[Frida010]

Fred became a big sister last week and we have introduced her to our newborn on the second day after birth. It went very well! We let her sniff and inspect her slowly. I sat down on the couch with the baby and Fred came up and lay down next to us, with her head in my lap. We sat there for at least an hour together.
We let Fred sniff her many times a day, when we pick the baby up or bring her downstairs. Fred wants to stay near the baby at all times, when she is downstairs. We let her watch us feed her, change her (Fred jumps up on a chair at the table and watches) and she loves it. She became more guarding overnight, when visitors come in she’ll bark (which she has never done before). We have visitors acknowledge Fred and give her a treat when they enter. Of course when Fred realizes our visitor is friendly she quickly gives the typical Vizsla (wagging tail + stuffed toy) welcome.
I’m making sure that I give Fred plenty of attention, just her and me and a lot of cuddling. Which is a struggle in our current schedule but we manage.
All in all, I’m super happy about how she is doing. It’s probably not just Vizsla but I think V’s are definitely a special breed when it comes to kids and family.

 

[Gabica]

Congratulations on the new human baby. Fred now has a new human to watch and guard, i am sure she is figuring it quickly, part of their instinct. It is probably a lot to handle, but it sounds like it works the way you are approaching it. Have fun and a lot of joy.

 

[texasred]

Congratulations on the new addition to the family. The only thing that smells better than puppy breath, is a newborn baby.

 

[Frida010]

Two weeks down and we are encountering some minor issues. I’ve been giving Fred plenty of attention and since my recovery was really fast, we’ve already gone out for walks like we used to before the third trimester of my pregnancy. I pet her even when feeding the baby, making sure she isn’t ignored when the baby is awake. We give her extra chews and cuddles all day.
But… she keeps demanding attention, all day long. She constantly demands playtime and she is restless while we are moving around. She is also taunting us more than usual, leaving her place often without given permission to leave, or trying to grab stuff she knows she is not allowed. It’s really like an elder sibling who is now fighting for attention.
Other than that, she is still a sweetheart who wants to be near the baby and loves to sniff her when she is allowed. She doesn’t show any signs of aggression at all. Never has.

I’m just finding it hard to decide if I should ignore her behaviour, or try to give her even more attention. What do you think?

 

[texasred]

Isn’t Fred still under two years old?
If she is, she’s being very good for that age with a newborn In the house. Not uncommon for Vizslas to be competitive for attention, when it comes to a new dog, or a newborn baby.
It’s a balancing act of giving her things to do while you take care of the baby, and not rewarding her demanding attention.

 

[Frida010]

Isn’t Fred still under two years old?
If she is, she’s being very good for that age with a newborn In the house. Not uncommon for Vizslas to be competitive for attention, when it comes to a new dog, or a newborn baby.
It’s a balancing act of giving her things to do while you take care of the baby, and not rewarding her demanding attention.

She is 1,5 y/o right now indeed. Thanks for giving me that perspective. Most of the time she is lovely and we cuddle with the three of us. She is acting out a bit, we’ve reinstalled the time out hallway and that seems to work. I hope her demand for playtime every single minute will decrease over the weeks.

 

[texasred]

It’s a huge adjustment for her. Giving her a time out is perfectly fine. Just try not to use it to much. Sometimes we do not realize how long a time out has been, if we get busy . If you know she’s having a problem, reverting back on the place command. Make Place a fun thing again, while she adjusting. Send her to place, have her wait and throw a treat. Give her whatever command you use, for her to go get it. Then throw a treat to her place bed. Randomly do it while you’re taking care of the baby.
It works the brain, reinforces place, and she has fun.

 

[Frida010]

It’s a huge adjustment for her. Giving her a time out is perfectly fine. Just try not to use it to much. Sometimes we do not realize how long a time out has been, if we get busy . If you know she’s having a problem, reverting back on the place command. Make Place a fun thing again, while she adjusting. Send her to place, have her wait and throw a treat. Give her whatever command you use, for her to go get it. Then throw a treat to her place bed. Randomly do it while you’re taking care of the baby.
It works the brain, reinforces place, and she has fun.

I think time-out was the wrong words. We use the hallway with and out her bed in there for when she gets a little too overstimulated. Time-outs we use are for her to take a rest, if she misbehaves we use Place. We still often reward her for being a good girl and staying in her Place. However Vizsla that she is, she either moans or loudly shifts her leg of weight in order to demand treats, because look at her being such a good girl 🙄 Throwing a treat and have her wait before releasing is definitely something to try.

I think the constant demand for attention feels a bit irritating because we really make sure she gets enough one on one attention. But you are right to point out that she is still young. Other than that, she listens so well to her commands. And she totally adores the baby. Its a lot to get used to for us all I suppose.