Maine Coon and 2 Malamutes adjust to the presence of a baby in their lives

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Milo, a Maine Coon, and 2 Malamutes have adjusted in their own ways to a different way of life because a new baby has been introduced into their home and the family. The humans call the family their 'pack'. They are referring to a pack of dogs or wolves and I guess that when you introduce a baby into the home there is a potential to disturb the pack which is why the leaders (alpha dogs) i.e. the humans, are happy that it has worked out well.

"Milo, the cat, he was petrified."

Milo, the Maine Coon, was the last to get on board. He was initially fearful of the new baby whereas Nikko was very keen to get involved. He was inquisitive and keen to sniff and look at the new baby. The other Malamute (I've forgotten their name) was also pretty keen.

Firstly, having read some horrendous stories of dogs attacking babies, I'm always a little bit edgy when I see large dogs around small babies but these parents are very organised and I am sure that they know what they are doing. They supervised carefully.

They want the companion animals in the family to get along as quickly as possible with the new baby. And the naturally want the baby to integrate quickly into their pack animal life. It seems to be going well. They may have been a little anxious about the outcome.


The interesting aspect is the slowness of acceptance by the Maine Coon compared to the dogs. This is probably because the parents naturally accept their new baby. As they are pack leaders, their two dogs follow; they accept the baby almost immediately.

In contrast, cats are not pack animals (the opposite: solitary) and therefore they make up their own minds. A new baby is essentially an intruder into their home territory. This is a potentially hostile creature. However, they normally quickly learn that the baby is friendly because they watch the baby's parents interacting with their baby. They follow the lead of their 'surrogate mothers', that is the husband-and-wife cat caretakers. It just takes a bit longer.  But cats are very good at watching and learning.

That's my interpretation. What is yours?

RELATED: Why do cats sleep with babies?

Are Maine Coon particularly good or bad at accepting babies? Neither. Maine Coon are no different to any other cat in accepting a newcomer. It'll depend on the cat's character. Milo seems to be quite reticent and cautious. A good characteristic if a cat is an indoor/outdoor cat but Milo seems to be a full-time indoor cat.

RELATED: Study says that cats and dogs do not benefit the health of children in the home

Are Malamutes good with cats? My research indicates that they are not good with cats because they are predators, as are all dogs, but characteristically it seems that they are not entirely safe around cats unless they have been raised with a particular cat. There appears to be no problems in this household. Perhaps they were raised together but I don't know.

Malamutes are said to be good around kids. So the issue in this household is more about the relationship between the dogs and the Maine Coon rather than about the animals and the new baby.

Note: This is a video from another website. Sometimes they are deleted at source which stops them working on this site. If that has happened, I apologise but I have no control over it.

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