[olewis8]

We have a 1 year old dog, which is a lazy bean. He is a Labrador and is surprisingly lazy. He only plays with the next door neighbor’s son Dave who is only 11 years old. He is surprisingly very protective of Sarah (my baby), if you leave the baby around him, he won’t let anybody touch the baby other than me and my DH.

[one.juniper]

Thanks for the links and the advice, I have two dogs so I plan to do some reading on the matter. I'll probably also consult with the people who we took puppy classes from.

Both my dogs are well socialized. The rotti (will be 5yrs old when the baby is born) has been around babies many times and is very good with them, gentle, licks their face and has even taken commands willingly from toddlers.

The other one is an 11 month old St. Bernard. Hes going to be just a 1 1/2 when the baby is born and my concern is really more to due with his size than his temperament. At 1 1/2 he'll likely be 140-160 lbs and still in a puppy state of mind. Hes a very well behaved dog for his age but he is super exuberant. I have no concerns about teaching him proper behaviour around the baby, he is a quick learner and takes the lead of our other dog, but hes going to be so big.

Does anyone else here have a giant breed dog?

I see a lot of people willing to give up their dogs when they have babies if it comes down to that. That is a personal decision but it isn't a decision for me, however this goes we will have to work out a system. I consider it to be just as much my responsibility to continue to care for my dogs as for a new baby.