I know its a bit soon to ask this but how long would you wait .Douglas is 5 months old now and I dont know When the best time would be.I did think maybe next year some time but not sure.How long did you all wait? :0

Should I have the same breed?...Should I have another male or female?.(no intentions of Breeding, but would be interested in showing.)

do you think one is better than two , or two better than one?
help please ( need some time to talk hubby into it):)

I had a similar dilemma, hubby wanted a second dog for ages but I knew I would be the one doing most of the work so I resisted as long as I could - almost six years in all !! So we now have a 6 year old and a 10 month old of the same breed and sex. In hindsight I think we should have got Buddy when Teejay was about two. They get on very well but Buddy wants to do a lot more playing than Teejay, who prefers to snooze his way through the day !
You also have to adapt to sharing your time and attention between the two. I think this is what I found the hardest.
Good luck, whatever you decide. :)
Joyce

Hi Chrissie,

We're also looking to get another puppy next year, we've shortlisted the breed down to 4 :D, and we've been given loads of advice about whether we should get another puppy or not.

We're going to be getting a bitch - I don't like boys 'bits', so we're not able to get the Malamute that Chris wants :( We're also going to be getting something with a thick coat, similar to Holly so that she'll be okay in the harsh Winnipeg winter.

I was once told that you shouldn't consider getting a 2nd puppy, if you're new to 2 dog ownership, until your first dog is under near perfect control in the house and whilst out on a walk. If your original dog is a handful in the house then you'll just end up with 2 crazy misbehaved dogs :D :D :D

Holly will be about 16mths when we get our puppy, assuming we do get one next year, and we're confident that we'll have gotten on top of our one remaining problem with her by then - barking at the neighbours cat!!

We've also considered the childrens ages - Issy will be walking everywhere by next Easter and starts at playgroup then as well so Jonathon and I will have all morning to walk the dogs as Eloise starts full time school in the new year.

Good luck in what ever you decide to do :)

Fiona
x x x

If he still longs for a mal, how about getting a smaller Spitz breed? Elkhounds are similar to look at though squarer, Keeshonds are smaller again, but with a bigger coat (a Mals coat is somewhere between the two) both these breeds are always grey, though shade varies. Both breeds get on well with other canines of both sexes.

If he is after diferent colurs, I would recomend a Finish Laphynd as a breed that would get ohn well with Holly. the most common colour seems to be Tricolour like a Bernes mountain dog!

It is recommended to leave about 12-18 months at least between dogs. I picked up my new pup on my other cockers 10th birthday but I'm already looking forward to late next year when I plan on getting another one. I feel the age gap between the two at the moment is too big so I would like a playmate for the youngest one. Would get another one tomorrow but am not even contemplating it until the youngest one is fully trained and has gone through his rebellious stage.

Hi Chrissy

Glad to hear that having Douglas has made you want to get another Cocker :D :D I wish I was getting another one but our next dog is going to be a Basset Hound as the other half is having his pick this time :D :D

I would suggest leaving at least 16-24 months before getting your next puppy especially with a young family. You need to make sure that Douglas is trained before bringing in another puppy as the new puppy is sure to pick up on all Douglas' bad points :)

With my three Sebastian has just turned 5; Bart is 3 and Douglas is 10 months, so we have a nice age gap between them which seems to have worked perfectly for us.

Not sure if the Basset will come next year all the year after really, I want to enjoy Douglas, taking him to training etc and doing his Good Citizen Awards before we get the next member of the family.

Best wishes

Dessie, Sebbie, Bart & Douglas :D :D

Hi I have a bitch of 1yr 7months and a 6 month old dog puppy and I am getting another bitch pup next week. I usually wait about a year before I introduce new pups, but I wanted the breeding of this bitch, its also a surprise present for my 10 year old granddaughter, who is doing so well showing my bitch, but the pup will be living with me and both of us with take the dogs to training classes.

I would wait until he is at least two years old, and get another boy, who will accept him as big brother to be hero worshipped.

A bitch would be just as nice, but then you would have to think about neutering one of them.

At five months he still has a long way to go in mental development, and the worst in this respect is yet to come"!! To get the best training results you need to be able to concentrate on him for two years without the distraction of another puppy.

If you are patient and wait this length of time, you will have a great ally in bringing up your next puppy.

Thank everyone for the advice.Yep I think we`ll re think when Douglas is fully trained ( a fair way to go then) :)
Thanks again Chrissy xx