From 2 to 3

Allgäuerin

Hi, i need your advice. I have fallen in love with a dog yesterday in the pound but i'm unsure what to do as we have allready 2 wonderful dogs and i dont know if it would be a good thing or a bad thing for all of us adding a new family member. Is it a big diffrent when u have 3 dogs as instead 2??? Thank you all fou your replies

TooManyDogs

How many people are in your house? We found going from 2 to 3 hard because it was just me and hubby, and it seemed like there was always a dog left out. So we had to be conscious to include everyone equally. It can be more awkward to find someone (as in friends or relatives) to mind 3 dogs too so cost might go up if you've to hire professionals.

Having said that, I'm now up to 6 so don't let it stop you!

Allgäuerin

it's only my bf and me. I have to add that we have two small dogs and the dog from the pound would be a small dog (same breed) too.

excaliburhc

with my cats same as 2nd poster found going from 2 to 3 tough - as stated difficult to find time for all 3 , you dont want to be showing favourites and you dont want to upset them but still , wouldnt give them up for anything now .

Kattra

Oh, a kindred spirit! I just returned from my trip to the Cork City pound...expected to look for maybe (just maybe..:rolleyes:) one older dog. Might be that on Wednesday i`ll get two. ^^

Whether three dogs are a lot more work than your previous two is mainly due to the dogs themselves. Did you have your two with you at the pound? Could the two meet with the new candidate? Did they show any sign of jealousy when you engaged the new one? This would be the most basic stuff.
Other than that it`s up to you if you manage the little extra. Just make sure every dog gets his one-to-one time, that you have a holiday accommodation for the bunch and (if you live in a rented property) your landlord is ok with yet one more doggie.

Btw: Please excuse the spelling mistakes, I`m not a native speaker and still struggle with the subtleties.

Discodog

Well I live on my own & I went from two dogs to three. I don't regret it one bit & it wasn't planned. My new guy has been a breath of fresh air. He instantly bonded with my Greyhound & they play wonderfully together. The secret is how you treat any addition. I am pretty laid back & my dogs reflect my character.

theghost

I'd think seriously about the cost - vet's bills, kennel fees, feeding, insurance. I went from 2 dogs to 3 a couple of years ago and the bills do mount up. I'm back to 2 dogs now - my beloved Elder Lemon died 3 weeks ago of old age - and I don't think from a financial point of view I'd have 3 at one time again.

Inexile

We went from 2 to 3 to 4 and as I foster sometimes we go to 5 and occasionally 6.

I think alot will depend on the nature and level of training of your own own two dogs. Are they well trained, good recall etc.

My first two, litter mates, have a reasonable level of training and are quite calm. My 3rd dog has no recall and neither does my 4tg. Yes I know my fault not the dogs. It just means that when we go for walks I can only let two off so quite often my OH takes some of the dogs and I take the rest. If we all gotogether and the 2 are off it can excite those still on the lead and makes the walk a bit of a pain.

Also obviously the cost goes up - feeding, insurance, vet bills, dog licences, kenneling etc. My 3rd dog has cost me about €1,000 in vet bills which are not covered by her insurance.

its a good idea to introduce your own dogs to the possible new addition and see how they react.

Good luck.

Allgäuerin

Thank you all for your replies. I will head off to the pound on sunday with my two dogs and see if he is still there. If so i will bring them together for a walk and IF everything goes fine i will hand in my adoption form (allready filled out )