Bark Out Loud: Multi-Dog Homes — Do Your Dogs Get Along?
If you follow Dog Milk on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, you may have noticed a little brown and white dog named Smash has emerged on the scene. We recently adopted a second dog from a local rescue group and have fallen deeply, madly in love! Wrigley is also pretty excited to have a friend, cuddle buddy, and someone to steal toys from. But it wasn’t always fun and games. Smash was pretty reserved and disinterested in us and Wrigley the first little bit, which made me wonder if we’d made the right choice. With time and patience, he’s come around and his happy-go-lucky personality is shining bright! So, this leads me to our Bark Out Loud question this month:
Do you have more than one dog and if so, do they get along?
How long was the adjustment period for the new dog(s) and the old? I’d love to hear your stories of bringing an additional dog into the family — successes, frustrations, and how you helped either dog cope!
I have three dogs, two are mine and the other is always a foster/puppy in training for service work. Whenever I bring a new dog in, I give it about a month or two for all dogs to become comfortable with each other and another about six, for them become a cohesive group. These things take time.
We have three dogs. Two Jack Russells and a Min Pin. The Jacks are mother and daughter and they get along well, although the mom gets a little bossy from time to time. Pete the Min Pin is totally clueless about boundaries and loves the girls to death. They girls are fine with him and I’ve even seen a kiss or two. Pete is completely protective of them and will bark at us and stand between us and the girls if get on the girls about something. I told him once to take care of the girls and he never lets them out of his sight, goes where they go and sleeps nears them. They can get annoyed but he is watching my little old ladies.
I have had 9 yr old Maximus (Yorkie) since he was a puppy. A couple of years ago, when I moved back “home” and bought a house, I adopted a senior Poodle (16yrs old, mostly blind, and deaf) from a rescue (www.hua.org). Max wasn’t at all interested in her, but tolerated her. Back in March, I acquired another dog. Wrigley is a mutt that my brother and sister-in-law had from when he was a puppy. Well Wrigley bit my nephew and it was either my house or the local humane society. I opted to take him and hoped he?d be able to get along with the other two. It has not gone as well as I?d hoped. Wrigley doesn?t like Baby (the senior Poodle) at all, especially at food time and has made his displeasure known a couple of times by attacking her. Baby has a habit of wandering and pacing and sometimes gets too close to Wrigley. I watch them closely now and don?t allow her to get near him or vice versa when it?s food time (because that?s when it seems to be the worst). I?m not sure what the answer is now, because Max and Wrigley get along and I wanted Baby to have a peaceful place to live out her remaining years. I wouldn?t be able to adopt another dog as long as Wrigley lives with me (not that I?d want another one right now) and the thought of giving him up makes me incredibly sad.
When we brought our second dog home, Cash, Roxy was MAD! She was already two and considered herself to be very mature and well mannered, but Cash was only one and lacking in the manners department. She would bark, he would chase her, she’d get mad at him, he’d sulk. But after about two months they got used to each other, and eight years later are best friends and completely inseperable!
When my husband and I got married we each had a dog, me a boston and my husband a standard poodle rescue. They were feisty at first, but thankfully they both conceded and agreed to get along after a few months. There was alot of non sharing and backoff growls at first. They became best friends for 4 years. This past month our boston lost his battle to kidney failure. Im not sure who is grieving more, us or our poodle. They were partners in crime, sidekicks, and truly brothers. It doesn’t feel like home with one dog.
I moved in with a new roommate about a year and a half ago and with her came 8 month old Clide – her black Chinese Pug. He was a wild child and I really grew to love him. About 4 months in I decided to adopt a rescue and found a sweet 5 year old chocolate Cocker Spaniel – Josey. She was very shy and reserved at first. She didn’t really know what to make of Clide as he is very playful and energetic and Josey is a little older and loves just being a lap dog. It only took about a month for them to bond. It’s been almost a year since I brought her home and her and Clide are best friends. They play together, eat together and sleep together. It’s crazy cute. I don’t know how we can separate them if me and my roommate ever decide to move out.
When we brought our second dog, Dottie, home, Mingus growled and snarled at her for the first week. The second week, figuring the snarling didn’t work, Mingus just ignored her completely (maybe hoping she would just disappear). Meanwhile, Dottie followed him everywhere with hearts in her eyes. Somehow, by Week 3, Mingus started playing with her just a bit…. and the rest, as they say, is history. As other commenters have noted, they’re now completely inseparable, probably to an unhealthy degree! BFFs for life.
I have a 3 year old pitbull and a 18 month old doxbull and have had both since they were 10 weeks old. At first, the older pup wasn’t so keen on the puppy, but over time they have grown to be best friends
I have 9 dogs — some show, some rescued.
For the most part everyone gets along. They are separated during the day, 4 in one part of the house and 5 in the other. My alphas (front right two in the photo) are clearly alphas and not challenged; although they all have their ‘moments’ where they have had to reinforce their positions.
A few years ago I did have to place one of my rescued dogs who insisted on positioning herself above all the others. Otherwise kind and obedient, she clearly needed to be an only dog OR the alpha. She literally climbed up on the furniture so her head would be higher. She now lives with an elderly retired couple where she rules her own kingdom.
I also have one set of littermates who, together, are the biggest troublemakers and are always separated (not because they fight, but because they play too hard and get out of hand.)
I love these guys.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/australianshepherds/6919060067/
p.s., I do have ample room for these dogs and a ‘dog room’ in my home.
I am SO lucky! I have been doing Sheltie rescue for 30 years, and we have had 4-9 Shelties here at any one time, different dogs coming and going all the time : )
We rarely have had scuffles, and they are short lived. I love bringing a new dog in, my Shelties greet them at the gate, and take them to the back yard to show everything off, the toys and agility stuff, it is like a party each time a new dog comes in!
Young or old, male or female, we have a great time.
I am sure it is the breed being in general gentle and happy, not that I am a great trainer or anything, lol.
I have 2 Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, both puppy mill rescues and both adopted as adults. I adopted them about a year apart. Brody and Layla get along like peanut butter and jelly and have since day one.
Layla is deaf and depends on Brody to be her ears. Brody loves to “mother” Layla and will clean her ears and wake her up to greet me when I come home from work.
I am the luckiest pet parent!
In my house there are two boston terriers. When Fiora had one year old, Fiorella was brought to the family. From the first moment they interacted it was like love at first sight. The best of all is that they are a toy by themselves. So we don’t have to spend to much on toys. The only problem was that they didn’t got along with one bed so we had to buy one bed for each of them. Basically, they love so much that can’t be separated from each other. It is so that every time we talk about them we always mention “Fiora AND Fiorella”. Greetings from Puerto Rico! Love your blog!
I have 2 jack russell terriers. Jack, 5 and Molly, 4. They are best friends…but there is occasionally conflict. Molly is food aggressive and Jack is toy possessive. They have a new baby brother – a human boy Max and they LOVE him. People think I’m strange b/c i allow Jack and Molly to kiss him – but they’ve always been affectionate with us. When Jack was a puppy, i’d let him lick me until he fell asleep at night.
I have a Beagle who is 3 and a Pitbull who will be 3 in October. I got Louie the beagle first when he was about 12 weeks old. I had him for about 5 months before we got Koka the pit. Koka was 7 weeks when I got her. I was a little nervous but they hit it off from the start. I think mostly because Koka was smaller than Louie when she came home. Now Louie can just walk underneath her. They are two peas in a pod. I wish I could post a photo, you all would fall in love. I think they would be lost without each other because that’s all they have ever known. Everyone needs a best friend and pal to share their life with. Dogs are included. I think if you don’t let them have a friend you are cutting their lives to a minimum. They deserve all the love in the world!
We had a year old Havashu name Angus “Gus” who was a good boy but I felt bad about him being alone so much. He was also very fun, and mischievious, and loved to play. A friend who voluntered at a local shelter saw a 3 yo Lhasa Apso come in one day and he looked a lot like our Gus and she sent me a picture on my phone. When he came available for adoption we took Gus to meet him and they hit it off. Everyone at the Shelter even thought they were brothers they looked so much alike. Since day one they have been friends (except for one fight over a treat bone. I don’t give them bones anymore which fixed that). They chase each other, wrestle, and sleep together. They are so adorable and make me smile constantly. Ozzy (the Lhasa) has only been with us since April but it’s already like he’s been with us since puppyhood. To say they are loved madly is an understatement!!