First time Raising 2 dogs-Share your experiences! I need your advice!

graficoartista31

Anyone out there have any advise on how to continue my SUPER close relationship with my 4 year old male dog while raising a new 11 week old male puppy? I have never done this and I have been trying alot of things, like crate training and treats with my new puppy while maintaining the excitement for my older dog. Anyone have any stories they would like to share about life with a puppy and an adult dog? Stories about crate training, Play behavior, Potty Training, etc. Maybe your stories or experiences will help me to adapt better to this new situation.

Right now our puppy is getting aquainted with his cage while im at home during the day. We go for walks, we play, They are both adapting well. Potty training a puppy with an older dog in the other hand can be tough. Crate training my pup while my other dog roams free is a bit overwhelming. The only way the pup will stay calm is to have the bathroom door closed while he is in the crate. I wish i could keep it open, but it is too upsetting for the pup to see everyone moving around and he can't! Any advise?

Tess&Coco

We have a 15 week old puppy and an 8 year old. If you can arrange to have time alone with the older dog when the pup is asleep, maybe take him out on his own, play special games with him, give him treats that the little one can't have, let him onto your bed or the couch when the other one isn't allowed, then he will get the idea that having a pup around isn't all bad! We still take Tess (old girl) out on her own two or three times a week, and for the first few weeks she always went out without the pup.

I have been very pleasantly surprised at how well the two dogs get on together, to the extent that Coco (baby) would prefer to play with Tess than with us! We have worked out games where they both "fetch" in turn (need a separate item for each, doesn't matter if they swap as long as they are not competing for the same thing at the same time). I also do training sessions with both dogs (although my trainer at puppy class said this would teach Coco to look to Tess as her leader rather than us, thoughts welcome!).

With regards to the crate, dogs don't think in terms of fairness in the way humans do. The dominant members of the pack (you, the older dog) should have more privileges than the youngster, so he will not consider it "unfair" to be crated while the other isn't. This won't stop him protesting to get out though . Just remember NEVER to let him out when he's making an unwanted noise (unless you are very sure he needs to potty).

You say your new boy is 11 weeks. How long have you had him? How long had you had the other one first? What breeds are they or have I missed that on another post? Ours are both lab crosses, so will be in the same order of size.

graficoartista31

We have had our 11 week old male (westie-poodle mix) for a week and a half now. My older one is 5 and is a spaniel lab mix. He was raised around other family dogs (all female) so has had alot of experience with playtime gatherings and what not. This is what persuaded me to get another one. We moved to FL and our older one didnt have any playmates. The older one is still learning how to play with the younger one. He can get a bit rough sometimes. My boyfriend travels so I am home alone (unemployed right now) learning how to love them both, train the new one, and to get used to them playing. I thought I was ready to have a second dog but i think my reasonings of getting the second pup (to be my older dogs friend) is why im having a hard time bonding with thte pup. He is cute, but i really don't need another companion. My older one was perfect for me. So I think as soon as i get a grip, realize that get used to the fact that i have to watch him like a HAWK, then i will be able to acept him. Right now its a huge ajustment for me. I pictured them playing all the time so when i see them only playing for 15 mins and realized im stuck watching this pup the other 5 hours he has out of the cage after work, i got over whelmed. Puppies are ALOT OF WORK! I'm trying to bond with the new pup but I tend to feel guilty when I play with the new pup and see my older one keeping distance. I'm not used to that nore did i picture that being this way. (You always think you know how it will be and when its not like that, its upsetting) I know my older one loves me cause when the pup is on the other side of the room, my older one comes by me for affection, but the second the pup comes running (only when my older one has had enough of the little one) my older one leaves. this is all new to me and I hope in time i will view the pup as one of mine and not just a dog im babysitting. they are both adorable though...

Tess&Coco

It will still be a huge adjustment for all of you, not just your older dog. (BTW, spaniel-lab mix sounds lovely, have you got any piccies??) It will take time for you all to get used to one another, and of course with a puppy, they change so much and so quickly, the dynamic of how they are together and the demands the baby places on you (all) will change over time too. There is a big size difference between them so some extra vigilence when they play may be required so that your older dog doesn't accidentally hurt the younger one. Be prepared too (if it hasn't happened already) for the older one to growl and even snap at the pup. This is perfectly normal and a necessary part of them finding their pecking order. Tess was very distressed by the puppy in the early days (and like you I went through feelings of guilt and "what have I done, we had a perfectly nice dog and I've gone and spoiled things"). After a few days when Tess learned that she could get this boisterous nuisance of a pup to roll on her back by growling she started to relax, and they quickly became best of friends. I hope yours settle down soon and you start to enjoy them more. It's OK to give affection to one or both dogs as you feel like it. They might act "jealous" but normal pack dynamic would be for there to be a number of dogs that get affection from the alpha (you) in turn according to their position - dominant dogs first. It sounds like you have had a number of big upheavals to deal with - big house move and new doggy. Good luck.

graficoartista31

O my gosh. Thank you so much for your comforting words. I was begining to think I was the only person who felt WIERD after buying another dog. Everyone seems to not have the anxiety I do. This made me think it was a bad decision since i felt those who buy a second dog WANT IT FOR THEM and i was the odd one who bought it for my older dog. But if its common to feel wierd or that your "Babysitting a foreign dog" then I am sure i'll learn to get used to the pup just fine. I have a question though...Is it ok to take a breather from the pup between his play time of 6-11? He has been in the cage all night and all during the day and I feel terrible if i need to put him in there during the evening. Is this ok? Sometimes i have to run an errond or just need a break to do some laundry and I feel so guilty puting him in his crate since he spends most of the day and all night in there.

Here are some pics...


Davinci
http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i2...IMG_4084-1.jpg


Einstein
http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i2...3/PB300398.jpg

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CrzyBritNAmerica

Oh they're so cute!!! What lovely dogs!!! I bet it's so nice to be able to be home with them all day! I would LOVE to be home with Bridgette every day, but I have to work at the moment! Ugh! lol. If I didn't have to I would certainly want to introduce a new dog to our family too! Congrats!!

Tess&Coco

Your dogs are gorgeous! I particularly like Einstein (nothing against smaller dogs, I just always gravitate towards lab types, and especially black lab types like Tessy). Great names too!

As for crating Davinci in the evening, as long as he's not in there for hours on end after being in there during the day I don't think it's a problem. It won't be forever, just while he's learning how to live in a house and not misbehave. I'm very slightly confused (and please don't take this as any sort of criticism) that you seem to be at home but still crate him "most of the day". Are you not able to watch him out of the crate for some periods, or tether him to you as someone else has suggested? Just thought that might be a compromise that would enable you to get on with your stuff and still keep him out of mischief in the house when he's not in the crate.

As for your relationship with the puppy, I'm sure once you see Einstein start to enjoy the pup's company you will feel much better about it. You clearly care very much for your pets or you wouldn't have thought to get a companion for Einstein. As a matter of interest, what does he do during the day when the puppy is crated?

graficoartista31

the reason i crate the pup during the day is so he gets used to being in it for those hours of the day. I plan to go back to work and still do work from home from time to time and can't watch him. I want him acustomed to those 4 hour increments as if i worked so when I go back, he is already used to it. I don't want it to be sticker shock to him when, if he has been with me for a month outside the crate, to back step our potty training technique when he has to be in the crate for that amount of time other then the nighttime. I could be wrong by doing this but it seems to be fine. I try to have him on a shedule and weekends seem to be different. Do i still wake up at 6am to feed him? or do i get up when I normally do at 10-11am and feed him then? I dont want his schedule to be messed up nore do I want a dog who wakes me at 6am to potty when he is older. Our older dog never had a schedule when he was a puppy and he is a very good dog. I guess my b/f just put him on his schedule on the week days and then a new schedule on the weekend. He holds it until we wake up now, and he feeds himself when he is hungry. Am I raising an alarmclock if i get up at 6am on the weekends too or is this just a smart puppy training thing and for me to stick to a schedule till he can hold it? I want him to be able to hold it and know I'll let him out even if our schedule shifts a bit. Let me know how i can do this...

Tess&Coco

Well, I would think that the difference between a 6am start on weekdays and a 10am start on weekends is too much. We have been getting up at the same time on weekends with Coco, and I anticipate gradually pushing the time back (at small incrememnts of 10-15 minutes each time, presuming that you are not encoutering "accidents" in the crate) so that eventually you have two adult dogs who will let you have a lie-in. I wouldn't think it's fair to ask my pup to "hold on" for an extra few hours just so I could lie in! Remember that what happens now when your pup is only 3 months old need not be the routine for the rest of his life! Your puppy will need to relieve himself sooner now than he will when he's grown. Like you we didn't have our older dog in a particular routine - she can adjust to a routine within a framework of wake up, out for wee, breakfast, snooze/play/activity for the whole day, big walk when I get in from work, supper, more snooze/play, out for wee, bedtime. At the weekend her big walk is bigger and also earlier in the day, and it doesn't seem to bother her - she nearly always uses the walk as the trigger to poop although she will in the garden occasionally too. Coco's routine is much more rigid and predictable. This is deliberate as it allows us to predict when she will be asleep so we can go out/do chores during those times as far as possible. Of course there is some variation from day to day, but it's not a whole new routine for the weekend.

graficoartista31

Thank you so much for your response. This morning I woke up with anxiety because I felt i was doing my dog an injustice by having him in the crate during the week day even while I was home but then thought, "This is how it will be when I go back to work so mine as well start him off right". The only think im not sure of doing is how to handle the weekends. Should he be in the crate the same times as the weekdays? or should he be able to roam free as long as I take him out the same times i would during the week plus any potty times in between as necessary? Would the extra potty times inbetween the usual 6am-6:30, 12:15-12:45, and 6:00 (anytime after 6 is ever hour so there would be no difference) throw his "Hold it" training back when he is in the crate? We would end up needing to crate him at different times too, if we leave during the day so will that be hard for the pup on a schedule thinking "Man, im not sapose to be in here now!" Or will 2 days out of 7 not throw him to much? He needs to go every hour right now while he is out of the crate due to stimilous of playing with my pup.

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