Well before you bring your newborn home from the hospital, your dog senses a new member of the pack is coming! Dogs have powerful senses and are extremely intuitive. They can easily read your body temperature, chemical and pheromone discharge, vocal/body posturing, and emotions. All of these markers are changing due to pregnancy. Since your dog is a mirror for your emotions it is critical to get your relationship with your dog under control before the baby comes.
As pack animals, your dogs are going to have to accept the fact that they have just moved down one rung in the pack hierarchy! Now the baby will take its place as their superior and you must reinforce this while also giving your dog praise and attention when the dogs are in his/her presence. The new motions, sounds and scents that a baby brings into the home can be stressful for your dog and can trigger unexpected behaviors from your dog that can easily lead to a baby being injured.
In order for you to safely introduce your canine to your newborn it is essential that your dog has been spayed or neutered, has up-to-date shots, is parasite free, been obedience trained and has a solid sit, stay, sit stay, down, down stay, recall, as well as compliance with the off, drop it and leave it commands. Your dog should be able to inhibit its activity quickly and reliably, that is, to immediately stop running, jumping up, pulling, or barking on command. Being able to follow obedience commands in the presence of your baby lets the dog know what to do in the face of stress and helps to keep them calm. Behavioral issues such as food resource guarding, jumping, biting should also have been addressed and eliminated by the owners. Leadership training for the owners should also have been performed so the dog’s pecking order in the pack is established and stable. Everyone in the household must follow the training program.
The overarching rule is dog/baby interaction must be supervised at all times! This doesn’t mean isolating your dog away from you and your baby. It means including your dog in activities with your baby in a safe and positively reinforcing manner! Your dog must associate your newborn with good things happening to her including being in your presence and receiving rewards for calm behavior!
As you can see from the above discussion, it is critical both your dog and you receive proper training before you bring your newborn home. Canine Command has developed introduction protocols for owners to follow before giving birth, coming home with the newborn and during interactions between your dog and your newborn. This assures your dog can safely and happily live with your child and enjoy your newborn’s company!