren’t foreign to them. Wipe them down on occasion with some wipes even.

8. As soon as you get a stroller, practice walking them with it. Not only does your dog need to learn how to walk with the stroller, but you also need to learn how to maneuver the dog + stroller. Better to have the stroller get caught on the leash and tip over without the baby in it!

9. If you plan on wearing a sling or Baby Bjorn around the house, put a babydoll in it and practice wearing it while you are at home. Again, you would rather have the dog jump on you with a babydoll in the sling rather than your real baby, and trust me...there will most likely be some jumping simply out of curiosity. Treat for keeping "4 on the floor" when you have the sling on to encourage the approrpiate behavior.

10. Get a baby doll. Seriously. Carry your baby around the house so your dog learns that when baby is in your arms/on your lap, doggy cannot be there. Play the baby CD. When the baby cries, get up from whatever you are doing (playing with your dog, cuddling with your dog, etc) and pretend to change a diaper, feed, or rock your baby. Treat your dog for leaving you alone when you do this. I have decided if Harley follows me, that is alright, but he can't try to jump on me when I'm feeding Baby Girl and such. Also, put the baby in the bassinet, bouncy seat, etc so the dog learnes where the baby might be besides in your arms and learns to leave the baby alone in those areas as well.

11. Give your dog a baby free zone and teach him to go to it. This could be a crate, a bed, something that will give them a place to escape to when they have had enough with the crying, the poking, the pulling etc. Harley has a crate for sleeping in, and the guest room complete with bed when we are gone during the day. He is learning to go to the guest room to get some space and sleep.

12. Stop any schedule you might have right now! Once that baby comes, you might have been up all night and can't feed your dog at exactly 7:15am...your dog might have to wait until 8:00am instead. A walk may take place in the afternoon rather than a morning or vice versa. Start varrying now, so that when it does happen, your dog will be used to an erratic schedule.