BehavioRx Case of the Month
for January 2001

"And Baby Makes Four"

The clients' first child was just nine months old and just trying to walk. This involved grabbing on to furniture and even people to get upright and a great deal of falling, of course. The five year old, spayed female Labrador Retriever had been a little "edgy" when the baby had, earlier in life, crawled toward her and screamed, but she
was always able to escape to a safe haven. But now, the baby, "Ann," was showing even greater interest in "Molly," and was actively trying to corner and/or grab her. Molly started growling and moving away as little Ann lurched around and approached her. The parents, Janice and Mike, started intervening; picking Ann up and taking her away while scolding her mildly. One evening Molly snapped at the baby. The owners phoned on their veterinarian's advice.

Our first consultation revealed that Molly was an outgoing, friendly dog who had been through a basic obedience class successfully. She had been gotten at about 7 weeks of age and was what Mike called, the "best dog I ever knew." She house trained in short order and never chewed anything but her own toys. When Ann was an infant Molly was allowed to investigate her and seemed delighted to see her whenever the baby was around, even when she first started crawling. However, in light of the new incidents, both parents were genuinely concerned for Ann's safety in the event Ann might actually corner Molly if they were not present.

The Janice was quick to appreciate that grabbing Ann and scolding her was not a wise way to handle close-encounters, since Molly might do the same thing if Janice were not there; only Molly 'grab' might quite naturally be with her mouth, in the manner she would control a tiny puppy!

Both parents agreed that getting a strong baby play pen for Ann would be advisable for those times when they might have to leave her unattended.

They also appreciated that they needed to help Molly feel happy and at ease about Ann's new-found ambulating capabilities. We outlined a program based on the BehavioRx Instruction Brochure "Babies, New Pets and Dogs," in which they used the Jolly Routine to relax Molly when Ann started walking and falling down in the room. If Ann approached Molly, Mike or Janice would act happy, go to Molly and pleasantly show her how to move away from Ann before she could be
cornered. Within a couple of evenings Molly had started moving out of Ann's way and going to either Mike or Janice, tail wagging.

In the meantime, when Ann was peaceful, she and Molly continued their friendly interactions with parental supervision; Molly licking Ann and Ann gently stroking Molly.

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