Seeking Opinions Regarding Adding 2nd Adult Doodle (3rd Dog)

[Jennifer and "Cooper"]

I've seen lots of discussions/posts regarding adding another puppy to an already established pack but we would rather adopt an adult rescue dog.    

A little about our current dogs: We got Cooper in July 2010 when he was 7 weeks old.  At the time we also had a 12 year old female spayed boxer (deceased May 2011) and a 6 year old female spayed toy poodle.  (We still have her.  She hates Cooper-but she hates all dogs. She was my mom’s dog and when my mom passed away, we adopted her.) Cooper is a great dog.  He earned his CGC and Therapy Dog certification when he was 15 months old and does therapy visits with me weekly.  (He loves playing with the other therapy dogs during lunch hours.)  He is fully house trained and has full run of the house when we are gone.  He has quite a submissive personality. 

So my questions are as follows:

1.  Would a male or female be better given the fact that we have a female toy poodle (who hates all dogs) and a submissive male (Cooper)?  Or is it just a matter of finding the right dog no matter what the gender?

2.  What age would be best for the new dog? (We’ve been thinking 1-4 years that way it’s young enough to still be close to Cooper’s age and still have the energy and tolerance to play.) 

3.  We live in a fairly small city in Northern Lower Michigan (Hold up your right hand, palm facing you.  We live at the tip of your pinky finger.)  So far, by looking at the successful adoptions from DRC, I can see that the closest foster home in Michigan is 4 hours away from us, the farthest 9 hours.  I would obviously want to take Cooper to meet a prospective new dog but I’m worried that after being in the car for that long (even with stops or a hotel stay), he’s not really going to be his true self.  Therefore, I may not get a true picture of if the dogs will really get along or not.  Any ideas on the best way to handle this?  

4. Cooper weighs 50#.  For some reason in my mind, I'm stuck on looking for a dog about the same size because I think that Cooper will hurt a smaller dog.  Not because he's done so before, but just because that's what's in my mind.  I can't see him wrestling with a 20# dog and not accidently hurting it if he bats it with a paw, rolls on it, etc.  What  would be a safe weight range for the second doodle to decrease the likelihood of injury to either of them?

5.  Like I said, Cooper is a great dog.  He’s very mellow and laid back and always has been.  (I like to think he learned that from our boxer before she passed away.)  He has been easy to train and just loves everyone and everything.  I know to never expect an additional dog to be anything like the current dog.  So should I just quit while I’m ahead?  Am I just asking for trouble adding a second doodle to the mix?

All opinions and ideas would be greatly appreciated.

[Amy, Cubbie & Ollie]

 

Jennifer, it is great to hear that you want to rescue a dog and even better to hear that you are doing your research first.  Given the fact that your toy poodle "hates all dogs" I would probably be a little leery of adding to the family right now. (I totally commend you on taking in your mom's dog)  It also sounds like you are pretty busy with your therapy work with Cooper now too. (By the way, I am jealous of you and Cooper...I would love to do therapy work!)

I agree with the others in that you should only get another doodle if YOU really want the other doodle and not just as a playmate for Cooper since there is no guarantee that Cooper and a new dog would end up playing together.  We have finally gotten to a point where Cubbie and Ollie wrestle with each other but they don't play with toys together or anything like that.  Friends of ours have had 2 dogs for 2 years now and their dogs don't fight, but don't interact with each other very much either.  They tend to just keep to themselves.

If you have your heart set on adopting another doodle, I would suggest you try taking your poodle for more training.  It sounds like you have done a lot of training with Cooper so it should be a breeze for you, but training the poodle more would give you and her the opportunity to bond, teach her to listen to you, and give her time around other dogs.  She can still learn to tolerate being around other dogs which might help you at home too.

I noticed that you belong to the Michigan Doodles group.  Maybe reach out to the members of that group and see if any of them live in your area and would be willing to bring their doodle by for a play date. 

Please keep us posted with your decision and if you have any questions let me know.  I know this won't be an easy decision for you.

[Jennifer and "Cooper"]

Thanks for the reply Amy.  I took your advice and posted on the Michigan Doodles group.  (I've done it a couple of other times since I joined DK but never got any replies.  Like I said, we kind of live in the middle of nowhere in Northern Michigan.)  But maybe there's some new member who live nearby.

Ironically, we took the dogs across the street to play Chuck-It at the High School soccer field a couple of hours ago.  And about 30 minutes after we got there, a family showed up with another Goldendoodle!!  (Only the 5th one we've ever seen in our city since we've gotten Cooper.)   Gabby (the toy poodle) let the other dog sniff her and run with her and never let out even the slightest growl or showed any teeth.  So maybe there is hope for Gabby yet!!  As others have said, I think it totally territorial. 

Cooper was pretty funny.  He is obsessed with the Chuck-It.  He would play Chuck-It 24/7 if it was possible.  He had absolutely no interest in the other Doodle until I put all the Chuck-It gear in the back pack.  Then he was like "Oh!  Well, if we're not going to play ball I guess I'll go play with her."  She was more interested in chasing squirrels though so he just came back to me to play more ball. 

I also agree with everyone that I shouldn't get another dog just so Cooper has someone to play with.  (Much like we never had a second child just so our daughter would have a in-house playmate.)  I would be doing it totally for me and if the second doodle played with Cooper, it would be a bonus. 

I'm one of those people who researches everything to death before I make a decision.  I'm loving all the input I'm getting and it's giving me lots to think about.