I spent 15 years owning one Dog, then about nine months owning two and now (as I am sure you can guess) there are three little Bone Munchers in the Household.
It became apparent immediately that we got our second Dog, Daisy, that there were numerous advantages to owning two Dogs.
Obviously if you have really limited space you would need to think carefully about this, but there are still many advantages.
Reasons To Own Two Dogs
- Dogs are sociable creatures and love company.
- Owning two Dogs allows them to always have a friend with them.
- Two Dogs really isn’t much more trouble more one.
- Young Dogs are full of energy. Owning two Dogs allows them to burn of excess energy quicker by playing and play-fighting with each other.
- Two Dogs is simply more fun than just one. They seem to get more bonkers the more you have! (trust me I know)
- If you have one Dog that is trained already, the training of the second one is much easier. They copy each others actions and learn quicker.
- More face licks for you!
- More Dog Fur for you! Um…probably not such a good one that!
- Walking two Dogs is more fun. They can run around together and get tired out quicker.
- You have double Guard Dog Duty when you are out.
- You can sit down and rub two Dogs heads at the same time.
- If you have a Puppy and it won’t stop biting, getting another one is the instant solution to the problem. A bit drastic but it does work. They take it out on each other instead!
- You will have more Doggie amusement in the Household.
- More Doggie stories to tell. Apparently Faye has just caught a small Bird as I type! How, I simply don’t know. Maybe she has been at the Cabbages again!
- The barking, the barking! Um….again probably not such a good one!
- If trained properly they actually seem to make each other behave better.
- An older Dog will quickly bring a younger Dog in to line. This makes training easier. Why wait until you have no Dogs before getting another one? Sad to think about but it is true.
- It is just simply much more fun having two bone munchers about.
- You will be much more likely to ensure you get out for those two walks a day that you should be doing anyway.
- All your friends will be jealous that you have two loving companions and all they have is a stinky cat!
- Two Dogs will help you pick up strangers better in the local Park! You can tell the person you have in mind how great you are at rescuing Dogs!
- Two Dogs means that, hopefully, at least one will have been a rescue. You have therefore saved a Dogs life.
- If you get two Dogs spayed or neutered then you have saved countless Dogs lives in the future.
- Life is never boring with two Dogs.
- The two Dog blog is a catchier title than the one Dog blog.
- You can waste loads more time taking even more photos of the pooches.
- You can get in to more trouble because you will hear more often “How come you never want to take as many photos of me as you do the Dogs?” Um…again, not such a good one!
- Double Belly Rub! You know it makes sense!
So, did I miss anything out?
May the Doggie Force be with you all.
Stop!!! I’ve been thinking of getting another dog and you’re bringing me closer to taking the plunge!!
I’d love another one but am concerned about jealousy issues. Heidi is a rescue dog – a Border collie x, she has never had her own person all to herself before and am not sure she would want to share me. She is very timid if she started sulking about another dog she would never interact at all!
Myo, go on, you know you want to! 🙂
Eulalie, our second Dog was a rescue. Even now a year later she is still very shy and timid.
Howeve,r when it is play time she gives as good as she gets and can rough house it with the best of them.
I understand your concerns though. You can always take another Dog on a trial basis. Most rescue centres are happy to offer this service.
I bet you’re tempted!!!!
If two is good, three must be better, right? 😉
Trixie and Dennis are both rescues and have always seemed very grateful to have a home. Tucker we’ve had since he was seven weeks old, and he just thinks he’s entitled.
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You’re absolutely right!! We are relatively new dog owners (we rescued our Eskie, Sam in March 2008 – he was 7 months old). In late October 2008, we rescued a second dog, Gracie (a sheltie – 2 days older than Sam) and they get along so well. It’s nice to know that they always have a buddy to hang out with when we’re at work. Two dogs actually get into less trouble than just one. Just over 3 months later, I can’t imagine not having both of them in the house.
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Dennis, personally I love having three Dogs but I thought I might be pushing it a bit by saying 3 is better than 1. Peope would probably think I was a bit mad.
Tucker sounds just like Faye who we had as a young pup. Entitled, not grateful!
Hi Peggy, I agree with you completely! It’s odd but two Dogs do seem to get in to less trouble.
Now three Dogs is a different matter entirely! That’s way I didn’t write about three, Dennis!
Let’s see, I’m doing the math. There must be 56 reasons to own four dogs. Or maybe I’m just wacky. 🙂
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Double the fun of two … FOUR!!! =) I was tempted to get a 4th but I think this is all I can handle right now. As it is we have to take two to three different walks since Timber can’t yet walk properly with the other dogs. More training. 🙂
Eulalie6412 – Rescue or Pure bred … jealously issues will occur regardless. Trooper has gotten in two serious fights with Timber, over food/bones. And he was very clearly super jealous when we first brought Timber in (Trooper was the baby and he WAS used to us sharing since he was doggy #3).
It just takes work … you introduce them carefully and make sure to watch them closely and give both lots of affection. The old dog has to know that the new dog is part of the pack. The new dog has to respect the old dog. =)
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Hmm, yeah I don’t know when I’ll end up with two dogs. Three dogs is too many for me, but maybe two. When we fostered a dog, I did feel like I wasn’t giving enough time to either dog. The foster needed a lot of training and Ace needs a lot of exercise, so they were both lacking.
But we all know dog lovers always want more dogs.
TDB, definitely, making this list for three would’ve put a lot of people to think “Are you crazy!”. But I guess having three is definitely like being in heaven. I’d probably add another to your list: three times the poop. Not a good one right now but soon to be another source that we can sell to help the environment and produce energy!
Can’t imagine life without our kids, all rescued from different situations: one from the streets, one from an indiscriminate breeder in town, and one from a puppy mill. But yeah, I do agree with Lindsay, I know I want another one but I think I’d be sacrificing quality time spent with them.
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Jan, Lets see a post listing all those reason then!
Castocreations, thanks for the great advice you gave. I am sure it wil be very helpfull.
Lindsay,I guess we just never know when to stop! No, I am definitely stopping at three.
Karina A, definitely right about the poop!
If you have two dogs, 1 male the other female, you can breed them and have even more dogs around the house!
Aggressive Dog’s last blog post..What Causes Fear Biting in Dogs? | Anxious Dog Behavior | Dog Anxiety Problems
Aggressive Dog, now THAT is asking for trouble. Trust me, when your DOg has 5 Pups the future can look very bleak indeed!
I completely concur! I always had one dog until I bought a puppy so I wouldn’t be dogless when my older dog passed. I traveled for show quite a bit and just felt I couldn’t dedicate to more than one dog during that time. Now that I have two I realize how much they need each other to exercise, socialize and take out their doggy aggressions! I could see having three, but two is plenty for now! We are working on a therapy cert for my two year old Cavalier and the puppy is a real spitfire, so she may end up showing if I can muster the time. I won’t be breeding–ever! There are plenty of people who are very dedicated to the breed and it is something I feel no dog owner or buyer should take lightly! I have shown for sport and to support the pedigree of the breeders I have worked with. It takes a great support team and understanding of genetics to create healthy animals. I also have a cat and I don’t want her to be ganged up on too much! She has her paws full with the puppy! Once I have the little one potty trained, life is going to be a lot easier around here!
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Good for you! We had four at one time, then down to three, now we are down to two. 🙁 I want to get another one. I was so sad when we lost the last one three years ago, I am still so sad when I think about her.
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I luv my 2 dogs. And they have fun together. And I’ve almost always have had 2. But now that the snow is melting I see the one draw back to having 2. Need to get out there with my scooper for sure.
Great list!!! I have often thought about getting a second dog – but it’s still in the works! 🙂
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Oh yes, I agree it’s better to have more than one dog. Actually, six is just right! 🙂
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Tc, sounds like you have everything under control. Glad you have two great Dogs to support each other.
Cindy, it is awful when you lose a Dog. Like you I still feel sad about the Dogs we have lost. But there are also all those years of great memories.
Michael, try having three! It can be poop central!
Taris, go for it, you know it makes sense!
Cynthia, you win. I bet no one comes here and says they have more than six. Just how do you cope?
I discovered adding a second dog made actually made my first dog so much happier. She loves having a buddy to hang out with during the day. The same thing happened when I rescued my third dog.
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I like Number 9 the best. Watching two dogs go ballistic and chase each other in the park is hilarious. It lowers my blood pressure. And like you said, it burns off all their energy, and you don’t have to do anything.
Now what about THREE dogs?
I’ve heard two is no more work than one. But I ‘ve also heard three starts to be a bit much, it’s a whole different ball game.
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Hi Anne, Dogs definitely seem to be happier when they have another Doggie companion. Glad they all have company for each other.
Hi Friar, it is great to see them going bonkers enjoying each others comapny isn’t it?
Now, three Dogs, yes, as I have said before “owning three Dogs is a lot more work than owning one more than two!”
It can be a lot of work at times.
Thanks for posting about this, and highlighting all the positives of having more than 1 dog – it’s true that 2 is not any more trouble than 1, and they do keep each other company. For years I had only 1 dog at a time, then 2 years ago we decided to adopt Rosie, a 3 yr old rescued dog – she didn’t appear to be housetrained, and it made it a lot easier training her (or retraining) having Abby already in the household and trained – Rosie copied Abby and went out every time she did, and got the idea very quickly. And with walking, having 2 dogs equals out everything – your one arm won’t gett longer than the other from just one sided pulling – hah! I would encourage anyone thinking about it to go ahead and do it – you won’t regret it.
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Hi Chris, thanks for the great comment. It really does work doesn’t it?
Getting another Dog after you have one already trained makes it so much easier. They love the company as well.
very good idea to have two instead of one
Hi,
We have a rescue dog called Joey who we have had for 1 1/2 years and have now in the house on Trail for 2 weeks a bitch called Tilly. We are hoping she will bring Joey out a little as all he does is sleep and needs some winding up to play. Things went great the 5 times we took them to meet each other, running aroudn the kennel grounds like puppies but now at home Joey is ignoring Tilly when she wants to play. Is this likely to last, if not how long before Joey accepts her and lets his guard down?
Thanks in advance
Glad I found this! Going to meet our 2nd rescue dog tomorrow to make sure she’s a good fit! It’s just like kids; 2 was better, so now we have 4! Strangely enough, it is easier at times, even with the expense. When they are all happy playing together it is the best thing in the world! Thanks for your blog!
Dawn
We have a 20 week old male beagle puppy he gets bored very easy and was wondering if a 2nd dog would help with that. A lady at the dog park told me if you had a second dog your dog will behave better. I wasn’t sure if it would be best to get same breed or a different breed I know I would want a female. Any advice would be great.
Denise it should help a lot. I don’t think the breed matters personally, a friend is the main thing.
Hello to all!
I was reading all of your posts and they are very helpful. I have a question. I have a two year old Chesapeake Bay Retriever and a friend of mine who volunteers for a shelter mentioned to me that a 7 month old Great Dane needs a home. I won’t go into details. I have a small house but a decent sized yard. I take my CBR to the beach about 5 days a week. We go out with a whole group of dogs every day. My CBR socializes well but she has the most fun retrieving. My thoughts here are, first, the Great Dane needs a home. Second, I thought maybe it would help her retrieve less and play more. I am home more often than most people. I only work a few hours a week. My CBR is happy with all of us. She is not aggressive and she loves people. I keep her very active. Is it unfair to her to bring in this Great Dane? Is it unfair to the Great Dane to be living in a small house? We are experienced dog owners and I have had two in the past. They were both rescues as well. I am concerned about my CBR first. MY CBR passed her CGC test. She is well trained for a CBR. We also have a 12 and a 9 year old humans.
Thanks for any advice you may have to offer.
Sincerely,
Alli
Alli, with all of that exercise I don’t see it as a problem. I think it is great that you are thinking of doing this.
I rescued Kody at 4 months, he’s a purebred pitbull and I just rescued a little champagne pitbull yesterday, Eli, he’s 8 weeks and crazy! 🙂 he growls and nips and whines….does anyone have any tips? They are my babies and I love them but because of the breed, everyone’s afraid of them as it is and I don’t need a little growler!
I currently have a dog (Charlie) that is just over 1 yr old. He still has a lot of energy and always wants to play. I really want to get another dog but my husband is afraid our living space wouldn’t be best for 2 dogs since we leave in a town home with a small courtyard for the dogs. Do you think getting 2 dogs would be better for Charlie or space going to be a problem?
Jame, I say it may be best to just not get another Dog that is too large!
I currently have one dog, a male 9 month old Shepard mix who was a rescue. I am seriously thinking about getting another rescue. Would it be better to get another male, or doesn’t it matter?
Anthony, I honestly don’t think it matters. The nature of the dog is the most important consideration.
Our Pippin rescued my husband and I. She was 3 months old and our first canine together, (He had 3 cats when we married) I was raised with every animal imaginable, so felines are serve their purpose too. Unknown upon taking her home, she had been removed from the litter to early and had a tendency to be incredibly mouthy. Her dog skills lacking, we focused on training, bones and the toughest toys we could find her. Indescribably clever and eager to please, she adapted well to schedules and crate training. However, there was something missing… pack, I can be her alpha but I am not a canine. A friend needed to re-home an older male and we jumped at the opportunity!(he would have gone to shelter and the very thought of how our Pippin looked in the concrete cage reminded us that he would suffer) Our Dodge has been a blessing to our home, and most importantly, to Our Pippin!! He taught her something a human cannot, Dog-self control. It may seem crazy, I honestly don’t care, it is the truth!
Bottom line for any one with one dog, if you truly Love that animal, do it a favor, and get another one. The change in behavior and confidence is amazing!
Dogs are pack oriented, they need dogs. Do it correctly, introduce smells first, then a visual greeting, and finally on leashes for safety of all involved. Once play is initiated, your animals will enhance your life! That’s why they domesticated us.. to have a human to spoil them!!
As somebody who has only ever had one else dog I recently got another best thing I ever did. It’s no more different than 1 in fact it’s easier. I have a pugzu 6 months and a full pug whose 11 months. No jelousy they bonded straight away. All advise is get 2 boys, similar ages and temperament and you will have no problems. Both my boys are neutered so that helps Too!