2nd dog - the good, the bad, the ugly

[katie01]

I'm sorry to hear of your pet losses

We added a second dog to our family this past December, so it's all fresh in my mind I had had pets all my life, but never two dogs at once, so I was a bit nervous at first too.

Our experience has turned out very well after an initial rocky adjustment. Our first dog is a Shih tzu mix, she is super laid back and always seemed to love meeting other dogs on walks, so we thought she'd like another dog in the house, plus we really wanted a second dog because we were always "fighting" over who got to cuddle with the dog lol. So when she was two years old, we adopted a Papillon mix from a rescue. We had a meet and greet too, it seemed to go ok, but it definitely took both dogs awhile to adjust. Dog 1 was less than thrilled with sharing our lap, and Dog 2 was very needy and I think nervous of being abandoned, so she wouldn't take no for an answer about sitting right on our laps, and dog 1 would growl and bare her teeth every time. Every time we'd give Dog 1 love and attention, Dog 2 would come barreling and push Dog 1 out of the way. Dog1 eventually stopped with the growling and teeth baring, but was now pretending Dog2 simply didn't exist. We followed our vet's advice by just trying to keep treating Dog1 like the alpha, giving her treats and attention first, letting her sit on our laps and trying to make Dog2 sit next to us, and so on.

It's been four months now, and things are going very well. I don't think Dog1 necessarily loves and adores Dog2, but I think she has grown to appreciate certain things. The two dogs wrestle and play together and chase each other in the yard. They both walk vey nicely together on leashes, and will even nuzzle each other's faces a bit while walking. Dog2 is just in the past couple of weeks FINALLY not trying to push Dog1 off our laps, she seems more secure now.

For our part, we are happy with adding a second dog. Our son loves both dogs, but our DDs in particular are just thrilled to have them, my 10 year old said just yesterday, "I'm so happy we have the dogs. I can't even out it into words how much I love them". That makes the extra work worth it!

Best of luck in your decision. I hope you can find another dog that gets along well with your other dog, and who also can bond with your DD

 

[ols386]

So sorry about Henry, and your DD is so cute. We used to always have 2 dogs at the same time. For the most part they got along well, but there would always be one who was dominant, but it never seemed to be a problem. I think dogs will always warm up to whomever THEY warm up to. It can't be forced. Wishing you and your family the best.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

If she isn't aggressive at a kennel she probably won't be aggresive at home either. Does the kennel she goes to do an open play style day where all the dogs are in a big room or is it the type that keep all the dogs seperate at all times and give each dog a set number of exercise time.

Separate

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I am a huge fan of 2 small dogs, its just as easy to care for two as one as long as they are not too big, and they do a great job of keeping each other company when no one is there. Dogs get real anxious when no one is around, with two they are much more calm.

There is an issue with age. a puppy will be puppy and want to play and the older one will want nothing to do with that, but over time they will be best friends

If possible, we'd get another adult dog rather than a pup.

 

[dosekies]

It definitely depends on each of the dogs. Little backstory, I basically live back and forth between my parents' house and my fiancé's family's house. His family has a now 6 year old dog who was always the only dog. Literally the sweetest, biggest baby you would ever meet. He is a pit/lab mix and in the 5 years we have been together he has NEVER been aggressive to anyone or any other dogs. They decided he needed a friend to keep him company so my fiancé and I adopted a puppy to live there. We found a beautiful male pit/lab that I fell in love with, but when we brought JD to meet him, he HATED this puppy. He would not go near him, showed his teeth and growled if the puppy tried to get close to him, and was just plain mean. I was shocked and honestly started crying. We then took him to a different shelter and decided to let him pick out the dog. He only seemed interested in one puppy, so she was ultimately the one we adopted (my picture). I think he still had a bit of a shock once we actually brought her home because she is totally attached to him and does not leave his side, so he wasn't used to that. But now that it has been about 1 1/2 years since we've had her he has definitely warmed up to her!

 

[wilkeliza]

It definitely depends on each of the dogs. Little backstory, I basically live back and forth between my parents' house and my fiancé's family's house. His family has a now 6 year old dog who was always the only dog. Literally the sweetest, biggest baby you would ever meet. He is a pit/lab mix and in the 5 years we have been together he has NEVER been aggressive to anyone or any other dogs. They decided he needed a friend to keep him company so my fiancé and I adopted a puppy to live there. We found a beautiful male pit/lab that I fell in love with, but when we brought JD to meet him, he HATED this puppy. He would not go near him, showed his teeth and growled if the puppy tried to get close to him, and was just plain mean. I was shocked and honestly started crying. We then took him to a different shelter and decided to let him pick out the dog. He only seemed interested in one puppy, so she was ultimately the one we adopted (my picture). I think he still had a bit of a shock once we actually brought her home because she is totally attached to him and does not leave his side, so he wasn't used to that. But now that it has been about 1 1/2 years since we've had her he has definitely warmed up to her!

2 males is very hard to make work. Glad you found a buddy that worked out.

 

[dosekies]

2 males is very hard to make work. Glad you found a buddy that worked out.

That's what they told us when it happened, but he didn't like a lot of the female puppies we saw either! The whole thing was so strange haha

 

[SharonZ]

I feel so sorry for your daughter and Henry. I'm all for getting a second dog/puppy, but there is no guarantee that the new dog would bond with your younger daughter and not end up bunking with your older daughter and other dog.

 

[PlutoPony]

Definitely think it's worth a try with a 2nd dog. Sounds like it would mean a lot to your daughter and it may be quite good for the whole family - current dog included.

Would HIGHLY recommend you contact some rescue organizations that foster their dogs with people/families. If it's a good organization, they will know the dog pretty well and give you the best chance for a match that works for your whole family. I'd emphasize you want a dog that will bond with your daughter (give her age and experience with pets). That should eliminate dogs uncomfortable wth kids or females. Also one that would likely be fine allowing your current dog to be alpha, one that likes other dogs - isn't aggressive with them. Are those the absolute key needs? Add on if not. Then go onto other characteristics, size and age range being the primary ones to highlight, maybe breed of dog you'd prefer (realize that many of these dogs are mixed breeds). Be careful being too picky for the secondary needs.......we were set on a yellow lab from the rescue but they have far more blacks and chocolates. So after a bit we dropped the color preference and had a dog shortly thereafter.

The rescue we work with requires you to meet the potential new dog with all people present who live full time in the household who will interact with the dog. Also required at the meeting are any other dogs/cats that live there as well. Son in college was not required but happened to be home and went along. They want to get a read on how everyone interacts, and if there are warning signs that it's not a good match. That gives everyone an idea of how the relationship will go. Sometimes you can tell from the get go that it's not a fit and that's fine...your dog is out there.

 

[Grmnshplvr]

All of this will depend on your first dog but for us

the good - they keep each other busy, and if one doesn't want to cuddle with me, chances are the other one will. I could watch them play together all day, they are really bonded. They lay together, clean each other. Even though they are the same sex we've had no aggression. We got them both as puppies and they are 3 years old now. We haven't had a single issue. so far

the bad - they do feed off each other, when someone comes to the door its total chaos. They are well trained dogs but this is the area I completely failed at. The german shepherd is always on alert, barking when she thinks she sees or hears someone, the golden never knows what is going on and just barks when her sister does, just in case. Both dogs weigh almost 100lbs and it can get expensive to feed them, we haven't had any major vet bills though so aside from their regular shots that has actually been reasonable, but obviously double what it would be for one dog.

The ugly - Because both dogs are large breeds and have the same life expectancy I suspect we'll lose them both around the same time and I can't even imagine how difficult that is going to be, or maybe even worse, if one of them does go young I dont know what the other one will do without her.


With that said, I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat I can't imagine being a 1 dog family now.

 

[Grmnshplvr]

Sophie is 8, spayed, and we believe 1/2 Rat Terrier, 1/2 Boston Terrier. She weighs 17 lbs.

She was not fond of the cats during the brief time they all coexisted in the house. She's also not fond of anything or anyone in our yard - UPS guy, bunnies, stray cats, neighborhood dogs, leaves, plastic bags, birds, whatever. She jumps at the window & barks non-stop.

We really don't socialize her with other dogs other than trips to the kennel when we go on vacation. She's not aggreseive under those circumstances, but she's not on her turf, either.

If you're a visitor, she expects ALL of your attention in the form of kisses and/or belly rubs.

I would recommend if you do get a second dog to consider one about the same weight. Mine do play rough, so I'm glad they're about the same size, I can't imagine my german shepherd playing this rough with a 17lb dog without accidentally hurting her.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I would recommend if you do get a second dog to consider one about the same weight. Mine do play rough, so I'm glad they're about the same size, I can't imagine my german shepherd playing this rough with a 17lb dog without accidentally hurting her.

We would definitely be looking for a similar size as we're very fond of this size now

 

[tzolkin]

I would recommend if you do get a second dog to consider one about the same weight. Mine do play rough, so I'm glad they're about the same size, I can't imagine my german shepherd playing this rough with a 17lb dog without accidentally hurting her.

That was an issue for us when adopting a second dog (and a big factor in why it took us several months to find the right fit). Our first dog was still a puppy and loves to play, but she only grew to a final size of about 26lb (vet and rescue thought she would be around 50lb full grown). We wanted a larger second dog and were specifically looking at pit bull rescues. All the dogs we met were very friendly, but just too rough wrestling around with her.

We did wind up with a big dog (75lb greyhound who is above my hip height). He has zero interest in playing, but is also very gentle and tolerant of the smaller dog when she tries to pester him. He was previously in a home with a chihuahua.

 

[design_mom]

I am going to second what a lot of other people have already said.

The good -- They keep each other occupied. Our first dog needed a LOT of attention and would find (destructive and too smart for her own good) ways to get it if she didn't get enough. Getting a second dog has taken some of that burden off. He gives her some of the attention that she craves. I think they really like each other and they play together well.

The bad -- They will ramp each other up. Like other posters have said, if someone comes to the door, they go nuts. We pretty much have to put them outside when someone comes. This is a training issue, but we failed. Also, Dog#1 (the too smart one) will mess with Dog #2. If Dog #2 is laying in the spot Dog #1 wants, she'll quietly "woof" out the window like "What's that? I think I saw something!" and then Dog #2 will have to jump up, start barking, and investigate. Then Dog #1 will run and steal the spot she wanted in the first place. Dog #2 falls for it EVERY. DARN. TIME. Also, we have to watch them eat because Dog #1 snarfs her food down in record time, then will go over and try to get Dog #2's food if he's not finished... and he'll let her.

It is also more money in food, vacation care, and vet bills... and more difficult to take both dogs someplace by yourself. When we only had 1 dog, we'd take her more places than we take both.

But overall, I like having 2 dogs... I think Dog #1 "needed it." (She ended up with dog license #666 one year. It's fitting." I think finding a good personality match is important though. Dog #1 was 6 years old when we got Dog #2. Dog #2 was about 6 months old at the time. It was important to allow them to meet first to make sure it was a good personality match. We were looking for a dog who would be OK *not* being the alpha dog, because we knew Dog #1 would not give up the role without a fight. But we also wanted a dog who wasn't so submissive that Dog #1 made his life miserable. Dog #2 is a great dog... he's just happy go lucky and pleased to be here. Since he's now 5 and she's 11.5, I'm assuming our days with Dog #1 are coming to an end in the next couple of years, so we might try being a one-dog family again for a while and see how he does as an only... but I'm very glad we have 2 for now.