[Lucy’s mom]

Hi,
I have a 14 month old boxer/Amstaff and am considering getting a second dog. Lucy's crate is kept up against her doggy door and she sleeps in her crate. My question is, if I get a second dog, small puppy, can she go into the same crate at night with access to a closed off yard?
Thank you,

 

[Shell]

Hi,
I have a 14 month old boxer/Amstaff and am considering getting a second dog. Lucy's crate is kept up against her doggy door and she sleeps in her crate. My question is, if I get a second dog, small puppy, can she go into the same crate at night with access to a closed off yard?
Thank you,

Absolutely not. Putting two dogs into a small, enclosed space without room to get away from each other if they have a disagreement is quite dangerous. Even with access to the yard, it is just asking for one dog to start guarding "their" crate and the risk of fights over the space. It also somewhat defeats the purpose of the crate being a den-like safe space for the dog to sleep or nap without being hassled by other dogs/cats/pets or people.

I also do not suggest for a young puppy to have unsupervised access to a yard, especially at night time. (I'm assuming yard means normal fenced grassy area common to US/Canada homes and not something like a walled courtyard). Risk of theft, risk from wild animals like hawks, risk of ingesting something dangerous, and if the weather turns quickly in your area, risk of exposure to heat/cold as puppies cannot handle the temperatures that healthy adult dogs can.

 

[LeoRose]

I agree with Shell. Two dogs in one crate without supervision can be a recipe for disaster. Even two dogs confined in the same room can cause issues, sometimes.

Personally, I'd wait until the first dog is at least two, and then consider getting a puppy. One reason is that at 14 months, your current dog is still very much a puppy herself, and isn't mentally mature yet, and doesn't have her full adult personality. The second reason is that when you have two young dogs close in age, you need to do pretty much everything separately to avoid litter mate syndrome.

 

[MastiffGuy]

Agree with others.

I see entirely to many issues that could happen while no one is around.

 

[AsherLove]

I definitely would not in that situation. And in 90% of situations crating dogs together is a bad idea. I DO crate 2 of my dogs together, but that's only cause my old dog (he was 11 I think when I started) has separation anxiety that was getting a bit worse as he got a bit senile where he would bark and bark when left alone, and having my other dog in with him helps him stay calmer and not over stress. But they are small dogs in a crate that's big enough they can have their own corners if they needs and they are very used to each other and have never had a fight. And my younger one grew up being crated alone so is comfortable crating alone still as well. But there IS always a risk crating together.

 

[3GSD4IPO]

No. Not under any circumstances past being 3 week old puppies.

 

[Lillith]

Agree with others. No, not a good idea. You can place two separate crates near each other, but I wouldn't even do that with two relatively young dogs. Your older pup is probably beyond the stage where she could develop littermate syndrome, but she's still quite young. You don't want the two dogs bonding with each other instead of a human handler.