https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Mon, 20 Apr 2026 05:20:12 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/hard-time-with-small-dog-and-one-year-old#post-1874352 Tue, 23 Sep 2014 12:27:23 +0000 skipper2010 1874352@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Great advice. Thanks everyone! </p> <p>@Mamaof2: I am working on showing him how to pet nicely, and he'll do a really good job, and then out of nowhere yank on her collar. I will try and keep them separated a little more for now. Thank you.</p> <p>@StrawberryBee: Unfortunately I don't have the space for an xpen, but I could def gate off a portion of the living room for her like @ShootingStar suggested. Great idea! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/hard-time-with-small-dog-and-one-year-old#post-1874011 Tue, 23 Sep 2014 09:57:21 +0000 ShootingStar 1874011@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>To go along with @StrawberryBee:'s idea, you could also gate off a portion of your main living space with a gate that has a doggy door. That way your dog can still be in the same room, but will have a safe space away from baby to retreat to.</p> <p><a href="https://www.petandbabygates.com/shop/carlson-flexi-pet-gate/" rel="nofollow">https://www.petandbabygates.com/shop/carlson-flexi-pet-gate/</a></p> <p>[attach=2504/14/ncd07v.453x335.Screen-Shot-2014-09-23-at-10.57.09-AM.png] </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/hard-time-with-small-dog-and-one-year-old#post-1873992 Tue, 23 Sep 2014 09:49:15 +0000 ShootingStar 1873992@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I have a medium size dog (20lbs) and she in general is very patient with my 10m old. Whenever DS is close to the dog I make sure he treats her gently. I sit near them and as soon as he reaches for her I make sure he's not going to hurt her. Sometimes he's fine and sometimes I have to pick up his hand and I tell him gentle touches. I praise both him and the dog for good interactions. She is always free to walk away if she doesn't like how he interacts with her. </p> <p>In the 10 months since he arrived we've had 2 growling incidents, both happening when he approached her when she was lying down (normally she's the one chasing him around). The more recent time was over the weekend and we told her no to the growling, made him back up from her, and a minute later when they had a positive interaction (he reached out his hand and she started licking it) we praised her a ton and I gave her a treat. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/hard-time-with-small-dog-and-one-year-old#post-1873981 Tue, 23 Sep 2014 09:44:00 +0000 StrawberryBee 1873981@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Growling is actually a good thing -- your dog is communicating that she is not comfortable with how she's being treated. There are some dogs that don't give a warning.</p> <p>So, you need to take the communication your dog is giving seriously. She needs to have a safe place to go where your son can't follow, so that she can avoid the situation that's bothering her. Also agree with the above posters that he needs to learn how to be gentle, but I understand that with a one year old, that can be rough for a while!</p> <p>So, two things come to mind: crate, or xpen. Something that will allow her to be in the room with you, but separated from your son, so that nothing bad happens (to either of them). xpens would be preferred if you have the space. I'm familiar with the metal ones, but they have soft sided varieties now as well (which work particularly well for smaller breeds). </p> [attach=2320/14/ncczld.500x304.35314-1.png] [attach=2320/14/ncczlf.600x600.715764355111D.jpg] [attach=2320/14/ncczli.600x600.Trixie-Pet-Products-Soft-Sided-Mobile-Play-Dog-Pen.jpg] https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/hard-time-with-small-dog-and-one-year-old#post-1873964 Tue, 23 Sep 2014 09:32:05 +0000 Synchronicity 1873964@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Good advice above. Another thing I would add is to not punish your dog for growling. The growling is a warning sign that she doesn't like what's going on, which is a better alternative to something more drastic like biting. The trick is to not let it get to the point where your dog feels like it needs to do the warning... I think this is all about close supervision, teaching your son to be gentle and keeping them separated until they learn to coexist more peacefully. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/hard-time-with-small-dog-and-one-year-old#post-1873942 Tue, 23 Sep 2014 09:17:30 +0000 Mamaof2 1873942@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think you need to start teaching your DS to be gentle with the dog - show him how to pet nicely, when he pulls the tail say "ouch we don't pull tails", etc.</p> <p>I also wouldn't allow him to clap the dog's face - I know you said the dog tolerated it but its not nice and one day the dog may bite when he gets tired of being treated that way.</p> <p>I would deal with the barking for now - if your DS wont leave the dog alone then they should be separated until it gets better.</p> <p>Its def a phase and will get better - my dog was 8 when I had my first child and it was a tough adjustment for all! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/hard-time-with-small-dog-and-one-year-old#post-1873939 Tue, 23 Sep 2014 09:16:15 +0000 Rockies11 1873939@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had some trouble with my large dog and newly mobile 1 year old, but more along the lines of the dog being uneasy, so I had a behaviourist come in and consult about the problem, which was worth it. In general though, and I appreciate that it's challenging, but the key to successful dog/baby relationships is super close supervision when they're interacting so that LOs aren't hitting/poking/tail grabbing. Many dogs will eventually start growling when faced with that type of thing. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/hard-time-with-small-dog-and-one-year-old#post-1873928 Tue, 23 Sep 2014 09:10:18 +0000 skipper2010 1873928@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My small dog and 1 year old were getting along great for a while. It would make me a little nervous because DS would get super excited and smack her face as if he was clapping and her face was in the middle, but she handled it well. Now he's getting more rough with her (pulling her tail, grabbing her collar, etc)... and this morning she growled at him and it scared me. Has anyone run into this problem? I tried separating them, but she won't stop barking if she's in another room. She likes to be where her family is. Any tips/suggestions? </p>