I’ve never been the kind of person to refer to the dog as my furry baby, or buy her outfits, or attempt to carry her around in a fluffy pink crystal embellished dog handbag.  Still, I love my dog and I think she’s a bit fond of me, in a “oh, there’s that person who walks me and puts food in my bowl” way.

So when I got pregnant, I wasn’t too worried that the dog would feel like she was replaced and get upset or jealous of the baby. And she wasn’t, as long as she kept getting food and walks.  Well, there were a few instances when I was especially sleep deprived with a newborn and the dog was hungry and my brain couldn’t work out what she wanted. Dog barks. I look at her dimly.  Dog stands by her empty food bowl and whines. The gears start to turn slowly in my mind. Dog tries to hack her way into the dog food bin. Oh! Food. Yes. That only took about five minutes to work out.

And so things went smoothly, until the baby started crawling. Do you know what the most fascinating thing in the whole world to a crawling baby is? Dog or cat food bowls. No toy can compete. Mom and dad are dull in comparison. There’s water to splash, either squishy wet food or interesting kibble (yum), dog cooties and dog drool, and the dog or cat will appear and query what baby is up to, plus mom will scream and remove baby which is the best way to make a baby want to do it again.

The dog (or cat) is also a bewitching creature. I have a theory that babies with a pet in the home start crawling earlier than those who don’t, because they want to be like the dog.

And they feel good too. Tail to pull, fur to grab, ears to poke fingers in, whiskers to yank. Sharp claws and teeth do not mix well with delicate baby skin so babies must always always always be supervised around animals and that includes the gentle creature that you’ve had since she was a puppy/kitten and who has never hurt a fly. Any animal can snap or scratch if baby is hurting or annoying them.

I’m currently trying to teach Daycare Baby to be gentle with our dog. The routine goes like this. Daycare Baby crawls up to dog, attempts to whack dog in the face. I grab her and hold her hand and stroke the dog gently. “Gentle, gentle” I say. So far, this has not worked.

It took my toddler son a while to understand the concept of “gentle” so I know that I have to persevere and try to protect the dog as best I can until she does get it.

Did I say that my toddler son understood the concept of “gentle”? Yes, I did, and he does understand. But one caveat: he understands but he’s quite capable of pretending he doesn’t. He’s also much faster than me and has pulled the dog’s ears several times. Toddlers are rarely being mean when they hurt animals, there’s no malice when they pull tails, they are interested in the reaction it gets, and it’s often a good one from the animal and the parent.

So my policy with toddler and the dog is keeping calm, removing him from the dog and quietly but firmly telling him that he’s hurting the dog when he does that, and he must not pull her ears or throw things at her or poke her.

That one is taking some time to work too, but he’s getting better. And the spontaneous moment of kindness to the dog – stroking gently, wanting to help feed her – make me hopeful that he’ll grow up and be nice to animals.

63% of Americans have a pet. Cats top the list, but if you’re the president, you must have a dog. Not that it’s in the job description, but 100% of US presidents for the last 85 years have had a pooch. And our next president is not about to change that legacy. And besides, he promised the girls (Sasha and Malia) as a reward for being good during the campaign.

During the election, and right after, president-elect Obama has repeatedly voiced his intentions to the press, discussing breeds of dogs that will best suit his family, especially considering his 10-year old daughter Malia’s allergy to dander. While dog experts continue to say that dog allergies are not technically affected by breed and the “hypoallergenic” dog is just wishful thinking, the Obamas are among the many allergy sufferers who believe that some breeds will help.

Thus, they have done their research and come up with two choices: a labradoodle (a cross of a Labrador and a Poodle) or a Portuguese water hound. Next step: find a shelter who has one of these dogs. Of course, many Americans believe in adopting a pound hound rather than going to a breeder, but it’s definitely important for the first family to practice such ideals. Whether or not they’ll find such exclusive breeds at a shelter is another matter, and how long he’ll wait for one might be worth a few bar bets.

For some reason, the American public is anxiously waiting to see what kind of dog Obama will bring to the White House, and likely, his pick will spark a flurry of breeding requests from families who see the wisdom of the choice.

But it’s been a difficult few weeks of consideration for the new president, who has all kinds of decisions to make these days. “We’re closing in on it. This has been tougher than finding a commerce secretary,” he joked. Obama had chosen New Mexico governor Bill Richardson for the position, but Richardson withdrew his nomination after campaign finance scandals arose.

I know how my family picked a cat. We went to the shelter, saw what they had, and selected the one who seemed nicest. But none of us are allergic, and the cat doesn’t come inside, anyway. How did your family pick an animal? Do you believe there really is a hypoallergenic breed, despite what the experts say?

Cheryl Lang spends her days inspecting foreclosed homes. Business is picking up for her lately. But when she walked into the backyard of an Arkansas home, she discovered something that probably made her wish she’d taken the day off. Three dogs, locked in their pet carriers, had been left behind by the evicted homeowners. Without food or water, all three died.

Unfortunately, their fate is shared by many animals around the country. Of course, this happens even in more robust economies–people move out of town and abandon the inconvenient family pets. But at times like this, when families can’t pay their mortgage and put food on the table, it’s not likely the dogs are going to eat well, either.

Animal welfare organizations all over the United States are reporting increasing numbers of these cases. In a cruel twist, the financial strain that makes more people turn over Fido to the pound means that fewer people are adopting, as well (some shelters are releasing animals at lower adoption fees because of this). The economic crisis is affecting dogs and cats, of course, but also more exotic–and expensive–animals, such as horses, cows and llamas. And don’t forget the chickens and reptiles.

Some of these animals are being taken to already over-burdened shelters (about half of the nation’s 4-6 million shelter pets are euthanized every year). According to a horse-rescue organization in Massachusetts, they have 43% more animals this year, which cost several hundred dollars a month to keep. But they are the lucky ones. Many other pets are simply abandoned on the streets. Worse yet, some are left to starve locked up in the foreclosed house.

Because of what she has seen, Cheryl Lang founded No Paws Left Behind to take in the homeless animals. And as animal rights advocates will tell you, even if they are going to be put down, it is a better choice to surrender your pets to a shelter instead of leaving them behind to die. Besides the fact that they will suffer a painful death, it is illegal. Some parents may be afraid their kids will not be able to deal with taking their beloved pet to the shelter, feeling it will be simpler to just leave quietly and tell the kids something later. But it won’t be any easier for the kids to deal with their animal’s disappearance at the new home. In fact, it may be harder if they don’t have a chance to say goodbye.

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I get a little annoyed when people try to compare caring for their dogs or cats to what I go through caring for my kids. I particularly dislike when folks refer to their pets as kids and they aren’t kidding. It’s one thing to say jokingly, “Fido is my baby,” but to say “I would go away this weekend if it wasn’t for the kids” when “the kids” are a couple of cats…it boggles my mind.

The other day I was at a pet store to buy some cat food and I noticed one of the most bizarre things I had ever seen. I spotted a woman walking along the aisles with her small dog in her arms. She was talking to the dog like a baby – no big deal, I see people do that all the time – but then when I got closer I noticed the dog had a diaper on. I thought that was odd, but figured the dog had a medical problem.

As I passed by her cart I saw something else: She had a baby seat, but no baby. I couldn’t help but follow her around a little to see what would happen next, and sure enough when it came time for her to leave she loaded the dog into the baby seat and left for her car.

I was amazed. She was treating this dog exactly like a baby. I’d read about anthropomorphism in school, but this was strange indeed.

If she had psychological issues then I feel really bad for her. If she lost a baby and needed something to nurture then I can see this sort of thing developing. If, on the other hand, she just thought this was a grand time to dress a dog up like a baby and tote the poor thing around in a baby seat then I’m mystified.

I have a cat, and I love my cat, but it’s just a cat. Besides, if I tried to put a diaper on it I would probably wind up with claw marks across my face.

Maybe someone can explain this one to me.

I like dogs, I really do. But the stories keep getting worse. And all I can say is, ‘Hooray’ for the boy who bit the dog.

I do not consider myself a perfect mom. Far from it. I’ve done stupid things and the only difference between tragedy and me was good luck. And I know that my views here are judgmental. You don’t have to tell me that. But some of these stories just make you fear for the human race.

Consider two stories from recent weeks.

Story 1: A mom has a 5-year old and a 1-month old. She went to sleep with the baby about 6 am. Next thing she knows, it’s 1:00 in the afternoon and her 5-year old says, ‘Hey, mom. Where’s the remote for the TV?’ She wakes up, sees that the baby isn’t quite where she left him (you think?), his diaper is off, and he’s a little bloody. Add up all of he information, and she discovers that the terrier/poodle puppy has bitten off the boy’s genitals.

The baby was IN BED WITH HER when the puppy bit him! Does she not notice the 6-month-old dog on the bed? Does she not hear the baby screaming? Does she typically get seven hours of sleep in the late morning with two little kids? Does her 5 year old get lunch? And not that watching the baby is his job, but wouldn’t you think the 5-year old might wake up his mom to say something like, ‘Hey, mom. I think the puppy bit my brother.’ I have no evidence to support this, but I wonder if the mom was under the influence of something?

The result of all this? They put the dog down.

Clearly, there wasn’t any other option, but was the dog really the responsible party here? I was kinda’ hoping the five year old would be removed from her custody. But, no charges are expected, as the spokesman for the Ft. Wayne, IN, police says that there’s no concern about neglect in this case. ??!!?!

I just don’t know how to politely express what I feel about this.

Story 2: Around 8:30 in the morning, grandpa put a 2-month old baby in the swing before he left for work. Dad (18 years old) had gone to work even earlier. Mom (who is 17-years old) and Grandma were home. At 10:19 in the morning, someone in the house called 911 to say the baby was dead. He’d been bit numerous times by a two-month old black lab. This puppy was also euthanized.

Again, who’s responsible? The police blame the dog, not the two people in the house at the time. But I’m trying to figure out how this happened. I understand you can’t always hear a baby on the other side of the house. That’s why they sell BABY MONITORS! I know you can’t watch your baby sleep every minute. So put him in his crib where he’s safe. Even without a dog, babies shouldn’t be left unattended in a swing. They can fall out. Finally, you don’t leave a baby anywhere for an hour and a half! We don’t even know how long it had been since mom saw her, as grandpa is the one who put the baby in the swing in the first place. What was she doing for so long that she completely forgot to check on the baby? I know you can’t respond to every whimper your baby makes. In fact, my four-month old is crying right now. But I know she’s OK because I keep checking on her. To her credit, pictures of the very young mom show her bawling. I do hope she feels guilty. She is.

But a third story makes me happy: an 11-year old boy who was attacked by a dog in the yard bit back.

Story 3: This is a story that is truly none of the adults? fault. And the boy is his own hero. An 11-year old was at his uncle’s house in the yard. A neighborhood dog’a pit bull’bit him. So the boy got hold of the dog’s neck and bit down as hard as he could; so hard that he lost one of his teeth. The boy didn’t kill the dog, but he attracted enough attention that some construction workers nearby could come help. I like this one. I’m sorry the boy got bit. I have no information about the dog or his owners. But I am so glad that it all turned out OK.

There are so many things I want to say that I just don’t know where to start. So let me get a few things off my chest:

1. A child who is undisciplined is bratty, annoying and self-destructive. An animal that is undisciplined is dangerous.
2. Babies should never be left unattended.
3. This is mom’s fault, not the dog’s.
4. Dogs and babies don’t mix. Puppies bite for play. Adult dogs bite when they are startled. Either one is bad for a baby who cannot defend himself.
5. It’s my personal opinion that no one should own a Pit bull, Rottweiler or Presa Canario. I’ve heard how wonderful and smart they are. I’ve heard how 99.99999% of them would never hurt a flea. But the .000001% of them that will hurt fleas also hurt children, and they account for 74% of dog attacks in the US. That being said, the two awful attacks here were from dogs considered acceptable family dogs: a lab and a poodle mix.
   

For some reason, dog attacks are on the rise. There were 32 dog bite deaths in the US in 2007. (same source as above) That’s more than double the yearly average from the 80s and 90s. Why? I don’t know. All I can say is that these tragedies are preventable. I don’t own a dog, but that’s not the realistic solution for every family. How do we fix this problem?

Pesticides in fruits and vegetables? Growth hormones in milk? BPA in water bottles? These are just some of the health issues that we are worried about and try to avoid. But what we probably don’t know is that our pets can be carriers of toxins, too.

This is based on the study of a Washington-based Environmental Working Group who checked the blood and urine samples of 37 cats and 20 dogs at the Hanover Animal Hospital in Mechanicsville, Virginia. The samples were tested for 70 industrial chemicals and pollutants.

The analysis showed that these animals tested positive to 48 of the 70 chemicals tested. Some of the animals had high levels of chemicals used in making furniture, electronics and fabric. It is possible that these chemicals accumulate in our pets when they chew plastic toys or fabrics or lay on the ground where these chemicals are present.

The animals also tested positive to high levels of mercury, most likely coming from fish used in pet food products. These results may sound scary, but we are not yet sure what they really mean. Now the next question is…. how will these affect our pets? Or more important… how will these affect us and our families?

German researchers claim that having a dog in your home during your child?s infancy, reduces your child?s risk of developing allergies. Their findings were based upon a 6 year study of 9,000 children and were published in the European Respiratory Journal recently. The findings show that having a dog in the home is associated with a significantly lower level of sensitization to pollens and inhaled allergens.

Scientists admit that they aren?t totally sure how the presence of a dog would reduce the risk of allergies, but theorize that perhaps the results give credence to a theory that growing up with a pet trains the immune system to be less sensitive to potential triggers for allergies like asthma, eczema and hay fever. Scientist believe that perhaps youngsters may get beneficial early exposure from the germs carried into the house on the animal?s fur, which helps their immune system develop.

When I came across this study recently, my husband and I joked that our dog isn?t quite up to snuff as our son has developed both allergies and asthma. Then again, we?re in the middle of home renovations which our doctor pointed out can stir up dust and mold which could cause the allergies and asthma.

So, do the negative effects of home renovation outweigh the positive effects of having a dog? Sounds like someone should research that!

Call me thoughtless. Call me a terrible wife and mother’I don’t mind. I have two cats which I won’t part with, despite the fact that my husband is allergic to them. We always thought our kids were at least slightly allergic. My husband’s allergist told him that since he’s allergic to cats, it’s highly likely that his children are. We just accepted it-our kids are sometimes a little snifflly, especially during peak allergy season (spring), as are many people.

When our younger son spent the night at his cousin’s, at about age 4, he came home with a very stuffed-up nose and hives on his torso. We did attribute this to my sister’s small home which contains, in our opinion, too many pets without many (or any) rules regarding them. I love my sister to death (and hope she never reads this) but it always disturbs me to walk into her kitchen and see a cat standing on the countertop, eating leftovers out of a pot on the stove. I do not judge people by the cleanliness of their homes, although I try to keep mine looking fairly decent and particularly clean if we’re expecting visitors. But there are tufts of fur everywhere in my sister’s house. I don’t care if you’ve got pet allergies or not-this is not healthy for anyone.

Since my son has never broken out in hives at our house, or anyplace else, I always figured if he has any pet allergies at all, they must be mild and he simply reacted to the extreme conditions in my sister’s house.

Then, finally, about a year ago, we had him tested for allergies. His blood work turned up negative- for everything. I was right in my instinct to not get rid of our kitty-cats! I wasn’t a neglectful parent, after all. (A neglectful wife, maybe, but not parent).

Some studies have shown that raising kids with pets builds up their immunity to them and prevents allergies from getting the best of them later in life.

I like to focus on this and all of the other benefits of raising children with pets:

1. Having a pet teaches them responsibility. When kids are old enough, they can let the dog or cat out, take the dog out in the yard on his leash (assuming this is safe/they can control the dog), and feed/help care for their pet.
2. Having a pet teaches a child about unconditional love; a dog or even a cat can be a child’s best friend for many years and provide him with comfort. Time spent with a dog, cat or other pet can be time away from a child’s everyday stresses such as peer pressure, changes such as moving or family problems, and (God forbid) bullying.
3. Having animals in the house teaches kids to respect other creatures, an important lesson in life about nature, diversity and the environment outside their manmade homes and other things.
4. Having a pet does eventually end in loss, but this can be an important lesson for children about learning to deal with death, as this difficult part of the life cycle is something they will have to deal with again, at least at some point in their lives.
5. Playing with a pet-a dog, in particular-encourages activity and exercise, which, as we all know, are important aspects to leading a healthy life. With childhood obesity ever on the rise, some kids can truly benefit from such activity.

Sure, if we lived without pets, there would be no scratches on the side of our sofa and no fur to wipe off of our clothes. But I feel that there is much more to life than the presentation of one’s home. A house is meant to be lived in and kids can learn to take care of their property as well as to love and respect a pet as an important member of the family. To many families, including ours, this is a very valuable lesson for children to learn.

We have a 3 and a half-year-old black Lab/Border Collie mix named Cosmo. He has been a part of our family since a few months after my husband and I got married. We used to joke that he was our first “baby” and, at times, it’s like I really do have three kids instead of two when you throw him into the mix.

We decided to get a Lab because of their reputation of being so good with kids. We ended up getting a Lab mix rather than a purebred because we found Cosmo through a Lab rescue shelter and he needed a home.

When we brought my son home about 7 months later there was never a jealousy problem. Cosmo accepted him and was very protective and watchful of his new brother. My son loved him of course – licks, wet noses, fur, and all.

Now the two little ones both love Cosmo and he loves them just the same. He has behaved just as Labs are said to behave around kids. And, most importantly, he is patient – despite his fur and ears being grabbed by little hands, despite being pulled-up on by beginning walkers, and despite being woken up by curious, poking fingers.

I have seen such joy in my children’s faces from our dog that I can’t imagine our life without him. There is something unspoken between dogs and kids – they just get each other. My kids light up when they see Cosmo. He thinks he is their protector and “big brother” and, really, he is. We definitely couldn’t have asked for a better tempered dog.

I really hope my kids will remember the joys of dogs when the time comes for them to decide whether they want a puppy as an adult. My husband and I always had dogs while growing up and we wanted the same for our children. We realize that there are great lessons to be learned from our furry, four-legged friends. We learn about loyalty, unconditional love, and that there’s nothing more fun in life than going to the park.

Next week, we are going on a trip to England to visit family. Without a small child, this is a fairly simple matter. With a small child, it’s more complicated, requiring more stamina, more resources, more patience and somewhat more blog entries than you can imagine. Here’s the first – here goes!

While we are away, Binny, our nervous-of-the-vet dog, is being boarded. Yesterday, we took her to a new vet for to get her shots up to date for the kennel. Sounds fairly simple? Not with a toddler!

Brit : [holding toddler's coat, boots and mittens] We are going to take Binny to the vet today.

Toddler : [stony silence]

Brit : Let’s put your coat on.

Toddler : Nooooooo!

Brit : We have to take Binny to the vet. [keep talking while dressing Toddler] The vet is Binny’s doctor. Do you remember when you went to the doctor? She listened to your tummy, and looked in your ears, and in your mouth [keep talking, nearly done], and she said how well you looked and gave you a sucker?

Toddler : [hears the word 'sucker'] Yeah!

Brit : So we are taking Binny to see her doctor.

Toddler : [still thinking about suckers] Yeah!

Dog : [seeing leash] Yeah! Walk!

Out to the car with dog and toddler. Bundle dog in the car, toddler in carseat, go.

Dog : No! Get me out of here!

Arrive at vet’s office, only 15 minutes late. Apologize and are shown to exam room, repeat with cupboards and draws full of pokey, poisonous, generally hazardous, and fascinating to toddler veterinary supplies.

Dog : Get me out of here!

Toddler : cupboards! draws! cupboards!

Brit : Don’t open the cupboards. Or the draws.

Toddler : [totally ignoring me] cupboards! cupboards! open open open! bang!

Brit : Look at Binny. She’s scared. Can you pet her and tell her it’s ok?

Toddler : [still ignoring me] cupboards cupboards cupcubbycubbycubby!

Brit : NO!

Dog : Get me out of here!

Vet arrives. Vet appears to be the type who prefers animals to children, especially ones trying to rifle through her cupboards, and looks nervously at Toddler. Vet asks medical questions about dog.

Toddler : [thinks] A light switch! I can reach that…

Vet : Does she have a microchip?

Toddler : [click!] Dark!

Dog : Were did everyone go?

Find light switch. Vet is glaring at me.

Dog : Get me out of here!

Brit : [thinks] Get me out of here!

Dog receives shot, we leave exam room. Toddler spots display of dog and cat toys in the waiting room.

Toddler : [at ear-hurting pitch] Mice! MiiMiiMiiMiiiiiiiiiiii!!

Brit : Please don’t touch those.

Toddler : Ball! [throws ball. boing, boing, boing all the way across the waiting room.]

Brit : [retrives ball. gets giggles] please behave [try to stop giggling, we are being glared at].

Dog : Get me out of here!

Toddler is enamored by a squeaky plush carrot. I pay, prise carrot from toddler’s iron grasp, ignore wails, and we are free to go. Out the door and back on the street.

Dog : Must poop.

Toddler : Must poop.

Bundle dog back in car, clean up after dog, quick diaper change in the trunk (mercifully we have a SUV with a nice big trunk) and back home we go.

I’d like a large glass of white wine at this point, but I settle for coffee and feel grateful to have survived with my dignity and sanity somewhat intact.

So right, the dog is all set to stay at the kennel. So all we have to do now, is pack, and get to the airport in time. Let’s see how that goes!

Barneycam VI: Holiday in the National Parks

You know it’s Christmastime at the White House when the Barneycam is rolled out again …