10 Things To Consider When Getting Another Dog
Posted by Wolf & I Co. on Oct 07, 2021
Frost and her hoomans have been Wolf & I Co. supporters for a long time and it's been awesome to watch her journey and so when Kai came along we just had to know if it was an easy decision to bring another dog into the family and what it's like having two dogs around the house. Here's what they had to say...
What was your decision to get another dog?
We always wanted to get another dog, in fact we want four! Our plan was to wait for Frost to get to about three years old before getting another addition to the family.
Top tips to successfully add a second dog to the home?
We definitely believe that the longer your wait from the first puppy, the better. We would recommend waiting until the first dog is at least two and a half or three so that they are fully out of their teenage puppy stage and have very solid training that way they can help the second puppy or dog settle in and learn about their new home.
Any issues you faced adding a second dog into the family?
Our only issues around adding a second dog came from Kai’s background and his age, being a bit older made it a little harder for him to transition.
Reasons why two dogs are better than one?
More cuddles! More affection! More love!
When should you consider adding a second dog to your family?
When your first dog is 100% solid in their training and has grown out of puppyhood completely. A few years of time for them to be special and have one on one time with the family is perfect.
Any unique experiences you’ve faced during the process?
We adopted Kai during lockdown, which was interesting! It meant we couldn’t socialise him as much as we would have liked. This would have definitely helped his transition more but that is the world we live in right now! Kai also came from quite a bad situation, he has lasting damage from his first 18 months and is very anxious. He has so much love to give, but struggles to know how sometimes.
What is most enjoyable about having two dogs around?
Seeing them play together, and snuggle up at night is just so cute! They’re so happy with each other’s company and are the best of friends.
What changes/is harder with two dogs?
Dividing your time to make sure both dogs feel loved. Frost definitely struggled with not having all of our attention anymore for a little while. Also everything is doubled - the love, the play time, the walks, the fur, the food and the cost is all doubled!! That hurts the pocket a little more!
If you had any bad/copy cat behaviour you had to curb and how you did it?
We spent a good chunk of time continuing to train Frost as we always had, and then also trained Kai separately. We always correct behaviours in the exact same way. The only real copy cat issue was Frost picking up on some of Kais anxieties, which luckily for us disappeared from Frosts behaviours when we moved house just a few months after getting him.
How to introduce the new dog to the family (a little about Kai’s background)
Frost and Kai already knew one another so we had a little advantage in this area. We brought him home and introduced them again, they remembered each other and started to play straight away. We then slept in seperate rooms, me with Frost and my partner with Kai. Just so they weren’t forced to spend too much time together. We have seperate crates for them so they both have their own safe space and just took it one day at a time! The most important thing is individual time with each dog separately.
If you are considering adding another dog to the family we hope that sharing Frost & Kai's experience helps answer any questions that you might have, gives a little insight into what training is required and overall brings you one step closer to bringing home a new family member.
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