Bringing a Baby Home to a Pet: Preparing Properly

Start months before

The changes that matter are the ones made early, while nobody is sleep-deprived. If the dog will no longer be allowed in a particular room, change that now rather than the week the baby arrives, so the restriction is not associated with the baby.

Introduce the sounds and smells

Play recordings of a baby crying quietly, gradually increasing over weeks while good things happen. Use the lotions and creams you will use on the baby on your own hands. Set the cot and pram up early so the furniture is boring by the time it is occupied.

The first meeting

Walk the dog first so they are settled. Let them greet you before they see the baby. Keep the dog on a loose lead, let them sniff from a short distance, and stay relaxed — dogs read tension in the handler faster than anything in the room. End it early and calmly.

The rules that never bend

Never leave a baby or small child alone with a dog or cat, not for a moment, not with a dog you trust completely. Most bites to small children come from familiar dogs in familiar homes. Supervision is not distrust; it is simply the standard.

Do not withdraw from them

The common mistake is that the pet's attention drops off a cliff at exactly the moment a small loud stranger arrives. Keep some part of their routine intact and give attention while the baby is present rather than only when asleep, so the association runs the right way.