Hi there, I haven't been on for a while, my apologies. I would like to ask a GSD specific question. We adopted our 3 year old GSD back in March and since then she has been the love of our lives. My husband especially is her favorite, but she really does get fussed a LOT. She is a generally happy dog, with some bouts of whining but all in all she is pretty good. The thing is we are due to have a baby of our own (the non furry kind ---- I hope!! ) anyway, does anybody have experience of introducing a newborn into a house with a rescue German Shepherd. We have seen her around youngsters and babies, and for the most part she is non plussed. In fact the one four month old that went into my husbands office got his little feel almost licked off! But I'm wondering if it will be different for our little one what with the different noises and smells in the house. I know the obvious don't leave them in a room alone and all that but I don't want Bine ( the dog) to get angsty or feel like there is a little intruder. Also I want to make the place as baby safe as possible. Where do I start? We are due in three months so I really want to implement things as soon as. Any advice would be appreciated Sammi
I don't own a GSD but on the introducing new baby to dog front I think the breeds probably dont differ that much. Our dog used to sleep in the bedroom which wouldnt be happening once baby was born so we implemented the change long before the baby came along so Loki didn't associate the changes with the new baby, we put a baby gate up and stopped Loki going in our bedroom at all. I also brought a crying doll and carried that round as I would a baby to get Loki used to not jumping up to see what I was carrying and to get used to the noise of a baby crying. We also stopped Loki getting up on the sofa to avoid any possible accidents We were quite worried how Loki would be he had health issues that effected his temperament right before our little girl was born, but he adores Kara and she adores him hes very gentle with her (always supervised of course) shes 13months old now and her latest is crawling off the sofa on top of Loki he doesnt even look up hes not bothered in the slightest! I think alot of how good hes been can be attributed to the excelent advice we recieved on prepairing him before Kara was born.
Hiya If there are things that your dog does that you wont allow when baby comes then as Hannah says stop it now - ie sleeping on sofa etc. I didnt do any of the doll stuff etc, and Bruno has literally worshipped our son from the moment we brought him home. I didnt stop him from licking him etc as they need to do that to recognise them etc. I also didnt stop him from going on sofa etc - he just seemed to know that he couldnt jump up close to baby etc. Our dog was wonderful I think partly because we were very relaxed about it, and tried to be as relaxed as we could. I greeted him first when i arrived whilst hubby held the wee one so i could get my big welcome having not seen him for 3 days - I think thats important. But my advice would juet be too relax. Also its good to take dog out with buggy on a test run before baby arrives so that they know they have to walk better!!! good luck
Do you know, it never occurred to me to `introduce ` them! There weren`t so many `experts` back then. Babies don`t do a lot in the first year. My first dog (GSD) guarded all my babies fiercely, and they all adored each other. use your common sense (as above), ignore well-meaning but ignorant advice and you`ll be fine.
Cool thanks guys, I am just in the worrying stage, I would hate anything to happen ( obviously) but I would also hate Bine to feel left out. I am going to take her to be checked out and I wanted her spayed anyway so I'll book that in the next couple of months. I may put some of the baby's things in the living room about a month before she is due to get Bine used to them, but as long as there are more positive stories about introductions then I'm sure we'll be fine.
I gave birth to all my babies at home with the dogs in the room next door when the baby let out its first cry they did bark but soon were quite when we told them. I just let them have a good sniff of the baby all over and didn't stress about it. I found it was best to keep the baby at a low down level as if it cried when high up they would try to jump up to see what was wrong. Just be relaxed and so will the dog.
Hi, You've had some really good advice and I doubt I can add anything useful to it. when I had Oscar 5 years ago I also had my last GSD, Jaikei. I deicded that once home (althoughshe was staying at my Dad's for a while so we could get thegarden shed up at the back) that I would put Oscar into his car seat (which was like a bucket) and put the bucket on the floor. This way, if jaikei sniffed or licked him harder than intended she couldn't flip him over. She ended up snuffling in his toes and from then on until she died 3 months later, she adored him. I was always there to supervise her with him and the only thing I stopped her doing was licking his face. Anywhere else was fair game as it could so easily be wiped/washed clean. There were never any problems. She was a rescue GSD from Birmingham DH with a history of abuse. Laura xx
Firstly, congrats :-D Secondly, there has been some good advice already. Just use your common sense, don't try to get worked up and stay relaxed. Remember to still give Bine plenty of attention, fuss, exercise etc and obviously don't leave dog and baby alone together. If you know of anyone else with babies or young children, you could introduce Bine to them and see how she reacts, but from what you have already said about her, I am sure she will be fine. I have two GSDs and the older bitch (who was quite fearful of children after a bad experience as a pup) was really good with my son when he was born but is a bit worried and can be grumpy around him now that he is toddling around. I just make sure I am always on hand when the two are together and Flame (dog) knows that if she grumbles then she has to go out behind the babygate. It is for both of their sakes, as Ben (child) doesn't understand that Flame is an older dog and has aches and pains. My younger GSD grew up with Ben (they are both a similar age) and whilst they get on great together, Yogi can be a bit boisterous and so, again, I just use my common sense so neither child nor dog gets hurt. Good luck and I would love to see photos of Bine and your baby when he/she comes home
Thank you everybody. I guess that I'm just a little nervous. Obvioulsy we want the little one to be as safe as possible. We love Bine so much and don't want her to feel left out. Although she is quite good when we're otherwise occupied, she does whine a bit but throw a stick in the back garden and she's happy, for a little while at least! We will try to involve her as much as possible, obviously family walks with the buggy so she can associate the baby with something she loves. We have a stairgate which will need to go up by the nursery, but otherwise I will be taking your advice and being more relaxed about it. I will most certainly be posting pictures of my girls. Thank you all so much. xxx
