New Baby in the House Dog Kit
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A newborn takes most of the dog's attention away overnight, and the dog has no way to understand why. The useful thing you can buy is not a toy, it is three loadable objects and two bags, set up so that when you sit down to feed the baby the dog already has somewhere to be in the same room. Build the habit three or four weeks before the due date, while you still have the hands to do it.
Why you buy this now and not in March
A dog that meets a frozen mat for the first time on the day it also meets a baby will connect the two things in the wrong order. Three weeks of practice gets you a dog that hears the feeding chair move and goes to the mat on its own. That is the entire trick, and it only works if the equipment is in the house early. Our rescue adjustment kit uses the same routine for a different arrival, and the rest are listed on the bundle guides hub.
Three stations, because one is never loaded
The Bones eMat is the flat one, for a hard floor next to the chair. SodaPup describes the Bones eMat as a lick mat with a bone themed raised pattern, sized for dogs and cats, made from TPE at about 8 inches by 8 inches, in purple or red. SodaPup says you spread peanut butter, yogurt, wet food or a pureed treat into the bone pattern, or freeze it first for a longer session. Frozen is the version you want for a feed, since a room temperature mat is gone in four minutes.
The Ubbe is the one that works where a mat will not. Up Dog Shop describes Ubbe as a lick toy for the quiet half of the day, filled with peanut butter, canned food, yogurt, pumpkin or your dog's favorite soft treat. Up Dog Shop says that unlike a flat lick mat, Ubbe has a shape that moves when nosed, and an interlocking design that comes apart so you can rinse the inside after something sticky. That second point is the one that decides it at two in the morning. A flat mat in a crate slides into a corner and stops; the Ubbe keeps moving, which keeps the dog working.
The Can Toy is the cheap one you buy more than one of. SodaPup describes it as a rubber chew toy and treat dispenser shaped like a soda can, available in four sizes. SodaPup says it is made of rubber in orange or green, with sizes ranging from 1.7 ounces at small to 14 ounces at extra large. SodaPup says you fill the cavity with kibble, peanut butter or wet food and freeze it for a longer session. Own three. The system only holds up if there is always one in the freezer, and a single toy means you are washing it at the moment you need it. SodaPup/True Dogs, LLC items are sold and shipped by SodaPup/True Dogs, LLC through Shopify Collective, not made or shipped by Sniff and Shift.
What fills them
Cheddar bites go into all three. One ingredient, cheddar cheese, in an eight ounce bag from Malvern. They press into the grooves of a mat, pack into a can shaped cavity, and soften as a frozen load thaws so the station keeps producing rather than emptying at once. Up Dog Shop items are sold and shipped by Up Dog Shop through Shopify Collective, not made or shipped by Sniff and Shift.
Air-dried chicken feet cover the longer stretch. Single ingredient, air-dried in small batches, sold in packs of 6 or 18 feet. A loaded mat buys you ten or fifteen minutes; a chicken foot buys twenty, and there are evenings when twenty is what you need. Our freeze-dried treats are made in small batches in Malvern, Pennsylvania and ship from us. The full range is in the freeze-dried treats aisle, and Explore will filter it by protein if you want to swap the cheese for something else.
What we left out
There is no baby gate and no crate in this kit, and most lists under this search start with one. Both are real purchases and both are measured to your doorway rather than chosen from a page like this. There is also no recorded baby noise track. If you want a deeper bowl instead of the flat mat, the Flower eBowl is in the drawer, and SodaPup describes it as a slow feeder with a petal pattern ridge maze that holds 4 cups.
The four weeks before
- Week one: mat down next to the chair you will actually use, loaded, twice a day.
- Week two: sit in the chair with a cushion in your arms while the dog works the mat. Say nothing.
- Week three: introduce the Ubbe in the spot the dog will be sent to at night, and start freezing two cans a day.
- Week four: run the whole sequence at the times you expect to be feeding.
- After the birth: keep the loading schedule identical, even on the days it feels like the least important thing in the house.
None of this replaces standing there. A dog and an infant are never left in a room together, however well the routine is going, and a loaded mat is a reason for the dog to be nearby rather than a reason to stop watching.
What it replaces
A dog walker three times a week for the first month, at least partly. Three loadable objects and two bags cost less than that and keep working afterwards, and the routine survives the point where the baby starts crawling, which is when the mat gets moved to the other side of the room.
Questions
How far in advance should I really start
Three weeks is enough for most dogs. Four is better if your dog is the kind that treats any new object with suspicion for the first two days.
Which size Can Toy
Match the size to the dog, not to what you want to put in it. SodaPup lists four sizes. A toy your dog can get its whole jaw around is the wrong one, however convenient the capacity looks.
Can I use the mat in the crate
You can, but it slides. That is what the Ubbe is in the kit for, since it is shaped to keep moving rather than to lie flat.
Related guides
Kits for a household in the middle of a change are under seasonal gifting.
