[JPH102900]

My wife and I are considering getting a second dog but this time we would like to rescue. We currently have a one year old mini dachshund named Cooper. He loves other dogs and we figured we would get him a brother/sister. We are going to meet a potential adoptee this weekend but we want to know what our biggest considerations should be before we take this next step and adopt another puppy.

We are trying to get another dachshund preferably between 1 and 2 years old so that they can play together and tire each other out.

 

[scorsone]

We started with one dog and then decided a second would make a great playmate for the first. It worked pretty well but our first dog seems to have a little bit of a "what about me?" look when we would pay attention to the new dog. Dog A would get a bit jealous of dog B.

Dog A is female and dog B is a male. I am sure that has a bit to do with it.

 

[BOLL-X]

Go for it!

Two dogs are great company for each other. Introduce your pooch to the potential new pooch on neutral ground and be nearby to intervene. Watch the new pooch to see if he/she will want to be dominant. Your first pooch needs to think he/she is #1.

When you get home, have new pooch's food dish a distance away from pooch #1. Keep a close eye on them and intervene like a pack leader if they get in a jam, a la Dog Whisperer....

Be sure you can afford the extra vet bills with the added vaccinations, etc.

We adopted two older Labs who grew up together and got turned in to the shelter together because they were escape artists and cost their owners much $$$ in dog fines. We love having the two. They're cool with us, no more escapes.

GOOD LUCK!!!

 

[OUZO Power]

We have two Jack Russell Terriers.

Both are 4. Male & Female.

We had the male from a pup. It was great. But after the 1st year we realised he's alot of work and we couldn't keep up. We loved him to death. So we decided on getting him a friend to play with and keep him company when we are gone or at work.

So we adopted a beaten up female JRT. She really made a amazing turn around in our care.

Pros: The male is no longer lonely and has a playmate. The extra stoop and scoop is nothing really. You walk one either way so whats the difference in walking two.

Cons: If your adopting like we did be expected to have a little hard time with the new dog. It's character has been formed and it will be hard to break it from it's routines.

Our girl gets spooked really easy from loud sounds. Just the other day we went for a walk and a truck came storming by. Thats it. For this week she doesn't want to go for a walk. She'll go running home if our walk is in our area. So for the next month I have to drive them to a remote park where she doesn't know where she is so she wont run home.

She has bad eating habbits we cannot break. She takes her food to bed with her creating a mess. Our male always eats over his dish.

Besides our male who she was forced to live with and has now learned it's ok she wont let another dog near her. She is not aggresive. She just will hudle up in a ball from fear. There where bite wounds on her when we got her.


You mention dachshund. Now thise are very difficult dogs IMHO. They get into a routine easy and are picky. My inlaws have one and it pisses me off. haha. Very antisocial and yappy. It's been treated like a princess and it had reverse affects.

 

[OUZO Power]

Two dogs are great company for each other. Introduce your pooch to the potential new pooch on neutral ground and be nearby to intervene. Watch the new pooch to see if he/she will want to be dominant. Your first pooch needs to think he/she is #1.

Great advice

 

[dog drool]

I got my second less than a year ago and it is great.
Know your dogs personality and get a 2nd to match even if it means a wait.
Sam my first is an alpha male so I knew that I need a non dominate female.
They play together and just a little bit of pet me No pet me..
but all in all 2 is the way to go.

 

[mkh]

As has been hinted in the posts, good idea for the second dog to be opposite sex. Two of the same, particularly females, and you can have occasional ongoing "arguments" on who is the alpha female.

We have two female French Bulldogs, one ours, and one taken in from our Son, who's new job took him away from home too much to keep his. And they do get into it sometimes. Will stand up on hind legs, chest to chest, nose to nose and yell at each other until one backs down.

But the doggie-to-doggie companionship is well worth it.

 

[scorsone]

That must be our problem....

Our first, Shelby, was a non dominant female. Our second, Sam, is a dominant male.

 

[JPH102900]

Well our current pup is very submissive. He loves to play with other dogs but is never aggressive and when he gets barked at or if a dog plays rough with him he just rolls onto his back and goes submissive. Should be try to get another submissive dog or a dominant one?

Also, the plan for this weekend is to meet the prospective pup at a dachshund meet at a park in ohio so that we can see how he interacts with other dogs and with Cooper.

 

[BOLL-X]

Also, the plan for this weekend is to meet the prospective pup at a dachshund meet at a park in ohio so that we can see how he interacts with other dogs and with Cooper.

Sounds like a blast! Really hope you find a great match. You can name Pooch #2 Pooper...get a third pooch and name him Scooper. :lol:

Our two labs are 'fixed' males. We got them when they were 9 and 6 yrs. old. (Now they're 11 and 8). The older is dominant, younger one is laid back. When first brought home, the older one started pulling all the cushions of the sofas and humping them (sign of dominance but we thought maybe he is gay or something) so we had many sessions of catching him in the act and rolling him over on his side while we calmly explained things to him. All's well.

 

[NighthawkStella]

I would consider another dog for my Cooper too but what has stopped me is the extra vet costs and also the care when I am out of town. My parents are great and take Cooper when they can and I have 2 other friends that can take him. Not sure how they would feel about taking a 2nd dog.
Plus I can't imagine going back to the new dog stage in life right now!
Good luck!

 

[PVR]

As some of you may have heard we have two Westies.

Dexter (m) is nearly 4, Skeena (f) is 1 and a half. Dexter suckered us into thinking that all Westies are gentle, peaceful and laid back so we got Skeena.

She was the runt of the litter and is a bundle of energy, always busy and VERY dominant.

They get along famously. When Skeena gets too much Dexter wrestles her to the ground and sits on her (he outweighs her almost two to one).

Dexter makes us think that he could get along without her but, secretly, I think he really does like her. Skeena always looks for Dexter and greatly misses him if he is not around.


It is great having two dogs, good company for each other if you don't mind having your house slightly trashed from time to time when they teararse around. To the OP, the advice you have been given on this thread is good stuff. We find the difference in ages has helped too, as Dexter seems to have a settling effect on Skeena and Skeena keeps Dexter young!

 

[mkh]

Well our current pup is very submissive. He loves to play with other dogs but is never aggressive and when he gets barked at or if a dog plays rough with him he just rolls onto his back and goes submissive. Should be try to get another submissive dog or a dominant one?

Also, the plan for this weekend is to meet the prospective pup at a dachshund meet at a park in ohio so that we can see how he interacts with other dogs and with Cooper.

Very good idea to meet in "neutral" territory, and see how they interact. A submissive dog usually gets on well with most other dogs, but you'd be surprised - they have their own pecking order, and way of deciding. Of our two Frenchies, the more aggressive and high energy one "thinks" she is in charge, but the more submissive friendly one will put the other in her place & force her into submission, when she gets tired of "Miss Bossy's" attitude.

If first meeting goes well, second "test" should be on home turf. Dogs can act VERY different on home ground, particulary if they are into "resource guarding" around other dogs. When we sit our daughters dog, he plays fine with our two Frenchies, but around meal-time, our aggressive one won't allow him in the room where she is fed - she knows the time, and starts guarding the door. And our submissive one won't allow him on the sofa in the family room, if she is on it first, but it's okay if he gets there first, and she second. Dogs have a whole set of bred-in social rules we don't have much control over.

 

[carvingbarn]

We have thought about getting a second dog also. My sister raises Borders and told me when I got my border I should get Two. I know that our dog would like having a friend to play with. It is the doubling of the expense, especially the vet bills, that is holding us back from doing it.

 

[amya]

As we say in the dachshund world .. they are like potatoe chips .. can't have just one. LOL I have 3. Dachshunds are heavy pack dogs and really do enjoy having company.

It was the best thing in the world for Rosie when I got Harley. It was a big deal, since Rosie (6yrs at the time) was dominate, dog agressive and just a brat. Found out, even though Harley is pretty mellow and can be submissive, that he was happy taking over being the dominate one. Rosie was just scared of dogs, with Harley she learned to relax and didn't have to be incharge. Rosie has changed so much, she is just a sweet well adjusted little girl ... well for a doxie. LOL

Now we have Frank too. Harley goes off to work, Rosie & Frank sleep all day.

 

[Jojo]

To add as PVR stated, if you get the same breed don't expect the same personality.

We have a Pug, who we "inherited", and he's big for a pug and a handfull.

On one of our camping trips a man came over to look at our teardrop and saw our pug, he goes to the car and brings out a small black pug, he goes on to say how sweet and calm she is, "Such a good dog, we had to get another" he then goes back to the car and produces a large fawn pug identical to ours in size and personality, then says "And this is why we won't get another";-)

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[OUZO Power]

Well our current pup is very submissive. He loves to play with other dogs but is never aggressive and when he gets barked at or if a dog plays rough with him he just rolls onto his back and goes submissive. Should be try to get another submissive dog or a dominant one?

Every dachshund I have met does that. If I raise my voice to the 3 in our near family Cousins and inlaws they just role over. When they see our Jacks and our male is definetly an Alpha Male they just role over. Thats so wierd.

 

[Basset Box]

Yay! More dogs = more fun. First off, big ups for considering a rescue. Secondly, huge bonus points for going Scent Hound. I would suggest a complimentary personality. I know yours may seems submissive but you never truly know until a new dog is introduced into THEIR territory. You are doing the right thing with the neutral introduction. If you can limit distractions like other people and dogs, you will really be able to focus on how they interact. I have had some fosters that truly need a confident and dominant dog to make them comfortable. If yours is very submissive, maybe a stronger personality will be a good option.

Like another poster said, they are pack animals (like Bassets). There natural instinct is to get along, socialize, and enjoy the company of other dogs. Getting the personalities to mix within pack breeds isn't as hard as more independent breeds.

I wish you luck in your quest for the new addition to your family and pack. Pics are a must as well.

 

[Twilightzero]

I've found that once you're past the initial stage of everyone getting used to each other, 2 dogs is only about 1.2 times the work of one dog, and they keep each other company and entertained. Once you get to three, though, they start to have pack mentality and reinforce each others' behaviors, good and bad.

For introduction to a new dog to the house, I usually have one person take each dog and walk to a neutral location via different routes, meet there, then all walk home together and everyone go in together. Seems to ease a lot of tensions quite well.

 

[bh241]

The info posted in this thread is great, a lot of good advice. I can only add to it by asking, why just two?

We're 'down' to six full timers here at the house... can't imagine life without so many paws running about.

Of course, the additional dog(s) will not only increase the costs of ownership monetarily, but they will demand more 'personal' care time from you too. So give it some thought. :smile:

Good luck on your quest, post pictures when you can.