Hi,

We have a 6 month old baby girl who has recently started becoming very mobile (shuffling, rolling, grabbing). She has always been fascinated by our 3 year old male whippet. Chester (the dog) has always been very good with her, he would lie with her if he wanted and leave her alone if he wanted to be left alone. Suddenly he tried to grab a biscuit out of her mouth, my partner had hold of the baby so no damage was caused. In the same day he 'semi' snapped again when my partner picked her up and started growling and barking at the baby when we had someone round. All that happened within a day and it scared the life out of me. He is staring so intensely it is frightening, and he is actively seeking out the baby rather than just leaving her alone.

The last thing i want to do is give him up, but i will do whatever it takes to protect my little girl. Does anyone have any suggestions? He is so placid usually (although excitable with guests).

If this is sudden and unexplained a trip to the vets is the first port of call.

They should be able to do a basic health check and advise on a local behaviourist.

In the meantime i would keep the dog and baby seperated by using a housline on the dog or babygates to keep some distance between them to avoid any escalation

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sorry your having issues.the dog is prob confused as its a big change when baby gets mobile. is he still getting lots of atention and you time? it could be gelousy. has he got a place where the baby aint alowed so he can hide/relax and escape should he feel the need?

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He has loads of places he can go, his bed is out of the way whilst the baby can only navitage about 2 squared metres in the lounge. He maybe isnt getting as much time as he should be but he stills gets to play and still gets walked every day. It is more confusing as he isnt trying to get away from the baby and he went from being brilliant one day to terrible the next, it wasnt gradual. Ill start increasing his walks to 2 a day and spend more time with him and also try to teach the baby how to be gentle (although 6 month olds are difficult to teach!).

Ill also get him to the vet and possibly to a behavioural expert.

Its not uncommon if dogs are feeling below par health wise to become snappy and have behaviour changes, so would possibly be worth getting him a check over just to rule it out especially if he hasnt had one for awhile.

It seems odd he was fine until the baby became mobile, It could be that for some reason he finds it stressful, especially if he has never been around small mobile toddlers, again a dog who is stressed can and do get snappy.

The only other explanation I can think of is that he sees the baby almost as a pup would with another pup in the litter, They bite,bark,chase,mount each other and compete to a certain extent either in play or in general. He may just be totally confused now the babys moving around and at his level.

The only way however to be sure is to get him assessed the best and safest
way is to have a chat to a qualified behavioursit who will assess and give you a manaement stratergy. CAPBT COAPE Association of pet behaviorists and trainers are good. CAPBT - COAPE Association of Pet Behaviourists and Trainers should be able to trace the nearest one in your area.

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No possibly about it Get your dog to the vet for an APBC behaviourist referral asap.

Dog behaviour is most likely to change toward baby at times of sudden development. A baby being held or in a crib is very different to one that can move about.

Often times pet owners think that their dog is 'fine' with particular baby contact but actually he is sneding subtle discomfort signals that escalate, as you describe when the threat from baby becomes more apparent, such as when they can move towards doggie.
I have attached a simple beginners poster guide to doggie subtle dicomfort signaling.

Of course it is to be expected that young babies and children are fascinated with dogs - big walking teddy bears that they are But we can also not expect such a young child to have any idea about respecting a dog's boundaries or be sufficiently gentle.

Please don't just settle with 'jealousy' as a possibility - this is a human foible and not really a dog one. Get help from a qualified behaviour professional who has experience dealing with dog/child safety (APBC vet referred behaviourist only as a dogs and babys safety are at stake here) so that your dog and baby remain safe and sound within a loving family.

What preparation did you do with your dog in advance of babys arrival? What work have you continued with as baby develops?

Here are lots and lots of resources on dog-baby interactions: Kids & K9s – what parents, kids, dog owners and dogs need to know | Pet Central's Pawsitive Dawgs Blog!

And here is a handout that can be printed out and made available for anyone caring for dog/baby: http://petcentral.yolasite.com/resou...0and%20K9s.doc

Attached Files

Dr Yins poster.pdf (472.7 KB, 1 views)

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"I've seen a look in dogs' eyes, a quickly vanishing look of amazed contempt, and I am convinced that basically dogs think humans are nuts." - John Steinbeck

"If you don't want your dog to bite you, don't be an a**hole to him." ~ Dr. Ian Dunbar

You need to be very careful about hiring in any of these behaviourists, there are no recognised working qualifications for it, anyone can set up as a behaviourist, if they have an O level in salmon spawning, cooking or billiard playing (its a behaviour) they can call themselves a fully qualified behaviourist, its perfectly legal. Most make up their own courses, pass them & call it a qualification, that’s also perfectly legal.

The largest behaviourist organisation, APBC, is 21 years old and has had all that time to establish and prove itself and its members that pet owners have found it beneficial to themselves and their pets and well worth buying a course from one of them. Well the figures prove pet owners have found it an abysmal failure, they avoid that and other behaviourist organisations like the plague.

In the 21 years of APBC's existence& with a Bristol uni estimated 10.5 million UK dog population, making 10.5 million potential behaviouist clients, the largest behaviourist organisation is now down to only 49 members in all the 4 countries of the UK, it even blatantly describes itself as ‘international’, well guess what, also in the 21 years of its existence it only has a total of >14< other members in the whole world.

So after 21 years of commercially trying to sell its services as an international organisation only a total of 63 people around the world have managed to find some occasional part time employment by pet owners who took a chance & employed them, those figures, for occasional part time work, over that time period are a huge statement by pet owners as to the value of these unqualified bunch calling themselves ‘behaviourists’

I recommend you watch these youtube vids of users feedback about them, at the end of the day its users who have the experience of what’s beyond the advertising gloss and they are the ones who have the real life stories to tell &, in this case, tears to dry & bank managers to plead to.

Users behaviourist feedback
YouTube - &#x202a;APBC Member Killed Pet Dog, Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors, The Death Squad&#x202c;&rlm;

Dog Dies in behaviourist treatment
YouTube - &#x202a;APBC, Dog Dies In 'Association Of Pet Behaviour Counsellors' Treatment Program&#x202c;&rlm;

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oh no your links were put up by that amaturish trainer/ecollar promoter who goes around trying to discredit all APBC behaviourists

to the op you have been given great advice by others on this thread, imo your dog needs to be checked out by a vet as has been said and please go to a qualified behaviorist not some self taught clown who will do more harm than good.

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Maddie was like this with my godson. As soon as he started crawling around she got a little funny towards him. I somtimes wonder if it is because crawling is a very animalistic motion

I put up a baby gate so that Maddie could still see baby, but baby was safe. It was enough for her to watch him and learn that he really was still a small person, not an animal lol! She is ok now. I would def call in some help though, anything to help xx

I taught my dogs a go to bed command and used a playpen. If you teach your dog an alternative behaviour and initiate a routine, the crawling / changing stage will soon pass. Then you`ll probably have to protect the dog from the toddler!
In the meantime, use baby gates and calm training to reassure the dog.

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