How to add a dog to your pack?

[Leslie, Yogi & Maci Bear]

We are getting yogi's brother/sister in early July. (Due date is this weekend). I had asked our trainer about getting a second dog, she said its important to keep them separate a fair amount of time.
So I'm wondering if you guys did this, how did you accomplish it? I'm trying to think how a day might go if I have them separated some during the day. Would puppy be in a separate room in his crate instead of out with Yogi? Would yogi be partitioned off when we play with new pup? Right now Yogi has run of the house, so just now sure how to approach this.

Any thoughts or experiences would be helpful

[Mike Crum]

Hi Leslie,

We have a 9-yr-old male goldendoodle (Buster) and a 4-yr-old male labradoodle (Scooter). Just before we got Scooter from the dog pound, our then 5-yr-old Buster had had another companion, a black lab that had recently passed away.  So, I don't know if him already having another dog companion affected his welcoming of a new dog companion.  Anyway, when we brought Scooter home, we introduced them outside and away from our home.  Basically, my partner and I took both of them for separate walks, and we eventually came together so they could do their introductory sniffs in a non-threatening environment (and non-territorial space). Once we could see that they got along away from home, we just walked them together back to our home, and they've been good buds ever since.  We probably separated them the first couple of times that we fed them so there'd be no territorial issues then, but that didn't last very long. They've gotten along just fine the three years since bringing Scooter home.  However, now that Buster is getting older, he has become a little territorial over his dog food bowl and any treats he is given.  Not sure what to do about that -- I know there's another forum here that discusses that -- I just haven't made it over to that group yet.  Good luck -- I'm sure you'll have little to worry about!

Mike :-)

[Jill, Woody & Maxi]

Congratulations!

We added a 2nd dog back in November..I'm sure you will hear many different opinions…but, we kept our two in the same area from the beginning..that way they puppy can learn to live with your current dog (and vice versa)..and you can correct any negative behavior in the very beginning.  I do believe it is important to do separate things, such as training, because you will need something with your new dog that will bond the two of you together..and then on the same hand, it is good to do some training together, with both dogs…as, the other dog will be a good distraction.

Best of luck!

[Megan]

Hi Leslie,

I just went through this about 3 weeks ago with my goldendoodle puppy, Dotty, and 3 year old Catahoula, Mozzie. I did have them in the same space quite a bit of the time but well supervised, it worked better outside as the older dog was less territorial there than in the house. When I could tell Mozzie had had enough I used baby gates to keep the puppy in the hallway where the big dog could still see her but she couldn't get to him (or me). There was some snarling and snapping at the puppy for about 36 hours while he got used to the idea of a puppy and made sure she knew her place in the pack but now they are getting along great and big dog can't wait for the puppy to get out of her crate in the morning so they can play. Good luck!

[Leslie, Yogi & Maci Bear]

Thanks Megan. Glad to hear things are going well for your two!

[Rae]

We're getting our newest baby GD next week (Cassie the Beautiful) & we'll do the same as we've done in the past with other puppies. Cassie's X-Pen will go up within the next day or so in the family room. Rozee, 8 yr old GD, will have access and nearly a week to get used to it. Cassie will go directly from the car to her space (after potty time) and that way both girls can smell each other, touch noses, etc. We'll do that for most of the first month during the day. This has really worked extremely in the past when bringing a new pup into our home. Cassie will get plenty of very closely supervised short play times with Rozee but if we are busy with "life" she can still see & smell Rozee and know she isn't alone. Rozee is an extremely calm dog and great with puppies and smaller dogs so we know she won't hurt Cassie, but we will not leave them alone in the same space unsupervised. Hope this helps! Attached is a photo of Cassie at 6 weeks!

[Judi Kilpatrick]

Cute!!!

[Leslie, Yogi & Maci Bear]

Thanks Rae. Will a crate be in the expen for Cassie? How big is the expen? Will you feed Cassie in the pen?
Btw, what a cute combination of colors!

[Rae]

The X-Pen is 4 feet high and has 8 panels that are 2 feet wide. I'm not putting the crate in there just her smelly blanket from the breeder with litter mate smells, toys, and non-skid water bowl on a tray (she'll probably spill..or put a foot in the water!). She will be fed in there too. We have cut a tarp to fit the size of the pen, then will cover that with an old sheet and fasten both tarp and sheet down with binder clips. Easy to change and to keep area clean. The dogs have their own bedroom (I know! I know!) and the crate goes in there so at night she'll be the same room as Rozee and it's easy to get her out to go potty until she can sleep all night. We have a baby gate in front of the dog's bedroom door so it's real easy access. Hope that helps! Thanks! We are thrilled with getting a red sable pup since they are pretty rare! She was the only sable in a litter of 11.