Beware – cats can be jealous even if you still spend the same amount of time making a fuss of them. I know about 2 cats that were fine to start, then a couple of weeks tried to attack her every time she went near the baby. They had to go to a new home.

Our pets have always been treated the same, children or no children. Of course some boundaries need to be set when bub is new, your pets have to be taught rules. Other then that, we cruised through it all

Our pets are part of the family but they are pets

Continue as was – the kids obviously have to take priority for a while but they still get treated he same

A Good owner would make sure that the pet is still included and felt loved …. nothing changes.

The hospital recommended to take articles home like my daughter’s dirty nappy, worn nightgown etc and let the dogs sniff it so that when she came home they would know she was part of the household. Some dogs can be very protective and jealous. My American staff used to like sitting on my lap (all 23kg of her) but when I was pregnant she seemed to know and would only put her chin on my knee. I think she could smell the hormonal changes, she’s very intuitive

My dog definitely experienced a lifestyle change, but it was mainly because he wanted to go outside and escape! Now that my daughter is almost 3 they are best friends and he has decided to move back in. He definitely moved down a rung in the ladder though! I’m having another baby in 6 months and laugh to myself when I picture my dogs reaction when I bring it home.

A friend of ours has a dog. When the little one was a baby the dog had to be allowed to see the baby then would walk out of the room again. It was as though in her own wayshe had to check for herself that the baby was Ok. He has an older sister and the dog was a young pup when she was born. As babies laying,/sitting on the floor the dog never attempted to touch either of the little ones, not even to try to sniff or lick them. She did knock one of them over on outdoor steps and looked very downcast when it happened before them Mum had time to growl at her. The children were taught to be gentle with her right from the beginning. The Mum made time to teach the younger one to play safely with the dog under strict supervision. The only time she has got grumpy was when the younger one accidentally trod on her tail then overbalanced and fell on her as well. The only time she jumps on the elder one is when she is hungry as it is the girl’s responsiiblity to give her the dry dog food morning and night. The only problem is she constantly moults and drops hair. She has very short hair. She has her pet spots inside. One stunt is she gets up on Mr’s side of the bed at night when he is at work, and has to be told to get down when he gets home. She started doing it as a puppy before. Mr. came on the scene and the Mum thought it was good security. If you are going to get a dog it is best to get one that doesn’t drop hair. The disadvantage is that you have to have them bathed and clipped or learn how to do it yourself.

We had a dog when my eldest child came home from hospital, but in the lead up to that it was a stressful two weeks as bubs had to stay in the special care due to been a premmie.
From the moment the bubs came home the dog stressed all the time i think he picked up on our worries. Sadily he passed away(the dog) not long after. We believe he stayed around long enough to see our family started as we had a lot of heart ache in the lead up to this bubs joining our family. But had he been around it would of been treated the same he always was. Like a member of the family, but with rules slightly stricter than before. Like its ok to sleep on our bed but not the babys bed etc.

my pets are part of the family and they responded well to all my children arriving. when my 3rd baby came home, our dog took a dislike to him and would sit there growling. the dog never approached the baby, just growled. many people told me to get rid of the dog but no way! he’s part of our family! i got a trainer in to work with the dog and the baby and these days theyre always together

My avatar is a picture of Molly – the dog my daughter loved. She still thinks about Molly, imagining that she’s in doggy heaven looking down on her.

Our dog Molly was around five years old when we brought our baby home from the hospital. Molly was an inside dog and initially every time our daughter cried she would get up to see what the noise was. It was only a couple of days before Molly got used to the noise – and like my hubby – didn’t get up from her bed when our daughter cried sometimes at night. We had taken Molly to classes before our daughter arrived and she knew her place in our pack. My daughter and Molly became great pals. It was very sad when we had to put Molly to sleep due to cancer, aged 10. My daughter was nearly five when we lost Molly and was very keen to get another dog. We got Kassie when my daughter was 6 and a half and again the two are great pals.

My dogs were my babies until I had a baby. The dogs are now outside (we allowed them inside in the evenings before), I used to bath them inside and blow dry their fur. Now I don’t want all the mess inside and am of the opinion you can never truly trust animals around small children so when they mingle I watch them very closely

Our dog bells did not cope well kept growling she went to a new home we chose baby over dog

My husky was extremely curious and our supervision was high. Then gradually her sniffing and our reassuring pats for her made it ok. We were also firm as we were unsure. Now aged eight and my dog 13, they are great friends. It’s all about being firm and reassuring to the pet.