Wendy please - buying sibling puppies

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kitla
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Wendy please - buying sibling puppies

Post by kitla »

Wendy, if you're there, you've seen many doggy behaviour issues, I wondered if you had an opinion on this. I am trying to talk my friend out of getting 2 puppies from the same litter, she is convinced it will be easier if they can grow up playing together, but from what I've read it can cause problems with behaviour unless you work really hard with them. Have you come across this issue?
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wendy
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Re: Wendy please - buying sibling puppies

Post by wendy »

Extremely hard work. Sometimes it works out.
But of course the pups are always more interested in each other than you.
You have to train them away from each other, otherwise the other one will want to join in all the time and it is difficult.
Teaching to walk nicely can be a nightmare as they want to play or always one wants to in front of the other.
I certainly would always walk separately, as they will get that the other puppy is their confidence, then heaven forbid, one dies and the other cannot cope without it. Sometimes with very sad outcomes.
No I don't think it is very wise. I have done it, when I couldn't sell a puppy. I did it and they were both very rounded and well behaved. So it can a be done, just not as easy as one. Get that one under control and then when about 18 months then get a companion. Best toy you can get for your dog.
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Spreckly
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Re: Wendy please - buying sibling puppies

Post by Spreckly »

Our neighbours a couple of doors away have border collie litter mates. They are around a year old now, and bark for England. The owners are out at work all day, so the dogs have a dog flap, and judging by the amount of barking, they spend a lot of time outside. OH has remarked in the past that one of them seems particularly nasty.
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kitla
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Re: Wendy please - buying sibling puppies

Post by kitla »

thankyou for your advice, that bears out what I'd heard & not the sort of stress my friends need. However, since I posted my friend has decided to stick to one puppy, I'm very pleased!
"He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals."
--Immanuel Kant
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wendy
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Re: Wendy please - buying sibling puppies

Post by wendy »

)like(
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If you can't be a good example........
you will just have to be a horrible warning
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