I have had clients and acquaintances where the dog is clearly a child surrogate and is never a dog in the minds of the owners. When the real child comes along, it’s as if they reject the dog for not having been an accurate enough surrogate. Duh.

Many of the skills of good parenting are the same as good dog-raising — consistency, patience, self-control, empathy, discipline — but people seem to get confused about that and equate the two processes in the wrong ways.

As long as your dogs are dogs in your mind, and you love them as dogs, and appreciate their dogness, then there is no reason for them to become jealous, or for the baby to replace them in your affections.

Best wishes to the entire Becker-Shannon clan for the four-legged grandpups already here and the grandaughter on the way!

It’s nice to hear other people confirm that while things will change, our pets will still be important!

We all cried together last year when our beloved German Shepherd who had been with us all our children’s lives had to be put to sleep at 14 years of age. However, all of the memories of camping trips and walks with him and the kids from when they were babies and as they grew and began to walk him themselves on occasion are very sweet and help to form the texture of our life as a family.

I love the picture of Willy too. The second he got in the stroller he totally relaxed and seemed to enjoy being pushed around the basement for a joy ride!

Thank you C.L.H. for the comforting words, they mean a lot to me and they definitely help in giving me encouragement for the dog/baby dynamic! It’s so appreciated.

Congrats to Lori on your soon coming baby girl! What a joy! As for advice on getting cats ready for baby, there are some definite strategies you can look to.

As with dogs, cats learn by association, and what you want is for the cat to associate good things come to them when a baby is around. So, before the baby comes, try to find a CD with baby sounds and also get out baby powder, lotions and other baby smelling things, and give them their dinner or treats when these are around (this will help your cat anticipate baby related things mean something good comes.) Before you bring home the baby from the hospital, try to get someone to take over a blanket your baby has been wrapped in to get your cat used to the smell before the baby comes back home. As with dogs, cats should also have lessened attention before the baby comes so that it doesn’t come as such a shock to them when the baby arrives and a lot of their attention is taken away. There are also many kitty enrichment items available to entertain your cat- such as cat food puzzles (there are some great ones by Premier and Bamboo Pet), interactive cat toys that make noise and move, and one of the best things I’ve found to entertain a cat is cat nip made by YEOWWWW! Catnip company, which seems to send cats skyrocketing, even for those not normally interested in cat nip. If you can, also try to invite friends with babies over to the house to get the cat used to a baby. Supervise the child so that the situation stays positive (e.g. no tail pulling) and build a positive association with the baby by giving your cat treats when the baby is around. Hope that helps!