Pet & Baby: Communication, Training and Preparation Tips

Bringing a baby home is a joyous occasion and marks the start of the special relationship between your child and pet. Here are some ideas to help your whole family live together happily and safely from the very beginning

Communication, training and preparation

Communication is the key to any relationship. With a new baby on the way, training will be needed to establish proper boundaries.

If your pet understands the boundaries, what you are asking and how to behave, it will make life a lot easier for everyone.

Make changes slowly and calmly, use simple cues and train pets to make reliable responses:

• Can your dog “sit”, “stay”, “come” and “go to bed” when asked?
• Is your cat allowed to sleep in your bed, jump on the bench tops and lounge?
• Will these behaviours be okay when your baby arrives?

Homecoming hints

Introduce all things ‘baby’ before the arrival

• Consider playing recordings of infants’ crying to attune your pet to this sound
• Don’t exclude your pet from the places your baby will be – let them discover baby clothes, wipes and nappies by sniffing, or apply baby lotion or powder to yourself, so this becomes a comforting smell
• If your baby is in hospital, take some clothes home that your newborn has worn to expose your pet to your baby’s smell before bringing them home

Baby toys are not animal toys

• Don’t let your pet play with your baby’s toys as pets can become possessive – a potentially dangerous situation when the baby comes along
• Make sure baby toys are out of reach – pets can examine these toys only if you are holding them
• If your pet tries to drag any baby toys away say “NO” and “drop it”, then replace the baby toy with their own dog or cat toy

The rules around your baby’s sleeping area

• Allow your dog or cat to explore your baby’s sleeping area but set some firm boundaries
• Don’t let your pet sleep in or on any of the baby’s furniture – it will only be harder to correct this behaviour later on

Put these practices into place before your baby arrives home. For more tips visit advantagefamily.com.au or talk to your vet or an animal behaviourist.

Introducing your baby and pet

We understand everyone wants to meet the new addition to the family but it’s important to never try and force any interaction between your child and pet.

• When you arrive home from hospital, have someone else hold your baby while you greet your pets – they will have missed you and it’s easy for them to forget their manners
• Use a leash to introduce dogs and only reward calm and positive behaviour
• Dogs should be very responsive to voice cues so there’s no confusion in getting them to comply with a desired behaviour
• Make sure you have control of your pet when allowing them to smell your baby

The importance of understanding behaviour

Licking, growling and hissing are normal pet behaviours. They alert us that our pet may be feeling uncomfortable or threatened – but you should still be able to tell your dog or cat to stop immediately:

• Firmly say “NO” and create a distance between pet and baby or give your pet an alternate cue like “sit” or “go outside” – do not punish pets as this can make them fearful and they’ll associate this fear with the baby
• Never reward or reassure aggressive behaviour
• Your pet must learn that if they want favourable attention they must behave in a favourable manner towards the newest member of the family

If you’re concerned about your pet’s reaction to the new arrival, talk to your vet or an animal behaviourist.

Growing pains

As your baby grows your pet will be a familiar friend and a source of amusement and fun– poking, grabbing hair, tail, legs and ears will happen

• Take care to supervise children when pets are in easy reach to help them learn how to pat nicely while your pet also learns that your child will not hurt them – no pulling, no tugging and no hitting
• Pets – especially untrained dogs – should never be left alone with your baby until they are old enough to behave appropriately (which could be up to 10 years of age)
• Create a safe haven or ‘child-free zone’ at home where your pet can retreat to if they want to be left alone
• Teach children that not every dog or cat they encounter is friendly – they must never approach or pat an unfamiliar pet whose owner isn’t present

How to deal with children and senior pets

• Children squealing in ears, touching or pulling tails can make any pet bite or scratch
• Senior pets can have a range of age-related conditions like arthritis that cause painful joints – this can make them less tolerant to pulls and prods as well as less able to quickly get up and move out of the way

Any pet regardless of breed, size or training can bite or scratch. It’s important to be vigilant during all interactions your children have with animals. If you’re concerned about the health of your pet, speak to your vet, or contact us for more information.