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? about getting doggy #2
Hey ladies!
I'm Julie. I've been a lurker here for a little bit. DH and I have been recently talking about the possibility of adding another puppy/dog to our household. We currently have an almost 3 year old chocolate lab named Bailey. She's a great dog who loves everyone and everything (sometimes a little too much). She's never been aggressive, so I'm not too worried about her. We've been looking into smaller breed dogs. I'm just wondering how the transition from 1 to 2 dogs goes? I've heard that it can be hard. Is there a good way to introduce them? Our lab is completely spoiled, would she have a hard time adjusting to another dog?
Also for those of you with smaller dogs, any recommendations? We're looking for one that would also be good with any kids we may have in the future. TIA ladies for your help!
Re: ? about getting doggy #2
We recently added dog #2 - what worked for us:
* Similar size and temperament: We went for a rescue that was the same breed of our current dog. They have a similar energy level and play style, which has worked really well for them. They're roughly the same size, although our first dog has about 15 pounds on our new dog. Does your dog have a lot of experience with smaller dogs? I'd make sure that he's comfortable engaging in play with smaller dogs before adding one to the household.
* Adult dog vs. puppy: Our first dog was also VERY spoiled, and very attached to us, so we thought a puppy, which would need a lot of one-on-one attention from us would be a bad fit. We went with a rescue who had been fostered with another dog (so we knew he was dog-friendly and got some great feedback from the foster family on his engagement with the other dog). Our new dog was also the same age as our first dog, which helped them relate.
* Initial meeting in a neutral place: The other benefit of going through a rescue was we were able to introduce both dogs in a neutral environment before we made the decision to adopt. They got along fine, which gave us a lot of confidence that they could be a good match in our home as well. The rescue also had a 30 trial period where we could change our minds if anything went drastically wrong - not that we anticipated doing that, but it's probably not an option you would have as easily through other channels.
We've been a two dog household since November...they're now the best of friends. It's been really good for our first pup to have someone she can play with all the time. Here's the two of them, just because they crack me up:
We have a 40lb mutt mix (3yrs old) and last fall added a 5mo old miniature dachshund. We wondered how things would go but other than reminding our girl that she can't rough house with him like she can the big dogs, it's been such a blessing for the family. She is like a mom/big sister to him (holding him down and cleaning his ears for example) and he is a little ankle biter now and gives her a good run for her money! They eat, sleep, play together... it's been fantastic for us and for our girl.
I would introduce them out on the sidewalk/front yard/etc, let them sniff and walk around together, then bring them to your back yard. Let them spend X amount of time out there figuring each other out, before bringing them both in. You might have to keep the new dog on a leash in the house for a while, until you can trust to leave him alone/alone with the other dog. Just common sense, be careful and supervise. We lucked out with two easy going dogs, I know not everyone has it so easy. Good luck to you!
Great advice here! We were a one dog family for a little more than 2.5 years. Then, in May 2010, we adopted our second who ended up being about a year older than our first dog (they are currently 4.5 and 5.5). We knew we wanted another pug, so we applied through a breed-specific rescue in our area and looked for a pug with a similar energy level to our current dog. We brought our current dog to meet the potential new dog and took them on a walk together to see how they did. When we brought the new dog home, we took them for a walk in our neighborhood and tethered the new dog to one of us for about 5-7 days (to watch for any accidents or destructive behavior and to closely supervise all interactions between the dogs). Overall, the transition was very smooth for us, and they continue to get along really well. I think it helps that we have invested a lot of time in training both of them (separately and together) and that we have clear rules and boundaries that DH and I enforce so the pups don't feel the need to regulate each other's behavior. GL!
Our transition to #2 was easy, especially because #1 is a lot happier having her around and she was already potty trained, etc.
We packed Darwin in the car, drove him around to the local shelters and pounds, introduced him to other dogs, and adopted the one who played with him then licked his ear when he was done. generally, they really like each other and since she was a 2 yr old owner surrender she has been a pretty easy dog to get into the routine.
When I met my husband, he already had 100lb Sampson (a very large chocolate lab) - when we got married, we decided to get another dog. Sampson was very spoiled and always wanted attention from us (which was hard because my husband works from home and Sampson made it hard for him to actually work!). We decided to bring in a new puppy (a white lab) and it was a bit rough at first. Sampson was very territorial and did not like having the little one around at all. But having a second dog did two things for us:
1) Forced us to be better dog owners. I thought we were good before, but getting a second dog allowed us to see that Sampson was actually top dog in our house (evidenced by his territorial nature) and that needed to change.
2) Now that they are best friends (they really are inseparable - when we took Socrates to get neutered, Sampson spent a long time looking for him and was ecstatic when he came back!) Sampson is less needy and seems even happier than when he was the only dog.
It was a lot of work in the beginning but well worth it! When I look over and see them both napping side by side, it makes all the hard work worth it!