Dogs & Babies

Some of you know that a couple of years before Evelyn was born Jeremy and I adopted a puppy. We'd always wanted a dog, but since we had mostly been living in apartments we decided that wasn't the best environment for the type of dog we wanted. So when we moved a year and a half ago to a triplex that had a fenced yard (and allowed pets), we decided to go for it. We adopted a 16-week old retriever/chow mix that we named Tatum. We figured that owning a dog would prepare us for parenthood, and while in some ways there are similarities, in many ways it is quite different (no one really looks down on you for leaving your dog at home alone during the day while you go run errands or catch a movie).

At any rate, when we learned that we were pregnant, we wondered how Tatum would adjust to being number 2 in the household hierarchy. After all, you hear horror stories of dogs who become territorial and aggressive after the arrival of a new baby. Fortunately Tatum seems to have adjusted fairly well to the change. Initially she was very curious about Evelyn, she'd come into the bedroom when I would be nursing Evelyn and lay down beside the chair. When Evelyn cried she'd come in to see what all the fuss was about. Now she seems to have accepted the fact that Evelyn is here to stay and is not a new toy to play with.

It took a while for Evelyn to really notice Tatum's existence. Once she turned 3 months old and her vision was more developed she started tracking familiar people. If Jeremy was holding her and I walked by she'd follow me with wide, unblinking eyes wherever I went. Pretty soon she would do that whenever the dog came in the room.

Now, at 4 months old (today to be exact!) Evelyn has connected the eyes with the hands. When she sees or hears Jeremy or I, she not only looks, if we're close enough she'll reach. And, she did the same thing with Tatum too. One day we were sitting on the floor holding her and Tatum walked up, and Evelyn reached out and touched her! Now whenever Tatum comes in the room Evelyn is just captivated by her, watching her every move and reaching out to touch as soon as she comes close enough.

I got this little video clip, unfortunately the lights were turned down since it was bedtime, but you can still see her enthusiasm in discovering the dog!