Dogs are often a couple鈥檚 first 鈥渂aby,鈥� but once a real baby enters the fray, it is important to have a plan for 鈥渇ur baby.鈥�
Many people are challenged and stressed at this transition point of life, according to Squamish鈥檚 Maren Bruun, a certified professional dog trainer and a licensed presenter for Family Paws Parent Education.
If someone is used to being a pet parent, what will they do when the a baby comes? 鈥淧eople think it won鈥檛 change,鈥� Bruun said.
But things do change when baby comes.
The planning should begin during pregnancy, and the first step is to be realistic about what life will be like with a newborn and a pet.
Bruun said many expectant mothers have an unrealistic idea of what they have to be like once baby comes home: 鈥溾�業 have to be the perfect mom and still walk my dog and still exercise and be fit and go to yoga and look after my baby,鈥欌�� she said.
Practical things such as hiring an occasional dog walker for the first few months after baby comes home and buying a special treat or toy for the dog for days it is just not possible to get out a long walk can go a long way to alleviating stress on both the humans in the house and the dog.
And just like when owners are sick and the dog adjusts to a day at home on the couch, on the odd day when the dog doesn鈥檛 get out for a walk thanks to new baby, it will be OK, said Bruun, herself a mom of two teenage daughters and a pet parent of two dogs, two cats and two birds.
Bruun said being realistic can help parents get through the 鈥渋mpulsive re-homing phase,鈥� a period when many new parents get rid of their dog.
鈥淭he first few weeks have gone, your in-laws have stopped coming around and helping, all the gifts and dinners are stopped and then you are a few weeks into baby and, no more help and then husband has gone back to work. That can be a really stressful time where all of a sudden, 鈥楳y dog isn鈥檛 getting enough attention, maybe I should get rid of the dog,鈥欌�� Bruun said.
People worry the dog isn鈥檛 getting what it deserves in that time, but often it is just a temporary period and later there is regret.
鈥淭here is a time and a place for re-homing a dog, I am not against that for sure, but don鈥檛 let it be an impulse decision,鈥� said Bruun, adding that if the dog has quite extreme behaviour challenges, there may be good reason to give that pet to a home without young children.
Factors that impact how to handle the mixing of dog and new baby include the temperament of the dog, the dog鈥檚 previous training and the dog鈥檚 general manners, Bruun said.
Assessing your dog鈥檚 temperament and ability to behave is an important step before baby comes home.
鈥淚f you don鈥檛 get a handle on attention-seeking behaviours early, then when baby comes you can鈥檛 tell a dog, 鈥楴o, not now鈥� and then you get mad, but they don鈥檛 know what else to do,鈥� said Bruun.
It is also not necessary for fur baby and human baby to meet the minute baby comes home.
鈥淵ou want to have a controlled meeting,鈥� she said, when everything is calm and there aren鈥檛 a lot of new stimuli around, such as houseguests, it鈥檚 a much better time for everyone to get used to each other.
Bruun said a baby and dog should never be left unattended together, for safety reasons.
