Dear Moms,
I need your help..my husband and I have a 3 year old cocker spaniel, Henley. He was our world before our daughter came long, he still is but now our main focus in our daughter. Once we brought our daughter home of course he got jealous, but it's been almost a year now and he will grawl alittle bit if she goes near him, and it really concerns me. I do have to say that he is getting more comfortable with her but then he has this little.
It would break our hearts if we had to give him away..but I just can't have the grawling.
I'm hoping there is some way to relaz my dog a bit?
Thank you for your opnions!
First, just want to thank all the Mom's for your advice, it was extremley helpful!
I've been thinking alot of our decisions on how were going to handling the situation and we don't want to give Henley away. He is a real good dog and we just have to be better dog parents and retrain him and just give him the attention we were before our daughter was born. But I have been taking alot of the advice that I was given and I can already see progress! T. C.
So
Hi. Haven't seen this answer yet, so firstly, DO NOT leave yr daughter in any room alone with the dog!!! And as someone else already mentioned, cockers either are good with kids or not...but I agree with others who have also said, get a trainer, and positive reinforcement to Henley vs. negative punishment/banishment...
Good Luck!!!
I know I'm a bit late on replying to this but I would suggest that you hire a professional dog trainer to come to your home and help your dog develop more positive associations with your child. I'm not sure where you live but www.dogsandstorks.com, www.trulydogfriendly.com, www.ccpdt.org and www.apdt.com (if .com isn't working try .org for some of these) are all organizations with search engines for local trainers. Having someone come to your home is usally the best option because they can see your dog and child interacting as well as the home set up. I say this as a mom, a professional dog trainer and an owner of 4 dogs who were all in the home before my son! Good luck!
We had a Cocker Spaniel when I was little and it bit me on the lip when I had my face down at his level. I also know of another family whose dog also bit their child. I am not one for getting rid of dogs (my parents kept ours) but, I would watch him like a hawk and NEVER leave the two of them together unattended. Hope it works out for you!
I'll tell you, My stress level has dropped dramatically since our dog has been re-homed.
I felt she was an especial danger because she was 'cute' and a 'family dog' breed.. (golden). She was the jealous type, and would snap, and well just unpredictable. Not a good fit with an unpredictable kid!
On the most positive note, she is in a home without kids and they adore her. She gets tons of attention and is in a home that fits!
Good luck. If you do decide to re-home, don't feel too badly. People and their safety should always come first.
Hi T.,
I have worked with dogs my whole life, and first and foremost, as mentioned before, your dog has to be taught his place...he has to be taught that your human family is above him in dominance.
It should have started when your daughter was first born, and brought home from the hospital....was the dog able to be around her? Was the dog able to lick her and welcome her home? Or was the dog kept from her and "left out in the cold" so to speak.....?
Please fell free to PM me and I can discuss further what can be done!Please do not re home him without trying everything else....this can teach your daughter that pets are throw aways... :(
Cockers are notorious as being either REALLY good with kids, or REALLY bad with them...lol....and he should come around, following training sessions, excersize and discipline! These are a main factor in bad dog behaviour!!
Good luck, and like I said, feel free to PM me :)
We have 2 dogs that are 8 years old one could care less if our youngest goes near him pets, kisses, loves him but the other one grawls if he gets to close and Evan had to learn that he can't go near her but if he's sleeping that same dog has to be right beside him. They are both fine with our oldest and older kids. Shelby had a litter of pups along time ago and when the little ones are playing she will treat them like they are her babies if they go where they shouldn't she will go get them but she just wants to be left alone just watch your dog and teach your daughter to leave the dog alone. As long as the dog isn't biting it can take along time for them to adjust especially if your daughter just recently started walking/crawling. It took our dogs about 6/7 months to get used to Evan being on the move.
I would praise the dog, verbally and/or with treats, when he appropriately interacts with your daughter. Even when he just stays quiet when she comes near him! We have been training our dog (a 2 year old doberman) with our 4 month old daughter since we started putting her on the floor. He has already learned to lay next to, not on, her blanket. And then I give them both praise for being down and nicely behaved. We have also been starting to teach her how to pat him nicely so he doesn't growl,etc. Get down on the floor with both of them and model how you would like them do interact. I would also ask your vet for advice as they probably have some more suggestions as we know dogs can be territorial with their space.
I think you have 2 options, as already mentioned - a good trainer or re-homing. Once your daughter starts walking and running, she may annoy the dog even more. My dog gets a little nervous around young neighborhood children because they lean over her, fall on her, and so on. Any dog can snap at a child, and the growling is a sign that the dog is irritated, nervous, or threatened. Please do something quickly. I know that re-homing doesn't sound like a desirable option right now, but it doesn't sound like the dog is too happy right now either. Certainly the dog thinks he is in charge, and superior to your child. That cannot continue and you are wise to be concerned. Good luck.
Hi T. -
I wish I had advice to give you re: Henley. My kids are 8 and 6, and they would love to have a dog. If you eventually decide to look for a new home, I hope that you would let me know. We'd love to meet him and see if he would be a good match for our family. We have no other pets and a large fenced in yard!
- C.
Hi T. - have you ever taken the dog to a trainer (or even better, had one come to you)? You probably have a terrific dog but one that has lost track of where he he sits in order of dominance in the household (below everybody). You and your husband may need some help figuring out how to teach him to obey you (ie don't growl at the baby). If you really do want to keep the dog ask your vet (or others with well behaved pets) for some good recommendations for a trainer in your area - maybe someone in Mamasource will have a suggestion too. It will help your dog be a great pet and help you relax which will make him more relaxed too. good luck
hi T.,
I just lost my beloved Princess in June, she was 14.5 yo Cocker Spaniel. The most awesome dog in the world. When my son was born in Aug 2006, I could not care for her as I used to, but managed to keep her by teaching both Baby & dog to respect one another. Please try retraining your dog, give her lots of praise when around the baby so, she becomes more comfortable around her. Let your daughter pet her gently. My son used to ask to put the dog on a leash & walked with her all around the house (very cute!) he did this almost every day when we came home! what a blessing she was, I really miss her :( My son, now plays doggie by crawling & barking at us for attention. LOL.
Good Luck, I hope your family gets past this phase & your daughter gets to benefit from having an awesome pet around!
Hi T.,
It is interesting that you write this as this past weekend my dog either bit or scratched my friends toddler. We have had him for 3 years and he knows that humans are above him in order. We have never seen any aggression from him around any of our friends children so everyone was in shock. We have recently had a new baby as well. We contacted our vet and she recommended some behavioral trainers to see. I definitely suggest using a trainer before re-homing as I am sure he is a HUGE part of your family. Best of luck!
I would have a trainer come to your house to help with how to train him. Also your daughter is not too young to start to teach her to be gentle and to understand when the dog is unhappy. We taught our daughters that when the dog "did lions) ie growled, it was time to leave him alone. She is still young, but she'll get it if you keep saying it.
