When is it ok to allow a child to sleep with a stuffed animal in the crib? My daughter is 10 months old and likes to cuddle with a blanket or stuffed animal but I am afriad to let her sleep with one.
Thanks to everyone who responded for your insightful answers. I have been letting her sleep with a light blanket which she clutches close to her face. She has a few very small animals which aren't plush that I would feel comfortable letting her sleep with. I'll try those out but will wait a few more months for the larger and/or plush friends. Thanks again!
I was really worried about that and never did it with my first. With my second - I did only when she was able to move her head and push herself up. She loves it and it does comfort her.
I have a 6 month old son who is totally a blanket baby. If you give him a blanket he will sleep like a champ at 10 months old he should be able to sleep with something. Since they are able to move around more they can position it to suit them.
Hi R.,
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Hope this helps. Good luck. D.
Hi R.,
it's safe when your child is pushing up strongly. The danger with stuffed animals is that your baby might not be able to get her face out of one and could smother. Once your child is pushing up well and able to roll over (probably for several months now if she's 10 mo.) she should be perfectly fine. My 9 month old son sleeps with a certain stuffed duck. Actually he sleeps ON it and we've never had the slightest hesitation that it's safe for him.
Hope this helps.
D.
I personally feel that there are a lot of dustmites on the stuffed animal but I would think if the teddy has nothing that can easily come off like buttone or those plastic eyes etc.. just basically nothing your child can choke on or pull off it should be fine. When you check on the child while sleeping and she is not holding it just move it to the side.
Annie R
Believe me, I am not the norm on this but my daughter slept with a cloth doll in her crib since like 3-4 months old. It didn't have anything that she could pull off or anything. She pretty much ignored it in there for awhile.
I had a few stuffed animals perched on the top of the crib railing & at 10 months old, she could stand & pull them into the crib with her so I let her keep them in there if she wanted.
Hello my son is 9 months today he has slept with a blanket since he was 3 months, he never took a pacafier just sucked on his blanket. At first i would only give him recieving blankets in his crib they are thin and if get over his face they can be breathed through. It really all depends on you and your baby if you think she is ready and if it dosnt worry you go for it. If you want to test what she will do with it while she sleeps let her have it for nap time then check on her through her nap to see if she moves to much and it wraps around her or if she just holds it for comfort.
Hope this helps
A.
I know thats is tough.. but as long as your child can turn over by herself she should be fine. My daughter had her elephant in bed with her since she was 6 months old ( she still has it and she is 2 1/2)
The risk of SIDS significantly goes down at one year of age. Id stick it out a few more months!
My daugter is also 10 months old and she sleeps with a plush baby in her crib. It's been in her crib for a long time but she never played with it. Now that she's able to sit up on her own and moved around so much more she plays with her baby and babbles to herself. I feel that as long as she can do all thsoe things a stuffed animal should be okay. I hope this helps.
S.
If your daughter can roll around and crawl, she should be able to move things around in her crib to avoid suffocating. Maybe try it out with a nap so you can check in on her and feel more certain.
I am always on the cautious end of things. There was absolutely nothing in my daughters' crib until between 12-18 months. Didn't seem worth the risk. Even then, I checked toys and balnkets for anything that could fall off like hard eyes on bears, buttons, long ribbons, etc. So naturally, my opinion is that it is too soon for your daughter.
If you do decide to give her something in the crib, then at the very least make sure she has an infant-appropriate item. May I recommend giving her a thick cloth diaper. You can embellish these if you want by sewing doen ribbons and embroidering them. They are not huge so she won't get tangled up in one. And you can buy a pack of them, so that if she gets attached, you have lots of spares. And they wash well. We use them for burp cloths and my baby loves to play with them. My four year old uses them as doll blankets.
My daughter is just over 7 months, and she's had stuffed animals in her crib since the beginning, despite all the warnings. She never moved while sleeping when she was a small infant through about 6 months. By that time, she was very able to roll back and forth on her own, and actually has begun "cuddling" with her stuffed elephants and blankie in her crib at night. I think as long as she is strong enough to move her head around smoothly, and roll both ways, she should be fine. If she wasn't snuggled up against a stuffed animal, she'd be jammed up against one of the crib walls, or clutching the blanket near her face. For some reason, she is just more comfortable near something, it's probably comforting - it makes sense, I am the same way. Sorry for the long-winded answer, but I think if your daughter likes to cuddle, go for it!
At this age, I think it is okay to let them sleep with a stuffed animal. I think that when they are younger and are not capable of turning their heads you should be more careful. That is when they can suffocate. However, at 10 months old she should be able to keep her face open for air with/without blankets and stuffed animals. I have 3 girls that have all had them. We have never had a problem. Just don't get one that is so big she can actually get tangled in it. Something small, about the size of her forearm. The forearm is a good measurement for a lot of toys. You know they are not too small or too big. Good luck.
At 10 mos your daughter is able to roll over and move around so she should be fine. My boys are 5 and 2 and have both slept with their Teddy's for as long as I can remember.
If your daughter can move around perhaps even crawl then there should be no problem with haveing a blanket or stuffed animal in the crib. You know your daughter best and as long as you are comfortable with it then you should give her something to cuddle.
At this age it's ok. As long as she can turn around easily on her own and get the blanket off of her on her own. How big is this stuffed animal? If it's normal size and not heavy, she should be perfectly fine. Take it with you to the pediatrician and ask him/her or the nurse practitioner there if you really want to be on the safe side.
You could definitely give her one. SIDS scare is over at 6 months or earlier. I am sure your baby is dexterous enough at this point to move the stuffed animal away from her nose/mouth. You know your child best..Instincs are the real parenting rule book, not what "they" say. Is there some other reason that you would be nervous about this, other than that you heard that it isn't safe? This is what I would ask myself.
