good puppy

so when there's a baby on the way, you need to retrain your first baby (read: dog) to realize that he is no longer front and center. nathan has always been a spoiled puppy - he's a good dog, but he knows that we turn to butter if he gives us his puppy dog eyes. he sleeps on the bed w/ us most of the time, curls up w/ us on the couch, and gets undivided attention when he wants playtime. well, the earlier you train the dog that a lot of these things will change, the better.

we've been reading tips on how to prepare the dog for Chicklet, and as sad as it is, he can no longer sleep on the bed w/ us. honestly, i'm not too sure why that matters, b/c it's not like the baby is really going to be sleeping in the bed w/ us, but i suppose its a territorial thing. he supposedly shouldn't be allowed up on the sofa or other furniture either, but i don't know how far we can go w/ this aspect - otherwise the only way to curl up w/ him will be by lying on the ground (he's a really good cuddle puppy). the most important thing we need to get him started on is his interaction w/ other people - i.e. jumping on people. that's how he greets us when we come in the door, and that's how he greets new people (after sniffing them out, of course). jumping is obviously a big no-no when there's a baby.

another thing that i'd like to work on is somehow desensitizing him just a bit to squirrels and the other assorted wildlife (birds) in our backyard. he sits by the sliding glass door half the day, watching things go on outside, and if there is even the slightest hint that a squirrel is in the vicinity he goes nuts. "come on - let me at him! i'll bring home dinner for a week if you wouldn't impede me w/ your stupid 'sit' and 'stay' commands before letting me out the door!" this behavior is characterized by jumping up and down next to the door, barking, and whining. yes, dogs whine. it's kind of cute, but he can totally overdo it. this behavior modification would be for the benefit of some peace and quiet - i mean, who wants to wake a sleeping baby?

we saw an ad for a training course called preparing fido in the back of fit pregnancy magazine. it looks promising, but its mostly for getting the dog used to the arrival of the baby - it's essentially a cd that plays baby sounds so that when the real baby starts crying and cooing, the dog recognizes the sounds and doesn't flip his shit. it's also recommended to bring home a blanket that the baby was swaddled in as soon as you can after the birth so that by the time you bring the baby home, the dog recognizes the smell and doesn't get all up in Chicklet's grill. we're definitely going to have to take Nathan back to a doggie school for some basic training classes again.