One dog or two?

[Ninasmum]

Personally, i really do not think it would be a good idea to have 2 puppies.  It is totally unfair to leave puppies, whether it be 1 or 2, on their own for several hours.  Initially when they are just 8 weeks old they need to be toilet trained constantly, i.e. every 30 mins and encouraged to go outside, when they are not sleeping they need the attention and this is also a good time to start training them.. they need feeding 4 times a day until 12 weeks of age and unless you are an experienced dog owner i really think it would be way too much to take on.  Its not just the puppy phase but as others have said you can have probs at the adolescent stage.   I would hate to think that anyone takes on 2 puppies and then opts to re-home them because they run into difficulties with them. 

I would question any breeder's integrity in allowing 2 puppies to go together (except in exceptional circumstances).     Sorry this probably isn't the answers you are looking for but in all honesty my intentions would always be for the long term welfare of the puppies. 

[Cob-Web]

We are planning on getting a cocker pup, and have one earmarked from a reputable source.

Sadly, I doubt your pups breeder is "reputable" if they have agreed that a home which leaves a puppy home-alone for five hours a day is suitable 

[sharonmansfield]

I have 2 dogs and work full time but we put a lot of thought into it before deciding to have a dog. The way around this was when I first had Bella I had saved loads of holiday so I spent time at home with her initially and then did part time still using my holidays,  she was not a tiny pup though she was 4 months old so perhaps not quite so needy as a tiny 8 week old. When I had to go back to work full time my mum helped out, we would drop Bella off at her house in the morning and pick her up in the evening. Doggy daycare with Nana!! This worked really well as mum had company without the commitment or expense of having her own dog, she was very happy doing this and it worked well. From my experience I personally could not have coped with 2 puppies at the same time it is such hard work, I cant even begin to imagine how you would house train 2. As Bella got older we decided it would be nice to have a friend for her, I felt sad that she had no one to play in the garden with. I discussed it with her breeders as we had never had 2 dogs before and I totally value their advice. they ok'd it so we got Jasmine when Bella was 10 months old as OH found himself being a house husband for a few months it was the ideal time. When he went back to work, due to the line of work he is in, he does not keep regular hours so he tends to go out earlier than me and get back earlier, he often works from home and sometimes just part days. We juggle it and it works. our free time is time for us and the dogs together we rarely do anything without them. Regardless of weather they have lovely long walks and free running in the fields and we have loads of fun but like I say all my spare time is dedicated to them its a serious commitment but one I love.  I hope this has given you some ideas of how you can get around leaving the pup. To be honest both breeders I had mine from wanted to know if I worked and what plans I had to care for them.

[bluegirl]

How old are your children?

Firstly I'd consider what a dog or dogs can offer to your family at this stage and what you think you could offer to one or two dogs.

Puppies are very similar to young children and if you have already got your hands full with 3 human youngsters then adding pups into the equation could be too much for you. Pups play bite and play alot and young children can be rough too. Boundaries should be set and really for me if you are thinking of one or two pups they you really aught to be pretty dog savvie as alot of issues can crop up and first ones out will always be the pets.

I wouldn't be happy knowing two pups are going together and are being left for such long times unless the potential owners had a plan in place to protect and nuture the pups. The early days are when most of their learning takes place and what can they learn if they have no humans to show them?

I have siblings and would say I'm an experienced dog person (never been without one). The dogs have always got on but two is more difficult than one, harder to toilet train, harder to socialise, harder to walk, harder to train. You need to split them up and again have you the time to make 2 good dogs? They do bond together and they do push boundaries when they are older. Its people who have siblings who are at least 2 plus who can tell you the real story, pups arn't really a problem.

[JaspersMum]

Not litter mates but, we have just introduced a new puppy to the family and at the fact we have 3 other dogs doesn't make a jot difference to the fact he wants constant human attention.  Having more that one dog certainly increases the time you must devote to them on an individual basis.

Mine are all left a similar time to yours but as a pup, I had a neighbour pop in during the day too, especially at the start when it might still be on 4 feeds a day.

[Lily Freya]

I have two puppies with only a few months in between them.  We were having two from the same litter, but it didn't happen.

I think it is fantastic watching my puppies...........and all in all the training is going well with off-lead walks.  But, I have to say it is hard work too....

I am retired, and have no young children to think about.  All my time is devoted to my dogs.

Just have a good think about it.  They need so much time and attention, and so do children.

I wish you luck with whatever you decide to do.
xx

[Coco]

IMO two pups at the same time can work but more often that not it won't. But the main point is that other dog company is no substitute for human company, it doesn't mean they will entertain each other, extend the amount of time you can leave them etc so I don't see any benefit to this in your situation, rather more negatives.

I would suggest that if you were able to take some time off work to get pup settled and then employed the services of a dog walker (in the early months to entertain and train rather than walk) you'd be ok on the most basic level

[clairep4]

When we got Bella I was working 3 days a week. We took 3 weeks off between us to get her settled in and partially toilet trained, and then spent a fortune on a dog sitter so that we could very slowly build up the time she was left alone. Really it wasn't till she was 6 months that she was left for 4hrs max and even then she'd have the occasional accident. She was a whirling dervish of a pup and needed lots and lots of attention, training and playtime. Zorro arrived 18 months later and was a much easier pup, but even then it still took a lot of time training and walking him separately, and despite that he's still very bonded to Bella, which most of the time is fine but makes it very hard for him if they have to be separated eg for vet visits.
What I'm trying to say is that cockers can have very different personalities, some need tonnes os work, some need less, and although as young pups it may seem easier as they can play with each other, you really need them to bond with YOU more than with each other, which takes lots of separate playtime, walks and training. Otherwise if they get to adolescence being more bothered about each other and both decide to head off across the fields it will be pretty hard to stop.

I would say get one pup first so you can really spend time with it and get through its adolescence and then get a second one. Also if you do that, you're much more prepared the second time around!

[Mudmagnets]

Sheesh!! 2 pups and three children - sounds like a lot of hard work to me, especially trying to find time to treat them all as individuals (which they all deserve imo)

Having read the thread I can see you have had a lot of sound advice as to the pro's and con's of this.

I think personally I would maybe get one pup now and let him/her mature and let the family get used to having a puppy/dog around (with all the work and fun that involves) before thinking about another. I know Smudge and Katie, who I got at 18 month intervals get on really well, but it is not guaranteed. Smudge was a normal mischevious little monkey, Katie on the other hand was (and still is) to put it politely more of a challenge. Tho I love the little imp, thank goodness I only have one of her. 


Good luck with your decision - whatever it is.

[black taz]

I wouldnt consider have 2 pups together, especially cockers irrelevant of whether i worked or not.   Taz has been hard enough work as it is, even with Kelly (my 13 year old collie cross) training him manners indoors.  I would leave it until at least you have the 1st puppy trained.

As for leaving for long periods, i am very much of the opinion that it depends on what you do with the dog when you are there as much as when you are not there.  Taz gets a 30 minute brisk walk before i go to work, then when i get home most of my time is spent with the dogs (including about 1 - 1 1/2 hours at the park).  I also do agility and obedience training with Taz.  I know people who have dogs, who rarely leave them, but couldn't be more disinterested in the dog if they tried - very rarely walked, no training, etc.

When i had my Kelly from the RSPCA as a puppy i worked 3 days a week when she would be left 5 hours.  The RSPCA were aware of this and their guidance at the time was 6 hours maximum for a pup.  Fortunately my son's have been around most of the day since i had Taz, although they spend most of the time in their bedroom, the back door is left open so they can go in the garden.

In a perfect world, i think most of us would prefer not to work but to stay at home with our dogs all day, but most of us have to work!  Eitherway, my dogs couldnt be more loved by anyone else and are both well-balanced dogs

[angie78]

I have 2 babies we got Bobby when he was 13 weeks and he was great for training then 3 weeks later we got Lady she was 10 weeks old.  Yes it was and still is hard at times but I couldn't be without them.  They knacker each other out which is great to watch but my OH takes them out running everyday and we take them walks to the lake where Bobby is never out of the water lol.

Think long and hard about it though and its not good to leave them for too long alone, they miss you too much. hth