Not an Easy Decision

eep! That is not a good thing. Mora doesn't so much have that "I have to chase and attack" mentality as the "I have to chase and play" mentality. She begs and begs my cat to play but all he does is bat at her and hiss, even though he does play pounce on her sometimes when we're not looking.
 
ok, pics, we don't have many good ones cause our digital camera stinks but we do have one that i love.
I call it mmmm good. We got her in mid swing as she was licking her chops and shaking her head cause we had treats.

Oh she is soo cute!!!

sorry, guys, I'm sucky at names.  1,000 pardons!!
 
What you COULD do is teach the pup to come and get you when the swing stops!    Anything you can teach the dog to 'do' now, to 'help' after the baby comes sets you up in a big way for the dog to help but not be over-protective. 
 
My point is -- the dog learns to defer (come and get *you*) rather than act on its own. 

You know what, I have 2 dogs that I love very much and I cant imagine ever giving them up and I volunteer at a shelter in between college and work BUT I THINK YOU GUYS ARE BEING REDICULOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! this woman is pregnant and having problems with her pregnancy which could possibly interfere with the health of her baby. I understand this is a "DOG" forum but come on, your fist responsibility is to your child, then your dog. Yes, she should have thought about everything before she got the dog, but that is water under the bridge and now her main responsability is to her family. I think you are giving her very irresponsabla advice by telling her she will be fine walking the dog, with medical conditions and being pregnant as long as the dog is on a gentle leader. Are you a doctor go give her that kind of advice? well I am in med school and I can tell you its not a good idea. I am sory for the rant and rave, however the more I read the more mad I became. Yes, I love animals..but you have to keep you prioraties in check

ORIGINAL: mklockhart55

You know what, I have 2 dogs that I love very much and I cant imagine ever giving them up and I volunteer at a shelter in between college and work BUT I THINK YOU GUYS ARE BEING REDICULOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! this woman is pregnant and having problems with her pregnancy which could possibly interfere with the health of her baby. I understand this is a "DOG" forum but come on, your fist responsibility is to your child, then your dog. Yes, she should have thought about everything before she got the dog, but that is water under the bridge and now her main responsability is to her family. I think you are giving her very irresponsabla advice by telling her she will be fine walking the dog, with medical conditions and being pregnant as long as the dog is on a gentle leader. Are you a doctor go give her that kind of advice? well I am in med school and I can tell you its not a good idea. I am sory for the rant and rave, however the more I read the more mad I became. Yes, I love animals..but you have to keep you prioraties in check

 
If you're in med school why are there so many misspellings in your post? But anyways, pregnancy isn't the end of the world for a woman. We aren't such delicate creatures that we have to be bed ridden the entire time unless there is something physically wrong with you that will endanger your fetus and your doctor requires you to stay off your feet. What I don't get is this "it's the baby or the dog" mentality. Who says it has to be either/or? Is there a law that says once you have a baby everything else is unimportant or no longer has a place in your life and it must go? Sweet Jesus, I must be Superwoman because I have room in my life for everything that's dear to me and that ranges from child to critters. I had a life before I became a mother and my life didn't end once a child sprang from my loins.
 
With all that said, you can be pregnant and/or have 15 children running around and have pets as well. It just takes a little more time and planning. If you have physical issues that prevent you from participating in activities with the dog, you have someone else do it for you. When there's a will, there's a way and it seems like D Mom's looking at all her options.

And, when you take one of those furry critters home, the commitment you make SHOULD be for it's lifetime, not until s/he becomes an inconvenience.  Someone ELSE could have given that animal a forever home when s/he was young and cute....."teenaged" pups don't usually have that kind of luck.

Yeah, Meilani, guess I must be superwoman as well.  My second pregnancy was extremely high risk, central placenta previa, and my sons are just 19 months apart, but NEVER did I consider my dog to be disposable.  And shortly after my second son was born, I became a single mom....still not disposable.

mklockhart55,
If you had read her post properly you would have seen that her problems were with a cramping in her leg that she has remedied by a change in sleeping patterns.  And that she is tired.  And anyone that has ever been pregnant before knows that the best cure for that is usually exercise and mental stimulation.  It doenst take a doctor to know that.  Alot of us on here also have children.  And walking a dog that is properly trained on a GL is the same as walking by yourself and possibly safer.  And do you advocate that she becomes bedridden in hopes that she has a good pregnancy?  Let me tell you if my doctor told me that after a couple of posts or phone conversation without first examining me, I would be running for the hills.  Your right we are dog people on here and we do look out for what is best for the dogs.  But we do not disvalue human life.  We have been offering suggestions on how she can keep her dog.  The ways that she can get help when she needs it and less stressful things to do to keep her dog happy and busy.  What exactly are telling her to do?

OK, forgive me for just skimming the thread before adding my [sm=2cents.gif].
 
Sounds like you're deciding to keep your dog.  I applaud you!  I hope these tips can help you through physically difficult times with a restless dog:
 
 - I can tell you from experience (in the middle of school project season) that mental exhaustion is just as physically draining as going outside for a long run.  Are you familiar with clicker training?  When you are feeling bored/lonely/like the dog needs some exercise, you could work on clicker training random tricks with her.  It is an effective way to tire her out and if you aren't feeling well you don't necessarily even have to get up!
 
 - Do you have a balcony?  If so, is there free space on it?  I've seen places that will set up sod boxes for people with dogs in higher level apartments and delivery fresh sod every x period of time to refill it.  That way your dog has a place to go that is just like being on the lawn (I think it would be easier to train to that), but you don't have to get up and when it needs refilling you can just get DH to do it. [] Some other means of training her to potty in specific areas indoors would be potty pad and litter training, or the old favorite, newspaper training.
 
 - Is there any way you can hire a dog waler to come by sometimes when you are unable to take her outside?  If you can't hire one, is there anyone you could trade services with?  Say, I will dog sit for you when you go on vacation next month if you walk my dog now, or I will make you dinner if you walk my dog, or some managable task for you in return for someone close by walking your dog.
 
 - Does your dog have a Kong toy?  If you need ways to keep her occupied when you're feeling under the weather, you could freeze some peanut butter, cheese, honey, yogurt, or whatever inside of the Kong and let her have at.  It'll keep food motivated dogs busy for a LONG time.
 
 - Does she like tennis balls?  I've seen this toy in the Cherrybrook catalog that is like a tennis ball on the end of a rope attached to a stick, so you can play around with her and tease her with the ball while simply reaching over the side of the bed.  I imagine it's not too hard to make yourself if you are a DIY kinda person.
 
 At this point I'm just throwing things out there in the hopes that they prove useful.  Hope this helps!

I don't have any children yet but I have 3 dogs.

I too have a coonhound and yes they do need a lot of exercise and his training was a lot of work, including k9 companion training at prison.

I am not sure what kind of coonhound you have or if their energy levels are different or not but I will tell you this, the first year with Tru was very challenging. I don't want to discourage you from keeping your pup at all (as a matter of fact I really hope that you can work it out) I just want to share my experience with you.

My dogs are the biggest part of my life. Yes I do plan on having children but I won't consider giving any of them up.

I have friends that have had children and their dogs were the love of their lives and then everything changes when baby comes. I also have friends that had to get some help in when the baby came but their dogs still have the same place in the family.

The only advice that I can offer is maybe get some help in at first when the baby comes. I am sure that this is all a bit overwhelming and I am sure it is not easy.

I think it is great you are going to start training and stuff now.  Don't give up even if it gets hard for a little while because what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger and things will only get easier!  And I agree, your child should grow up with a dog... I am upset I didn't have a dog in my life growing up and tell my parents this everytime we are together.
 
I got my dog from the SPCA.  Her owners gave her up because she was too much to handle with a 6 mth. old baby.  However, they had not taken the time or effort to train her prior to the baby, or at all, and didn't spend the time getting her potty trained completely.  Had they put a little effort, not even a lot, Zoe would have been no problem for them.  She loves kids, she loves to cuddle, and doesn't need tons of exercise.  She was housetrained very easily by taking her out every few hours, she eventually learned to go to the door when she needed to go.  Everyone who sees her cute face says, "How could someone give up on that face?"  It was lucky for me they did, and Zoe now has a much better life, but not all dogs are so lucky.