{10 Tips} On Preparing Pets For Your Baby

Bringing your newborn baby home to your pet can be something that might make you a little anxious.

With the crying, different smells and new routine, this is a big change for your first babies. Women, men and siblings are not the only ones who will need to transition in this new life. Your pets will too!

So how do you prepare them for their own transition?

We know how much you love your fur babies so we are here with help! 10 Tips. Pick and choose what may work for you and your family and gain some control that will help you feel more at ease.

1. Be aware of your energy. They will mirror yours. Having animals already, you know that when you are anxious they feel it. When you are excited they are thrilled they get to unlock all those feelings and go right along with you. When you are needing them to be calm, you should be too.

2. Drain their energy before the big introduction. Have a neighbor, friend, family member or hire a dog walker to take your dog on a walk before you head home from the hospital. Or if she is like mine you can throw the ball for her 876 times and get her good and tired.

3. Maintain their routine. It's likely that their routine will be different in one way or another so, if needing to adjust it, do so in small, subtle changes before your baby arrives.

4. Create a safe space for your pet to be able to retreat. We all need a quiet place to breathe when the activity is too much. The same goes for our pets. As a mother of 4, I can attest to our dog utilizing some closets when someone has shut the door to her preferred location.

5. Play sounds of a baby crying before baby arrives. This is a great tip for anyone in the home. Even if you do not have pets or other children to get accustom to the sounds of a baby crying, you can always practice making dinner or grabbing a shower with some crying playing in the background. Sounds fun right?

6. Bring home an item that contains your baby's scent. Allow your pet to sniff from a distance. Doing this establishes boundaries as you are introducing a new 'pack leader'.

7. Put some lotion on! If you will be using any lotion or cream on your baby, you can rub some on your hands to get your pet familiar with more changing scents.

8. Introduce your dog to your baby while on a leash. Any sudden movement that your baby makes could confuse your pet as an invitation to play, so having the physical control will allow you to make a quick correction if you needed.

9. Allow your cat to sniff baby's blanket in a quiet room. Pick a room that is not off limits (such as all sleeping spaces) so he can investigate it with his guard down and uninterrupted.

10. Use double sided sticky tape. Put tape on the surfaces you don't want your cat to go before baby arrives. They typically do not like stepping on or brushing up against anything sticky and will avoid these areas.

As labor and postpartum doulas our main focus is helping to ease your transition however we can. We hope you found some useful information here! If you have any questions about the upcoming arrival of your baby, any of us would be happy to hear from you. Click ~Ask Now~ to leave your questions!