In all fairness, they used to let dads cut the cord, but then one dad got a little confused and cut right through the leg of the hospital bed, and once the brakes released, the hospital bed rolled right out onto the freeway and the mom went fifty-two miles before they finally managed to pull her over. By that time, all the mom’s blood and gone into the baby and all the baby’s blood had gone into the mom, and unicorns everywhere cried.

My husband did comment the first time that it was tougher than he expected and he felt certain he was cutting though a midwife’s finger. But everyone got through it fine. It is a good and funny memory.

This is silly.

Leave it to the doctor! He’s got a PhD in Scissors!!

If the cord is left intact until it stops pulsing, it’s a lot easier to cut…

Well, sure. Only doctors are qualified to use scissors, ain’t so?! I’m fairly certain they have a whole class about that in medical school!

All kidding aside, the cord does tend to be harder to cut through than most people would think. But that doesn’t mean it’s not doable! Unless the Dad can’t use his hands, I think it’s safe to say he’s capable of this! It’s goofy statements like this that make me think the staff is simply on a power trip.

I was in labor haze when I cut my son’s cord (DH was deployed, and ODD was napping). I don’t remember it being all that hard. If I could do it after 12 hour labor with a 10 1/2lb baby who had a nuchal hand, I think a father can do it.

What sort of accident could happen because Dad has to work the scissors a little harder? His hand will cramp? LOL
Maybe he should bring a light saber, it’ll cut through nearly everything, right? How about a machete, or perhaps a chainsaw? That should make it easy, and that’s one less thing for the doctor to tire themselves out doing.

Oops! I guess I shouldn’t have let my daughters and son cut the cords of their siblings when they were born. We should have transferred to the hospital immediately after finding some dirty shoelaces to keep all that blood from draining out of the baby. Or is it to keep the blood from draining into the baby?

Really? Scissors are too difficult for Dad?
Then why does my three year old niece use them (safety scissors with adult supervision of course)? Surely something easy enough for a three year old is easy enough for Dad.

Ooh, look – they’re using the “don’t worry your pretty little head about it, let the big hero doc take care of you” line on the dads now!!
Ew.

Nurse code for: ALl the doctors and nurses really want to go back to the good old days where dads sat in the waiting room drinking whiskey discussing sports while moms were still good little patients who didn’t ask questions, had requests or anything other uncomfy for the providers. We do what we want and you nod saying yes mam! No stop that modern nonsense of dad’s attending birth and even cutting cords!

For my second child’s birth my then 3 year old daughter cut the cord. I’m sure an adult father can handle it.

I won’t be cutting the cord. I will chew through it.
I don’t know why I just love to shock humor the doctors and nurses. It always amuses me to ask for a fork and knife once the placenta is out, too. Not that there’s anything wrong with that..

Well, in my daughter’s birth it was the midwife’s assistant that clamped my daughter’s thigh with the hemostat.

But her father didn’t damage her at all when he cut the cord.

hmmm, my then 5 yr old dd cut her youngest brother’s cord, and our 3yo cut his little sister’s cord this past summer. and dh cut the first 2 kiddos cords and didn’t think it was too difficult either.

OP- this was a stupid thing for the nurse to say to a group, most people would be able to cut a cord.

Everyone else-
My DH probably couldn’t cut the cord when our child was born. I’m glad your three year olds can and I’m glad that your loved ones got the opportunity to, but I slipped a note to a nurse asking them *NOT* to ask DH if he wanted to cut the cord as he was in the middle of an RA flare and already seriously doubting his ability to be a good parent with his medical condition to the point where he ended up seeking counseling. So quit the “anyone can do it”