Is This Appropriate??? or Am I Being Squeamish??

Updated on November 06, 2011
L._. asks from Lakeside, CA
11 answers

I'm pretty surprised at the # of people that are actually okay with a baby eating off the floor. So I wonder if I painted a CLEAR picture. This photo I saw was of an INFANT...maybe 7-8 months old, laying flat on their belly, holding a bowl off food, lopsided like a baby would, food dripping down the face and on the floor....floor being what looks like linoleum and the food probably squash or peaches by the look of the picture. PUREED baby food! I definitely was not talking about a child that can sit up with a sandwich or something. The more I think about it, this person should be turned in. I think it's horrible that the person took the picture down so fast that most people will have no clue. I did not email the woman. But apparently someone did.

I admit I am a germophobe... I like to believe my house is pretty clean... But I would NEVER be able to say that my floors are clean enough to eat off of LOL... Thanks for the correction he he...

I was just looking over some local childcare ads, keeping an eye on my competition as always...

This person posted a picture of an infant laying on the floor with a bowl of baby food in her hand, some kind of baby food dripping down her face all over the floor AND a dog sniffing around just next to the baby.

Now in my mind, the floor is dirty and it's way out of line to feed an infant that way. But the dog...near a child...with FOOD! I'm shocked.

Does it seem sometimes that some moms lack basic common sense when it comes to caring for kids? This is a wannabe caregiver! I've not seen the ad before. So I have no idea if the person is a caregiver yet or if many people use her.

I went back to look at the picture again. My daughter wanted to see it. Then I noticed that another picture on her ad is of a very small child, maybe 1 years old, licking a sucker... No way would I give my babies suckers. I'm not totally anti-sugar. But suckers are sticky, gross, collect hair and germs when they eat them, and it's ONLY sugar.

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So What Happened?

I should have said, my qualms with the dog being with the baby is not actually about the germs. I have always been told and read that children and dogs and food don't mix. It's a dog bite waiting to happen.

Competition she may not be. But in a general sense, it's better for all caregivers to do a great job. When people don't do a great job, parents become jaded and look for problems everywhere they go.

Apparently, I'm not the only person that made these observations. The person has already taken down that ad.

Featured Answers

A.G.

answers from Houston on

well.......forget about the germs, i would never want to entice a dog to eat my babies face,

Thats kind of just asking for it.

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D.B.

answers from Charlotte on

I think in your 2nd sentence, you meant to say that you would never be able to say that your floors are clean enough to EAT off of, right?

Yeah, I wouldn't call that lady. If she's your competition in your area, be thankful!

Dawn

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B..

answers from Dallas on

Well, she's your competition. Aren't you glad it makes you squeamish? What is there for you to worry about?

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J.C.

answers from Anchorage on

I would have no concerns are germs, in fact some germs are good for us and will help baby develop a strong immune system. But a dog should not be in the picture with the food, I would be concerned about if the dog decided the food should be his, he might bite the child.

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S.H.

answers from Honolulu on

Well, people who don't see a problem with that, will call her for her services.

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K.H.

answers from Reno on

Ummmm....Babies develop thier immunity by being exposed to germs.
I was the mom wiping down the slides with my clorox wipes and not ever letting my son play or walk barefooted on the grass. He was sick alot! Part of that was caused by a rare genetic disorder he has but his doctor told me I could help him out alot by not being so clean. Babies will get dirty! It is ok! Millions of people have dogs. I have 3. My house is cleaned every day but I am not going to make it antiseptic. Too much work and I would rather spend time with my babies rather than worrying about how dirty the floor or table might be. My kids NEVER get sick. My son hasn't been hospitalized or even been to the doctor for an illness for 4 years-my daughter only 1 time!
I also fed my daughter when she was sitting on a sheet on the floor because she threw EVERYTNHING off her high chair tray and could unclasp it.

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I.G.

answers from Seattle on

I don't mind the eating on the floor so much just as long as it's clean - we have had many outdoor and indoor picnics over the years.

However the dog and the sucker would be total no-no's for me. I would NEVER have my kid in a daycare that allows the kids contact with a dog. I love dogs, but it is IMO totally inappropriate if you are watching someone else's kid.
The sucker is a choking hazard and just demonstrates that person's complete lack of common sense and professional knowledge when it comes to caring for small children.

1 mom found this helpful

C.O.

answers from Washington DC on

If I saw an ad for a care giver with a dog, an infant on the floor and food? Sorry - i wouldn't be using them. If I thought enough about it - I might call them and tell them due to their picture, there's NO WAY I would use their services...

I don't recall feeding my children on a floor when they were babies...yuck.

I don't think this is about being a germaphobe. This is just about common sense...which it appears she doesn't have..

1 mom found this helpful

C.B.

answers from Kansas City on

yeah, i am pretty sure no one would hire her with that picture lol. you're not alone!

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J.✰.

answers from San Antonio on

I agree that dogs and food and babies don't mix ... MOSt of the time. Too many factors to consider - the breed of the dog, the age of the dog, the age of the baby, the kind of food even. I had my boxer around my neice laying on the floor as an infant with her when he was two years old. Same boxer was in my home at age 9 when my son was a baby. I know the dog, I know his tempermant, I know what he's like around food.

That being said - I also used to have a rotweiller. She was very agressive about food and small children couldn't even give her doggie treats b/c she may take a finger off. So that rottie was NOT allowed near my neice at such a young age, much less with food around (I didn't have her when I had my son, but if I did, would NEVER allow food and her and the baby. B/c I knew the tempermant of that dog.

Everyone's different. Like one post below says that people who don't see a problem with the add will employ her! I for one do see the problem with the baby eating of the same floor that the dog stepped on. I mean - eww. Dogs step everywhere outside and quite possibly in their own poop and pee. Not something we should be eating off of.

Eh - I have pictures of my 1 year old eating a sucker too. I guess maybe what's wrong with this gal's ads is what "most" of us think of as 'occasional' (food on the floor, dog right there near the baby, lolipops) is coming across in her ad as 'the norm' when we all know most one year olds don't get 1 or 2 suckers every day and that babies don't eat off the floor every day. Maybe the gal is being 'artistic' or thinks she's being 'cute' and 'funny.' If she's your competition, don't worry about it. It's her problem if she pushes business away.

what do you have pictured in your ads?
I may rather see a kid strapped into a highchair, a baby playing with blocks, a caregiver helping the new-to-walking kiddo take steps w/o falling, etc.

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G.T.

answers from Redding on

Some of us that had dogs and babies at the same time are pretty liberal with the germ thing for the most part. Dogs love to clean babys faces, it's been going on for centuries. A newborn, nah, but once they are about 6 mos old and doing lots of floor time I dont see anything wrong with it myself. Of course if the home was in some sort of deplorable condition I wouldnt put my child on the floor even if on blanket. We all have a "personal" line that we draw.

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