3. Allow them to be a little different for a couple of days. Steven was much more panty for around 3 days but who could blame him, there were so many friends, family members and midwives popping in that it was a little overwhelming and he went into protection mode. We found the best thing to do was reassure and try to stick to his usual routine as much as possible.
4. It’s true, you should never leave your dog alone with your child but in all honesty, it’s more because I wouldn’t trust my daughter not to stick her finger up his bum or in his eye and who wouldn’t react to that! We found it useful to always have somewhere that Steven could go to get away from her when he needed and made sure to teach Jax the correct way to stoke and pet him. It’s our responsibility to protect both the dog and the child from each other.
5. Walks will be different in the beginning. I felt guilty because Steven had always had 2 hour walks off the lead and unfortunately when you have a child strapped to you or you’re pushing a pram I felt too nervous to have him off the lead in case he ran off and I couldn’t chase him with a little one. Just know that this will change with time. Nowadays Steven gets two shorter walks, one with the pushchair or pram and then one later when my partner gets home and one of us can take him out without Jax. Sometimes walks don’t happen because of the weather, sickness or nap times and that’s ok, instead, we play inside the house using treats, balls, the stairs and brain training games.