When we first brought Levi home from the hospital, our dog, Briscoe, was wary but curious of the new little creature in the house. He quickly warmed up to the baby, though, and felt comfortable enough around Levi to lick the milk off his face after feedings and join him on the floor during tummy time. I couldn’t wait to see the two of them grow to become the best of buddies.
Sadly, the state of their current relationship is best illustrated in the photo above. Levi is now interested in the dog and eager to interact, but Briscoe wants nothing to do with him. JB and I don’t think the problem is jealousy. A couple of months ago, Levi accidentally grabbed and pulled Briscoe’s fur when they were near each other on the floor, and Briscoe let out a terrible cry. Now the dog keeps a safe distance from the baby. It appears he is partly afraid of Levi and partly over the novelty of having a brother.
It breaks my heart.
However, moments like the one captured in the video below give me hope that Briscoe may once again warm up to the baby and that a bond between my two boys may just be possible after all.
Do you have a dog or a cat? How does your pet react around your baby, toddler or child?
My dogs are not fans of either of our kids. They didn’t like them as babies and do not like them as toddlers. Our bigger dog, Bella, is very patient but this is only when Meyer hugs her or lays on her. Neither of our dogs will actually play with him. I woudln’t be too worried. Kids are very unpredictable and that alone causes anxiety for a dog.
Well said, Jessie! I think Briscoe’s cool with the idea of getting food from little fingers, but their unpredictability (like when Levi gets excited about the interaction toward the end of the video) makes him skittish.
It didn’t take Plato long to discover the unpredictability of a tiny mobile person when they were reunited. But now, 6 months later, after many many many many “baby, let go of the dog”s, they’re starting to play together just a tiny bit. For now it’s mostly kisses before Plato runs away to avoid being grabbed.
Once RJ became independently mobile our dogs were skeptical. The youngest and largest dog is very anxious and easily freaked out. RJ caught her off guard one day and she snapped at him. She didn’t hurt him but it freaked me out. I think it freaked her out too. Now she nearly kills herself to avoid him! The smaller older dog and RJ have a different relationship. RJ loves her and tries to hug and kiss her, but sometimes he gets too rough.I honestly believe she only tolerates him because he always shares his food with her, unless it’s something he really likes!
We have a pet cat and were also concerned how the transition would go for her (she’s kind of anxious, for a cat) but right from when Edie was tiny (she’s just gone 1 year now) Biscuit would lay next to her while E had tummy time, and sit patiently while she grabbed and pulled at her fur. She is the most tolerant cat I have ever met and the only issue we have had was when Biscuit thought that Edie was playing fun kitten games with her and pounced on her wriggly legs when E was on her playmat. I’m sure that your baby and dog will enjoy each other more and more as Levi gets older!
That’s encouraging to hear, although I wonder if cats get along better with babies than dogs! I definitely wouldn’t have thought so before reading all of the comments, but Biscuit seems to be the only pet not afraid of a baby! By the way, Edie is an adorable name. Thanks for leaving a comment!