here is a little back story on dalmatians. they are not a mean breed like some people tend to think. i guess this could be a half truth because any dog can be mean, with the correct owners. anyways, they are extremely needy, like big time. ours is at least [i think we got a defective one!]. and they shed. A LOT. at first we assumed since he was a short haired dog there would be minimal shedding, but when we had to buy our second vacuum in our old house with all wood floors, we knew we had a problem. the first one could not handle the amount of hair he was shedding. funny thing is, his coat never looked any thinner. [piss me off], i tell you.
fast forward five years.
it was always just me, cj and him. when we decided to have a baby we were worried about how maddox would handle it. in general he is a really good dog. we were afraid he was going to be one of those crazy dogs that drags your baby out of its crib at night and hides it so no one will find it. maddox is jealous by nature and that really threw a red flag up for cj and i.
the day we brought vegas home from the hospital he was eager to see this little bundle and started sniffing her immediately. we kept a watchful eye on him at all times because, well, hes a dog. he left her alone for the most part, for the first 4 months or so, then he really took an interest in her. he lets her pet him and touch his tail [which no dog likes]. he sniffs her, she sniffs him - a truly friendly relationship.
i won't lie and say that he hasn't had his moments of jealousy since she arrived, he's had quite a few. i will also admit that i do feel a tiny bit bad for him because he used to be the center of our world and now hes not. we still love him to pieces, but y'all, hes a dog. and people who love their dog the same way they love their children are, well - weird.
its moments like these that melt my heart.
I have always wanted a Dalmatian and truly love the photos you have up of yours. I am jealous. It's he same for our cats, we had tons of photos of them and loved on them too much sometimes and now they only come out from hiding when Ian is asleep or it's dinner time. Sad how things change like that. But, they are fast enough now to where Ian cannot pull their tails so that is good for them.
ReplyDeleteWhat sweet photos! I don't have a baby yet, but, for now, our doggie is our baby! Good to know all worked out when your adoreable little girl came into the world!
ReplyDeleteAww. We have an old dalmation (mix) and we are thinking about having babies. We were concerned that he would be jealous too. This helps ease my mind a bit. I know that every dog is different but it's still nice to hear when things work out.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad I read this today! I'm 4 months prego and my dog Wilson is my our world. I'm so worried about how he will handle our baby. Like you said things will definetly change for him but I can't imagine our family without him. :) Maddox is cute and Vegas is so precious!
ReplyDeleteI had a dalmation too - he was my first born. About the shedding, the biggest pain in the butt part for me was that its white hair AND black hair, so no matter what you wear you have dog hair on you. You really can't win. And they're not bad dogs, just super hyper and full of energy. You need a yard for sure with this dog.
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