Introducing your pet to baby

May 2007 - by Doctor Denise E. Roche, D.V.M.

Spring time is baby time. Everyone should know how to prepare a pet for bringing home baby.  Many steps should be started well before the actual arrival of a baby.

Who provides the primary pet care in the house?  If the answer to this question is mom then someone else should start transitioning into the role of pet care provider months before mom’s delivery.  This will allow your pet time to adjust to the new caregiver and the new routine before baby’s homecoming. With mom’s focus on the baby, the pet can readily turn to another family member for attention.

It would be an excellent idea for everyone, parents-to-be and grandparents, to become involved with obedience training of their dog(s). If your dog has never been to obedience class now is the time.  After all, you do not want your dog jumping up at people or jumping into someone’s lap while they are holding an infant.  And as an infant grows into a toddler, good canine behavior becomes imperative. Training or reinforcing training can be done with an affection control program. This means that the dog must be required to do a calm, controlled behavior before it receives a reward.  A reward can be a treat, a meal, petting, play, or even opening a door to go outside.  Think of asking your dog to perform a command – sit, stay, come, quiet, leave it- prior to the reward as a way of your dog saying “please”. 

Think of the dog crate as the canine crib.  A crate is a safe haven for your dog and your pet will welcome the serenity of their crate when there is baby household commotion. A crate helps keep your dog soundly sleeping during the night even when a little one is not.  The crate can also be used to work on separation issues. Dogs need to learn to be separate from their family while still being in the household or the car together.  Confining your dog to its crate allows safe floor time or play apparatus time for your infant without worry. A dog riding in its crate while traveling in the car ensures the safety of the dog and the child. A dog should not have access to the car seat area.  If your pet has not been crate trained, talk with your veterinarian about introducing your adult dog to the crate. 
Another separation issue is off limit rooms. 

After baby arrives there will be rooms that will be prohibited such as the nursery.  Start closing doors or using a baby gate to prevent your pet from gaining entrance to barred rooms before baby’s appearance.  In this manner, the pet has time to adjust to the baby gates and the new boundaries. Your pet also learns to be separate from the family at times. Place some of the baby paraphernalia, such as swings and strollers, out in the open where the dog or cat can become accustomed to these “weird” contraptions.  If you plan on walking your dog alongside the stroller do a few test runs prior to placing the baby in the stroller to make sure your pet doesn’t bite or bark at the moving wheels. 

Desensitization techniques can also be used to help your dog or cat adjust to baby sounds such as the cries of a baby or the sounds of their toys.  Play the baby toy muzak or the recording of the baby sounds very softly in the background while doing something positive with your pet to calm their anxiety.  Giving treats, feeding meals, petting, brushing or playing with a toy are all examples of positive, rewarding distractions. 

Eventually your pet will become less anxious and more attune with the new noises. Over time slowly increase the volume to a normal level while working with your pet.  If you know that your pet becomes anxious with unfamiliar or loud sounds it is best to work on desensitization techniques and positive reinforcement well in advance of baby’s due date.

There are some specific steps that can be taken in households with cats.  Consider moving the cat’s food and water dishes and litter boxes to an out-of the-way location such as a basement, spare bedroom, laundry room or large closet.  This will allow your cat peace and quiet while eating and using the litter box.  Consider placing a baby gate across the doorway just off the floor to allow your cat under the baby gate into its safe room while blocking entrance of the ever curious toddler. Make litter box changes or feeding changes long before the baby arrives because if problems develop (refusal to eat, weight loss or housesoiling) it will be easier to identify and adjust. Also provide a safe, comfortable perch area for you cat so that it can sneak away from a crawling baby.  Carpeted cat trees, window seats and a pillow or towel on top of a cabinet provide excellent get away areas.  A cat can also be taught to say “please” before jumping into a lap.  If the cat jumps in your lap without an invitation simply stand up and gently dump the cat out of your lap.  Follow immediately by sitting back down and offering an invitation – a command or signal or a treat to jump up –and then allow the cat to stay in your lap. Do not allow the cat to sleep in the crib with the infant. The safest prevention method is to close the nursery door and listen in with a baby monitor. 

While at the hospital wrap the infant in a blanket that you can take home to introduce the new person’s scent to your pet. Leave the infant blanket in an area that the pets can investigate. When mom returns home from the hospital and greets her pets, she should be empty- handed.  Your dog or cat will want to greet mom after her absence and she should be able to devote a few moments of undivided attention to the pet.  When a pet is first introduced to a baby or child, make sure that two adults are present.  Mom can supervise the baby and another adult can control the pet.  Dogs should be on a leash.  Do not force an introduction.  If the dog shows signs of anxiety – tucked tail, yawning, lip licking or flattened ears – the dog should be calmly removed and an introduction should be tried again later. The distract and reward system might prove helpful at latter introductions.

Always remember that a dog and a child should never be left unattended.
Occasionally, dogs (and rarely cats) will see an infant as a helpless prey-object and will become focused on the baby. This is an extremely dangerous situation and the pet should be physically separated from the child.  If you notice this behavior, contact your veterinarian at once.

Dogs are pack animals and will most likely adapt to an expanding family with some preparatory training, praise and attention.  And more often than not, the cat will simply ignore the new creature in the house.  Remember that most problems between pets and children involve crawling babies or toddlers so always anticipate the next phase.  With some prior planning and training a beloved pet and a beautiful baby can share the house in harmony.