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Nothing like a flammable to get the board moving
Flame away...
The post below made me side eye. I don't have kids, so I fully expect to be told, "you don't understand!" But I've been unemployed with multiple dogs, a husband, a house to take care of, meals to prepare, shopping to do, errands to run, chores, etc. I don't understand how a SAHM doesn't have time somewhere in the day to walk the dogs.
Again, I know zero about kids. But can't you just throw a baby in a stroller and get out for a walk? No? Walk the dogs in the evening when H is home to watch the kid? Walk them in the morning before H leaves? I get that getting a kid out the door requires preparation, but not so much that it is completely impossible to walk dogs ever.
I also can't imagine my life with a Cal who only got exercise on the weekends. Even Nite the greyhound will chew things if he doesn't get out for a walk each day.
Tell me why I'm wrong please.
Re: Nothing like a flammable to get the board moving
What? I have no idea what you're talking about. lol
But my initial reaction is no, it isn't difficult. I was a nanny for a family with three kids, and we (all) took the dog for a walk daily.
Edit: never mind, I found it. She's pregnant--maybe she's been told to take it easy.
Edited again because I was totally looking at the wrong post, and once again have no idea what you're talking about. lol
Snow!
<a href="http://www.thenest.com/?utm_source=ticker&utm_medium=HTML&utm_campaign=tickers" title="Home DBut can't you just throw a baby in a stroller and get out for a walk? I can't (and it's totally my fault) because Carl doesn't walk well enough on a leash. Also, Reese is afraid of the stroller. Also, walking with the stroller does NOTHING to expend their energy - we can't walk fast enough. It actually just makes them more frustrated. I'm scared to walk the dogs with the baby in the Moby Wrap. I also can't bend over and clean up after them with the baby in the wrap.
Walk the dogs in the evening when H is home to watch the kid? I take the dogs on their pre-bedtime walk while S/O bathes the baby.
Walk them in the morning before H leaves? S/O walks them in the morning.
ETA: I'm not flaming you, but before I had DS, I thought exactly the way you do -- what's so hard about putting the baby in a stroller and going for a walk? We did it one nice day after DS was born, before S/O went back to work, and it took 30 minutes just to get out the door.
I think it varies depending on your situation. There are so many factors involved. The age of your child, how many kids you have, if the weather is tolerable for them, etc. For me, right now, my youngest is a hindrance. He absolutely refuses to ride in the stroller, but his legs are short and he's so slow. And he tires out pretty quickly. When they were tiny, I really didn't want them outside for extended periods if it was below freezing or over 90 degrees. Plus, walking a dog with a stroller can be difficult if the dog is a puller, and two would be even harder. We definitely can get out, but not for a good, brisk, three mile walk. It's more of a stroll around the block, which is nice, but isn't a real energy-buster for the dog.
My kids are the reason we decided not to go with a really high-energy breed.
I don't doubt that it's not easy. But not being able to walk with a kid means that one needs to figure out other ways of doing things, like getting a dog walker, or doing it while S/O is home to watch the kid. I guess I just hate when people use kids as an excuse for not taking care of their pets properly. Cal would probably kill me in my sleep if I tried to only exercise him on weekends.
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Totally agree with you. My two still get two walks and one short pee break per day. But, they (particularly Reese) don't have the exercise requirements that Cal has.
I think people do what they have to do. I live in a HCOLA, so it is typical to get a dog and then have a baby while living in a condo. My neighbors who have babies and dogs make it outside with their dogs the two or three times that they have to because there's no other option. It sounds like she doesn't live in an environment where she has to walk to the dog, so she doesn't do it. I am not saying that it's not hard to walk a dog and baby, I'm just saying if her options were walk the dog or have the dog deficate in the house, I'm pretty sure she'd figure out how to walk the dog.
I know SAHM /= loads of free time, but you'd think she could find thirty minutes a day for those dogs. Caveat, I don't have and have never had a baby.
You will forever be my best friend. I can almost feel our hugs. I will ensure everyone will know (now and in the future) what a genuine, kind, loving person you were...I already miss your laughter and our daily conversations. I love you, Samantha. May 20, 1983- February 20, 2012
First of all, you have absolutely NO idea what my homelife is like or my DH's work schedule for that matter. Second of all, my dog is a hound dog, she loves to chase things, my DH taught his pit bull to PULL him on his skate board, therefor she does not walk on a leash well. I CAN NOT take 2 large dogs & my baby on walks by my self! I live in a town/state where I know NO ONE, my FIL helps sometimes when I have to go to physical therapy or pain management for 5 bulging disks in my lower back. I tried keeping my original post to the point w/ out telling my lifestory. I am in severe/ chronic pain 24 hrs a day. Frankly, walking 2 large dogs that are used to being offleash scares the $hit out of me!!
It is only 6 more weeks til we move, and things will be drastically different for our dogs in terms of regular exercise, as I stated in my OP. That post was to seek advice about how many feedings a day and weight loss advice for the interum, which I did get from some very helpful posters.
Thank you so much for your snarky drama seeking, $hit talking S/o
Bad habits (like pulling on leash) can be untrained.
Do you have leash laws in your area(s) (FL and AZ)?
In certain areas-ABSOLUTELY, in public places i.e state parks, roads, etc.. I grew up riding and owning horses & have discovered some fabulous places along the river and in the desert. No leash laws are enforced in these areas I takemy dogs. They are happiest when they can run, investigate, and explore on their own & it warms my heart to see how happy these adventures make them. We do tons and tons of canoeing, kayaking, and camping and these dogs NEVER have a leash on or are tied up. AZ is pretty cool about this in the Verde Valley/ Sedona area.
I can't wait to get our fur babies back there, they have no idea what lays ahead for them
p.s. Leash laws in Florida are very strict and highly enforced., AZ is pretty lax as long as you aren't blatantly disregarding a posted sign stating leashes are required.
Once we get settled and in our groove after the move, I have a close friend who does dog obedience training & we'll be working on the leash pulling. Bella is the worst because DH taught it to her so that's all she knows. Demayla isn't so bad but she's 85lbs!! My attention needs to be on my DD, where I'm going etc... not reminding Demayla to heel-up
I will admit that PRE-Buffy, we still had the problem (which continues) that 90% of Dawg's exercise comes on weekends.
Our work schedules are wonky.
But, suchis life and we make it work...and we've hired a walker in the past and may have to again.
being a SAHM is the hardest job i've ever had. i got a job outside the house so i could get a freaking break. i kid. sort of.
unemployed with multiple dogs, a helpless husband, shopping, cleaning the house, doing laundry, cooking, errands, and multiple volunteering gigs was a cakewalk compared to being a SAHM. and it only got harder when she became mobile, because DH wouldn't let me get a kidleash to tether her.
i've walked the kid in the stroller with my two dogs. it was great. as long as the stroller kept moving. if i stopped to do something like.. pick up poo, the screaming commenced (ok..my dogs don't potty on walks...but pretend they do, and i have to stop). now that she's bigger and we usually have her in a stroller facing out...she's too interested in everything to nap in the stroller...so if she gets tired, again, the screaming commences. every time we've gotten a chance to walk as a family (right before or after dinner), we've had to cut our walk short because Abigail started screaming.
is it doable? yes. is it fun? notsomuch. i like to walk the dogs in the evening after the kid goes to bed. but DH also goes OOT for work about once a month, and CPS frowns upon leaving teh kid at sleeping at home by themselves.
having said all that....if you have a dog, you have a responsibility to the dog jut as much as to your kid. if your dog requires walks and exercise to keep from going bonkers...you need to figure out how to get the dog some mental and physical stimulation. once again...i advocate the big, dumb, lazy dog. 5 minutes of playtime, and my dogs are done. your dog needs to match your activity level. lazy owners need either lazy dogs, or pet rocks.
Have you seen my monkey?
Not a SAHM, but taking two babies and just my one dog for a walk can be a challenge sometimes. I can only imagine what the hell it would look like if I had to wrangle two babies and two dogs. Holy hell. I'm freaked out just thinking about it.
This is a really excellent point. Ringo gets 3 walks a day, because we have no other choice. DH does morning and evening walks, and in the middle of the day, I strap my kid on and we take him for one. When DH has to be at work before 6, or goes out with friends at night I similarly strap the kid on and take Ringo for a walk. There are no other options. It gets done.
Yesterday DH got home from work early so all of us went for a walk. I got to push the stroller and handle the leashed dog while DH held our screaming kid who decided the last place he wanted to be was the stroller. It's not easy, but when it's necessary you find ways to make it work.5 cats. 1 baby.
ITA with Nital. SAHM is HARD. I did great when Lilia was a baby--just wrap her up in the Moby and take Brooke for a 2-3 mile walk around town. Lilia DOES NOT do well in the stroller. Most of the time she screams. And not 'hey, pay attention to me' screams, it's ''HEY THIS PERSON IS TORTURING ME! CALL CPS NOW!' screams. Now that we have three dogs and Lilia is really too big to babywear anymore, it's virtually impossible for me to walk them by myself. DH gets home, I go to my nanny job, and I get home after dark.
Luckily, we have lazy dogs
Nital says it best: lazy owners need lazy dogs.
I walked two large dogs (75 and 95lbs) every day since my son was two weeks old. They learned to walk nicely next to the stroller; my son learned that he isn't allowed to get out of the stroller and that when we stop for the dogs to potty, he has to be patient because that's just the way it is. There are times when he'd get fussy and annoyed at being stuck in the stroller but too bad--I cater to his needs 23 hrs/day so he just has to deal with the 1 hr dog walk we do daily. I am lucky though that he really doesn't mind the stroller and enjoys being outside
I don't know if that's because he got used to it as a tiny tiny baby or if it's his personality but obviously it works for us
If you are talking about the one directly below, I'm confused as to why "the dogs exercise needs were put on the back burner because, well I'm a SAHM and baby's needs come first."
Maybe I just have a really weird baby, but his needs have always been pretty basic and a walk in the stroller or in the carrier was always really doable, weather permitting.
BUT my dog also walks very well on a leash.
The first month or so was hard to walk her by myself with the baby because 1. I had a hard recovery and my crotch felt like it was recovering from David Ortiz beating it with a home running hit and 2. I was way overbearing with regard to jostling in the stroller or in the wrap and fearing it would cause shaken baby syndrome (I blame the hormones...)
2 dogs, IMO, are tricker to walk with a baby, but that is why I did 1 at a time when we had Guinness. But DH and I would do them together so we could all go out at the same time when he would get home. It was a nice way to get out in the evenings before or after dinner (depending on when DS wanted to eat- well, I guess there is "his needs come first" example).
If your dog doesn't walk well on a leash, it would be hard to walk them with the baby- hence, why it would be important to teach them good leash walking skills before baby comes (thank you obedience training!) Guinness was horrible on a leash, truly awful, which i why I would not walk him and P and the baby all at the same time once he became healthy (therefore, strong).
I think the poster sounds nice and wants the best for her dogs, honestly.
Yeah, she should figure out a way to walk even 1 at a time, but I don't think the post was anything terrible. We've all seen MUCH worse, IMO.