Next Step Baby Monitors: Exonerating pets since 2012

It’s been a long time since I’ve needed a baby monitor. Not that long, mind you, but long enough that technology has apparently been soaring by me in leaps and bounds since the year I slept with static-y radio by my side.

When I was asked by Next Step Baby monitors if I wanted to review their cameras to see what my dogs were up to while I was gone, I agreed, because oddly enough- and this never ever happens- my husband had JUST SAID “We really need a baby monitor or something to figure out once and for all which dog is being bad here”. I had just discovered that all the treat-stealing, all the counter surfacing and bread ingesting and pantry raiding I had pegged on Brody, was in fact the fault of one Kekoa. It was a mind blowing moment for me, realizing she had been tricking me all along, but the proof was in the chocolately vomit.

It was her all along.

I was also pretty sure that when the dogs got left home alone and started howling, that Koa was the one who started it, because it was a bad habit she has indulged in her whole life, and Brody- well, he’s until recently always been the quiet one. This was about to become really, super important, since we were taking Brody into an apartment where implacable howling was likely to be frowned upon (though now that I know how flipping loud our upstairs neighbors are, I wouldn’t mind subjecting them to a little BAROOOOO ing now and then. But I digress.)

So here we are, in an apartment with a dog, and very nervous about whether or not his inherited howling behavior would continue without his enabler. And as luck would have it, we just received the NextStepIP Pro, and I tasked my husband with keeping an eye on Brody while we were gone.

The camera uses wifi and is easy to move wherever it needs to be. With wide range of motion, you can tilt the camera to find your pet if you suspect they are engaging in problem behaviors. And- to me this is the best part- you can not only watch the camera from your phone or PC, you can control it remotely too.

We had the NextStep sitting by our front door, waiting to see if Brody would start howling. My husband had the audio running at work so he could listen for errant howls. Generally with separation anxiety, the most pronounced behavior happens soon after departure, but it’s helpful to know the exact triggers so you can address them through behavior modification.

In our case, apparently, the trigger was Koa.

This is how Brody spends his time when we are gone:

Busted, on multimedia platforms. But it’s QUIET couch crashing, and that peace of mind is very, very valuable.

At $150, it’s a great price for the amount of versatility you get. The Next Step IP, which also allows you the ability to observe and control with a mobile device, starts at $119. We were also very happy with the customer service who helped us walk through the setup. If you are struggling with a dog on the potential naughty list, this may be just the ticket for you.

Speaking of that, I will definitely be using this in the new house with Koa. Do you have any idea how much of her bad behavior I’ve blamed on poor Brody over the years? Talk about dogshaming.