# Anyone ever taken on 2 puppies at the same time?



## Patchworkpony (20 January 2015)

Has anyone ever taken on 2 puppies from the same litter at the same time? If so was it hell or did it work? What are the pros and cons for housetraining obedience etc? Do they still relate to you or is the bond formed with each other?


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## Shady (20 January 2015)

can't speak from personal experience but i do know that when i was looking for a gun dog the good breeders wouldn't sell 2 together and i saw that a lot, i would imagine there could be some major drawbacks in training if you have to divide between 2, a friend here had 2 Labs and he could never get both to come back and when one ran off the other got stressed and wanted to follow, things like that, they didn't like to be parted and  one was a barker and jumper which set the other one off who maybe might have been quieter in a different home. could be that others on here have amazing experiences buying 2 together, sorry i can't add more!


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## I.M.N. (20 January 2015)

I haven't personally but I've always heard that 2 from the same littler is a bad idea. I know a couple (in passing) that got litter mates 10 years ago, they were a nightmare then (aggression towards each other) and they're still a nightmare now, the poor lady nearly lost her finger when she tried to break up a fight between them a couple of years ago. I have friends who got 2 puppies at the same time, different breeds, and they haven't had any issues.


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## Amymay (20 January 2015)

I haven't,  but wanted too. The breeder would only let us have one.


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## {97702} (20 January 2015)

I was offered a 'buy one get one free' offer when I got my lurcher puppy years ago - I emphatically said no, and have never regretted the decision   Always far easier to focus on one at a time...


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## Wiz201 (20 January 2015)

Not a good idea unless you're experienced and even then its hard work. I wouldn't recommend two pups, always best to wait at least a year between each dog so you've got time to bond with one and get good manners, toilet trained etc.


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## gunnergundog (20 January 2015)

I sort of had two dumped on me years ago....it was not through choice and not a situation I would want voluntarily.

They say that for every hour the pups spend together you need to spend two with each of them individually, such that they bond with you.

Training obviously needs to be done one on one, separately.

If you have two bitches you are probably going to get trouble down the line when they reach sexual maturity.  Sometimes this can be managed, but often leads to the rehoming of one or the other.  (Am assuming here that they are pet dogs going to be kept in the house.  If they are going to be kenneled, then not so much of an issue.)


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## Slightlyconfused (20 January 2015)

My nan got two Caviler pups from the same litter 14 years ago. They turned out fine, wasn't dependant on each other and when we had them at four years old they would happily still leave each other.

Depends on the breed and how much time you have to devote to them.


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## Alec Swan (20 January 2015)

I've more than once had more than two puppies which I've run on.  There have on occasions been three or four.  BUT,  they have ALWAYS been kennelled.  I would NEVER have two puppies in the house.  Puppies only learn,  from each other,  those things which they're best off knowing!  Allowing puppies to live together,  in a kennelled and play filled environment,  is one thing.  ANY attempts at training,  of more than one at a time or individually,  and whilst within a domestic environment,  is begging for trouble!  Trust me on this!! 

Alec.


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## Patchworkpony (20 January 2015)

Thanks everyone - trying to warn a friend not to do this. I will show her your replies and hopefully will convince her not to make a mistake, especially as they are a large breed.


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## Teaselmeg (20 January 2015)

Tell her to Google:  Littermate Syndrome


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## Clodagh (20 January 2015)

We have only done it with foxhounds out on walk - but that is OK as they live in a stable and you send them back when they really start to annoy you. Would never do it with any other sort of dog..


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## Slightlyconfused (20 January 2015)

Teaselmeg said:



			Tell her to Google:  Littermate Syndrome
		
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Didn't even know about this.

The two sisters in my previous post had none of this behaviour, they played and then each went to one of my grandparents. They slept in a cage together at night but I could go round and take them for separate walks.

One of them was very trainable the other was a brat, my sister spent two hours with her trying to get her to sit. Didn't happen, her sister how ever learnt to sit, lay down, roll over and paw in a very short space of time. 
They weren't even bothered by other dogs as they were socialised as soon as the had jabs, both together and separately.

They had such a lovely relationship with each other and us that we have always wanted two from the same litter again.


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## irishdraft (20 January 2015)

Yes I have litter siblings border collies dog & bitch, I definitely do not recommend it, they have been incredibly difficult to train & to bond with, sadly I don't think I ever will, although my husband is fond of them. They really only have eyes for each other although we did train each one individually etc it made no difference once they were back together.We are experienced collie owners so not complete novice s also doesn't help that the dog is somewhat neurotic ! They will be 6 this summer and are really only just starting to improve their behaviour when out & about although they have always been very good at home.


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## PorkChop (20 January 2015)

Sort of - we kept three puppies from a litter we bred - however this was between myself and my two daughters, so essentially we each kept one.

We haven't had any problems, and ours have always lived together along with our other dogs, and each only has eyes for "their" owner.


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## Spring Feather (20 January 2015)

I'd never buy (or sell) more than one puppy from the same litter, however I have had 2 puppies from different litters at the same age twice now.  Both times was fine but I spend a LOT of time with my dogs as I have a farm so they are with me constantly and my dogs do not live in the house with us.  It was lovely having pups together when they were little, then when they get to around the year old mark, you have to be very on your toes to make sure the equilibrium is kept.  If you are an experienced dog owner you can usually get beyond this stage, and once you have, there's often no problems after that.  If problems continue then you didn't deal with the problem earlier and in the first place.

I wouldn't advise taking two puppies at the same time.  You have to constantly be aware of every little thing that is going on, okay if that's what you do and are with the pups constantly, but if you're not on the ball then things can go wrong very quickly.


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## Cinnamontoast (20 January 2015)

Voice of dissent here! 

My first two were littermates were a piece of cake, we were very clueless, they were fortunately super easy, working farm bred, totally trainable. They loved each other but loved us more. They wouldn't dream of being naughty or not listening to us. Sadly, Jake was PTS aged 7 with multiple tumours. 

My second two littermates have a different dynamic. They're petbred. One is super naughty, but my OH chose him quite deliberately, seeing how clever and naughty he was at the breeder's. I chose the well-behaved, easy puppy. Had I chosen both, we'd have an easy life. Zak has made us work very hard. He'll self hunt/escape if free running in the woods and his brother will follow. Alone or with the older dog, his brother is the dream dog. Again, they love each other but are like superglue with us. 

We will more than likely get two littermates again, but they will be working bred, no way would I touch petbred again and I prefer docked tails. 

If someone gets littermates, train and walk separately for the first six months and get recall sorted ASAP! They learn from each other, good in my first pair, bad in my second! 

I can't understand why anyone would get opposite sexes, the inevitable will happen when the boy's humping stage starts. Euw.


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## MurphysMinder (21 January 2015)

Cinnamon toast, not trying to have a go, but after reading the above posts about any responsible breeder not letting  2 litter mates go together,  would it not make you wary of any breeder who would be prepared to sell you siblings ?


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## Goldenstar (21 January 2015)

My parents did this many times with no issues dogs , they where house dogs .
He was strict as us kids got a bit older we where allocated a pup and had to take charge of it .
They where separated for training every day and went out and about alone with ' their ' human they grew up to be nice dogs .
I think the fact he was so strict about giving them a life / training away from the others was why it worked .


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## Amymay (21 January 2015)

CT, do you not think that the dog aggression of one of your dogs could be linked to having the littermate?


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## minesadouble (21 January 2015)

Another who has always been told that no reputable breeder would sell 2 pups from the same litter to the same home.


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## Dobiegirl (21 January 2015)

My 2 rescue Dobermanns are brother and sister, they had to go as a pair when I adopted them when they were 18months old. by this time they were so bonded. I walked and trained them separately and whilst very obedient on their own put them together and you have to be very vigilant as they will go off and hunt.

Darcy the bitch is super intelligent, she has her KC good citizens award which I did with her as she was fear aggressive with other dogs, she is fine now, I also did agility with her as she is a very agile lean small bitch.

Although they are very loving I do not have the same relationship with them that Ive had with my other dogs, they are very bonded and so I certainly wouldnt recommend having 2 from the same litter.

Back in the late 80s we wanted to buy 2 Lancashire Heeler pups from the same litter but the breeder told us she would never do this as it causes problems so this was known about back then and she was obviously a very responsible breeder.


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## Cinnamontoast (21 January 2015)

MurphysMinder said:



			Cinnamon toast, not trying to have a go, but after reading the above posts about any responsible breeder not letting  2 litter mates go together,  would it not make you wary of any breeder who would be prepared to sell you siblings ?
		
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The two pet bred, yes, but the others, no. Pedigrees as long as your arm, tons of FTCH and working lines are not treated or viewed in the same manner as show types when it comes to gun dogs. We were utterly stupid to get the youngsters and the breeder was awful. 



amymay said:



			CT, do you not think that the dog aggression of one of your dogs could be linked to having the littermate?
		
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No, I don't see how that has anything to do with him being DA. He was, until he was attacked with zero provocation, very friendly to other dogs. We then were stupid and protected him instead of getting him socialised and out with other dogs. He's fine with the other two, loves the GSD next door with whom he grew up and coped admirably with my bil's puppy that we kept for the first two weeks-one incident where he told him off far too strongly, otherwise fine. Once he's dominated another dog, he loves them. They're not so keen! 

He let the puppy win this game:


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