Considering a second sheltie!

NSLady

NSLady

Forums Novice
Hi,

We have a four month old sheltie who is the first dog that we have ever had. We brought her home when she was eight weeks old, and, with frequent walks in the dog park, puppy socialization classes and some doggie daycare, she really is a very socialized puppy with both people and other dogs. She loves everyone and has a very outgoing personality and is very confident.

Now, we want a second Sheltie! We met a beautiful six month old sheltie yesterday. Her story is that the breeder had intended to keep her as a show dog, but she is oversized, so is now selling her. She has been raised in a home with other Shelties. The breeders are wonderful and kind people who are incredibly knowledgeable about Shelties. No doubt in my mind that this puppy has been raised with a lot of love in an ideal home environment.

Here is my question: when we met her, she didn't really warm up to us. She did warm up to our four month old puppy though. I know that it is a sheltie trait to be shy around strangers. My gut tells me that when she gets into our home she will bond with us, and I sense that the two puppies' personalities will complement eachother....(ie, as well socialized as my four month old is, we are still working on a few manners such as jumping on people when they enter the house as she loves to greet them. She is an attention seeker; we are also still working on crate training. The six month old has good manners and is not all over people when they come in the house and is perfectly crate trained.)

My gut tells me that the new sheltie will warm up to us when she gets into our home and that these two puppy personalities will complement eachother, but would love any thoughts that you have, or experiences with adopting a six month old puppy?

Thanks,
 
It sounds like it could be a good match, but I do want to caution you against a few things.

I would never recommend that you get a dog expecting that second dog to fix the first dog's problems (not that you are suggesting that, just something to think about). There is a chance that the shyer dog could teach the more outgoing dog to be more wary, or it could be vice versa. Just be aware that they can learn good AND bad behaviors from one another.

Also, in the situation that you're describing I think it will be very important to spend a lot of one on one time with both dogs. It's very easy for dogs to bond more closely to other dogs than their humans, and that makes any kind of training really difficult. Your new dog may easily bond with your first dog, but you may have to work hard at your relationship, and sometimes that means crating your first dog and working with the new pup.

And my third concern would be that raising two puppies can be frustrating. Not that it's impossible (many people have done it, and have done it successfully) but it's just harder, that's all. Again, it's so important to spend time with each dog individually.

Not to be a negative nelly as a new puppy can be so much fun. Now that I have two dogs I will likely never have just one again (if I can help it) as I love to watch them run and play together. I just wanted to point out some of the frustrations you might come across.

Good luck, and let us know what you decide!
 
Well -as far as "warming up to you", it has been my experience that some Shelties (our Joy in particular) can be a little "standoffish" until they get to know you. You might not have seen this in your pup because he was with you from day one (as it were).

I wouldn't worry about that aspect of it.
Go for it -Shelties love company!

scott
 
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Shelties usually take a while to bond. Annie Laurie had been neglected and was terrified of men. After a week or so, she fell madly in love with my DH -- a love that is destined to stand beside Romeo and Juliet, Heloise and Abelard...(Rolling eyes here, but honestly, you should see them. :rolleyes2:)

We have four. We are thrilled with everyone -- go for it!!!!
 
Very similar situation for us when we were getting Asta. She and her whole litter were not interested in us at all when we met her at 10 weeks old. I was so concerned that I told the breeder I wasn't sure she was for us, although beautifully bred from a responsible breeder. This was a life-long commitment for us, I explained, and it had to be right.

The litter had been raised by a co-owner and that lady had been so terrified of the puppies getting sick that she kept them in the laundry rooom for 8 weeks. They just had no real experience with people. So she did a little "isloation therapy". After we left she put Asta in a pen on her own for two hours, and when she went back to get her, she said Asta practically leapt into her arms.

She told me, within 2 - 3 days at our house she would be absolutely fine. So we took a chance. Wow, within 24 hours she knew her name and had totally bonded with us. Shelties are just so sensitive and often shy. They just take time. When I meet a new Sheltie out on the town, they often aren't too keen on letting me pet them, but I know not to take it personally! :lol:

I would take all of corbinam's suggestions to heart, though. Two young dogs could well bond more with each other than you, so you will have to work with them individually to build that relationship with you.

We would never be without (at least) two Shelties now.
 
I have one more aspect to consider, having gone through it myself. It's not fun to have dogs that close in age when they get old. I lost 5 dogs in 2 years. It was terrible. Even my vet said they didn't want to see me for awhile. It seemed I was just getting over the loss of one when another would start the downhill slope.
Currently I live with 2 dogs that turn 11 this year. When I bought the second dog as an adult, it wasn't computing in my brain that she was the same age as my Terv. I am now watching them become older dogs and realizing that I may have to go through the experience all over again.
 
I say go with your gut. Yes, you'll have double to puppy issues, but you guys sound like you're on the ball so I think it's worth a shot. We are on our second trio of Shelties and as I write this note I'm smiling because two of them are laying on the sofa touching each other and the other is laying by my husband.

We also lost our first three one year apart (two at age 14 and one at age 12). It was difficult to say goodbye to them, but they are waiting for us on the other side as with our current three at some point. That's why we try to live in the moment and enjoy their antics every day.

Good luck!
 
Thank you, everyone so much for your comments and advice. This as my first time posting, but this forum is amazing and full of wonderful people!

We have decided to go with the puppy! We will make sure that each dog has individual time with both my husband and I; as well as time together.

Thank you again everyone. I sincerely appreciate all of your comments and suggestions.
 
Have you thought about getting another dog that is a bit older - say 12mths older. I say this because having two dogs hit adolescence around the same time can be a lot for anyone, even an experienced owner, to manage.

I agree with corbinam on all points. There are a lot of risks adding a dog that is so close in age and so young. I don't want to sound negative either but it is important to know the downsides. Two puppies will feed off each other and rather than seeing an improvement in behaviours they are likely to worsen. You will need to spend more time with each dog individually and in adolescence you may find you need to seperate them quite often just to keep the peace. I would also like to add that having two females can also be problematic, particularly during adolescence even when they are desexed. If you have a female now you are better off with a male or an older female.

My two shelties are close in age - I'm the secretary of a dog club and train dogs and still would not do that again. It is vary rare to find experienced people doing this - you do it once and learn that its a bad idea for all the reasons corbinam mentioned. Mine were walked and trained seperately until they were a year old, it was a lot of hard work but I had the time to do it. Adolescence was very trying and even now as adults they feed off each other's craziness rather than calmness.

Do consider whether you have the extra time having two dogs the same age require. And whether you have the patience to go through two lots of adolescence (do a search on the forum on adolescents and you will see some of the problems that occur during this time). If you are really set on getting another dog think about waiting until your current pup is a year old or get a dog that is slightly older.

Good luck whatever your decision.
 
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