Should I add another frenchie?

[dontnowottodo]

We got our male, unneutered french bulldog about 7 weeks ago, he has just turned 1. When I was looking a contacted a few people with frenchies to be rehomed and this week one of them has asked if I'm still interested, as she still has the dog to rehome, he is another unneutered male, 8 months old.
We had thought about getting a second, but is it likely to be a mistake as they are both males and haven't been neutered, more than happy to have them done if it becomes a problem.
Can someone more experienced with French bulldogs advise on if they are likely to mix well, please.

I wouldn’t have one brachycephalic breed dog, let alone two of them. They live shorter, more painful lives than non-brachy breeds. I also wouldn’t have an unneutered male dog either unless it is of a quality good enough to breed from (you would need to know what it’s genetic propensity to BOAS is to know whether it is good enough.) The fact that you have acquired a one year old and are being offered an 8 month old would have me wondering what was wrong with them that their first owners had suddenly decided to rehome them. Brachycephalic dogs struggle to breathe, exercise and thermoregulate among other things, and surgery to help them live a more comfortable life is expensive. The average life expectancy of a French Bulldog is less than 2/3 that of other breeds, and around half of them suffer from BOAS severe enough they need ongoing veterinary treatment.

I would stick with the one as 2 x unsettled entire males has a high risk of going badly wrong at which point you'll probably find the owner can't take back and finding a space at rescue is hard. There's absolutely loads of frenchies in rescue so you could get a female friend at a later date once you've got to know your chap. They need really good insurance cover ( that will pay out) as apart from breathing issues they are also very prone to skin, eye, spinal, patella problems so for small dogs they can be expensive to keep.

Errr...you've only had your first Frenchie for 7 weeks!? It takes 3 months for a rescue dog to even begin to settle...why on earth would you impact him settling by adding a new dog!?

Also, only an idiot would do a private sale on a dog - you have no idea what you're getting, what skeletons are in the closet and when things can (and do) go badly wrong, you have no recourse. And only an owner who doesn't love their dog would sell their dog to some randomer and not do it through the breed rescue or a charity.

You need to let your current dog mature and settle before you even consider introducing another.

Why would you even have one Frenchie let alone consider taking on another at this stage. Absolutely bonkers

Even in the past there was some misguided loving owners that assumed all rescues were bleak kennels and being involved selecting new owner themselves in private sale was the better option. However now many owners simply have no choice but to privately re-home/sell as they can contact loads of rescues round the country only to be told there is no space & they've closed their waiting lists. Some book in vets for euthanasia, sometimes in the hope a rescue will step in to save them or abandon to dog pound where if it's lucky it may get a rescue space or killed.

It's dire times for rescues trying to mop up as adoptions and funds coming in have dropped, yet far more dogs in poor condition or requiring vet treatment due to people's financial issues.

I have two male Frenchies, one is 9 the other is 8, but we did have them from puppy. One was brachycephalic and had the operation to correct it, the other one is as fit as a fiddle and can keep up with our Labrador.

Someone else has picked up that you haven’t had your rescue for long and it could possibly be stressful for them. I’ve re homed labradors and it took 6 months for one of them to gel with us.

Frenchies are so loving and fun. Before my daughter moved back home with them we’d always had bigger dogs, but they’re a delight, we wouldn’t be without them.

The older one has been neutered, the younger one is chemically castrated, due to him getting fruity with our Labrador bitch 🥴. Both boys are better with each other with a lower testosterone level, but they only ever had handbags at dawn spats. I wish you well with your choice, and good for you for giving a dog a new home 🤗

Getting a rescue frenchie isn't the same as buying a puppy: you're unlikely to be encouraging someone to breed another litter of dogs who are highly likely to suffer from complex health issues. So having a go at OP on that score seems very unreasonable.

But yes, I'd wait and let the first dog settle in fully before getting another.

@EdithStourton where has the OP said these dogs are rescue dogs? And I would disagree - provided there is a market for any sort of brachycephalic dog, bad breeders will continue to breed dogs that don’t make it as far as one year old before their owners realise they don’t have the bottomless pockets required to keep a dog that has been bred to have it’s face squashed so flat it can’t breathe or even shut its eyes properly healthy. I do judge anyone who knowingly sets out to buy or acquire one of these sad unhealthy little animals.

Believe me, I 100% agree that dogs who cannot breathe properly should not be bred. But these dogs are rehomes by the sound of it - and as PP have said, people are very likely being driven to privately rehome their dogs as the rescues are currently full. I wouldn't be inclined to leap down OP's throat until you know the full story. If she paid a grand for the dog, that's one thing. If she paid £300 to demonstrate to the previous owner that she's not entirely skint and does genuinely want the dog, that's something else.

A rush to judgement just drives people away from the board - OP has not come back.