Are you expecting?
You’ve no doubt got a lot of things to consider and prepare for. I’m sure you’re overwhelmed with emotions, excitement and maybe even a little bit of fear right now. And if worrying about your dog is part of that worry, let me help. As a licensed Family Paws Parent Educator and a certified behavior consultant whose speciality is fear and aggression, I work with a lot of families with dogs and kids. Some contact me ahead of time, to help prepare their dog, or address concerns before the baby arrives while others don’t realize their dog is uncomfortable with the baby until after the baby comes home.
Experience tells me, it’s always better to be proactive than reactive. Now is the perfect time to schedule a pre-baby prep session or enroll in my self-paced course, Bringing Home Baby, to help prepare your dog (and you!) for the big changes ahead once the baby arrives. It is worth noting, these options are best for dogs who do not already have fear of children. If your dog has a known fear or discomfort around kids of any age, you’ll be best suited with a fear and aggression session, and I can add in pre-baby relevant information as well during this session.
And, start NOW, not just a few weeks before your due date. Many people don’t realize the amount of time it takes to train or work on behavior issues. Please, don’t wait until the last weeks!
What’s one thing you can start doing right now? I recommend families begin to gradually move the dog to a baby flexible schedule. What does this mean? Well, dogs generally really like routine and some dogs get upset if their routine changes. Once the baby arrives, schedules are out the window and your dog may not get his regular walk promptly at 8am (unless you are paying a dog walker to come and walk him), so leading up to the baby’s arrival, mix things up a bit.
Try to not be so glued to specific, predictable meal and walk times and help your dog adjust to things being in flux. Once there’s a newborn on the scene, chances are pretty good dinner won’t always be at 6pm, and we don’t want your dog doing attention seeking behaviors. And, if you discover your dog has some demand behaviors, then that is something we should probably work on before baby’s arrival! The more we keep your dog’s schedule in flux leading up to the arrival, the more likely your dog will be able to roll with things once the baby arrives. And this will make everyone’s life a little easier!
Book your one-one one session today to get started!
Or, join my self-paced course, Bringing Home Baby! Read more about that here!
Happy training!
