(human) Pregnancy and the Ridgeback

[kotchfam]

I'm looking for folks experience with their Ridgebacks while they're humans go through pregnancy and birth.

How did they behave?

Did they seem to "sense" that you were pregnant?

How did you introduce your dogs to your baby?

Did you have any issues after the baby came?

Did they take on as "nanny's" letting you know that the baby was up?

Or did they hate you for life after that and have problems accepting a child into their pack?

There are so many folks on here that I would love to hear about your experiences.

Thanks!

[shodyL]

Sooo, are you expecting?

I myself don't have experience with this.  I would suggest contacting Heathe (saikridgebacks).  Scroll down and click on Members list and look her up.  She has RR's and small children and could give you good advice.  Maybe she will see this post and chime in! 

Good luck!

[Deniseeb]

We have my niece visiting right now and Beau sees Keel as a non-sto sourse of food.  He makes sure he checks both of her hands at all times and he licks her mouth as often as her mom will let him.  .  He also likes to follow her with his nose to her dorty diaper .  Oh well.  They get along famously once he figured out she was a little human and not something to stalk and "take down" and play woth like he does the cat!

Denise

[melissap]

 

That Beau is such a sweetie! Food and kids are a sure fire recipe to win any RR's loyalty.

I have heard of several tips that you can use to begin conditioning your dog: Playing recordings of babies crying to de-sensatize the dog to those new sounds, bringing home a baby blanket with new babies smell and getting the dog socialized around kids in general are all great starters!

I have also heard of dogs in several instances picking up on a "change" in thier human -  and I am sure that your dogs will sense a difference. My dogs both seem to "know" when I am sick and both of them are very attentive to me.

Keeping dogs and kids happy at varying times in the childs ever changing development provided the dog accepts the child the children are taught how to properly interact with the dogs...... Which, I am pretty sure (if you are asking for your self) that Titus and Lucious have two kids that they adore now and seem to have very "kid friendly" temperments - so I would anticipate smooth sailing.

I think with that said, having an older dog of any breed that is not used to kids at all - this could require a lot more work that your particular situation calls for.

Melissa -

[machem]

Yeah, that's really nice to toss out such a loaded question and disappear, Kelley. 

No, I don't have any advice to offer, we are safely past those years!

Cheers

Mike

[melissap]

 

Yeah, I think I am safely out of that stage of my life ~ although I may get a bug again for another baby...right now I am thinking of College tuition, although I have 8 years left of joyful expereinces with the # 1 boy in my life....

it is a loaded question though - I was very tempted to toss her out a big congrats...So........I guess I will have to find out later too!

Melissa

[kotchfam]

Yes, I have an unexpected but still welcomed pregnancy and I'm a whole whopping 2 weeks pregnant so I have alot of time to do my research.

You guys are funny!

[shodyL]

Well then I will be glad to issue the first BIG CONGRATULATIONS!

(OK, I couldn't decide between pink or blue, not knowing the numbers in your family, but I am mostly surrounded by males so I went with pink!)

[kotchfam]

Well thank you. I appreciate it!

I hope some more folks share their experiences, I know I'm not the only one to go through this!!

[melissap]

 

How Cool for you and I am happy to give you your 2nd Big Congratulations on the expected bundle of joy!! I chose blue, just because pink was already taken  and like shody I am surrounded and out numbered (although smaller numbers than you) by boys.

I think your dogs will do just fine with a new baby - they are great with your kids now and you seem to do a great job with all of them ~ so have faith - I am sure you are a total pro now  I loved being pregnant and I think it is one of the COOLEST things we have the opportunity to do  I'll bet you are so happy to have gotten this news after having accompished your move ~ so it is pretty well timed all in all 

Hope you are feeling well and that continues for the durration and CONGRATS -

I am pretty sure Julie Moore has lived through pregnancy with a ridgeback ~ she may have some good input on this matter that you may find helpful.

[Revodana]

Since I have triplets that just turned 4 years old, and four Ridgebacks, I think I am pretty qualified to answer. 

The younger the dog, the easier it will be. My dogs were 5 and 6 when the babies were born, and it was a difficult transition. Granted, I had three babies at once, and the activity level in the house went from no one home all day to a house filled with shifts of grandparents and babysitters. It took them about a year to totally adjust.

My bitch was better than my male -- she would just flee if you showed her a baby. My male was really freaked out at the idea of being too close to them, and we had to use a lot of classic conditioning -- food rewards and praise -- to get him to understand they were not alien beings invading his planet to perform scientific experiments on him.

Yes, they know you are pregnant because they can smell the hormone changes and the different way you move your body as pregnancy progresses and, yes, it freaks them out.

It just takes time. Once the older Ridgeback understands that the baby is YOURS, and by extension, HIS, he will adjust, just as mine did.

Today, I might walk into the living room to see two kids sitting (or standing) atop of Blitz while he is curled up on the couch in their favorite TV-watching spot.

Denise

[kotchfam]

Thats good to know. Titus will be just over 2 and he's the one that I already think "knows" because he's started acting more gentle towards me (he wont rough house with me now, he just walks away and stares). Lucius will be just over a year when the baby would be due as well and we've already started exposing him to other toddlers and kids younger than mine.

I really appreciate the information because I got my dogs AFTER my children were done with the toddler stage. I did take great measures to expose Titus to babies since I had none of my own, but it can still be so different from it being MY baby.

Denise the picture you shared is sooo comforting to me, as was your experience, thank you!

[machem]

Congrats!

My Labrador did great with each new kid (beginning with a 3-year-old thrust upon her), aside from her looking at us as if we "hadn't learned our lesson yet?".  But a Lab is not a RR.  I'm pretty sure J.C. would be freaked out by it.

Cheers

Mike

[k9crazyrr]

CONGRADULATIONS, this is exciting news.  When I was pregnant with my son, I had a Dauchound.  The little dog would sleep with me every night.  When my son was born, he gaurded him with his life.  It was actually to much.  I would have to remove him from the room if we had company over. 

I think as you progress and prepar things in the house, it will be important to keep the dogs involved.  I would not keep them out of the baby room, rather let them explore it and watch it take shape.  I have a friend who never allowed her lab in the baby room and the dog peed on the floor outside the room constantly after the baby came home.

What I did and have seen others do is bring an article home that smells like the baby before the baby comes home.  A little blanket or something.  That way the dogs can get used to the smell before the baby comes in.  It worked well for me and others that have done it.

At their ages, I think things will go well.  The dogs are yound enough to grow up with a child that will be their best friend.

Angie

[regimentvixen]

 Congratulations Kelley!!!!