What Was It Like When You Added Your 2nd Dog? (adoption, failure)

[Ringo1]

Do a search on this forum for 'Ringo and Lucy". That will be telling!

It was HARD at first. But it all worked out . . . . and I'm glad I have two. They are good company for one another - but more work and Vet bills as well.

Good Luk!

[dogmomof2]

Since our first dog had some aggression issues it was a little stressful adding a second, but after a few weeks everything was good. We're very happy we did it. Although we hoped our second dog would play with our first, it didn't happen. They do enjoy each other's companionship though. Each dog has their own personality, and some will mesh together better than others.

If your first dog is getting older, a playful puppy may be an annoyance, so it could be a better fit to find a dog in the same life stage, or at least a similar energy level as the first.

What is a PITA is that it's more difficult for us to travel with two dogs than it was with just one. There's a lot more poop to pick up, and two dogs take up more room in bed. Those are the only downsides for us

[Srma]

We just added a female puppy to our home with our 6 yr old Bulldog. Both are rescues and we had a thirteen year old beagle, yup rescued as a puppy that died Feb 6. We thought to wait to get another dog after asuitab,e mourning period, but worry about the bull dogs natural inclination to become territorial caused us to get a new pup March 1. She is wonderful. A beagle/ feist mix. She was abandoned and rescued with her litter mates and so was not otherwise abused.
The two dogs have been cautiously friendly and our only problem is when their play escalates into roughness with mouths open. Generally speaking to them is sufficient to stop that nonsense.
The puppy goes to work with me several days a week and with my husband the others. The bull dog seems to like this break from the puppy! It also exposes the puppy to all kinds of people, including children since my office is in a nursery day school.
Now if we can just concur Ouse breaking!
Oh and unimportant part of our introducing our puppy has been the fact that both dogs are crated at night and we crate the puppy when we have to be away from home and cannot take dogs with us.
Go for it!
Ps
After we got our puppy we found out about bringing home a blanket or towel with the new puppies scent so when the puppy enters the home the dog recognizes the puppies smell.
Our introduction went pretty well with out it any way.

[Dollydo]

So far, so good...once I added the second one..I can't seem to get back to one...when one dies the other grieves, so...I add a buddy.

[mrspink]

I've seen it work good and bad.

When we added Bear to the house when I was still in high school, our dog Rusty (golden/chow mix) was VERY tolerant. Bear was this little ball of (probably annoying to Rusty) fluff who just wanted to play. They were buddies and Bear really grieved when Rusty died, even though they no longer lived together. They would always play and chase each other. (Bear is a pom btw.)

Now when it didn't work...it REALLY didn't work. Bear was attacked and nearly killed. Which shows that 1) No matter how closely you watch and monitor, things can happen and 2) When you rescue a dog you NEED their background. We were provided with very little.

Just do your homework. If you know the history of the dog, you should be fine.

[no kudzu]

we got 2 y.o. Toby to give 10 y.o. Lucy some company and exercise. They get along great but the noise level is hard to bear when they start barking at the same time. Lucy wasn't much of a barker but Toby gets excited when UPS or Fed Ex truck comes down the street and when somebody rings the door bell. Toby starts barking and immediately Lucy gets riled up and it is hard to settle them both down. I think a trainer is in our future.

[Jeepchic]

I recently added a 3.5 cairn terrier to my home. My 4.5 year old WestiePoo has been a single dog since 8 weeks old when I took her home. At first she was like, "What the hell." But she has adapted well. One thing I notice, she does shy away from me now during the day. I don't know if that's her being upset at me for messing up the househould or what, but if I call her, or try to pick her up she runs behind the sofa. She and Teddy do get along most of the time. I especially like it when I'm relaxing and I start hearing these noises, and they are playing around.

He's a crazy dog though. I thought I had a hard time with her...oh, no she was peachy compared to him.

[mic111]

I highly recommend a second dog and I also highly recommend you do a meet and greet. We've adopted a number of second dogs into the household. We also have fostered a number of dogs for a rescue. After some experience I've learned that certain dogs love each other right away. Some are indifferent to each other and some hate each other on sight. When adopting a second dog, meet the dog first to see if you love it. If you do then have your dog meet him or her. If your dog and the other dog seem to love each other it is a go. If they don't then keep looking. Pay strong attention to how both dogs react to each other.

Our most recent adoptee was a foster. Our oldest dog really hates other dogs. She barely tolerates most fosters but this one she loved right away. And for his part he acts like she walks on water and followed her around in hero worship. However, have him meet another dog and he tries to take a hunk out of them.

Life is much easier when you don't have to worry about them getting along. When we adopt out fosters we look for the same sort of instant love. You'll know it when you see it.

[jsqueezer]

Often it helps if the first meet and greet is on neutral territory rather than bringing the new dog right into your home. This was recommended by a trainer friend of mine and it worked very well.

Once, the meeting was in a park. I had a friend bring my first dog to the park and I went and picked up the new dog. They met, sniffed butts and played in the park for an hour or so. Then I loaded them into my car and took them home. Easy and painless, and the original (first) dog didn't feel like her house was being invaded.

The second time, after I'd lost a dog to old age, I noticed my one remaining dog was acting listless and mopey. I also realized I missed having a second dog.

I found what I thought was a good match on Petfinder. I took my dog with me to the shelter which, fortunately, is in a rural area, with fields surrounding it. The "adoptable" (great dog!) was adopted only after the two dogs ran around in the field for awhile and got to know each other. They both fell asleep on the back seat driving home and have been best buddies since then... going on 5 years.

[cittic10]

When I added a puppy to my family, my existing dog was a little bummed out at first that now he would have to share my attention. He's a terrier so very bossy right out of the gate. And yes he's neutered.

The first couple of weeks were a little rough. Here comes this puppy that's about the same size and growing more and more every day. He wanted the puppy to know that he's calling the shots around here and that he will bark only when barked to and that all of the toys, past, present and future, belong to him. Lots of humping.

But he soon figured out that the puppy wasn't going anywhere so he had better get used to it. Then they would play together and before long, they became pretty good friends.

But the tummy rubs, tug-o-war, and certain real estate such as the sofa, belong to him and he reminds the double the size, now 6 year old puppy to this day.

The older dog was adopted and we're very attached. Velco. Big time.