hi guys
as some of you may know i have a 8 1/2 month old cocker who i addore, her training is going really good and after many talks and reading up we have decided to bring on another, i have never had just one dog before and i feel she is missing out. i realise the work involved as we have always had dogs.  but was just wondering on tips when i bring the new one home.  she is not coming for another 4-5 weeks but just want to be ready. like any young dog she is excited (but not too ott) and i do not intend to leave them alone togetther, untill the wee one gets bigger.  however saying that she is perfect with our house rabbit, just sits and watches!!
any tips on introducing them etc etc would be brill. ive read that i should remove all toys fromthe house untill my youngster get used to the pup, just any tips would be great.
thanks

As your existing pup is still so young there's unlikely to be much to concern you as I'm sure she'll be delighted with her new playmate :)  If you are concerned then let them meet just outside the front of your house and walk them in together.  Be cautious with food, toys, treats and affection - the new puppy will need much more of your attention for the sake of house training for example and you won't want your current girl's nose put out of joint.

Personally I think you're greatest concerns will be (a) that they don't over bond with one another to the exclusion of your good self and (b) that as they mature, two same sex, same breed and such similar age groups could result in problems when they've matured (bitches can be *iffy*!) - but it's a judgement call.  As you say you have had more than one canine companion at a time before, I presume you already know the benefits but (no offence intended) you may not know the pitfalls of having two so similar in age.

Good luck anyway,
regards Teri :)  

im not worried about the toys or food thing, she is a happy dog and gets on brilliant with other dogs, even in our home, she like to share her toys and bed!! little hussy! re the bonding thing ive read up that they shouldnt share the same bed esp when we are not there as this encourages a very very strong bond! we should also spend 3 times more time with the pup bonding that our current dog does! and i do intend to socialise the pup seperate as well as together, i dont want the new one to be timid (as i have seen this many times before!)
i work from home so i have lots of time to spend with them, a bit concerned regarding the aggression once they get older, is this common is there anything i could do to prevent this etc etc, is it more to do with the temperment of my dogs.  never had this prblem before but then again we had a boy and two girls and there was a deffinate leader in the oldest girl!!little grump!!
ahahah my head is buzzing

Hi again Emma,

Pups playing with other pups is a very exciting scenario for them and it is quite difficult to make ourselves more exciting to be around - so it's not really anything to do with them sleeping together ;)

You have the right idea about ensuring the new pup is socialised separately as otherwise it may become dependent on the older one being around as a type of security blanket :rolleyes: been there!

As so how they get on as they mature, all dogs are different and neither read the books nor internet fora :D  Bitches can be extremely vicious with other bitches which they share the same space with.  That said, I've never had bitch to bitch problems in my own pack but know of several who have been less fortunate which results in one of them needing to be rehomed and some hefty vet fees :(

I'm not trying to scare you - as I said personally I've not had to put up with this situation but it is a more likely problem with similarly aged bitches than with males (who are all mouth and trousers usually :P )

HTH, Teri

  

Hi emmebear - I would say a good thing to try to do is to make sure you have an individual, one-to-one training session with each one, every day.  (Preferably several short sessions every day, with each dog.)  During this time you can put the other dog in a crate or shut it in another room.  Sometimes, if you shut them in a crate and work the other dog, the one in the crate will bark from frustration - but this can actually be useful because when the dog comes out of the crate it is often much more eager to work and focus, having seen the other dog just get all that attention when working.  Jealousy can be a useful thing sometimes!  You would need to ignore the barking dog in the crate though - eventually they will just watch each other silently.

It is also a good idea for them not to sleep together, since you need to help them to be as independent as possible.  If they spend every moment together, it will be harder when you need to take one to the vet or take one out without the other - they will come to rely on each other to a greater degree.

But I agree that sleeping together is only a small part of it - the hardest if not impossible thing is going to be to make sure they don't play too much together.  Every moment they are playing together, they are bonding with each other and not you, and they are learning how much fun other canine company is, and how boring human company is by comparison. 

so the things ive read up on ermoving the toys does have some meaning, getting more involved with play and bringing out toys etc etc.. would have a possitive effect.  and  just try and insure that the new pup is bonded with the humans in the house.. by say taking her out to the garden and playing and simple things like that.

also while all this doing things seperately is happening.. it cant go on forever (as people live with more than one dog in their home..their are peole in here with like 9 dogs 20 cats ;0) etc etc..you get the idea!)
sorry my head is away so much stuff to think about today, dunno if im making much sence anymore!!

Well, I wouldn't remove all their toys, because puppies need things they can chew or they'll chew things you don't want them to.

However, it would be good for you to have "special" toys which they can only play with when they're with you, and not with each other.  So - let them have some toys to play with themselves, but keep some favourite ones back to play with, with them.

Definitely try to get involved with play - tuggy is a good one for that.  The most important bonding process you can have is training, though - with treats or toys as rewards when they do something right. 

Yes, people do live with more than one dog in the house - but the vast majority of people wait till a dog is out of puppyhood before getting another, which you're not doing.  Because of that you are going to need to put more effort in and do things a bit differently than someone with dogs which have a greater age difference.  In addition, some breeds of dogs are less of a handful than others (in general), and I'm sure you know that cockers can be a real handful!

Hello 1-2-3

Sorry for hijacking the thread, but out of interest, which breed is known to be less a handful?  My springer is certainly a handful or two!

Bagpipe

LOL, I think the amount of "handfulness" is directly related to how high energy the breed are.  The more energy they have, the more channelling that energy needs.  If you don't channel it, they will, and it might not be directed at the things you want it to be directed at!!  So breeds which are lower energy are probably less of a handful.  I wouldn't count any of the spaniel breeds as low energy though!

im so thankful for all the comments, giving me lots of things to think about.
think im gonna look so much older once emme and the new one "mature!!" then again dont think spaniels ever do, still never found a calm one!!
thanks

"ive read that i should remove all toys fromthe house untill my youngster get used to the pup"

Well that will make the older dog a whole lot happier won't it!:rolleyes:

Seriously there should be no need to remove toys unless the resident cocker has resource guarding issues.

The best advice I can give when introducing a new dog is that the older dog gets moreattention after the arrival of the new dog and not less.  Also that his routine is not changed so that there is no reason for him to be resentful.   Taking his toys away would be a very good reason to resent the newcomer.

Wendy