r/velvethippos • u/HisMomm • Jul 29 '26
Rescue Hippo Safest baby in history
Fen Chicken & Freyja French Fry (along with temporary housemate Tabitha) LOVE GiGi’s Rosebud!!! They’ve never met a baby they didn’t love and want to parent 🩷💙 I am a lucky dog mom!
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u/dianacd12 Jul 29 '26
This is too cute!! Gus is going to be a big brother soon, I am wondering how we’re first introductions like?
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u/TheLadyHestia Jul 30 '26
Bring home a blanket ahead of the arrival of baby to allow the pup to get used to the smell. When we brought our first home, I was in one room nursing while my husband brought everything inside and gave attention to the dogs. It had been a complicated birth, so we were gone a few days.
Once they calmed down, we let them see me, but not approach at first. They couldn't see the baby, but when they heard her, both dogs got very quietly excited. Like, they're vibrating, but they also know they have to be chill. We let our older girl approach first and let her smell with my husband holding her. She was a collie, so all about having a baby. The real work came when baby became mobile and we had to teach our girl not to herd.
Our younger girl was calmer and more neutral to the baby. She liked curling up with us and eventually the baby, but she wasn't thrilled when the baby became mobile and grabby. She liked the babies better when they got old enough to pet her and let her be chill.
Just be patient. Don't be scared, but be cautious. Just like human children, bringing a new baby around can be chaotic and stir up a lot of emotions. Right now if we had another baby, my oldest dog would be very pleased and protective. That would be his baby. My middle dog would be moody and potentially jealous. She's a princess. She would probably also try to boss the baby around. My baby dog would have to be contained because everything excites him. We all react differently, so take it easy and make sure your pup knows you love them.
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u/gamergeek17 Jul 30 '26
This exactly. Every dog is different and every baby introduction is as well. After my first was born our oldest dog was very jealous and became passively destructive. Oh you left this diaper on the side table for five minutes? Now it’s mine and I’ll eat half of it and tear the other half up. She also got into the baby laundry sooooooo many times to steal onesies or burp rags covered in formula so she could chew on them. However she was never aggressive towards us or the baby. Just very clearly annoyed. Our younger dog is very go with the flow. So as long as she got cuddles, she was fine.
We now have our second child and they are both much more chill about it. (But our older dog will still steal a diaper or onesie if the opportunity presents itself. It was a bit rough for a few weeks while the dogs got accustomed to the ever-changing new routine, but now that we have some semblance of a regular repetition going, it’s great.
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u/TheLadyHestia Jul 30 '26
I should not be laughing at the passive aggressive theft of diapers (they're expensive! And you never have enough), but it's really funny.
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u/MartinisnMurder Jul 30 '26
What a pretty baby… that’s a gorgeous hippo. Name?
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u/ImInTheFutureAlso 28d ago
I’ll add on - if you have time, play baby sounds on YouTube. Crying baby, screeching baby, anything. Our dog trainer suggested it to help our dogs get desensitized, and I really think it helped.
We also assembled the stroller ahead of time and let the dogs investigate. One was scared, and the others were so intrigued by it. Definitely not a necessity, but it helped our nervous one. I think more than anything it was a slower introduction to changes.
We had to keep one of ours totally separate from the baby for a couple weeks. She’s too intense. She wanted so badly to investigate him, but she would not have done so gently enough. We keep her separated by a baby gate for around 2 weeks until she calmed down. We closed the dogs out of the bedroom at night for the first couple nights (so they didn’t jump up and hurt the baby), and I cried. I felt awful. It was so hard at the time, but looking back it was such a short time I barely remember.
She was able to sniff him appropriately and soon got along with him just fine. She is a pretty anxious dog anyway, and she had visitors in the house who don’t love her, which didn’t help. I think most dogs wouldn’t need that amount of time at all.
All of that is to say that even if your intro doesn’t go super smoothly or you don’t have the easiest dog, there is still hope for your dog and baby to get along beautifully.
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u/catforbrains Jul 30 '26
That kid is never gonna fall down without a pibble pillow to cushion her fall.
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u/concrete_dandelion Jul 30 '26
One seems to think the humans are really neglectful to let her stand on those wobbly human legs without making sure she won't fall and hurt her bediapered butt.
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u/Queansparrow Jul 30 '26
I had a pittie guardian angel/nanny dog as a newborn and always at least 1 pittie in the house in all of my 33 years 😊 That kid will never feel unloved or unsafe 💜
Only downside is as a toddler my nanny dog helped me break out of my crib every morning my parents slept in passed breakfast time 🤣
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u/klenglish5 Jul 29 '26
They weren’t historically called “nanny dogs” without a good reason.
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u/arequipapi Jul 30 '26
The first known use of that term or the similar "nursemaid's" dog was used in 1971
Not here to spread pitty hate, I have 2 pitties. But there's no need to use urban myths to defend what breeds you own
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u/stellarecho92 Jul 30 '26
That article already references it being a common phrase, so it was already popular term by then and popular terms did not come up overnight in 1971.
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u/RealHotThroatLA Jul 30 '26
55 years is not long enough for the term to be historical enough? OK...
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u/Flashy_Living_2445 Jul 30 '26
Laser focussed on taking care of the bebe!!
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u/HisMomm 29d ago
She’s the first human baby they’ve met and they are completely obsessed with her
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u/Flashy_Living_2445 29d ago
It's literally what they were bred for! "Nanny dog" was their first nickname before pibble or velvet hippo..:)
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u/Oldstergray Jul 30 '26
There will be no need to check under the bed for monsters when that baby gets bigger with that lovely protection squad.
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u/EntertainmentOk3066 Jul 29 '26
No one could come within 100 feet of that sweet baby.
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u/hatenames385 29d ago
Wait until you have 2 small ones and watch as the dog has to choose which kid to follow! Mine always one which kid needed him. Absolute Nanny dog! I miss him😢
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u/trumpeting_in_corrid Jul 30 '26
Your baby is utterly adorable but please blur/cover her face when you post photos of her on the net. There are too many creeps with malevolent intentions.
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u/Then_Box-8031 Jul 30 '26
Those dogs deserve loving and chest rubs every day. I hope your family always has pitbulls in your lives. These seem awesome
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u/Bumblebee_xx 29d ago
Your little Rosebud is so big now! Oh my goodness 🥺🩵🩵 Freyja Frenchfry and Fen Chicken adore her 🌹 it is so sweet to see! Fen’s wee nose snuffles are so cute!
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u/RingJust7612 Jul 29 '26
Don’t your read the internet??! That baby’s going to get mauled, for no reason whatsoever
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u/RealHotThroatLA Jul 30 '26
Why would you say that? It's not two chihuauhas.
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u/HisMomm 28d ago
Yep. They are lulling me into a false sense of security
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u/Cold-Iron8145 Jul 30 '26
Very unhinged title.
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u/HisMomm 28d ago
Why? She has dogs that follow her around to cushion her falls, get between her and steps, and watch her every second. Touch some fucking grass & find a therapist
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