Should I get another Dog (Pics)

[Badger]

I'm interested in hearing more from people who have male/female or female/female combinations of dogs.

[Mrs. Utah]

I have never personally had two dogs at once, my sister had the male/female-no problems and a friend has female(old) and two young males-no problems.

I really think it depends on the dogs.
(sorry probably doesn't help much-but there seems to be a lot of people on this forum with more than one dog)

[adios]

LockForward's recommendations are excellent IMO. I have 5 year old male mixed breed, a 19 month old bloodhound bitch, and 4 month old bloodhound male (my avatar). The 5 year old male is a mega alpha but he's been trained well and is under control. A great dog btw. He doesn't interact with the other two dogs very much as it's just his nature. He's never been that interested in other dogs. The bloodhounds play together some but will interact more as the male gets older. If the dogs are neutered I don't see a problem with male/female dogs. My bloodhounds aren't [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]. My bitch has a great temperment and she gets along with other bitches well, at least so far. I guess the bottom line is that it depends on the dog.

[Performify]

Two dogs are certainly better than one. As several people have mentioned, dogs are social creatures. Two dogs will bond, and will play with each other, exercise each other, watch out for each other, etc.

They're certainly more expensive, but I certainly will always have two dogs. I've had one, and then I noticed the strong change in my dogs behavior (positive) by adding in another dog to the mix. Now I'd never go back to just one dog.

You won't have any problems with male / male, female / female, whatever. As long as you're the dominant one - pack leader if you're a Cesar fan - and as long as both dogs recognize you as their leader, its not a problem to introduce a second dog usually. And if it is a problem, its just a little bit of work. Usually you take them on a couple walks together (bonding via pack behavior, both traveling together) and let them play in an open ideally neutral area (no territory issues) its usually a complete non-issue.

I have two female dogs, pics posted in that most recent dog pics thread if you want to see. Introduced teh second dog to the mix when the first was one year old, and it was perfect.

[Badger]

I'm really looking forward to a second dog. Was going to spend Saturday researching more and get to the dog shelter, but just found out I'll be dogsitting a Weim. til Sunday. Pretty happy about that as they are similar to my childhood dog, a Viszla. I'll post pics if it happens the following weekend.

[cardsharkk04]

[ QUOTE ]
Adding a second dog to a household isn't an easy process, and will take some time to accomplish properly.

First off, I would look for a male dog as your second dog. Female/female dog fights are fierce.

Next, make sure you have a seperate crate for both dogs. For the first 10-14 days you are going to rotate having your dogs out in your house. One dog in its crate, the other out with you.

After this time of rotating the dogs, allow the dogs to greet the other dog while in their crate. Do this 3 or 4 times for 2 or 3 days.

Next, have two people take them for a walk together on a LOOSE leash. Don't allow them to interact, walk just far enough away from each other. Make sure you're not walking your normal route, walk them in an area that neither dog has been walked in frequently. Do this for another 10 to 14 days.

Finally, allow the dogs to meet on leash in a nuetral spot. Make sure you keep the leashes loose. Sniffing is good, but don't allow one dog to but its head or paw over the other dog's shoulder. And of course make sure there is no growling or snarling at any point of doing any of this.

PM me if you have any more questions about this.

[/ QUOTE ]

Could you just quickly explain why you go through this process?

[Drew16]

Ive had a male dog for almost 4 years. About a year ago we decided to get a second dog for the same reason you are considering. The second dog is a female. We didnt go through any great steps of introduction and they get along fine and have since we brought the new dog home.

However, the two dogs dont really spend much time together and dont really play together much. An occassional wrestling match will break out but usually both do their seperate things.

I do like the new dog but honestly the reason we got her was to help entertain/keep the 1st dog company and really that isnt the case. Im not sure if its the personality of the 1st dog or the age difference (about 6 years).

[Gunny Highway]

Pretty lab, Badger. Where were those pics taken?

[SmokeyJoe]

OP: your dog looks exactly like mine, and is named Coco too.

[Badger]

[ QUOTE ]
Pretty lab, Badger. Where were those pics taken?

[/ QUOTE ]
Pedernales Falls State Park- Not too far West of Austin, TX. Pretty cool place.