i have a labrador dog at 5 years old. and i think that it is time to get a new one.. he is really friendly and okay with having other dogs stay over for a while and i think that if we got a 2nd dog that we wouldn't mind too much, but my parents think that it will make him really upset and not happy and like before. & i dont want to do that to him, but i think that we have enough room for a 2nd dog .
2006-12-11 09:02:24 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Dogs
we got a second dog, mostly for a companion for our first dog and our first (patrick) really doesn't give a rip about our second (george). patrick is happy to just sit in his chair and chew on his toys. george is a constant lap dog wannabe (he's 72 lbs) it just depends on the personality of your dog tho. he'll probably be okay but it will be an adjustment.
2006-12-11 09:10:36 · answer #1 · answered by somebody's a mom!! 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it sounds to me like you want to get another dog so that you can have a puppy again in the house which may not be the right reason since that puppy will then grow up to be a dog later.. if you want another dog have it be to give your dog now a companion.. also when we got our second dog you are supposed to introduce them at an equal spot like in a park so the current dog doesn't get overprotective of his area. Make sure that if you do get a dog, that there is some gate or something so your current dog can chose whether or not it wants to interact with the puppy and also, make sure to give your dog now a lot of extra attention so he doesn't feel abandoned because of the puppy
2006-12-11 09:21:25 · answer #2 · answered by Amy S 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Most of the time with proper introductions and adequate time and attention given to both the old and new dog they will get along BUT whenever adding a new pet to the house you'l have to accept there are chances they never get along and will have to be seperated.
Things to do when adding a new dog... when selecting new pup (hopefully from rescue or humane society but possibly breeder) bring the older dog with you to see if they get along. Just because they don't get along right away doesn't mean they won't and just cause they do doesn't mean they won't change their minds when you get them home..but it helps with introductions if done on neutral ground.
Make sure that each dog has their own things..or opportunity to have their own things..bed, blankie, food bowl, etc. To make sure the old dog doesn't act out or get jealous make sure that the dog doesn't get neglected while you're busy trying to acclimate the new dog and get it trained. give the older dog some special one on one time.
Do not leave the two dogs together unsupervised until you know they do along for the most part.
And in general when selecting the second dog consider getting one that is the opposite sex of the first dog EXCEPTION of course is if your dog shows a predisposition to a certain sex. IE if you have a male get a female etc. My first male dog doesn't care to interact with females (something I learned from lots of time at dog parks and having fostered) so I got a second male.
If you have males it's best to get them fixed to bring down the chance of aggression and marking. My first dog was housebroken but when I added the second male who was a stray and unaltered the new dog started markng which caused my older one to mark in return to re-claim his house. I couldn't get that appointment done by next week fast enough to fix the new dog.
2006-12-11 09:39:38 · answer #3 · answered by smurf 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you do decide to get a second dog, make sure you always pay more attention to the older dog so he knows that he is still number one dog and you haven't replaced him. It is important that the younger dog be submissive to the older dog to keep the older one happy. You might want to consider getting a female so they aren't competing for the dominant position. It really does depend on the dog though, like my dog, he is a jealous dog who gets mad at me if I pay attention to another person over him, so we could never have a second dog.
2006-12-11 09:23:28 · answer #4 · answered by irisheyes47 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Dont get another male dog. This might cause dominance issues that could result in your dog being very un-happy.
I suggest you get a female dog and if you don't want puppies get her spayed.
Even small breed dogs can get aggressive for pack order so I really do feel that it's best you get a female dog.
2006-12-11 09:56:22 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋