Dog toys vs. baby toys
Categories: Babies, Health & safety, Development
Now that my son is completely mobile, he's finally able to get a hold of the things he wants the most: our dog toys. Likewise, the dogs see Mr. Pickles dashing for their toys as a green light to start chewing on his.
This begs the question: is it worse for Mr. P. to lick (chew) the dogs' toys, or is it worse for the dogs to lick (chew) the baby toys? Well, maybe it doesn't beg the question, per se, but it's a situation I deal with practically every day.
From both the baby and the dogs' perspective, all toys are the same. Their about the same size, they're probably made of similar material and they're brightly colored. For even a non-baby or dog-mind it can be hard to tell whose is whose.
I do my best to keep the baby on his toys and the dogs with theirs. Mostly what ends up happening is that I have to pick the dog toys up off the floor and send the dogs to their mat while Mr. P. is on the floor. I guess I'll have to start giving the dogs their toys while we're at work and daycare so they can still get some enjoyment from them.
Luckily no one has gotten possessive over anything--yet. My little dog likes to be aggressive with the big dog when they play. I watch the baby every second he's around the dogs, whether or not they're playing. We're not that far away from the tugging and pulling that babies do on dog ears and tails.
I never leave the dogs, their toys or the combo of both alone with the baby, even for a second. But I'm not sure how, when we're all together, to do it right. Any thoughts?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
claire 2-25-2008 @ 10:10PM
I am a big fan of the "dogs' mouths are cleaner than humans'" saying since it makes my life easier. I really don't want a scientist to disprove it either.
I am also a fan of the "dirt don't hurt" camp. I am not being responsible; I am serious. Children need to be exposed to the dirt of the world to help their immune systems develop, just like they need to be exposed to other children and people for the same reason.
All this to say I have the same problem and unless it's still dripping with dog saliva, I don't always intervene. But my son tends to skip over the dog toys for his own. If I find one of the baby's toys in the dog's mouth, I wash it and hand it back to the boy. If your dogs are inside dogs and well-kept, I don't really think you're endangering your child. Now, if they roam outside 18 hours a day and come home smelling of the dead things they rolled in, that would be another story.
Good luck.
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claire 2-25-2008 @ 10:11PM
Er, that would be "I am not being IRresponsible." oops.
Monica 2-25-2008 @ 11:17PM
I didn't stress too much about it. I did take them away and return them to their rightful owners however, with either a rinse or a wash, whichever seemed appropriate at the time.
Both kids have survived healthy and whole.
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Lauren 2-26-2008 @ 1:24PM
I have two dogs, on of which is only 3 months old, so we have WAY too many dogs toys laying about. Some of their teething toys look much more effective than the ones for babies! I am seriously thinking of getting our soon to be born kidlet his very own Kong toy. I'm also of the opinion that exposure to environmental allergens is a good thing, which handily exempts me from the Pyrrhic battle against dog hair. My take? If they share nicely, it's no big thing.
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Jill 2-26-2008 @ 2:02PM
Our pet store keeps all the dog toys just at toddler height. My son couldn't go past a squeeky toy to save his little life back then. At home he chewed on our shoes all the time, so I seriously considered buying him a rawhide anyway!
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