2 dogs and a baby

[houserenohelp]

Hello!

We have one lovely dog 6 months dh has done a great job training him and we love him to bits
We have the chance to adopt a rescue pup also 5/6 months old dogs met and they get on well

We are hoping to have a baby soon so are we crazy to think about another dog as well? I know ttc could take time etc

Just having abit of a wobble whether 2 dogs is a over commitments

I would say yes 2 is too much but very much depends what kind of person you are and what's your lifestyle. The fact that you're ttc makes me think you're getting the dog in replacement of a baby without realising maybe. Understandable - but maybe wait until you've had a baby before deciding on dog number 2. Best of luck.

Deoends who exercises the dogs the most. Walking 1 dog on lead, with a baby in a sling or in a pram is much easier than walking two, but also depends on what breed, how big your dogs are, how well they walk to heel. Very short term it depends on how your birth and recovery go, if you have a c section even, I found it hard to walk our two dogs after one. In the house its fine, we all give each other space with stairgates, dogs have their own quiet place. I love our dogs, glad we have two, but managing two on lead with a toddler on a bike isn't as easy as one dog, for example. It's all ok unless they see a cat before I do...

Also definitely agree about having the baby first and then see about another dog, not the other way round, families regretting getting a pup and having a new baby comes up on here often.

Well I have 3 plus a 3 month old and a primary school aged DC

When ds1 was born I had a puppy and again when dd2 came along dog3 was only a year old. I’ve never had a single issue. I much prefer multiple dogs as they can play and entertain eachother but that depends on how social your existing dog is!

My only reservation would be having 2 young dogs together. I always leave at least 18 months between them. Your dog hasn’t yet gone through adolescence which can be hell on Earth. I can’t imagine having 2 teenage dogs at once!

I do have a very supportive DH though. He watches the DC while I walk dogs, train and compete. He cleans up after them will also feed dogs etc but is useless at walking them. I had easy births and recoveries and was able to walk up until the day I had both DC, if you have a hard time would your DH step in?

I don't think it's a good idea.

Both dogs are very young and haven't gone through their teenage rebellion stage yet! You run the risk of having to deal with two teenage dogs at the same time, neither of whom want to listen to a word you say and who work in cahoots to run rings around you

I would wait until you've had the baby and your current dog is at least 2-3 years old.

It would be a lot harder practically. One dog plus pushchair is doable (though tiring, in my experience). I don’t think I could have managed two plus the buggy.

It’s not advisable to get two dogs so close in age. Littermate syndrome isn’t just about littermates!
At six months a pup isn’t fully trained. There will be bumps down the road.

I had two dogs and three kids under five. It was fine.

I have a three year old dog, her 14 week old daughter, and I’m 32 weeks pregnant with twins. All the above were planned apart from the twins, we were trying for one not two, but we knew about the twins before breeding the litter and I was always going to keep a puppy.

I wouldn’t do what you’re thinking of doing even if I wasn’t pregnant. My older dog is very, very well trained with perfect recall, heel work on and off lead etc. This took until she was two, at 6 months I would have said she was trained, at 9 months she started getting ideas of her own and it took another six months to get her truly fully trained. I really really wouldn’t want two young dogs together.

I take my two out on separate walks about 90% of the time, they only get walked together when I’m having a bad day with tiredness/sore hips, and I feel guilty when I do it. Training two young dogs the same age will be hard work.

Think about what will happen if you get pregnant and it’s a difficult pregnancy. I’ve spent ££££ sending my dogs and my mum to 1:1 training with my dog trainer so that she can feel confident having them to stay with her if I’m admitted to hospital, and for a couple of weeks after the twins are born.
We’ve been to stay at my mums for a few nights so they know where their bed is there and how to ask to go out to the toilet. My husband works away a lot in the week so the dogs have their bag packed all the time in case I’m admitted and my mum has to come and get them. They have food/beds/bowls set up at my mums already so she can just pick up their leads, toys and drying coats and go.
My older one also goes out with a dog walker once a week so that if I have a c section she can have a proper walk Monday-Friday with someone she already knows, my husband can walk her at weekends. The puppy can’t be walked far yet anyway to protect her joints so I’ll be able to manage her myself.
I’m happy to make all these adjustments and spend all the money because I’m obsessed with my dogs, they’re a huge part of my leisure time and my social life. I work and show them, lots of my friends are dog people, I’m already planning their outings for June/July and childcare for the twins so I can train and show.

If I just had one pet dog and didn’t do dog things as a hobby/lifestyle I’d just keep my one dog, have my kids and keep my life simple.

We have 2 dogs and a 4 year old who was a baby obviously! Baby number 2 is due in a few months, but the dogs were 4 and 6 then, and 8 and 10 now. 2 young dogs with a baby would be a lot, just in terms of having enough hands!

We've previously had 2 dogs (no babies tho). They were great fun together, played lots and generally great pals. It was however harder work and did change the dynamic some what.

I would definitely recommend that your current dog is trained to how you want him to be. Pup learns lots from older dog which is great but will also learn any bad habit too.

I would get another in a minute but two things put me off. 1. You can never guarantee current dog and new dog will end up friends and 2. Cost of keeping two.

@Girlintheframe

We've previously had 2 dogs (no babies tho). They were great fun together, played lots and generally great pals. It was however harder work and did change the dynamic some what.

I would definitely recommend that your current dog is trained to how you want him to be. Pup learns lots from older dog which is great but will also learn any bad habit too.

I would get another in a minute but two things put me off. 1. You can never guarantee current dog and new dog will end up friends and 2. Cost of keeping two.

Agree with this, our second rescue dog was approx 4-6 months old, super cuddly, affectionate, got on with our existing dog at first meeting, but it turned out he'd never been socialised, had a bad start, never left the flat he lived in and resource guarded fiercely, food, toys, space, had been encouraged to be aggressive, never met another dog, he began to attack our first dog over every little thing, fought him, bit us over toys or treats, I had to hand feed him from his bowl. The fighting lasted 9 months. 9 years later and years of dog training and paid for classes they get on, he is ok, we put the work in, 2nd dog is happy and well behaved, but I was naive taking him on as a rescue pup thinking everything would be ok. This was years before I had a baby, I still have to watch him with kids toys and never leave him in the same room as DS. Also he is scared of other dogs on lead, so will react by snapping at our other dog, while we stand to heel waiting to let other dogs pass by. This is a challenge with a pushchair. You might get pregnant straight away and find yourself in a situation with a rescue dog you can't handle, with a newborn and all that comes with it too.