Second dog?

[shopsalot]

I have a 2yr old dog (not neutered) and would like another dog, partly to keep the 1st one company although we are around 99% of the time, but also because I'd like 2 dogs. Current dog is fairy well trained and friendly, no real problems apart from he hasn't been left alone for any length of time, nor left for holidays.

I would quite like another boy dog. Has anyone got experience of this - introducing a puppy or young dog into another dog's household? I'm not keen to neuter yet. I'm thinking puppy as I'm not sure whether a rescue centre would accept our situation (having done a small amount of research).

Does your dog definitely want company? I know far too many people who have attempted this, or dogs have been rehomed/sold as it didn't work. The owners think they want company because they love playing with other dogs when out and about - but it's very different when they're living together 24/7 and having to share toys, people and space.

We recently got a second dog well June, both female, and I've had the easier pup ever thanks to my 3 year old dog! No nipping, housetrained by 4 months, they have thier moments and 2nd dog is a larger breed than my first but I'd go for it while your dog is still young enough.

Have you had other dogs in the home to see how it will react? We’re about to get a second, a puppy and ours is about 2.5. We’ve had lots of family/friends come to stay with their dogs to see how she would do sharing her own space/toys etc before we made the decision.

DDog is about the right age for introducing a new pup, young enough to play with the baby, old enough to teach good manners, and sounds like he's well settled. Smaller rescues will consider all the circumstances, but putting on my rescue volunteer hat, I would have reservations about rehoming with a young entire male already in residence, mostly because most of ours have had a bit of a traumatic start in life. Are you considering neutering Ddog in the future, just waiting until he's a bit older?

Thanks for all the replies. I was tending more towards a puppy just because I thought it would be easier introducing a puppy. But then I feel guilty with the number of dogs needing homes.

No I don't think he really wants company as such but he hasn't really been left for any length of time and I think it will be easier to leave 2 of them. He loves other dogs but quite happy by himself on walks and at home, as long as we're somewhere in the house.

Not really had another dog in the house (lockdowns etc) but maybe I should borrow a neighbour's. I do agree that it's quite a good age (2 & a bit) to introduce a puppy.

@FudgeFlake he's not neutered (yet) because he's a larger breed (golden retriever) and having done some research they are one of the breeds to leave. Generally speaking he is fine with other dogs, the odd dog might have a bit of a go at him but it's rare (not wanting to tempt fate here...) and usually a bit of a growl and aggressive stance. My dog either ignores or barks back but would initially have avoided or approached in a friendly way if it wasn't an obviously aggressive dog.
He hasn't been left for longer than a couple of hours so I definitely don't want to neuter him until he's happy with being left & we're able to have the odd holiday without him. The vet has said leave him for a bit but I think there comes a time when the risk of something like testicular cancer outweighs the risk of other cancers / illness - plus I don't want him having the op when he's an old dog.

I have had 2 dogs most of the time for many years. I have always had a male and a female, which are both neutered. I was always told this was the best mix, but I've never tried it any other way - I have never had a problem with fighting though. Some of the pairs have been best buddies, some just rubbed along okay. Jealousy is a terrible problem - there has always been quite a bit of that. My current 4 and a half year old spayed bitch plays a lot with my 6 month old entire male puppy, but equally, he can be really annoying to her sometimes and won't leave her alone to rest, so they need monitoring a lot. He will grow out of this though. You need to try your dog with another borrowed one for a day.
I had a dog years ago who I thought would like a friend. I was wrong, she only wanted me as her friend. I discovered this when my brother stayed with his dog, she just hated having another dog in the house and was utterly miserable until he left.

I have a friend with make unneutered dogs , she always has at least 2 and has never had any issues .

We have just brought home a new pup, and did so for all of the same reasons as you I with our older (2 year old) DD having never been left etc.

Both male dogs, neither neutered with no intention of doing so either. We brought pup home on Saturday there and so far so good. Still never much getting to know each other, but having a play about loads and today then curled up to nap together! There was a little bit of dominance asserting, but just letting them figure each other out.

All in all, we're pretty happy that they're both content - about the worst problem is that our 2 year old DD is very much missing sleeping for 18 hours a day 😂

Thanks all. It's good to know that male dogs can live together nicely in the same house. I imagine like anything, it depends on the dogs, the owners and training to ensure there is harmony and everyone is happy!

@whatthehelldowecare how old is your puppy? Hope all goes well. I'm now a bit hesitant because I'm remembering the first few weeks with a puppy and we're heading into winter.... But then I think that means the summer will be fun with a couple of dogs!

@shopsalot he's 17 weeks, there was a delay in getting him because the breeder had COVID. Our older dog is 2.

Toilet training has been a bit hit and miss, we hoped that he'd learn from the older one, but actually our older one has regressed slightly when it's raining, and they're both using the puppy pads when they don't fancy going outside 🤦🏽‍♀️

Very worth it though seeing them play together and snuggle up!

two boy dogs here. We introduced the new puppy when dog1 was only 11months old. They are now 3 and 4yrs old. They get on well, but do play roughly sometimes.
Eldest dog is snipped, younger one not.