Litter Mates-- Double the Joy; Triple the Time

[Ashley, Sadie and Coal]

Hello doodle friends.  I am thinking I should try to keep a journal of sorts here on DK, so that friends who are thinking about getting litter mates can make an informed decision or at least have an an idea about one crazy family's experience.  Most importantly, I don't want to forget all of the little milestones and stories about our puppies, and I am sure I will with the hectic life of having three human children and two fur babies. By blogging here on DK, maybe we can help someone else, keep a journal of their lives and get much-needed advice all at the same time.  

Entry 1:

We decided on December 26, 2013 that it was time for a puppy.  We wanted a doodle because I have allergies, and I was able to live with toy poodles as a child.  My boys wanted a larger breed, we love the personalities of labs and goldens, and we knew of a breeder of golden doodles nearby.  At the school where I work, many families have doodle pups from this breeder, and we were impressed with each one we have met.  Researching the breed convinced me that this was the way to go. What I did not research, was "raising two puppies at the same time." More on that later...  

We went to visit the breeder that very day.  We were impressed with her clean, organized dog quarters, and the well-behaved, intelligent adult dogs on site.  We met the parents of the litter, then met the pups, and we knew right away that Sadie was our girl.  The pups were very young, but we only had to wait a week to bring them home.  As we are preparing to leave, I hear my husband say, "I really think we should get two."  Our three children and the breeder all lit up like Christmas trees.  The breeder said something like it will be harder, but if you are consistent and work together, it can be done.  I however, after recovering my voice, replied, "Don't you think we should get one now and come back sometime down the road?"  His response was along the lines of they will keep each other company and with three kids, no one will be left out.  That sounded reasonable, but I still thought two was more than I had bargained for.

As we rode home, I told the kids not to get their hopes up, that I was sure we could get one puppy, but two seemed like a lot.  Of course the replies were all about how they were going to do so much for these puppies and they would never get tired of them, blah, blah, blah...  When we stopped by to see my mother-in-law (aka the animal whisperer--for real), she surprised me by agreeing that the two dogs would be best. I trust her... all animals and people love her.  I remained unsure, but allowed myself to entertain the idea.  We reserved a boy from the same litter, so that we could have first pick, just in case we decided to get two.  

We went home, and I spent the next seven days researching goldendoodles and how to prepare for a puppy.  We went to the pet store to get supplies for a puppy or two.  We got one crate with a divider, and the other things on the "bringing home your puppy" list.  My husband said he firmly believed we should get two.  At some point during the week, I fell so in love with goldenddoodles that I said okay. What I really fell into was the the trap of cute and cuddly, the excitement of new puppies and the idea of how could it not be wonderful with more to love... I can hear you groaning... ;)

On January 2, we brought home our TWO puppies, from the SAME litter a day earlier than we had expected.  They were five weeks old.  I now know that wasn't the best timing.  We were given the advice to keep them separate as often as possible, especially when we are at home with them.  We were instructed to keep them in their crates, with us on a leash or in an exercise pen. Being the diligent OCD type people that we are, we followed instructions to the letter and our experience got off to a great start.

Sometime during the first week, I began to notice that Coal was unhappy when separated from Sadie, thus began my research on "raising two puppies together."   Little did I know that I was about to discover:  

Number 1:  Never ever get two puppies at the same time.  

Number 2:  There is a thing called "Litter Mate Syndrome,"  and we were at great risk of having to deal with that for the next 10 or 12 years. The web has a lot of info on LMS.  And 90% of it is not positive.

Number 3:  The best thing to do is to re-home one of the puppies.  Well, it might have been a mistake, but my family nor myself were able to choose a puppy, nor did we even consider getting rid of one. Too many pups need rescuing.  I was not about to add to that issue if I could help it.

Number 4:  There are things you can do to minimize this risk, if by chance you have already been dumb enough to bring two puppies from the same litter home.

Hmmm. You might be thinking that it sounds like a lot of work.  It is. You might also be thinking that this lady should have done her research before biting off more than she could chew.  You are right.  As I frequently tell my students and my children, we have to accept responsibility for our actions, both positive and negative.  We are.  What we know for sure is that we have to do this, and we have to do our best to create doodles who are happy, obedient well-adjusted family members.

Next time, I will record our triumphs and trials over the first few weeks of having litter mates.  For now, we are exhausted (in a look what we have accomplished kind of way), we are in love with Sadie and Coal, and we are completely sold on goldendoodles. 

[Ashley, Sadie and Coal]

Thanks so much doodle friends. Your encouragement means the world to us.  

[Miss Ellie]

Ashley it sounds to me like you have things under control and are making the most out of your situation. I am sending you all the best wishes and am confident that with determination, perseverance and lots of patience...you will make this work...and you have double the doodle love and double the doodle kisses...what can be better than that:)

[Nina, Phil, Harlow & Lacey]

Ashley, I will be part of the 10% that has positive feedback on having a pair of littermates.  In 2000 after being dogless for a couple of years we brought home 2 absolutely adorable beagle brothers, Baxter and Sherlock.  Neither one suffered from Littermate Syndrome.  I will tell you that we are (and were then) experienced multi-dog owners/parents.  We did make a point of heavily socializing "the boys" together and separately.  Our daughters took an active role in caring, feeding and TLC.  We made a point of taking multiple obedience classes with all the human family members rotating through the "other end of the leash".  They were indeed bonded to each other but they were also strongly bonded to their people.  Each boy bonded with each of our daughters as their person.

In 2009 our doodle, Harlow, joined our pack and the boys loved her.  In 2011 Sherlock passed after fighting a battle with cancer.  Baxter did suffer from depression for awhile but having Harlow with us really helped Baxter.

Yes having littermates can double the work, but it can most definitely double the fun.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

hanks for sharing.  You sound determined to make this work.  I feel sure that your diligence will come back to you in wonderful adult dogs.    You got them at 5 weeks?  Did I read that correctly?  That is way, way too early and creates problems all by itself!  That doesn't sound responsible for a breeder.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Ashley, thanks for sharing your story. Sadie and Coal are adorable!  I want to commend you for your commitment to your doodle babies and your desire to help them become happy fulfilled adults. DH and I also nearly succumbed to getting two (more's better right?) when we picked up Tara. There was one little male remaining and it was hard to leave him behind. I had researched Labradoodles and how to raise a puppy for a year before getting Tara but had not researched raising littermates and had no idea of the challenges involved.  But I certainly understand how easy  it is to get caught up in the moment.

I wish  you and your family well and think that once you get through this first year things will start to smooth out.

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

  Good luck with Sadie and Coal (love the names).  The title of your blog seems to say it all!  

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

Ashley, you and your DH sound like wonderful parents trying to make the best of a challenging situation. Who among us hasn't looked at a litter and said, I'd like this one, and this one, ... I'll be following with interest.

I've never raised two littermates of my own but I dealt with one severe case in puppy rescue. One was bold, the other extremely timid and unhappy without her sister.  Looking back, we should have put them in separate homes early on but were eventually blessed to find a home that took them both and they are lovely dogs -- but they will always be two parts of a whole, never well-adjusted individuals. So my advice is to separate them as much as possible during their first year. Take them many places separately, work with them separately, crate them separately, etc.   

I'm stunned that a breeder would release a pup at 5 weeks of age.  I'd consult a professional with expertise in that area or maybe someone here will have advice.

Sending you a big hug of support!  BTW Sadie and Coal are just beautiful!!!!! 

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

I do have a friend (who is not on DK ) with Doodle litter mates and hers are no problem, hard work yes, but nothing major. I will ask her for some advice and see if she can offer any that may be useful. I think I would employ a really good trainer to come into your home to observe first and help with training second.

[Ashley, Sadie and Coal]

I'm thankful that you all are here and can give us sound, thoughtful advice. We were very ignorant in our decision making when getting these pups, and now that we have them, I do not want to make any more uninformed decisions. After finding this site, I realized the two very obvious mistakes we made were bringing home such young puppies, and adopting litter mates. I think we have a good start with trying to avoid litter mate syndrome, but I am not sure how to nurture them to make up for lost time with their mother. What has worked for you in regards to bite inhibition? At this point, they seem to have soft mouths and we aren't struggling with nipping, but I know the adolescent days are coming, and that might be when issues arise. What are other issues of which we should be cognizant, and what can we do to make them less problematic?

DK and its thoughtful, kind people are certainly an immense blessing. I truly am loving this community with all of the precious pups and their very smart humans!

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I will be following with interest as well.  While six years ago before DK we brought home liter mates, at six weeks!  I'm not sure I've heard of anyone getting them at five weeks so I'll be curious to learn your experiences.  In our experience I don't think that getting two puppies was necessarily that much harder, however we were both at home for the first 6 months and don't have children in addition to the puppies.  However, I do think that I've seen some small issues related to the age at which we brought them home.  Good luck.  Sounds like you are doing your homework and attempting to make the best of your situation.  Look foward to the next blog.