when to get a puppy?

Question

We have a 10 year old Labrador x kelpie.
He is getting slow and bad joints. Is it best to get a new puppy now or wait till he has passed?
Is it true that 'overlapping' them will help the pup to train and maybe take his new energy out on the other dog instead of the garden!!!! Just wondering as our dog that we have now ripped everything to pieces for 2 years but then turned into the perfect family dog.

Answer 1

Hi it's a difficult question as there are fors & againsts on this one...Your older dog will help to train the younger one with some things however he will not be wanting to play much if he hurts & this is the problem...If you get a pretty laidback sort of puppy then all should work out ok...Always good to have anoter dog when one passes over to help you thru the loss...I guess you have to choose carefully a new puppy & make sure that it doesn't make a pest of itself with the older dog...Regards Jake
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PetsSecondChance

Answer 2

How is your dog with other dogs? Is there someone who has a young pup that can come and visit to see if it is more of an annoyance or a joy? An older dog will generally train the pup to back off or else just like his mom would do - if you could test run it with a pup, it may be an indicator b/f you become committed. A person took one of the pups from a litter my dog had and he had another dog about 9 years old - they became such good pals and gave a different meaning to her but they did have some battles to mark the ground rules as they do in the wild. A pup will do all the things that your older dog did when he was a puppy - they don't train the pups to follow the house rules only doggie rules - who gets the bone and the bed.

Answer 3

There is alot of merit with the overlapping as it does exactly what you suggested it would do. It also helps YOU in training the puppy for housebreaking and social acceptability.

I would suggest that if your dog is getting sore and stiff to put him on a Glucosimine supplement like Liquid Health Level 5000 for canine/equine. Great stuff as I have seen it bring new health and vitality to older dogs. AND you DON'T need a vet to get it so its very reasonably priced.

Just my opinion and experience

Answer 4

I'd say a lot depends on your dog's physical condition and his personality. Some older dogs welcome a youngster but some don't care for the disruption in their lives. If he already has problems with his joints, this may not be the time to introduce a puppy into your home.

My husband is a retired K9 officer, we ran a rescue for dobermans and german shepherds and I worked as a vet tech. I mention this only so you understand we spent a lot of time around dogs. We had five acres (fenced) and five outside kennels. At any time we usually had anywhere from two to five dogs. None of our dogs were outside dogs, they all shared our home with our family. Usually everything ran smoothly, most of our dogs were raised with other dogs.

Our last female dobe was around 10 when we brought home a new male dobe puppy. I thought it would make it easier for "us" when the time came and we would no longer have her. Unfortunately, we realized our mistake shortly after we introduced the new puppy into our home.

Our female was a loving and loyal companion who always enjoyed the company of our other dogs. However, as she aged she developed arthritis and problems with her rear legs. We did everything possible to make her comfortable. But the puppy was just too much for her.

She spent her remaining year growling at him everytime he approached her. I will never forgive myself for not allowing her to have "her" time alone with us so she could just relax. Although we never allowed our new puppy to "bother" her, (all he wanted to do was play) I believe she was much happier before we introduced him into our home.

I can only tell you our experience, you have to judge for yourself. We have had other older dogs who never seemed to mind the company of our younger dogs. If your dog already has some problems, I'd think twice before I changed his life.

The best of luck to you all.

.

Answer 5

i beleive it is a good idea to get the second dog now if your dog is a good family dog now then he will teach the pup.

Answer 6

you should get it now. you might not know when you dog passes away it could be months, it could be years. my dog was sluggish at ten and dies at 16. so i had a sluggish dog for 6 years so every dog is different. and if you get a dog now, when your dog dies it would be easier to handle.


Take my word for it

Answer 7

i think get a puppy after it passess because the older dog migth feel neglected

Answer 8

If hes that old a new puppy may be to overwhelming for him .

Answer 9

Now s always the best time