Contemplating A New Pup

[Fatsofatsoman]

Hi there guys,

We are really really contemplating another pup - we'd go Lab again.

I really think Boonie would love having a mate around and think that it's best for him in the long run.

Our only worries are that Boonie would/might feel a bit neglected and we don't want that as he's our number one boy. But also we're worried about having a 9week old pup with a still boisterous 10mth old.

Any tips/advice?

[macka]

I would love to have a 2nd lab as well; I reckon Arch would just love it. Unfortunately we are a 2 dog only household.

If you want a second dog and you think your dog would be happy with one I'd go for it - labs usually love other labs especially. ;)

Just be sure you want one for you and not just for your dog - as you know puppies are a lot of work! Then you have to make sure you are able to walk, feed (!), pay vet bills etc for 2 labs rather than one. Provided you're up for the committment, I think it's a great idea to have two dogs.

While your 2nd puppy is still a baby you will need to supervise to ensure play doesn't get too rough and teach your older dog to be gentle. Separate when you can't supervise.

[Agility Dogs]

I got my second dog when the first one was 9 months old and unless our circumstances change will not have them that close together in age again. A few reasons:

1. Number 1 pup was not trained to a level I was happy with. I know this in hindsight, but at the time I thought she was really good. The second pup slowed our progress down considerably.

2. The challenges of having two pushy dogs that are about the same age. They will at some point try and get one up on each other - not always pleasant.

3. The puppies bonded too strongly to each other. This is partly because I let them run together and partly because of their age I think. Either way I won't let young dogs run with the others until I am confident I can call them away from any excitement between the dogs.

4. The training needed for two young dogs is a lot more significant than for an experienced dog and a younger one. (or even 2 experienced dogs and one younger one!)

If I had my time over I would have waited until Xena was at least 4 years old before bringing another dog into our house. It has worked well for us all in all, but I think it would have worked better if I had waited.

You need to be really sure you can cope with 2 young dogs - remembering that the new addition will learn from your current dog - both the good and the bad.

We now have 3 dogs (2 @ about 5 years and one at 1 year) and I'm happy with the arrangement, but would not do it again.

[Life Of Riley]

Would you consider an older dog? You could contact the Labrador club and see if there are any rescue dogs, they generally have at least basic training and you would just need to build on that, rather than going through all the toilet training, chewing ect

We got a rescue when my pup was 7 months old, it actually helped with training my pup especially recall and they are best friends ;)

My rescue was only 18 months old when we got her and had had a pretty rough start to life she is such a wonderful dog will do anything for a pat and is so grateful and happy with anything we do for her.

[Double Lab Love]

As an owner of two 15mnth Labs which we got at 8 weeks ( I really don'tknow WHAT were we thinking ) I would NEVER go down that path again.

They were bought together with the best of intentions but we really had no idea and when I look back know with the knowledge i have learnt from these forums I just shudder at our naviety.

It was a very hard lesson to learn and we made quite a few mistakes along the way we were just very lucky that we had two very forgiving and basically good natured dogs that at times seemed to know more than we did ;)

The biggest issue we have /had and are still working on is the fact that our female Tippi is the more dominant dog and due to our inexperience hogged out attention and poor Tango was at times left out at times and there has been an escalation of isses between the two of them as a result. We did see Steve K9 Pro when they were 6 months and he helped us with pack leader issues and her bossiness etc and things are alot better but i always wonder to myself what their personalities would have been like had we had just the one.. I guess we will never know...

As far as bonding more with each other - they have bonded extremely well with us and although are great mates and play together - they often spend time apart and are quite happy with that. Thank goodness the bonding more with each other was not an issue we have had - although we have had plenty of others.

Having two the same age re training etc wasn't the issue - but we also did have alot of proff help wth that - and they are great company for each other when we are at work etc so that part has been a positive. And who best to cope with Lab zoomies and boisterous play than another Lab of the same age

They are now at the stage where they are settling down, I can walk them together and it is very enjoyable where as before they were just too distracted and hard to manage. We as owners are more aware and that has also helped to nip any issues in the bud. I fall a litttle more in love with them every day and sort of feel like that we are starting to reap the rewards of all our hard work earlier on...

But to answer the OP's questions... I agree with waiting a while until training etc of Boonie is where you want it to be.... and it will be hard not to give a new Lab puppy extra attention to the detriment of the other - as we found out the hard way...even though all the best intentions are there...

In our case we are looking to move to acreage this year but i would wait until our two are at least 4 before we brough another doglet home and it would be a rescue or older dog.. I feel like we need to dedicate ourselves 100% to them for a couple more years since we messed things up a bit when they were puppies - it's our penance

Another puppy well that will be a long long way away when I don't work full time and can do things properly the second time round

[Souff]

I would wait until your Lab is around 2 years old before introducing a new puppy or introducing a rescue dog. Enjoy his adolescence ;) and train him well because he will be the teacher of the new dog.

In the meantime make sure he is well socialised with other dogs at the dog park or wherever.

Souff

[Fatsofatsoman]

Cheers guys,

I appreciate all the responses - and I think it has made a decision easier for us. We think we are well suited to take a second pup on and really want one but not to the detriment of Boonie - therefore I think the new pup can wait until he's around 2. I want to get this right not just for the new pup but also our no.1 boy we have now.

excellent advice - thanks.

[Red Fox]

Any tips/advice?

Can you afford it long term?

Vet fees, general health care, grooming, worming, food, all the extras you'll need for the new pup, insurance, boarding if you need it, training equipment and fees.

Do you have the time?

Remebering that you will have to go through all the toilet training, crate training, basic obedience, etc, all over again whilst still keeping up with your older pup.

You'll need the time to walk and train them seperately too.

Is your current dog where you want him behaviour/obedience wise?

Consider later down the track. Will you be happy to have two elderly dogs together? How will you cope if one or both become ill/have health problems? How will you cope if you lose both dogs close together? (due to age).

If your answer is no to any of those I'd seriously reconsider (for now). Personally I'd wait until your current dog is at least 2 years old and over his teenage years. ;)

[Sherlot]

I got my second b/c when my first was 9months, if i was going to do it again.. I'd wait until about 18m.. mainly due to the first pup learns so much up until 18m.. and it gives you more time to invest into the first pup..

in saying that, my first one is 2.2 and second is 18month now and I want a 3rd..

[Double Lab Love]

SecretKei,

Excellent advice....

My other down the track fear is the growing old /losing them together - I get emotional even just thinking about it ....

But fingers crossed we still have teenage and many mature years together before that happens....

I was just reading the list you gave re puppy training etc it makes me exhausted just thinking about it again as we had everything x 2....

I think any age from about 2 ( maybe 3 for Labs ) is a good age to introduce a new dog / puppy to an exisiting dog/dogs - unless of course it is a totally unplanned rescue

[koalathebear]

I guess I'm in the minority - we got our second pup (3 months old) when our first pup was only 8 months old and we're very happy with how things have gone. They are great company for one another, number two has learned a LOT training-wise from the first dog. Some tricks we haven't even taught Hoover, he has picked up by watching Elbie. It certainly sped up house training and house manners. Elbie's training didn't suffer at all from what we could see. As for bonding, we make sure we train them separately and together. We give both of them 'alone' time when the other dog is taken out. At home, when they're playing together, they know that a clap of the hands means to stop play and come over. We're extremely happy with the two dogs and would gladly do it again ...

[aussielover]

Hi there guys,

We are really really contemplating another pup - we'd go Lab again.

I really think Boonie would love having a mate around and think that it's best for him in the long run.

Our only worries are that Boonie would/might feel a bit neglected and we don't want that as he's our number one boy. But also we're worried about having a 9week old pup with a still boisterous 10mth old.

Any tips/advice?

I would get another dog today as a companion for my current dog, if my living situation permitted it.

She is a 12 month old lab.

I have had others dogs for short periods with her since she was 6 months and we both absolutely love it. Her behaviour has not changed greatly when she has been living with other dogs, except the two dogs do play together a lot more. If anything her behaviour actually improves as she can go play with the other dog when she gets bored instead of getting her toys and shoving them in my lap

I am going to get s second dog in a few years when my living situation is more stable.

[poochmad]

I would wait until your current dog has settled down (well as much as a lab can settle, LOL), and is a bit more under control. The problem with getting a pup and an adult (and a largeish breed) is that the pup can be injured during play or playing chasies.

The best thing we ever did was get a companion for our dog. When you do, do it, don't worry about him feeling neglected or loving the other one, as you will find that as cute as pups are, you will also be appreciating your adult dog as he's through that stage.

As someone else suggested, another idea is to get an older dog instead of a pup. We added a 7 month old to our family (male was 2) and she fitted in better than I expected, past the chewing / biting stage, but did need extra time for housetraining.

[Leelaa17]

I guess I'm in the minority - we got our second pup (3 months old) when our first pup was only 8 months old and we're very happy with how things have gone. They are great company for one another, number two has learned a LOT training-wise from the first dog. Some tricks we haven't even taught Hoover, he has picked up by watching Elbie. It certainly sped up house training and house manners. Elbie's training didn't suffer at all from what we could see. As for bonding, we make sure we train them separately and together. We give both of them 'alone' time when the other dog is taken out. At home, when they're playing together, they know that a clap of the hands means to stop play and come over. We're extremely happy with the two dogs and would gladly do it again ...

I have the same situation. Max was about 15mnths when we got jenna. She used to go to the toilet wherever she wanted but as soon as she started spending more time with max (we kept them separated until jen was about 4 months old) and the DAY she was put outside, she never went to the toilet inside again - ever. And i truly believe that was cuz of max. He held on until he was put outside and she always witnessed this.

There was one incident when she did a 2minute long wee in the back of my car - she had been desexed the day before and the entire 36hrs she was there she held on. Lol lucky me

She has also learnt some bad habits off max - like being a grazer... but i am proud to say neither of them graze anymore thanks to me training them properly! Lol

I would do it this way again because i would prefer them to be reasonably close in age throughout their lives. Thats just me though. I think there are definite pros and cons to getting a pup now.

[Leelaa17]

The best thing we ever did was get a companion for our dog. When you do, do it, don't worry about him feeling neglected or loving the other one, as you will find that as cute as pups are, you will also be appreciating your adult dog as he's through that stage.

I agree. Max was never ever neglected. Sometimes i felt i paid too much attention to max than jenna! Lol but i always tried to pay them equal attention. I was really worried about that as well. I was so scared max would think he wasnt mt best friend anymore and i was scared my focus would be too much on jen. But it became very quickly apparent that max enjoyed the company of jenna and enjoyed sharing his playtime and training. He clearly never felt left out.

You would make sure boonie was never left out - dont worry about that! :wink:

[piper]

I'm another who likes a bigger gap for a variety of reasons.

We had 2 boys 11 months apart. That means 2 old dogs at once - lots of vet bills and an awful lot of heartache. I loved the boys dearly and would not change having the 2 of them for anything but I would not do it again.

Ricky's training got neglected as we had Reagan to worry about. In the end they both suffered with training. I was still a novice trainer and hadnt really worked it out so managed to stuff up 2 dogs instead of 1. By the time I got it worked out the damage to both was done. But the worst thing of all was having 2 dogs entering teen years and watching 2 dogs go downhill, we were barely over Ricky when it was time to say goodbye to Reagan.

[Erny]

Our only worries are that Boonie would/might feel a bit neglected and we don't want that as he's our number one boy. But also we're worried about having a 9week old pup with a still boisterous 10mth old.

Like others have said - get a pup if it's what you want, not because it's what you think Boonie would want. To add, though - you'll need to NOT think of either of your dogs (assuming you get a second one) as "Number One". You'll need to think of yourselves as "Number One" and the dogs will find their own 'order'.

As for age - I think ideally it is better to have the dogs with a bigger age gap between them. Thinking more later on when one is in prime and one is reaching prime. That can be when the conflict begins. But many people have 2 or more dogs who are close in age without issues - I just think it has a greater potential for problem than if the ages were further apart.

The other thing you need to ask and answer for yourselves - will you be up for all the training of both? Boonie has not reached maturity and his training would still be very much ongoing. And your new pup, well of course she will be just beginning. Trying to train 2 dogs together generally doesn't go well, which means until the training has kicked in, you're likely to need to walk each one separately.

Also, when you have a mature, well behaved and trained dog 'on the go', your new younger pup is likely to pick up from him and this would make training all the easier.

Personally, I think you'd be better off waiting until Boonie's behaviour (and training - not that I know Boonie nor where you are up to with that) is more settled and that comes with maturity.

Edited April 26, 2011 by Erny

[jakeyjangels]

Very interesting reading everyones posts.

We have a 16 month Lab boy Jangels and pick up our new Lab puppy Louis next Saturday.

It was a big decision in some ways, but other ways not.

Our decision was based on both our wanting another Lab and our belief that Jangels would love having a mate.

Jangels has been a pleasure to own. He has done very well with his basic obedience.

He is extremely affectionate and just loves other dogs company.

So for us the postives FAR outweigh the negatives.

We can't wait until we pick up baby Louis