I was worried about how the dogs would handle the baby and wanted to introduce them slowly and with control.
Ranger did not concern me, as a puppy he lived with a foster home that had twin newborn sons. He was gentle, sweet and appropriate with the babies. Bonnie was wonderful with the babies she had met previously. She especially enjoyed cleaning them up after they barfed.
Beth and Brynn were an unknown & needed the most attention during the introduction. I had nothing to be worried about.
When they arrived Amy sat down to nurse Alyssa. Once Brynn figured there was a baby she and Ranger plopped down next to her chair and wouldnt move. Brynn even tried to keep the other dogs from getting near to the baby & Amy. Little miss protective.
Ranger is very concerned about the Baby.
Uncle Ranger smells Alyssa's head while Daddy watches. Daddy has a dog so he understands what is happening here.
Brynn smells Alyssa and the bond is formed. Alyssa now has a new Auntie Brynn.
"What are you doing with my baby" Ranger wants to know.
Its okay Ranger, Daddy is just shifting Alyssa a wee bit because she started to fuss...she is okay.
See, just fine.
Once Ranger was content the baby was safe, he plopped down at Christopher's feet with Brynn.
Now it was Bonnie's turn to smell the baby. Bonnie is hoping Alyssa will puke and she can lick it up. Sorry Bonnie, not today.
When Alyssa started to cry, Beth was VERY worried about her. She started to lick her head - which we discouraged.
Its okay Beth, we are not worried...all is fine.
Besides Uncle Ranger is on duty.
I have a funny feeling nothing is ever going to happen to this baby with Uncle Ranger around.
This is another excellent time to use a 'get back' command. If any of the dogs got too close we just said "get back" and they would back up and give space.
Now it was time for Alyssa's first bath. Mommy brought over a baby bathtub - but old fashioned Grandma (me) showed Mommy what kinds of things can happen with baby bathtubs. The babies can tip over, slide down or slide over and bang their heads etc. So Grandma showed Mommy the easiest and safest way to bath a newborn...in a freshly scrubbed and disinfected kitchen sink. The whole time Grandma told Mommy stories about bathing all the kids in the kitchen sink for years.
Alyssa enjoyed herself. We folded a full size bath towel in the bottom for cushion, extra folds near the head to keep her elevated above the water. Keeping her umbilical cord dry she got her first bath, where she coo'ed and gurgled happily.
She was dried off, powdered and Desitin slathered on her tush...all under the watchful eyes of Uncle Ranger.
Bonnie checked in frequently.
Auntie Brynn was the most concerned about her new Baby.
"What are you doing to her?"
"I need to smell her and make sure she is still okay."
She is just fine Brynn, just fine. Nice and clean now. No worries.
After the bath and some visiting Brynn positioned herself as the guardian of the baby in the car seat.
"She is CRYING! DO SOMETHING!"
Okay, Brynn.....Papa John is on the job, he will find her binky.
"Thank you Papa, thank you for taking care of my baby".
"I will watch her while she sleeps, so she stays safe."
Night Night Alyssa.
NOTE: Border collies are typically not good with children. Please read "The Kid Myth" written by Sheena of That'll Do Border Collie Rescue aka Three Woofs & a Woo. While this post is cute and adorable with photos of the dogs meeting the baby for the first time, this was a VERY controlled and careful introduction. At the first sign of anything inappropriate the dog will be removed. Safety first. Good relationships between new children and dogs is ultimately the responsibility of the owners - and they depend on us to keep them out of situations where anyone can be hurt. None of the dogs will EVER be left alone with the baby. Nope, nada...no way.
12 comments:
What lovely post. Glad Brynn's taking care of her baby.
What a terrific post.
I did pop over and read the Kid Myth. While Siberian Huskies are different and have different needs, you could substitute much of what was said there for them. Probably true of most working breeds.
She is so precious!
Every time the grandkids visit we have a controlled introduction and never are they left alone with the dogs even though they are 5 and 10 years old now. Better safe than sorry.
Aw, I think Uncle Ranger should go live with her ;)
Great photos.
I can't tell you how excited I am to see that Ranger finally has a job!!
My guess is that he and Bonnie are going to be the official dog Auntie and Uncle of that precious baby :)
Go Ranger!
Our Aussies and cattle dogs have always been awesome around our babies and toddlers, but you are right that is not always the case.
Very sweet post:), and I'm sooooo glad you added that note at the end.
Luna's original family had two young kids and a baby. After we adopted her, we realized she was very worried/scared by anything related to little kids. She would try to pull away and create distance between herself and a stroller coming towards her. Kids still scare her, and the other day she reacted to a child's cry on the tv. I would love to know what went on in those first months of her life, and if and when we are ever blessed with a grandchild, we will have to be very careful.
Lovely, lovely post, Carolyn. It's a shame you have to add the caveat you did, but you never know who's reading or what silly ideas they might have about BCs and children.
But still. Adorable post, wonderful dog/baby interactions, and the photos are so priceless! Alyssa is a beautiful little tyke. :) Thanks so much for sharing a heart-warming event on this cold and snowy (at least here) morning. :)
Oh, and Uncle Ranger is delightful! :)
(Deleted my first post due to type-os, lol.)
How adorable, your dogs are quite smitten with the new baby.
We had a wire haired fox terrier when I was born and that dog was so jealous of me. She never got over it!
Amazing pics really...Its clearly shown in that pics that how much the dog care for the new born baby....he's love for that baby was really admirable...
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Oh, that was beautiful!!! And what an adorable baby!
Lovely! Thanks for putting the training bit in. Tessa my old BC, came to school with me for the first part of her life. She was excellent with children - but I also was super careful. (I was going to certify her as a therapy dog - she was wonderful with my "special" children.) And now that she's aged - I won't have her around kids - she's too grumpy and I can't risk it.
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