Sunday, November 25, 2012

You, me, and baby make….six?


Zoo entranceMy house is a zoo.  Between our two dogs and our one cat we are only a goat away from charging admission.  Now as we prepare to welcome a human to the mix and even up the pet to person ratio, I can’t help but wonder, is it too much?

We try to make good decisions.  We pay down our credit cards, we rarely eat out, we don’t rent furniture.  But for some reason we collect pets.  I wish I could blame this solely on my wife, but to be honest, I’m a sucker for a dog.

Our household could already be described as overwhelming at times, add the pending chaos of a brand new baby to the mix and things should get interesting. I’m sure that Baby Simon, from the warm confines of the womb, is already well aware of the sound a doggie makes.

Our oldest dog, Bruce, has already taken to sleeping in front of the crib. My wife and I feel like he knows what’s going on and looking forward to the new addition.  He’ll be the baby’s best friend, no worries here.


Dog in front of baby crib
Where's the baby?

The cat is just a cat.  He’s in, he’s out, and he’s pretty low maintenance, we don’t even have a litter box.  If there’s food in the bowl, he’s all set.  At times I forget we even have a cat.  He and I pretty much go our separate ways.

orange cat
Whatever...


This leaves us with Mason, the loose cannon of the house.  I’ve documented many of Mason’s escapades and he will, and does, keep it interesting.  Mason is a spoiled brat, the worst kind of a pest there is.  When we first found out we were expecting, we hoped the 9 months would give him time to mature.  We’re still waiting…

Dog shreds stuffed animal
I made snow!


I’m hoping he will surprise us, but there has been little evidence of this in our trial runs.  Children put him on edge, he just can’t seem to figure them out.  Usually when friends drop by with children, Bruce will welcome them, at times too enthusiastically, wagging and wiggling with excitement.  Mason however, will circle the kid, sniffing while inspecting the small unusual being, ready to bolt or let out an annoying bark at the first sign of danger.  As an expectant father, I worry how our wild child is going to react to our real child.

He has made some strides though, and one day he just may be a normal dog. But I would like to see him settle down a bit before I bring home a helpless child.  In the meantime, I need to do a better job of keeping the stuffed animals off of the floor.

9 comments:

  1. Good luck with the toy thing...I have found that the dogs want the baby toys and the baby wants the dog toys...perhaps they can switch? :)

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  2. Good luck with the toy thing...I have found that the dogs want the baby toys and the baby wants the dog toys...perhaps they can switch? :)

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    1. Thanks Stephanie, that's a great idea...Haha!

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  3. Good luck with the dog and the new baby. My in-laws have a rat terrier and she is usually skitish around new people, but is pretty good around all the grandkids. So there is always hope take it from someone who knows :) :)

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    1. I'm hoping to be surprised with Mason. It may take some time but I think he will grow into his role in our household!

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  4. We had a "wild child" (ie, crazy dog) when our first son was born...I'm sure you've read about how to introduce the dog and new baby, but just in case, a few helpful tips: Before you bring the baby home from the hospital, bring home either a baby hat or blanket, something that has your new baby's scent on it and let the dog sniff it for a while. When you bring the baby home for the first time, you should carry the baby inside and let your wife greet the dog without a baby in her arms. If you completely trust your "wild child", you may also want to put a dog biscuit on top of your new baby's belly and let the dog take the biscuit off of him -- it will be as if the baby is giving him a treat/reward. We did that with our dog and all went well!

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    1. I've read that somewhere OhBoyMom, thanks for the reminder, we will do that.

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  5. LOL...We have a pet house. Four legged kids run all amok and it's interesting getting them all situated before a road trip.
    In any case, fun post and watch out for Mason!

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    1. Know what you mean Cyndi, road trips can be a headache!

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