Over excitable dogs + babies - any advice?

PaulStat

PaulStat

PaulStat

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Cotham, Bristol
This weekend we had our first visit to my parents and my sister with our 6 week old son. My sister has a 3 year old jack russell who is completely insane, for some reason he finds kids fascinating and just wants to play. Now this isn't a problem with older kids so much but a real concern with small babies.

Most of the weekend we had to keep him in a separate room to the baby as he was just constantly wanting to jump up/sniff/lick at him. He would sometimes calm down when the baby was quiet, but as soon as he started crying again the dog wanted to investigate again.

Ummm any tips?
 
Just hold you bo, and whenever the dog gets too excited, flick him on the top of his nose.

Guranteed they'll calm down after this, such a sensitive area, but it doesnt really hurt them ;)

Your sister will probably cry though because they yelp like hell!
 
Put the babies and the dog in a cot together.

If the dog eats the babies, win, there will be no baby crying and the dog will be full and wont be barking.

If the dog and the babies get on, then the dog will be quiet and contented with the babies patting its head, and the babies will be quiet as they have a dog to cuddle!!

Its a flawless plan! I should write a book!
 
TangoSixteen said:
Put the babies and the dog in a cot together.

If the dog eats the babies, win, there will be no baby crying and the dog will be full and wont be barking.

If the dog and the babies get on, then the dog will be quiet and contented with the babies patting its head, and the babies will be quiet as they have a dog to cuddle!!

Its a flawless plan! I should write a book!
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You should be sectioned :p
 
When my mother bought my 8month old niece (Ruby) round last weekend one of our cats went for her was just a tap on her hand but scared her none the less.

The cats had never seen a baby before so they were floating about i think the more we introduce Ruby to them. They will get used to her being here and ignore her eventually.

Ofc cats are jealous animals
 
Megahurtz400 said:
Just hold you bo, and whenever the dog gets too excited, flick him on the top of his nose.

Guranteed they'll calm down after this, such a sensitive area, but it doesnt really hurt them ;)

Your sister will probably cry though because they yelp like hell!
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Need to make sure you don't make the dog aggressive. At the moment it is just playful, best to just keep them apart till the baby is older. Even then never leave the dog alone with the baby.
 
In my opinion your visits wouldnt be frequent enough to train the dog to completely be at peace with the baby, he will naturally be curious and since you say its excitable/insane this will make it more difficult. The dog should learn to calm down around the child over time, but until then id just make sure they are both kept apart (not separate rooms though)

Its always difficult when its not your own dog, so just be cautious for now.
 
cheets64 said:
Kick the dog outside, its a dog at the end of the day and needs to be put in its place. Its just not worth the risk.
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I agree. If might seem like play, but it could easily result in harm. Your parents should understand. If they don't then you have to ask them why they place the happiness of their dog over the safety of your baby. I'm an animal lover (we have cats, horses and chickens), but they lwould lose instantly if I thought my son was in an danger.
 
Does your sister ever walk this dog? Take it for a good walk to tire the dog out before being in the same room as the baby.

On a scale of 1 to 10 the excitement level of the dog when it is in the same room as the baby should be 0. He should be completely calm and submissive. Let the dog only smell the baby from a distance, if he tries to come too close block him and give him a firm correction until he walks away or submits. You will soon be able to have the baby in a pram/cot with the dog curled up nearby paying no attention.

If the baby starts to cry and the dog perks up immediately give the dog a correction with the same intensity to bring him back down to a 0.
 
One thing I've leart when babysitting (we've got a Daschund and Chihuahua both crossed with Jack Russell) is to basically ignore the dog when the baby is present, make no fuss over it, but do focus on the baby. The dog quickly learns its order and where the baby is in the hierachy that way. Be very firm with 'away' and 'off' commands if need be but try not to hit the dog unless totally necessary.
 
Dog legs. Remove them.

Or

Does your sister ever walk this dog? Take it for a good walk to tire the dog out before being in the same room as the baby.

On a scale of 1 to 10 the excitement level of the dog when it is in the same room as the baby should be 0. He should be completely calm and submissive. Let the dog only smell the baby from a distance, if he tries to come too close block him and give him a firm correction until he walks away or submits. You will soon be able to have the baby in a pram/cot with the dog curled up nearby paying no attention.

If the baby starts to cry and the dog perks up immediately give the dog a correction with the same intensity to bring him back down to a 0.
Click to expand...
 
Put the baby and the dog in a box along with the following device (which must be secured against direct interference dog & baby): in a Geiger counter, there is a tiny bit of radioactive substance, so small that perhaps in the course of the hour, one of the atoms decays, but also, with equal probability, perhaps none; if it happens, the counter tube discharges, and through a relay releases a hammer that shatters a small flask of hydrocyanic acid. Leave them in there for one hour and come back to study the results.
 
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