I read an article today on why someone should not adopt two puppies.  I will say there is nothing easy about adopting two puppies.  Overall it is serious hard work, but it is not all bad and I won’t portray it as impossible.  I have known many great people who adopted litter mates and had great success.  A family who lived near us in San Antonio had two Corgi litter-mates.  They told me of the joys and hardships of adopting two boys, but they said they would absolutely do it again.  I have good friends near Dallas who adopted two rescue litter mate mix breed Yorkie pups, a male and female who are polar opposite in temperament!  They also think two was absolutely the way to go.

Let me give you the Good, Bad, and Ugly and then I can sum it up.

The Good!

1.  They have a built in play mate.
2.  They probably won’t ever cry at night when you bring them home..
3.  Crate training is so easy because they have company.
4. Socialization is easy because it is highly likely one will be more outgoing and will encourage the less outgoing to socialize and be more adventurous.  We are all more confident surrounded by friends.  Dogs are no exception to this rule.

The Bad

1.  There is a serious risk of one or both developing separation anxiety.  They eat, live, play together almost 24-7.
2. They tend to ignore their owners when in a distracting or stressful situation, and turn to their litter mate for guidance.
3.  They often do not bond as strongly to their owners.  They have each other!
4.  They will probably pass away near the same time.
5.  You will have twice the vet expenses at the exact same time.  All the shots, worming, blood work, spay / neutering will come up at the same time.

The Ugly (and often messy!)

1.  Two puppies are more than twice the work. One puppy will get into trouble, but two is compounded.  If you leave them alone together, they think up things to do and have someone to help them do it.  One might have time to rip a small hold in a new toy, carpet, or dog bed and make a  small mess before you find out what they are doing.  Two will have time to totally gut the new toy, carpet, or dog bed and maybe eat part of it before you notice!
2.  House training two at once is a full time job and twice the mess if you have a failure.  Which puppy did it?  Are you sure they both emptied their bladder when you sent them outside?  There is a pile of runny poop outside when you went to clean up the yard.  I wonder which dog has the sick tummy?

There is no doubt, having two adult dogs is easier than having one.  Raising two puppies at the same time to get those two adult dogs might not be the best choice for most homes.  What I suggest is to get your first dog, work on house training, obedience, house manners, crate training.  Once you make it into or past the ‘teenager’ stage, then add in a second puppy!  Waiting 6 months to a year will be easier in the long run, believe me.  The first dog will teach the new puppy the ‘ropes’.  You can crate them next to each other or even put the new puppy in with the older pup for company the first few nights.  They are both young and likely won’t mind sharing everything they own, like an older well established adult dog who is not happy about the new addition in the first place!  🙂

If you are set on getting two puppies at one time, here are my tips.

Make time to train and play with each dog separately.  Not only do they learn better with the one on one attention, it also teaches them to listen to you, not the other dog.  Playing with them by themselves is equally important.  This is vital to establishing a relationship with your dog.  I have Twins.  Yes my kids do almost everything together but each day I spend time one on one with them doing something they love.  They need memories of Mom and Dad without their sibling competing for attention.  The same is true for dogs.  On the same note, take time to walk and socialize your dogs separately.  One will be the leader of the two dogs.  Walking them separately will show you who is the confident one and which might need some extra socialization and training.  Teach the dogs to rely on your ability to handle the situation and to trust your judgement. If you have a dog that requires grooming, send them to the groomers on different days, if possible.  Take one on a car ride and leave the other at home.  The one you leave at home needs a high value treat toy to keep them busy and not upset that you are going somewhere fun and they are stuck home.  The dog staying home must learn to be alone, not an easy feat for some dogs.  Start this training the DAY you get your puppies.

snap shot from my phone of the girls on the couch behind me while I was typing this up!

Two puppies at once is hard work, but it can be done and done well if you put in the time and effort to make it happen.  I would not allow a first time dog owner to adopt two Standard Poodle pups, but if someone who really understands dogs, seems educated on both the pros and cons of the adventure, and everyone in the family is dedicated to making it work, I would absolutely allow it.   I have never kept two litter mates from one of my litters, but I did get Jazz and Mocha within several months of each other, and I have raised other dogs similarly.  With Jazz and Mocha I make both of them spend time alone.  I take them to class separately.  Rarely do I take them both on a car ride at the same time.   Rarely do I walk them at the same time here in the neighborhood.  I have never taken them out front off leash at the same time, though almost daily I take one or more out while the kids ride their bikes.  Mocha goes to get professionally groomed without Jazz.  They never go to the vet at the same time.

Adopting two puppies at once???  Not for everyone, but if you have the time and education to do it, who am I to tell you no?

~Becky