Sensitizing Your Pet

Steps to take before the arrival of the new baby:

• If your pet shows fear and anxiety, consult a trainer or animal behaviorist. Many humane societies now have animal behaviorists on staff.

• Train your dog to remain calmly on the floor beside you until you invite him on your lap, which will soon cradle a newborn.

• Consider enrolling in a training class with your dog and practice training techniques.

• Encourage friends with infants to visit your home to accustom your pet to babies. Make sure you supervise all pet and infant interactions.

• Help your pet get used to the sounds of a baby. Baby stores and some pet stores have CDs of babies crying. Turn on the mechanical infant swing and use the rocking chair. Make these positive experiences by offering your pet a treat while you do them.

• Apply double-sided tape to the furniture to discourage your pet from jumping on the crib and changing table.

• Install a sturdy barrier such as a removable gate where needed.

• Use a baby doll to help your pet get used to the real thing. Take the doll in a stroller when you walk your dog.

• Sprinkle baby powder or baby oil on your skin so your pet becomes familiar with the new smells.

Source: Humane Society of the United States

Bringing On The Chores

One day, in the blink of an eye, the baby will be old enough to help with the pet. Parenting magazine offers this age-by-age guide to giving kids responsibility for a pet:

• 3 years and up: With parental supervision, children can fill up a water or food dish and keep up regular play periods with a pet, including throwing a ball for a dog or dragging a toy for a cat.

• 5 and up: School-age children can be more actively involved in pet training: teaching a dog to sit, talking to a bird. They also can help with grooming.

• 8 and up: As children get older, they can exercise a dog by walking it or tossing it a Frisbee at the playground. They can also help clean cages and litter boxes and bathe pets.

Nip Bites In Bud

There are an estimated 4.7 million dog-bite injuries and 700,000 cat-bite injuries in the U.S. each year. About 90 percent of those are from household pets involving children 5 to 14 years old.

To help prevent your child from becoming a statistic, a highly recommended, award-winning video for kids called “Dogs, Cats & Kids” is available at many pet stores. There also is a Web site for the video at www.dogscatskids.com.