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Getting two puppies - brothers

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  • 01-05-2009 2:21pm
    #1
    nc6000
    Registered Users Posts: 3,252 ✭✭✭


    Hi,

    I've been looking at getting a new dog and am now thinking of getting two pups, they are both brothers. Is this a bad idea? Any reason why I shouldn't get two brothers?

    Thanks!


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    #2
    IrishHomer
    Registered Users Posts: 2,960 ✭✭✭IrishHomer


    nc6000 wrote: »
    Hi,

    I've been looking at getting a new dog and am now thinking of getting two pups, they are both brothers. Is this a bad idea? Any reason why I shouldn't get two brothers?

    Thanks!

    I did that few years back and it was a disaster.

    I had lots of experience with dogs prior to getting two brothers but they developed a lot of bad behaviour from each other and they were aggressive and out of control and they even attacked me and my mother together like a wild pack would.

    I rang some dog experts and they told me best thing was to split them apart and find a new home for one. I did that and had no real problems then with the dog i kept.


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    #3
    Rachel 999
    Closed Accounts Posts: 53 ✭✭Rachel 999


    nc6000 wrote: »
    Hi,

    I've been looking at getting a new dog and am now thinking of getting two pups, they are both brothers. Is this a bad idea? Any reason why I shouldn't get two brothers?

    Thanks!
    Q1. Why do want to get a dog. Is it for a companion for yourself.
    Two dogs will be come their own companions and best buddies as pups.
    You will be handy for feeding and cleaning up after us.
    As we will get older and mature we will want to assert and become leaders. What if both of us want to be the leader.
    Can it be done. YES and NO.
    Yes takes a lot of hard work and experience. Ask anyone who is an owner of multiple dogs.
    If you are getting two dogs so they can be company for each other when you are out then it is a bad idea. If you cannot give the time to one dog , to bond, socialise , train and bring out the best in this dog , then you should rethink you reason for getting a dog


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    #4
    nc6000
    Registered Users Posts: 3,252 ✭✭✭nc6000


    Thanks for the replies.

    Our last dog had to be put down after developing cancer so I've been looking for a replacement since. The reason I'm thinking of getting the two brothers is because I'm planning to go and look at two pups over the weekend with a view to taking one of them. I was thinking about taking both as they are gorgeous and I don't really want to split them up.

    They will get loads of attention from the gang here and plenty of exercise too. Our last guy was very very well looked after and walked at least once a day until he became ill.


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    #5
    Rachel 999
    Closed Accounts Posts: 53 ✭✭Rachel 999


    Here is what those puppies would say to you if they could talk human.
    Please split us up, we would rather be single dogs in a loving family getting all the human attention and balanced training in the human world we were born into. As we grow up we will be come jelious of each other. humans will misunderstand our social problems and complicate them even further by intervening with human solutions. Please lets us find two seperate families where we can be the top dog as we will be the only dog.:):):)


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    #6
    Blueprint
    Closed Accounts Posts: 476 ✭✭Blueprint


    Everything I've read about it has discouraged getting two puppies from the same litter, or even two puppies from different litters who are roughly the same age. The reason being that their primary bond will be to each other instead of you, but also that you will have two dogs of the same general staus, so you could have real issues with them fighting to establish the pecking order, especially if they're both the same sex.

    They say that if you have got two dogs of the same age, they should spend something like 23 hours a day with you and only 1 hour with each other while they're young, or they will just ignore you in favour of each other!

    http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=2043


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    #7
    nc6000
    Registered Users Posts: 3,252 ✭✭✭nc6000


    Rachel & Blueprint, thanks for the advice & link to the article.

    I think I'll only go for one of them and may get another pup at a later point if at all.

    Now for the hard part where I've to pick one of the pair to bring home!


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    #8
    Rachel 999
    Closed Accounts Posts: 53 ✭✭Rachel 999


    You are doing the right thing just getting one pup. If you want to get another one wait till you have fully bonded with the first one ( at least a year or more) . However the next problem you will have is to figure out if dog no 1 will welcome a new pup or see it as an intrusion on his terrority. Talk to you in a year or so:):):)


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    #9
    Call me Socket
    Registered Users Posts: 527 ✭✭✭Call me Socket


    I know you've changed your plans nc6000, but just wanted to also say that you are doing the right thing in not getting pups of a similar age. There is a thing called Littermate Syndrome, where the pups become so dependable on each other that they can't handle simple day to day things on their own, like being brought for a walk. Here's a link explaining it better....well worth reading:
    http://www.doglistener.co.uk/choosing/siblings.shtml

    .


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