Too late to get a puppy?

[keepupwith]

Yesterday we were looking at photos of when we had two cockers together, (pre children!-now we have 1 dog) and my husband said 'we need another one' Don't know if it is a throw away remark or not,part of me gets really broody looking at all the COL photos the other part of me thinks do we really want to go back to having a puppy? The other thing is Poppy will be 4 in April and I don't know if she's too old to accept a pup now. She is the baby of the family and I would hate to upset her, because she is such a lovely affectionate, good dog. Naturally puppies are cute and demand attention and I don't want her nose put out of joint.
Has anyone got a puppy and dog with a similar gap?

Thanks

Pam

[AnnieG]

I think you'd have far more troubles introducing a pup to an adolescent with teeming hormones than you will to a relatively grown up four year old. I've brought pups into the family when (different) dogs were 3, 4, 6 and 8 year olds and, of them all, 4 and 6 adapted most quickly and happily (and all of them settled down cheerfully after a few months). They loved having a playmate and the youngster really perked up the 6 year old who was in danger of getting a bit lazy and middle aged.  It all comes down to sensible introductions, letting them sort out some of the issues by themselves, making sure the older one gets a bit of peace when she wants it, and not trying to push things too fast. Dogs in general like the company of their own kind - which is more than can be said of some people.    

[waggytails]

We got a puppy she's 10 months old now and my other dog is 14 yrs in April. Its taken time, but there is a understanding between them, we do have to watch that Hattie doesn't bother Millie to much and give Millie a break from her.  I do wish i had got another dog when Millie was younger, but to be honest we did think about it, but at that time i did not think Millie would have accepted another dog in the house, but watching her i may have been wrong.

[BabyB]

I've no experience of getting a puppy when an older doglet was in the house full time.

Henry was 6mths old when we brought in his cousin, Katie who was 18mths old.  He'd been use to playing with Morgan and Dylan (9yrs old at the time)at my parents, but Dylan would have none of Henry's 'puppyness' and would soon tell him off.  Dylan didn't (and still doesn't) like it if you fuss Henry in front of him, as he sees me as his 'Mum', and Henry is the same TBH.

Now Henry's 18 mths old, and Dylan and Katie love each other (Morgan just likes his food and his sleep  ), they all get on really well.

Katie was used to being the 'only' child at their breeders, so she needed a little friend to play with.  They get on soooo well, I can't tell you how happy we were.

IMO dogs like company of their own kind.  And I agree with AnnieG.  So long as you keep fussing Poppy from the start, their is no reason why it couldn't work out 

[Ninasmum]

Our 3 mad one's are aged 5, nearly 4 and 20 months., so a bit of a mixture in ages   Overall, they do get on well but i would say that my 2 girls can be a bit bossy with my boy (5 yr. old).  The only time i did worry was when our 1st girl puppy was introduced to our boy and the look on his face was just of complete disgust   It did take him a while to accept her but now they are the best of friends.  Generally I think it is really lovely for them to have each other and can't imagine just having one dog now. 

If you do decide to go ahead with a puppy, please make sure you still fuss and give loads of attention to your Poppy, as obviously you don't want her to feel left out.  With the puppy, it is a good idea to take him/her out on their own for walks sometimes and to puppy training classes.

Another option would be to re-home a rescue cocker, which would obviously be closer in age to Poppy.  Most of the dogs for re-homing that I have often seen on COL, request another dog to be living in the home too. Something to consider. 

Good Luck for the future and I am sure you wouldn't regret having another. 

[KatieJean]

We bought a golden retriever pup into the family when cocker's were 4 and 5 then a cocker pup in when golden retriever was 7.
As someone else said make a fuss of the older one as well.
We used to observe them without them realising.
We hardly had any problems.

[Cob-Web]

Yesterday we were looking at photos of when we had two cockers together, (pre children!-now we have 1 dog) and my husband said 'we need another one' Don't know if it is a throw away remark or not,part of me gets really broody looking at all the COL photos the other part of me thinks do we really want to go back to having a puppy? The other thing is Poppy will be 4 in April and I don't know if she's too old to accept a pup now. She is the baby of the family and I would hate to upset her, because she is such a lovely affectionate, good dog. Naturally puppies are cute and demand attention and I don't want her nose put out of joint.
Has anyone got a puppy and dog with a similar gap?

Thanks

Pam

Pam - forgive me for highlighting two parts of your post - but it is your comments about Poppy getting upset, not her age, that prompts me to post   

There is no guarantee that a new dog of any age will fit into your family dynamics as they currently exist (it is very unlikely that nothing will change at all if you get a second dog) or that Poppy will accept him/her immediately. Poppy may be frightened of a new pup, she may become withdrawn, and the two dogs may agree between them that Poppy should defer to the pup; and as their owners, we have to accept that 

Saying that - when it works out, a second dog has more positives than negatives imo and although my relationship with Molo changed significantly when Bonnee arrived, it is more than made up for

[keepupwith]

Thanks for all the replies- lots to think about. In some ways I think it would be great for Pops to have a friend, but what bothers me is that since she was attacked by a German Shepard, she doesn't like being jumped at. My concern about upsetting her, is that she wouldn't cope with the young pup energy and her becoming withdrawn as Cob-web mentions is a real worry. It's such a gamble and the wellbeing of Poppy and any new pup has to be paramount, hence needing to be sure whether or not it would be the right thing to do.

Thanks again

Pam

[Mrs K]

Another option of course is not to get a puppy but a rescue  Maybe Poppy would have just the right temperment to help an ex-breeding girl along 

[lexi]

Yesterday we were looking at photos of when we had two cockers together, (pre children!-now we have 1 dog) and my husband said 'we need another one' Don't know if it is a throw away remark or not,part of me gets really broody looking at all the COL photos the other part of me thinks do we really want to go back to having a puppy? The other thing is Poppy will be 4 in April and I don't know if she's too old to accept a pup now. She is the baby of the family and I would hate to upset her, because she is such a lovely affectionate, good dog. Naturally puppies are cute and demand attention and I don't want her nose put out of joint.
Has anyone got a puppy and dog with a similar gap?

Thanks

Pam

There is no guarantee that a new dog of any age will fit into your family dynamics as they currently exist (it is very unlikely that nothing will change at all if you get a second dog) or that Poppy will accept him/her immediately. Poppy may be frightened of a new pup, she may become withdrawn, and the two dogs may agree between them that Poppy should defer to the pup; and as their owners, we have to accept that 

Saying that - when it works out, a second dog has more positives than negatives imo and although my relationship with Molo changed significantly when Bonnee arrived, it is more than made up for

I so agree!

Count on the fact that her nose will be out of joint but that she will come 'round.

As Rachel said there is no guarantee but you'll also be there to make it work. Think positively!

Our neighbours have two male German Spaniels (13 and not quite 1) and I never would have thought that it would work but it does (they just adore each other )
Having said that, it's been a long haul with Byron and Mac (thanks to Byron not Mac ) but well worth the effort. Byron would never admit it but he's very fond of lil' Mac...