Resources For families with dogs and babies!

Friday, October 24, 2008

Laughing Baby with Dog and Daddy (from youtube)

It is clear the Dad and baby are having fun but what do you notice about the dog? I see a dog becoming more excited and practicing biting at moving targets. It is important to think about the lasting results of this type of play.
1. What is the dog associating with the baby and is that what we want?
2. Is this encouraging practicing of undesirable or even dangerous behavior?
At some point this baby will be riding bikes, big wheels etc and what then? How will the family handle the dog when they go chase the baby then? Parents and caretakers must always be thinking about the long term potential consequences of their behavior and interaction with dogs and how it might impact the dog's behavior long term when interacting with children.

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