Tips for the second addition?
 

Wow it's been a while since I've been here and now my username is no good because i am adding another furbaby to the mix in a week:D

Huxley is just about 1.5 years old now and i finally convinced the hubby that he needs a friend so we are picking up his brother from another litter in just over a week and i'm very excited but nervous at the same time. I want them to get along obviously and I've been reading up ways to help that process but i'd like to hear it directly from those who own more than one, what they did to make it easier, and any tips and advice to help the transition.

Huxley loves other dogs, he doesn't show any signs of possessiveness, in fact other dogs that have been at our home don't allow him in his own bed sometimes or they chew his favourite bone and he is okay with it (mean doggies!). He does do the dominance "bull stance" (kicking back his legs) occasionally with other dogs but then he just plays with them so i guess he is a bit dominant, perhaps he will be the alpha? He is neutered and Finley will be too when he is old enough.

When we got Huxley, i really didn't think i'd get another dog but man they are addictive haha.

And hanging out here really makes having two seem quite logical. . .:rolleyes:

At first I would supervise any play very carefully. We configured the pen so that the dogs were side-by-side and that gave them time to adjust to being in proximity with each other. Because our older dog (she was just under a year when we brought in her sister) is a loud, active pup, we had to discern what growls were play and which were truly "get out of my face." Over a few weeks they seem to have reached an agreement and do pretty well.

Others will know MUCH more, but congratulations! They are just too cute!

Congratulations!! My boys are brothers from different litters too.

For my boys, I found it was best to just put them on the floor, unrestrained, and let them establish their relationship without interference. We stepped in only when things looked too rough.

Directing the boys toward constructive activity helped them form a bond. Simple obedience and trick training (brief sessions) and playing fetch fostered a sense of togetherness.

I had to separate them with a baby gate during meal times for a couple weeks. Teddy wanted to eat out of Max's dish.

We had some jealousy, but things were worked out. Some within days, others took a little longer.

Glad to hear it went well Maximo and with two boys! Jealousy is something i'm worried about, i don't want Huxley to think he is not good enough or that i'm replacing him with a younger version lol.

I've noticed many people on here with several! If they can have 5, i can handle 2 i'm sure haha.

Can't believe i'm going to go through puppy stage all over again..what am i thinking!

I just got my second two weeks ago. I agree they are addicting! My first baby, Sweezy, is a 3 1/2 year old male and he is very possessive of me, toys, everything. When we brought Ellie home (female), the first night was a little rocky. I put them both on the floor so they could sniff each other out, and that was about it. When Ellie tried to play with Sweezy, or climb on me, Sweezy would snarl at her but wouldn't bite. The second day Sweezy started to come around, and by the third day they were playing like best friends. Two weeks later and they are inseperable. I would suggest letting them both have free roam together so long as someone is home to supervise so they can get used to each other. When DH and I are gone during the day Sweezy still goes in his kennel and Ellie is in the puppy pen where she has her food, water, and potty pad. I make sure that Sweezy's routine has not been affected by the presence of the new puppy. Don't move your first dog's food/water bowl, kennel, etc and maintain the same feeding and bathroom schedule so that your first dog does not feel inconvenienced by the puppy. When we get home, Sweezy is the first to be let out of his kennel and first to be greeted. He is fed first as well as given treats first so that he still feels like 'top dog.' Whenever Ellie gets a treat, Sweezy gets a treat. Also, when you train your puppy to sit, stay, etc, let your first dog participate as well, praising him for his good behavior and giving him treats. If he associates the puppy with good things he is more likely to enjoy the addition.

We got Marcel when Wylie was about 2 yrs old. At first, Wylie became very needy for a while, and that was fine with us...we just helped him through that phase by being reassuring and making sure he knew he was still our "firstborn" lol. He accepted Marcel quite easily and there was no fighting or anything - they began playing together almost right away.

When we got Pfeiffer, our girl, both boys were just all easy breezy and just all "whatever". So she fit right in and became one of the boys.

Congrats on your new little one, btw - LOVE his name!

:D I have to confess that I wimped out with the second and chose an 8 month old. He was still very much a puppy though, late bloomer.

Is pick up day almost here? Looking forward to your reports and photos. :)

I meant to add: if Huxley seems overwhelmed by puppy antics, make sure he has a place to escape and relax when he wants to. For Max, all he had to do was jump on the couch to get away. Teddy couldn't jump up that high. :)

If i could do it over again, i would have trained meesha better before getting another ahha. At first she barked at him non stop amd wanted to kill him it seemed, it was a hard first couple if weeks, i wasnt prepared, although i took my 2 weeks vacation so i had some time,go out get an xpen!! I had to go buy 1 the minute i realized i didnt trust her as she was vicious at him,make sure you seperate them at 1st, milo was put downstairs in his xpen and meesha stayed upstairs in the living room where she usually is, i made sure to give her lots of attention and do everything for her first before himi didnt change her routine much,but id also take her down and they would meet through his pen, i'd have times id let him out of the pen and try to get them to get to know eachother but keepimg a close eye,after 2 weeks the vicious barking at thim stopped and i was able to let him out of the cage and be able to trust her, so i moved him and his xpen up into the living room, her turf, and went back to work, they had alone time and after work id take him out to try to play with her, he was very socialized so all he wanted to do was play with her, she didnt understand it at first, i now trusted her though so i let them wrestle and wouldnt intervene and eventually she began to tolarate him, i took the xpen away, i was lucky he was a really easy going dog who learned fast, i didnt even have to potty train him, meesha was already potty trained so he just did what she did. As time went on they got closer and closer, and now they cuddle together play together,and he cries if theyre seperated, he idolizes her(shes the boss) although its alot more work, and more expensive, when i see the two of them together im so glad i did it, theyd be lost and lonley without one another but im not going to lie about it, the first few weeks were hell, but ive also heard of some peoople who got another and had no problems like i did, but i thought id tell my story so you are prepared for the worst, i also bought him his own set of toys at first also, so she didnt get jeallous he haf her toys lol

Sorry for all the typos i wrote this on my cell, but hopefully you understand it aha

Totally understood and appreciate the advice and hearing your experience. How old was Meesha when you got Milo? I bought a whole new set of toys for the 2nd, his own bed, food dish, crate and already have an xpen from when Huxley was a pup. Huxley is pretty good so i hope he helps in the training but there are some bad habits of his that i hope he doesn't share with the pup...I have Huxley in training right now to reinforce the behaviours and Finley is already scheduled for training and i don't even have him yet so i believe we're off to a good start but you never know how they will react!

Haha your secret is safe with me! I'm sure we just forgot how brutal it was with a puppy and only vaguely remember the horror we're about to endure again ;)

Pick up day is later this week, booked some time off work to be with him and hope Huxley will help with the training making it easier this time around. I keep telling him he is getting a little brother so he's not completely shocked when it happens but not sure how much he understands lol.

Firstborn haha, yea i've read that i should do everything first with Huxley so he knows he's still number 1. How was he needy, what was he doing differently? I hope it's as easy for us as it was for you. I can watch them play for hours at the dog park and am excited to be able to do that at home! A third oh my, they are addictive..i'd be lying if i wasn't thinking about a 3rd somewhere down the road but shh lol.

Thanks :)..My husband wanted to name him #2 or Dark Knight..i shot that down and Finley has grown on him now haha.

Now that it's getting closer to pick up date, i'm starting to get really nervous...what if Huxley doesn't like him? He has no idea he's about to no longer be the only dog in the house and i feel bad about that but i'm doing it for him so he has a playmate when we are busy and ughhh i just hope they get along!
He has no issues when other dogs are here and loves playing with them but he will realize eventually that Finley is not just a guest, hopefully he reacts well to that...Not sure why i am so nervous but i am!

I'm so glad things are working out for so many of you. It's been almost 2 months for us and my 6-year-old still hates my almost 4-month-old. Both girls. Maybe that's the difference.


In any case, Diva hates Ruby and all I want is for them to play together and cuddle at night. Maybe one day...