Would You....

[maggymills]

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hi there- ive planned to get a pup in new year- whippet boy. but after thinking over it- im considering getting a girl too to keep each other company- as lots of people say that whippets love company.

i also think that getting 2 would be lovely to raise together and watch grow with each other, i know its twice the training, vets bills & food but i work at vets and would get help with that side of things if i needed it!?

What do you all think of this?

some behaviourists say that its a bad thing to do as the pups bond with each other and not you, but i dont get that idea!

magz :huggles:

 

[*Lesley*]

Do you mean from the same litter maggy? if so I have 2 litter sisters and wouldn't change it for the world, they do a lot together but it has never stopped them wanting to be cuddled by us or not bonding with us, I don't have any experience of puppies from different litters but I don't see why it would be a problem someone on here probably would be better informed on that. :thumbsup:

Good luck what ever you decide :luck: :luck:

 

[Sprout]

What don't you get about that idea? (the two pups bonding with eachother rather than with you)

 

[maggymills]

i'd be getting 2 from same litter.

and i dont get how behaviourists think the pups wouldnt see me as their leader? i think they still would as i would be the one feeding them and providing for them..

 

[Paula Roberts]

i know quite a few people that have had two pups from the same litter and never had any trouble with them.

 

[*Lesley*]

i'd be getting 2 from same litter. and i dont get how behaviourists think the pups wouldnt see me as their leader? i think they still would as i would be the one feeding them and providing for them..

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Even if you only get one it might not see you as it's leader :lol: you will be fine with 2 I'm sure :thumbsup:

 

[Sprout]

I think its because the pups would spend sooooo much of their time together and also that given a choice, most animals would bond primarily with their own kind.

Personally, I would not get two pups at the same time (from the same litter or from different litters). It takes SO much hard work to bring one puppy up that it wouldn't be possible for me to do it with two together. I would have to split them up for one to one training and would spend so many hours of my day between the two of them that nothing else would ever get done.

One at a time for me (preferably with a good few years inbetween) :lol:

 

[Max&Smokey]

Maggy,

I know weve PM'ed but after reading this post, one point to note is having a girl and a boy does bring its own challenges, this is why Ive always stuck to same sex couples (dogs that is).

oh and another!

You will hear / read lots of problems with dogs that people attribute to anything but their lack of skills as an owner. If you take the time to play with your puppies and understand their behaviour you really wont have any problems having two.

There is a dog program on sky where you will see problem dogs and how they 'fix' them by retraining the owners, it is quite enlightening!.

 

[Cerito]

I think its because the pups would spend sooooo much of their time together and also that given a choice, most animals would bond primarily with their own kind.
Personally, I would not get two pups at the same time (from the same litter or from different litters).  It takes SO much hard work to bring one puppy up that it wouldn't be possible for me to do it with two together.  I would have to split them up for one to one training and would spend so many hours of my day between the two of them that nothing else would ever get done.

One at a time for me (preferably with a good few years inbetween)  :lol:

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Hello Sprout

Do I get the right impression then that the cute Duffy is very hard work at the moment?! The thought of two Duffy's is obviously too much!

Cerito

 

[maggymills]

Maggy,
I know weve PM'ed but after reading this post, one point to note is having a girl and a boy does bring its own challenges, this is why Ive always stuck to same sex couples (dogs that is).

oh and another!

You will hear / read lots of problems with dogs that people attribute to anything but their lack of skills as an owner.  If you take the time to play with your puppies and understand their behaviour you really wont have any problems having two.

There is a dog program on sky where you will see problem dogs and how they 'fix' them by retraining the owners, it is quite enlightening!.

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yes i know what you mean, i originally wanted 2 dogs-

but again, the behaviourists reckon that is a bad idea- saying they will compete against each other , and more likely to misbehave together.

apparently getting opposite sexes will balance each other out- boy can be top dog, girl can be top female-

maybe these behaviourists know too much, if you see what im saying! :blink:

 

[Sprout]

I think its because the pups would spend sooooo much of their time together and also that given a choice, most animals would bond primarily with their own kind.
Personally, I would not get two pups at the same time (from the same litter or from different litters).  It takes SO much hard work to bring one puppy up that it wouldn't be possible for me to do it with two together.  I would have to split them up for one to one training and would spend so many hours of my day between the two of them that nothing else would ever get done.

One at a time for me (preferably with a good few years inbetween)  :lol:

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Hello Sprout

Do I get the right impression then that the cute Duffy is very hard work at the moment?! The thought of two Duffy's is obviously too much!

Cerito

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The mere thought of two Duffy's could well tip me over the edge :wacko: :lol:

But seriously, Duffy is not the first puppy I've had (he's the 6th) and I can honestly say that for me, two puppies would not be a prospect that I would relish. I do know people who have had two - and everyone's been very happy but I also know a lot more (having spent 6 years in rescue) where two were a bloody nightmare and one ended up being rehomed a number of months down the line. I'm certainly not against multi dog households (hardly!!) but - and again this is just my personal view - it's hard enough to train one puppy and have it end up as a lovely well rounded adult so to try to train two pups together is a very difficult project.

 

[bappit]

I've never had two of the same age, or that many pups come to think of it, usually have taken on 'rescues'. Know people who have taken on two at once (more in a couple of cases :blink: ) and it seems to work out fine, pro's and cons I guess, depends on how much time you do have to train them individually, and what level of training your aiming at. Then again if you are struggling for time they have a constant companion on the same sort of wavelength, and I guess will be in competition for your attention and praise when you are around. I know the breeder of my bitch kept two bitches from the litter and they are very much a 'team' while also observing their position in the pack structure of humans and other animals they live with with no problems.

Good luck whatever you decide sure it'll be great fun :lol:

 

[therpan]

I kept 3 dogs from my last litter, I have no problems with them. They are all well trained :thumbsup: and also entire. I am keeping 2 puppies from the litter I have at the moment a dog and a bitch. I see no problem in having puppies of the same age.

 

[wild whippies]

Same here I kept 3, it's a big commitment initially and each pup bonded with a different family member due to their different personalities. Overall as adults I'm the head to them mainly due to the fact they are fed and taken racing and walking by me. I do think individual time is very important and also the dogs personalities is a major issue too. But if your that commited you can achieve it.

Wishing you the best of luck whatever you decide :luck:

Jac

 

[maggymills]

thanks for all your replies :thumbsup:

therpan you must have a huge pack to look after!

with the training- i will have 4 whole days each week when i can just spend with the dogs, training each one individually. and bonding separately. on the other 3 days my partner will be with them- he wont be training (maybe the basics) but he will just use that time to bond too.

i'd hate to get in the situation of where the pups will only see me as the head- ignoring OH! :lol:

now its just decision whether i get 2 boys/ 2 girls or 1 boy&1girl!? :- "

suggestions?......

magz

 

[*Lesley*]

thanks for all your replies  :thumbsup:
therpan you must have a huge pack to look after!

with the training- i will have 4 whole days each week when i can just spend with the dogs, training each one individually. and bonding separately. on the other 3 days my partner will be with them- he wont be training (maybe the basics) but he will just use that time to bond too.

i'd hate to get in the situation of where the pups will only see me as the head- ignoring OH!  :lol:

now its just decision whether i get 2 boys/ 2 girls or 1 boy&1girl!?    :- "

suggestions?......

magz

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I don't think your OH will have a problem, I feed mine and spend the most time with them while OH is at work but they still see my OH as pack leader, :blink: I think that is the same in a lot households, it's the voice IMO.

I never intended on getting 2 together it just happened that way but with the training thing I have found it depends how far you want to go with it mine will sit when I ask them to and do as they are told (when they are not throwing a deaf un)come back to recall but I have never spent hours training them they learn a lot together, they quickly learn if one is getting a treat for sitting then if they do it they'll get one too :thumbsup:

I have all girls so I would recommend that, I dont know about boys really and has Max said having different sexes does give one obvious challenge when they are bigger, it can be hard work having 2 puppies at once especially when they are being little :devil: but it is also twice the fun :thumbsup:

 

[masta]

thanks for all your replies  :thumbsup:
therpan you must have a huge pack to look after!

with the training- i will have 4 whole days each week when i can just spend with the dogs, training each one individually. and bonding separately. on the other 3 days my partner will be with them- he wont be training (maybe the basics) but he will just use that time to bond too.

i'd hate to get in the situation of where the pups will only see me as the head- ignoring OH!  :lol:

now its just decision whether i get 2 boys/ 2 girls or 1 boy&1girl!?    :- "

suggestions?......

magz

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Ive never met or owned a dog that has'nt bonded? 20 years ago the word didnt excist.

If you are going for 2 its best to have same sex

 

[beaker]

thanks for all your replies   :thumbsup:
therpan you must have a huge pack to look after!

with the training- i will have 4 whole days each week when i can just spend with the dogs, training each one individually. and bonding separately. on the other 3 days my partner will be with them- he wont be training (maybe the basics) but he will just use that time to bond too.

i'd hate to get in the situation of where the pups will only see me as the head- ignoring OH!  :lol:

now its just decision whether i get 2 boys/ 2 girls or 1 boy&1girl!?    :- "

suggestions?......

magz

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Ive never met or owned a dog that has'nt bonded? 20 years ago the word didnt excist.

If you are going for 2 its best to have same sex

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i'd also recommend getting two of the same sex, i've got boys and they get along fine with each other, if you got one of each the simple brother/ sister bond they have as pups changes when they mature, even if neutered. it can be a real pain having an upset dog in the house when a girl comes into season.

best of luck with whatever you decide :luck: :thumbsup:

 

[~Helen~]

My OH had two cats (brother and sister) and he always said they were much closer to each other than to their humans (dogs may be different, though) and I must say that having Josie and now getting Lola, I can see what people mean about the bonding. Lola looks upon Josie as her "special person" whereas Josie has always looked on me as her special person... so I think there is a difference, but it wouldn't stop me from having two together, although I think it must be quite hard work. The good thing about having an age gap is that Josie is nicely trained, and so Lola is following/copying her. In fact, I haven't had to teach Lola to sit because she has just copied Josie and it's "clicked".

Looking forward to seeing your puppy pics soon :luck: :huggles:

edited to add this link which might be helpful on the dogs/bitches dilemma :thumbsup: FAQ keeping dogs and bitches together...

 

[dessie]

When I bred the Cockers I never ever kept two from a litter, I might have run two on for a few weeks but always sold whichever one I decided against so I retained the same policy with the Whippets until I had the litter that Angel came from and then I kept her and a dog (who I did subsequently re-home but not until he was much older and because he was not a 'pack' dog). They were no problem together but I also 'bought-in' a bitch puppy who was sired by one of my dogs and she was only a week older than Jamie and Angel. She had no issues with Jamie but I found that both she and Angel either had to go anywhere together or stay at home together. Although I didn't have any actual fights they would square up to one another. It wasn't until Ciara went to live with a friend that I found it was her that was the dominant problem one! Angel became a different person.

I then kept a dog and a bitch from Angel's first litter (Rupert & Aimee) and have no problems with them. They are close to each other, their mother, Bertha (their half-sister) and me plus get on with the other dogs.

From Angel's 2nd litter I ran on two bitch puppies and although they were quite close, one was very in your face and up for anything and the other was quite a shrinking violet. At they grew older I was getting a lot of squabbles between them so I felt I had to make a decision and keep only one. I let the 'up for anything' one go and the other one blossomed into Bertha!!

She and Aimee are fine except around season times (none of mine come in together) when Bertha tries to push her luck but most of the time Aimee just ignores her or they have bristling/staring/swearing matches into which I intervene and they just back down and go off and do something else.

So I think my verdict would be that I would keep a dog and a bitch of the same age/litter or possibly two dogs but not two bitches.