Taken from a strap in today's Independent, how would you react if you found a baby on your doorstep one morning?

Id shout Mum theres someone at the door for you and quickly leave the house.

I'd scream! scared of babies!

I would phone the police and then........


I would look around to see if there was anyone else who I could make responsible for it....

I would then call relatives who know about kids and things to see if they would take responsibility for it.....

As a last resort I would take it in myself until the police arrived.....

This might seem cruel but as I know nothing about babies..i.e feeding chaging caring for them... I would be of little help to it and it would be better off with someone who did.

Was the article you saw in relation to Tracy Emin?

I think you have to hand them in.

It Is Loopy Lou, page 47 of today's paper

I'd carefully pick up the baby/cot, set 'it' down at my neighbours door, ring the bell, and leg it!!

;)

I'd be dead pleased, would take it in, clean it up, nip it down to Mothercare and get it some nice new clothes (oooh I do hope it's a girl!), feed it, play with it then eventually, after a few hours, possibly, might bring myself to making a phone call to try and find out who's it is.....:D

I'd have to stick it on e-bay.




Joking!!!!!!

I would try to remember what I was doing about 9 months ago.

Actually, I've changed my mind.

I'd sell it to Hayley and Roy off of Corrie.

That greasy spoon makes a mint!

Many years ago my dad found a dead baby wrapped in a blanket out near the Ladybower dam. It was away from the road, well covered but had obviously had some attention from foxes. He never actually found out what had happened to the baby other than it had been still born:sad:

i would take it in if it was on my doorstep and call the police 0r if it was outside away from home phone police and make sure its ok till they arrive

I would of course phone the Coppers, and if no one came forward to claim the poor little mite as theirs, I'd adopt him/her and raise him as mine...

I'd wonder why my house instead of all the neighbours houses then take the baby in and call the police.
I'd probably also offer to foster the baby until the parent/s could be found.

I actually did find a baby once. No fooling.

It wasn't on my doorstep, and it wasn't a tiny infant. It was a little boy, maybe 18-20 months old.

About 10 years ago, I was walking around my neighborhood one evening with my children. My girl was riding her bike, and my boy was still in a stroller. I noticed a small child, running and playing in the street with a football. There was not an adult in sight. There was a group of boys nearby, playing. I asked if he was their little brother, and they all said no.

I picked him up, put him in the stroller with my son, and walked door to door, asking whose kid he was. No one knew. It was getting dark, so I took him home. He seemed hungry and thirsty, so I gave him something to eat and drink. His diaper was soaked, so I changed him.

I phoned the police, and two officers arrived immediately. It turns out, the boy's grandmother lived about a block from me. His mother was the woman's daughter. The daughter had drug problems in the past, and her son had been removed from her care. She was allowed supervised visitation with him at her mother's home, and the grandmother had unwisely allowed the daughter to take the baby out alone.

They think the mother was under the influence of drugs, walked to a nearby park, fell asleep on the grass, and her son wandered away. The grandmother and the uncle came to my house the next day and thanked me. They seemed like decent people, dealing with a terrible situation. I felt bad for them.

I shudder to think what could have happened to that child if I had come along just a few seconds sooner, or a few seconds later, and missed him. Thank God everything worked out ok. I didn't think about keeping him for one minute!

:) Sierra

Originally posted by Sierra
I actually did find a baby once. No fooling.

It wasn't on my doorstep, and it wasn't a tiny infant. It was a little boy, maybe 18-20 months old.

About 10 years ago, I was walking around my neighborhood one evening with my children. My girl was riding her bike, and my boy was still in a stroller. I noticed a small child, running and playing in the street with a football. There was not an adult in sight. There was a group of boys nearby, playing. I asked if he was their little brother, and they all said no.

I picked him up, put him in the stroller with my son, and walked door to door, asking whose kid he was. No one knew. It was getting dark, so I took him home. He seemed hungry and thirsty, so I gave him something to eat and drink. His diaper was soaked, so I changed him.

I phoned the police, and two officers arrived immediately. It turns out, the boy's grandmother lived about a block from me. His mother was the woman's daughter. The daughter had drug problems in the past, and her son had been removed from her care. She was allowed supervised visitation with him at her mother's home, and the grandmother had unwisely allowed the daughter to take the baby out alone.

They think the mother was under the influence of drugs, walked to a nearby park, fell asleep on the grass, and her son wandered away. The grandmother and the uncle came to my house the next day and thanked me. They seemed like decent people, dealing with a terrible situation. I felt bad for them.

I shudder to think what could have happened to that child if I had come along just a few seconds sooner, or a few seconds later, and missed him. Thank God everything worked out ok. I didn't think about keeping him for one minute!

:) Sierra

It is so lucky that someone kind like you was there Sierra! So many people walk around in todays society ignoring the problems and people they see. It's good to know there are good folk still around! :thumbsup:

Originally posted by drolnhoj
I would try to remember what I was doing about 9 months ago.

:hihi: :hihi: :hihi:

Do not want to think about this one :o

I'd assume my cat couldn't get it through the cat flap.

I would be straight on to the social to claim the family tax credits etc.

Originally posted by Sheffette
I think you have to hand them in.

Do you get an option to keep them if no one claims them within sixty days? :hihi:

Originally posted by Kristian
It is so lucky that someone kind like you was there Sierra! So many people walk around in todays society ignoring the problems and people they see. It's good to know there are good folk still around! :thumbsup:

Thank you Kristian!

The next day, my next door neighbor came over to ask what was all the commotion the night before with the police etc. When I told her, she said that I shouldn't have picked up that little boy and brought him home, as I could have been accused of kidnapping!

There was NO WAY I was going to walk off and leave that kid alone. In the dark. He couldn't even talk yet, as my daughter was trying to get him to tell us his name, to no avail.

The last I heard of these people, the grandmother eventually got custody of the boy and was raising him. The daughter was getting drug treatment, but who knew if it ever worked? Since we lived in the same neighborhood, I saw the boy frequently as he attended the same nursery school as my son. We moved not long after, but I still think of that little boy and keep him in my prayers. I hope he's alright wherever he is.

:) Sierra

Originally posted by max
I'd assume my cat couldn't get it through the cat flap.

very good

If it was a baby owl I would read the well-known story 'Owl Babies' to it. It's about three baby owls whose mother flies off to get some mice and so forth. The three lickle owls think she's disappeared, but she soon returns and they are all happy again. The baby owl would love this story I'm sure. And, being an owl, it would be able to relate to the characters much more deeply. If I found a baby snake I would whirl it around my head to see if it made a whoosing sound. Because I don't like snakes - even baby ones. If it was a baby stick insect I would let it just sit there motionless for three months, only to find it had quadrupled in size and become horrific. At this point, the only reasonable course of action would be to drop a paving slab onto it. If it was a baby goat I would buy it a cap, two pairs of shorts (one for each end, of course) and a satchel. I would send it to a primary school and try and get it started on guitar lessons as soon as possible. Goats love guitars. I would call the goat Kylie, or Rex, to help it fit in. If it was a baby eel - ugh! I don't even want to think about it. Eels are poo-poo smelly bum and I hate them. If it was a baby....oh, I can't think of anything else. What Other Animals Are There? (Hey, a new thread).................

Originally posted by LordSnooty
If it was a baby owl I would read the well-known story 'Owl Babies' to it. It's about three baby owls whose mother flies off to get some mice and so forth. The three lickle owls think she's disappeared, but she soon returns and they are all happy again. The baby owl would love this story I'm sure. And, being an owl, it would be able to relate to the characters much more deeply. If I found a baby snake I would whirl it around my head to see if it made a whoosing sound. Because I don't like snakes - even baby ones. If it was a baby stick insect I would let it just sit there motionless for three months, only to find it had quadrupled in size and become horrific. At this point, the only reasonable course of action would be to drop a paving slab onto it. If it was a baby goat I would buy it a cap, two pairs of shorts (one for each end, of course) and a satchel. I would send it to a primary school and try and get it started on guitar lessons as soon as possible. Goats love guitars. I would call the goat Kylie, or Rex, to help it fit in. If it was a baby eel - ugh! I don't even want to think about it. Eels are poo-poo smelly bum and I hate them. If it was a baby....oh, I can't think of anything else. What Other Animals Are There? (Hey, a new thread).................

If it were a baby giraffe, I'd keep it :D I'd even look into installing a very tall thin cat (giraffe?) flap for it, so that it could come and go as it pleased :P

Id take it in my house of course and look after it till the police arived! I'd probably want to keep it tho coz I love babies!!!
Well done Siera by the way xx

If a baby was on my doorstep id have to bring it in so it didnt freeze to death. settle it in a warm room generally care for it (im a sucker for babies) look to see if any1 is nearby and call the police

What a coincidence! I've just found out within the last two hours that my older sister is pregnant again! But to answer the question I would dial 999 and of course bring the baby inside until the authorities arrived.

In my professional career (social worker, being as someone may want to ask), I have been responsible for 3 abandoned new-born babies over a 20 year period.

One was found in a field in the countryside. One was found in a back alley in a city. The other was found in a public telephone box in a small town. Only the latter had any chance at all of being discovered. It was a wonder that either of the other two survived being abandoned.

Finders naturally ring the police. The police take the baby to hospital immediately for a medical examination. As soon as practicable, the baby is taken to stay with foster carers. Appeals are made on tv, radio, and in local newspapers for the mother to come forward (who may actually be in need of medical attention herself).

Social Services will apply to the courts for an emergency protection order, and ultimately, if no living relative can be found, the baby will be adopted.

I havent found one on my doorstop, but Ive got one in my tummy!!
Im just as shocked as if I had found it on the doorstop though!

First I would probably cry. Then I would bring it in and hope I could keep it. Then ring the police and ask if I could keep it.

Then following thatI would go through all the legalities and keep it (if I could).

I would think that it was meant to be mine if it was left on my doorstep!!!

Originally posted by TracieJC
If it were a baby giraffe, I'd keep it :D I'd even look into installing a very tall thin cat (giraffe?) flap for it, so that it could come and go as it pleased :P

A Giraffe Flap - how marvellous!

Originally posted by LordSnooty
A Giraffe Flap - how marvellous!
generally known as a revolving door

If I turned up at home and there was a baby, on the step. I would ask it a selection of questions. If I didn't recieve any answers that were any way interestng, I would either leave it in the dustbin, or set it free in the countryside to fend for itself like nature intended.

You know, I've often wondered why human babies are so pathetic compared to our animal cousins. Baa lambs are skipping around the field hours after being born while we second rate monkeys lie there howling till someone feeds us or we die. Baffling.

Originally posted by Sheffette
You know, I've often wondered why human babies are so pathetic compared to our animal cousins. Baa lambs are skipping around the field hours after being born while we second rate monkeys lie there howling till someone feeds us or we die. Baffling.
yeah you're right, prolly best just put it in the bin.

This actually once happened to my cousin in Manchester, and she got the police involved and it was a right kerfuffle and not worth the time or effort. If It happened to me I'd definitely leave it in the bin. And let the sheffield cleansing department do what they are best at..

Originally posted by muddycoffee
yeah you're right, prolly best just put it in the bin.

This actually once happened to my cousin in Manchester, and she got the police involved and it was a right kerfuffle and not worth the time or effort. If It happened to me I'd definitely leave it in the bin. And let the sheffield cleansing department do what they are best at..

'Ere 'ere muddycoffee - you trying to put me out of a job?

Originally posted by muddycoffee
This actually once happened to my cousin in Manchester, and she got the police involved and it was a right kerfuffle ..
Sorry about this one I was very drunk last night and got carried away. This bit isn't true..

How would you react if you found a baby?

Depends if it was Baby Spice or not.

Muddy coffee, is the rest true then? only I'm a bit lost now! Glad you had a good night though and your cousin hasn't had to find a baby on their doorstep!