Before I had my two littles, I had a 5 yr old that wanted a puppy so bad. And when you have older kids it’s a lot easier to consider getting a dog and teaching your child how to care for them, treat them, take on little responsibilities. That’s how it was when we first got our Laila girl. She’s a beautiful lovable Pitbull we got when she was about 3 months old.

Since we got her when she was a puppy we were able to train her and socialize her at a young age. By the time she turned 2, we found out we were expecting, and she was the first to know. Laila was so protective over me during my pregnancy that she never left my side. Everywhere I went she went, unless it was bed time then she would find her a spot on my son’s bed. The bigger I got the closer she was. She would lay her little head by my belly while I sat on the couch.

So when the time came to bring out little bundle of joy home, I wasn’t worried at all. What I didn’t expect was for her to be jealous. And boy was she got jealous of the attention not being given to her! She would peed on the carpet…. All the time.

While we anticipated having the older kids adjust to a new little one, we forgot to take into an account of the adjustment our pup needed. making sure we showed her lot of love an attention as well as sharing time with both pup and baby. After a month or so the whole family got into the swing of things and then for Christmas we ended up getting our second dog, Louie, an American Bully.

When we decides to get Louie, he was about 7 months old and coming from another home with kids. And he was so so playful when he came into our home. However, the biggest challenge with him was trying to house train him while also having a little baby. He was so used to primarily being outside, that coming into a house the majority of the day was really and adjustment for him. Then once our little babe started moving around it became a battle of spaces with her and the dogs.

Going through multiple learning periods with both dog and babies has given us a few vital tips to share to ensure that your transition from baby to dog or dog to baby goes a smoothly as one can hope.

Tips for having a pup or pups with you little:

• Take the time to properly train your dog – The same way you pour into your kids, you pour into your dogs. Teaching them basic commands, potty training, and if needed kennel training your dogs is extremely important.
• Socialize your pups with your children – not all dogs are good with kids, not all kids are good with dogs. Teaching them how to respect one another. Children shouldn’t be pulling dogs ears, stealing their food bowls, jumping on the dog, etc. And they cannot learn to coexists with each other if they’re always separated.
• Your dog should have their own space – Dogs need their own space for themselves. A place for their beds, their food, and for them to play that’s not a shared place. This allows your dog to retreat into his/her space when they aren’t up for social interaction.
• Respect your pups emotions and feelings – If your dog isn’t feel good or having an off day, don’t put them in situations that can agitate them. And if your dog has been the only child for awhile, understand that they’ll have to go through an adjustment period just like with any sibling.
• Supervise -Children, especially younger kids, should never be left with dogs unattended or unsupervised. Always make sure to keep a watchful eye while they interact with one another.

Going from 1 pup to 2 and having two babies in the past 2 years has definitely been a whirlwind of crash course learning and sometimes just a chaotic mess. We have somehow managed to keep up with doctors, vets, bath times, walks, and tons of cuddles and belly scratches to ensure all of our babies are well taken care of and honestly, that’s all that matters.

XOXO – A Busy Mama