Please Don't Bite the Baby (and Please Don't Chase the Dogs): Keeping Our Kids and Our Dogs Safe and Happy Together

by Lisa Edwards

Overview

Please Don't Bite the Baby (and Please Don't Chase the Dogs)chronicles certified professional dog trainer Lisa Edwards' endearing and entertaining journey to ensure that her household survives and thrives when she introduces her son to her motley pack of animals. As Lisa knows all too well, the dog/child relationship is simultaneously treasured, misunderstood, and sometimes feared. In a twist, Lisa's dog training techniques inevitably seep into how she navigates her first year with baby, with mixed but enlightening results. Lisa includes her best training techniques for the everyday pet owners itemized at the end of each chapter. This book is important for parents, grandparents, and caregivers who have dogs and young children together and want to ensure safety for all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781580055772
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	10/20/2015
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Lisa Edwards, CPDT-KA, CDBC, is a professional dog trainer and dog behavior consultant, a Pet Partners evaluator and instructor, and an AKC Canine Good Citizen evaluator. Her book A Dog Named Boo was a London Times bestseller.

Lisa has been training dogs professionally and performing animal-assisted therapy since 1999. She has trained hundreds of therapy dogs and service dogs for veterans and individuals with PTSD. She is the lead trainer and behavior consultant for the Animal Rescue Foundation–Beacon and the Danbury Animal Welfare Society. She also lectures on dog/child'safety, runs webinars for Pet Partners, and operates a teaching and consulting business, Three Dogs Training.

Lisa lives in New York State with her husband, son, dog, and cat.

Table of Contents

Preface 1

The Ruff Wait for a Baby 3

Three Dogs and a Baby 27

Colic, Earaches, and Dogs-Oh My 41

Balancing-Pack and Sleep 60

Three Birthdays and a Dog Bite 73

Reflections After the Storm 87

Still Plagued by the Bite, and He Drops FOOD! 101

Everyone Has Opinions-Fingers in Your Ears 112

The Visitors 131

He Throws Things to the Dogs 147

First Birthday Party and Measuring Sticks 162

Beware the Rise of the TODDLER 180

Just When You Think You Are Safe 194

Words for Christmas? 207

When to Add, Train, or Rehome a Dog 217

Whose Terrible Twos? 232

It's All Worth It-Dogs Are Good for You 243

Editorial Reviews

09/07/2015
Parents who consider their dogs part of the family will love how therapy and service-dog trainer Edwards (A Dog Named Boo) documents her management of the relationship between her infant son, Indy, and her three sometimes challenging dogs. She shows how the behavioral guidance required for pet and child is often similar, whimsically referring to Indy’s Ferber-style sleep guidance as “crate training.” More seriously, she emphasizes that even good dogs can make horrible mistakes in sudden moments of stress or fear, injuring children and possibly leading beloved pets to be euthanized. Edwards stresses the importance of recognizing that a new baby represents a huge change in a dog’s environment, one requiring careful training and desensitization. She encourages readers to heed her safety maxim: “When in doubt, get the dog out.” Each chapter is divided in half, with the first part consisting of personal stories, and the second part filled with practical training tips, such as using commands, handling visitors, and watching for dogs’ social cues. Edwards’s understanding of canine psychology will give new parents the confidence to maintain a canine-filled household, with strong pointers on avoiding mishaps and tragedy. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

"Parents who consider their dogs part of the family will love how therapy and service-dog trainer Edwards (A Dog Named Boo) documents her management of the relationship between her infant son, Indy, and her three sometimes challenging dogs. She shows how the behavioral guidance required for pet and child is often similar, whimsically referring to Indy’s Ferber-style sleep guidance as 'crate training.' More seriously, she emphasizes that even good dogs can make horrible mistakes in sudden moments of stress or fear, injuring children and possibly leading beloved pets to be euthanized. Edwards stresses the importance of recognizing that a new baby represents a huge change in a dog’s environment, one requiring careful training and desensitization. She encourages readers to heed her safety maxim: 'When in doubt, get the dog out.' Each chapter is divided in half, with the first part consisting of personal stories, and the second part filled with practical training tips, such as using commands, handling visitors, and watching for dogs’ social cues. Edwards’s understanding of canine psychology will give new parents the confidence to maintain a canine-filled household, with strong pointers on avoiding mishaps and tragedy."
—Publishers Weekly

"As an AKC Canine Good Citizen Evaluator and canine behavior consultant, Lisa Edwards clearly understands dogs at the professional level. As a dog owner, she also understands dogs at the personal level— how they can teach us to love, and how they can save us from the devastation that results from the loss or a human or animal loved one. The extraordinarily well-written Please Don't Bite the Baby provides scientifically sound tips for teaching dogs and children to be safe around each other. It's a must-have for every family with children and dogs."
—Mary R. Burch, PhD, AKC Canine Good Citizen Director and Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist

"Please Don't Bite the Baby… is both a pleasant read and a useful instruction manual. Lisa Edwards has produced another gem. This delightful account of her foray in motherhood is also bursting with practical tips for keeping dogs and babies safe.… The book includes many sidebars listing helpful tips and practical suggestions. These include basic advice such as how to restrict the dogs to certain areas of the home, leash walking, and coping with guests. There are also suggestions about more specific challenges such as “resource guarding,” managing Halloween, and the pros and cons of medications.… This book will be an invaluable resource for all families who are balancing dogs and children."
—Mary Schreiber, MS., Bank Street College of Education, Early Childhood Specialist and Teacher-trainer

From the Publisher