First things first, thank you so much for your wonderful comments and well wishes over the course of the past week. Ever since Chase decided to make his debut, I’ve felt such an outpouring of support and love from you guys and want you to know how much I appreciate your sweet words and congratulations. I am really looking forward to sharing this new part of our lives with all of you!
As I was reading and responding to your comments on Chase’s birth story this week, I noticed a bit of a pattern in some of your questions. Apparently Sadie is at the top of your minds and I wanted to type up a quick blog post to keep you guys in the loop and let you know how our favorite little lady is handling the newest addition to our family.
Let’s back up to their first meeting…
Ryan and I spent two nights in the hospital last week before leaving with Chase on Friday afternoon. My first thought when we arrived home? Sadie is GIANT!!! Holding a tiny newborn for 48+ hours somehow made our 38-pound pup look like Clifford the Big Red Dog.
Before Sadie met Chase for the first time, we had her sniff his receiving blanket to familiarize herself with his smell.
Sadie and Chase had their first meeting in our family room and I’m pretty sure Sadie was more hung up on the terrifying car seat that Chase was resting in than our baby. Ryan guarded Chase as Sadie approached him, unsure what to make of our new little baby.
Her initial reaction? Total indifference. It was quite the anticlimactic meeting!
Over the course of the past week, Sadie has spent most of her days watching Chase from afar.
She’ll come sniff him when I’m holding him in my arms and will now curl up beside me as I nurse him. (Progress!) She’s getting braver around Chase every day and more and more curious.
I cannot help but feel bad for Sadie because Chase is getting so much of my attention and cuddles, but part of me also feels like I’m probably projecting emotions onto her. I am trying my best to give her love and attention and whenever others are holding our baby, Sadie climbs onto my lap and I shower her with all the love I can until I’m back on baby duty.
Sadie is still getting a lot of attention and exercise (thanks, in large part, to Ryan and my mom) but I’m pretty positive she senses a dramatic change in her environment. Last night she had all of us laughing when she proceeded to take a bunch of toys out of her toy bin to try to coerce Ryan into playtime when he was cuddling with Chase.
Ryan and Chase…
Sadie and all the toys…
Sadie has been our main focus for seven and a half years and when I think about how much her world has changed over the course of the past week, I must give her a lot of credit. She and Chase are by no means BFFs (yet?) and Sadie is still apprehensive about her little brother right now, but I have noticed progress in her every day as she comes a little closer to our baby, sniffs him a little longer and watches over him with cautious curiosity.
I’m crossing my fingers and hoping Sadie will continue to adjust to life with Chase. In the meantime, we’re doing our best to show her that she’s still our favorite furry lady!
Question of the Afternoon
- I’d love to hear any words of wisdom from you guys if you’ve been through the baby + dog thing before. Please feel free to share your experiences below!
![\"Quantcast\"/](\"//pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-1e3-7hOJ_U8Bg.gif\")
First off, congrats! I enjoyed reading Chase’s birth story. He seems so tiny when Ryan is holding him!
I’m sure Sadie will come around, she’s going to be an awesome, protective, big sister!
The picture of Ryan kissing Chase is soooo cute!! I love when they start opening their eyes more and you start getting a good idea of what they’re really going to look like! My little guy is almost 4 months old and he looks so big already! Congratulations on your new family, it’s the best thing ever!!
Hi Julie! Oh my gosh, too cute. I have only had my puppy for a couple of months, and I already worry what will happen when children come into the picture! I’m glad Sadie is being a trooper!
We don’t have kids but we did babysit two of our new triplet niece and nephews from when they were 3 days old for about 3 weeks while the third was in the NICU. We had a pack and play for them and a 6 lb terrier that was an “only’ child. She too was cautious of them and she would stand on her hind legs when they moved to alert us “hey, those things over there need attention!” I think if we’d watched them even more she would’ve been protective of them but in that short time we noticed a maternal side to her over a jealous one like we thought. I’m willing to bet you’ll see the same thing in Sadie when she realizes he’s not a visitor. 😉
We have two labs and they also had the Amit climactic meeting as well! They really didn’t pay much attention to our boy until he was eating real food in his high chair. Then they were BFFs. They’ve been sweet and patient with him as he’s learning to be gentle and pat nicely. They of course show their affections by staying close and have even guarded him from other dogs if we’re at the park or something. Pretty sweet! Sadie will come around. Just takes some time! Congratulations to you guys. It truly is the most exhausting and absolutely sweetest time!!
Congratulations!! Love the name! My son, Tate, is 4 months old now and my English Bulldog, Bernadine, is 3 yrs old. She had the same reaction to the baby as Sadie did, kind of like what is this thing? Is it a new toy? Now she definitely acts like a momma to Tate. I have pictures of her resting her head on the bobby while I’m feeding Tate. She has to be around him at all times and will follow whoever has Tate from room to room. And it’s not good when he cries; she wants to make it better so bad! She definitely has some jealousy, but we make sure that we spend time with her after Tate is in bed and take family walks. When we get home from work and bring Tate in, she will not rest until we bring him down to her level and she gets to sniff him. And Tate seems to really love Bernadine! He grabs her any chance he can and seems to have no problem with all the gross, slobbery, kisses she gives him! A lot of wipes are used in this house! It took our cat a little longer to warm up to Tate, but now they get along pretty well! I’m so excited to be along this great adventure with you! Motherhood is the best!
Bernardine is such a cute name!
I won’t even lie… I have been looking forward to this post pretty much since you announced your pregnancy. =)
LOVE the pictures!!
Congratulations to you and Ryan. Chase is absolutely beautiful and I cannot wait to read more.
Bringing home my baby to meet my dog is one of my biggest worries! I’m glad you shared!
Congrats on baby Chase! He is the cutest!
I don’t have pets but wanted to comment and see how nursing is going. I nursed my son til 18 mos when he weaned and hope your doing well with it all. Everyone said hang in there it gets easier and it truly does and I’m glad your mom is there to help out. All the best!
I also have a vizsla, Mya, who basically acts like she is the worlds only dog (she’s a little spoiled :)!) My husband and I are trying to get pregnant right now and how Mya will deal with a baby when we have one is one of my main concerns haha!
Now I know everyone has advice and opinions, so take this with a grain of salt, but I believe it is ALWAYS worth the money to bring in a dog trainer to help with this new adjustment, even if there are no issues. The trainer will help you to navigate what your dog is trying to tell you as she adjusts to her new life and how you can help encourage positive reinforcement that the baby is not competition for your attention! $100 now may save you heartache or frustration later on (new behavior issues like chewing or digging, aggression whether towards or in protection of the baby, etc.) And, if nothing else, it will help you to feel more comfortable and confident about their interactions. With this said, I have no doubt Sadie will adapt quickly and positively.
I can’t tell you how much joy these posts bring me. I have been reading your blog for a very long time from the other side of the world in New Zealand. Your wee family gives me hope for my own one day. Sadie you are the cutest fury lady in the world. I have a chocolate lab called Jack and he is the same age, I can understand that Sadie may take a while to adjust to the new addition. Before you know it they are going to be BFF! Well Chase you are going to be one cherished and loved little boy. Praise God for a safe delivery and a healthy Julie and baby boy.
sadie is going to come to love chase and be oh so protective of him — i just know it! i’ve loved watching my in-laws doggie come to do the same with our niece and nephew.
Congratulations on little baby Chase!! He is so cute!! I’m sure the Sadie and Chase thing must be difficult. When I got a new little puppy along with my older 7 year old dog (also named Sadie) I felt similar to how you describe here! I wanted to give the new baby puppy enough attention and help him get acclimated to this new environment, but I also want to make sure my older dog doesn’t get jipped of any attention or feel replaced! Of course, its different in your case because you have a living human being to take care of now, but similar situations! Enjoy mommy hood! 🙂
Chase’s hair!! Oh my goodness!! What a precious, perfect gift!
It sounds like it’s going really well! I love that picture of Ryan + Chase! Chase is such a little cutie!!
Oh…she is gonna be great!!! Congrats again Julie and Ryan!!!
What a cute little update – thanks for sharing! I love how cautious Sadie is around Chase. Also, I think Chase looks just like you in these pictures. Congrats and thanks so much for sharing so much during this new phase of life.
Congrats!! I have two dogs, both rescues, but one was physically abused and gets nervous a lot. When we brought our daughter home he hyperventalated on the stairs for a good two days. Both my dogs came around rather quickly. My daughter is now almost 3 and she adores her dogs and both love her just as much. Just give it time.
Julie I am so happy for all of you! Chase is absolutely STUNNING and looks so much like both of you. He is just gorgeous. Your baby Sadie will totally figure it all out and love that little boy like a brother! Just keep loving on her as much as you can. So happy for you Julie!
My goodness does Chase look like your dad! He’s like a miniature twin of him – I’m sure your dad likes that 😉 Congratulations again to all of you!
How precious! Great idea getting her to smell the blanket!
I felt the same thing about my Frenchie seeming like a GIANT when we brought our daughter home three months ago!
congrats on Baby Chase!! I actually met your Aunt Laurie in a nail salon in Raleigh last weekend! She asked me about my pregnancy and then told me about you and Chase (which is on our name list). She mentioned your blog and I was like “I follow her! She helped me with running shoes!” What a small world!
As far as the baby/dog situation what worked best for us was to keep our pups routine as normal as possible. When my husband came home from work no matter how much he wanted to see our daughter he would first give bubba tons of attention and then a walk. The baby doesn’t know the difference but these fur babies sure do! Once our daughter was eating people food and dropping a ton on the floor for him to eat they became best of friends!! Good luck!!
No way!!!! This is way too cool. 🙂 I love small world stuff like this! And t hank you so much for weighing in with your advice!
I felt the same way about my tiny cat when we brought my son home (almost a year ago now! Sniff!) she just seemed so big compared to him. Sam was a peanut as well at five pounds three oz.
Just give it time and don’t force anything. Make sure you do give Sadie attention. Now Athena sticks to our son like glue and is so good with him!
Congratulations!!!
Our lab had a very similar reaction when our son was born. He was indifferent and just watched from afar. He would still follow us around and slowly would get closer and closer. It did take time but I think he started to understand more when our son was more mobile.
Our son just turned a year old and he loves our dog. Our dog still isn’t the type to cuddle up to our son but he will lay next to him, lick him, and even let our son steal his toys, sometimes from his mouth! So they have a good relationship now.
Good luck! Chase is adorable!
Our son is now 18 months and he loves the dog and the dog has affectionate feelings towards him (not sure if I’d call it LOVE). It is a really gradual transition for us and now our son loves to give our dog hugs and we are working on gentle pats. I often find our son playing with the dog toys (their favorite game now is share: I give the dog toy to the dog and then I take it back after 5 seconds, repeat. Our dog hasn’t quite grasped the concept of this game get but is getting there and is super patient with him). He also likes to get in the dog bed or crate and has recently started to crawl over the dog and kinda gently cuddle with her. We still keep a close eye on them until Jacob can understand being gentle because right now he sometimes is very much not gentle. So anyways, you will probably go through phases but we haven’t had any problems. We do still take the dog walking every day so she gets her exercise and I think that helps.
Ps. Chase is adorable and tiny and oh so precious!!!!!
Oh as chase gets older one thing I would recommend is to get a stuffed animal dog to practice petting with. That gave us some opportunities to make mistakes with petting while we practiced. 🙂
Bonus of having a dog: your floors will always be clean during the “learning to eat table food” phase which lasts a long time!!
Great tip! We are at that stage with our 7 month old who is learning to “Pet!” and “Gentle!” with our doggie.
Does Chase ever look tiny in Ryan’s hands!! Adorable photo’s:) It sounds like Sadie is coming along, and I’m sure they’ll be besties before you know it! <3
That picture of Chase and Ryan is too freaking cute! All the heart emojis!!! <3
my best advice. don’t push it. she’ll come around in her own time! both ours did and i was so nervous about it! and now, squish LOVES tucker. his face lights up every time he see’s him. both dogs got used to the crying and screaming and are now fairly indifferent towards him. so don’t stress about it!
Holy COW is Chase so cute! As many have already said – that pic of Ryan holding Chase is ADORABLE. Ugh!!! Baby fevah! Ditto all the other pics of Chase, where your dad is holding him, and he’s sitting in the baby carrier. It’s good to see him in perspective next to things around him, so we get to see his size and how cute he is. I always forget how tiny newborns are until I see a new one, because they grow so so fast!
I think of Sadie as not being afraid of Chase, so much as she senses he’s precious and to be treated with care, so she’s following suit and being cautious? Keeping her distance until she knows what “works” in terms of being around a small, precious, little baby bean. Like maybe she’s not afraid so much as she’s already being protectively cautious. Just a random theory.
Love the new assortment of pics! I think all of us readers have baby fever right now, watching your story unfold. Blessings to you all! Oh, and it’s so nice for you to have your parents there with you during this time. Nothing is more comforting than your parents, no matter how old you are!
Congrats on your sweet little bundle! He’s precious.
I had to comment because our vizsla, Frannie demonstrated the same indifference when we brought our daughter home 10 months ago. We were so surprised because she is our needy fur baby and we anticipated a greater reaction.
It took some time, but now Frannie is both protective and loving with our daughter. She gives her kisses and visits her in the nursery during naptime. And my daughter is smitten with her too. She squeals with delight when Frannie approaches. It’s melts my heart.
Can’t wait to read about how Sadie and Chase’s relationship unfolds.
When my German Shepherd met my little girl, she was the exact same way. She would actually howl every time the baby would cry for like 2 days straight! My little girl, Penelope, who is 19 months now, absolutely adores our dog, but I have to say, the dog is still not crazy about her. When Penelope tries to love on her, she just gets up and walks away. Lol but never once has the dog been aggressive. She just is not a fan of the baby. I think it is due to fact of her stealing the attention. I’m hoping still she warms up to her, but who knows! I’m sure Sadie will get better each day! And congrats, Chase is absolutely the cutest thing!!!
That picture of Ryan and Chase is absolutely beautiful! Sadie already seems to be a great big sister! 🙂
I’m glad to hear she is adjusting relatively well! Our dogs were the same way when we brought our son home. It does get better!
Chase is very adorable–congratulations again to you and Ryan! Side note: I can’t believe how small he is–my 4month old was 8lbs, 8 oz!
Our dog did the same thing when she came home. A bit indifferent at first, then wanted to get the attention of whoever was holding her but would still check her out every now and then. Now, she’ll come greet my daughter in the car seat when we come home, and she tries to give her kisses. She definitely realizes that my daughter is important and needs our attention, but she still gets a bit jealous. We make sure to still take her on plenty of walks and have lots of play time once we put baby girl down for bed at night.
I can’t get over how perfect he is! I’m glad Sadie has done well so far and wish you the best of luck! I don’t have a dog so I can’t offer any advice 🙁
We never had pets in our home. My sister always had her 2 maltese dogs. We had our kids around the same time so when I would bring my son over the dogs barely noticed him. They would come, sniff and then go off running somewhere. As our kids grew older it became very fun. I would say around the toddler years was when the fun started. The kids and the dogs fell in love with each other. Every holiday my son would ask me where his puppy was since he knew he would go play there. There was a lot of noise and jumping around but at the end of the day the kids and the dogs tired out and fell asleep early. So I guess as little Chase gets older they will notice each other more and be able to play together.
Those pictures are so sweet! Thank you for sharing them with us. I know someone mentioned earlier about the breastfeeding…I’m wondering how that’s coming along. I breastfed both of my boys as well.
That picture of Ryan and your little baby is just about as heart-melting as it can get. So precious. ❤️❤️❤️❤️
I have 2 dogs a German Shepard mix and a lab mix and when we brought out baby boy home 6 months ago the German Shepard loved him from the start she is very protective of Elijah. My lab who I thought would adore the baby is terrified if you come near her with Elijah she runs away. I am working everyday on her letting Elijah pet her bc he is getting very curious about the dogs but she still keeps her distance.
Savor this time with your newborn. There will come a time when you will forget he was ever this small.
I’m so glad everything went well with your birth! I enjoyed reading your encounter. I used to care less about birth stories but something happens when you become a mom, everyone’s story becomes fascinating 🙂
My dog was the same way when we brought our little one home. Over time she warmed up to the newest member of the family. Now, its 2 months later and she is acting like my little baby girl is hers! Maternal instinct seems to kick in our dogs too.
Good luck with everything 🙂 Chase is absolutely adorable!!!
What a lovely picture of Ryan and Chase! Adorable! 😀
My sister has a 112 pound catahoula cur, and he and my two and half year old nephew are best friends!! I think their relationship drastically improved when Weiss started sharing (or dropping) food!
Chase is adorable! Congrats!
Poor little Sadie! I’m sure she’ll become the best guard dog/baby sitter ever soon!
This made me laugh! I know EXACTLY what you mean about thinking “she’s a giant!” Since I see Penny every day, her size is lost on me, but when we brought Jack home, she seemed GINORMOUS. She also does the same thing with her toys – it’s too funny!!
It looks like you guys are having a wonderful time adjusting! I think about you guys often! 🙂
Congratulations!! Soon Chase and Sadie will be best friends and go on all sorts of adventures together!! 😀
That picture of Ryan and Chase is ADORABLE!! Congrats on your perfect new addition <3
Our first child, our baby girl Rottweiler, was in love with the baby from day one. She actually was so protective she tried to block me from the baby using her body on one of the first days gome. We really had to work like a pack and show her the new order but they are total bffs now oh sons favorite activity is to pretend shes a horse and sit on her back lol