Hastily Picking a Second Dog Can Lead to Personality Clashes
“I’ve always had dogs in pairs,” Dr. Borns-Weil says. Yet some of those pairs did better together than others. For instance, at one time there was Lucky the male hound mix and Patches the female Tibetan terrier. And they got on famously. They shared toys, played and barked together, and would lie side by side on a mat eating Greenies. Lucky really relied on Patches during walks. He was fearful of city sights and sounds, and Patches would remain close to him and if needed, lick his ears for support. “Patches was clearly lonely after Lucky died,” Dr. Borns-Weil says, “so I brought home Dobby,” a rat terrier mix. “But Patches never really bonded well with Dobby.
“They’d stay together on the bed, they’d back each other up. But when Patches died and I brought home Koshi [a Doberman] for Dobby, I saw anew what closely bonded dogs really look like. They chose to sit in the same place, cuddle up together. It was so sweet. Dobby would sit in Koshi’s lap. When Koshi was dying [prematurely, from bone cancer], for the last three weeks Dobby never left his side.
Why is it so hit-and-miss? One reason, says Dr. Borns-Weil, is that often, “you get a second dog because somebody needs to find a place for a dog, and you quickly find a way to make it work” for the dog you already have. That’s what happened with Doberman Koshi. “Koshi was originally my sister-in-law’s dog,” the doctor says. In the meantime, “my mother-in-law had adopted a rescue dog who was not adapting well to the urban setting where she lived. She was getting more and more aggressive toward people, and my mother-in-law found it difficult to desensitize her in the urban environment, where she could not control contact with people. So that dog went to live with my sister-in-law in rural Pennsylvania. And Koshi, who had a hard time getting all the cuddling he wanted in my sister-in-law’s multi-dog home, came to live with Dobby and us.” In that case, it worked out very smoothly, but it doesn’t always, even if it’s not an emergency situation.
Consider that a lot of people take their dog to the shelter to look for a second one, in the hope that bringing along the first pet will allow for that dog’s input and, ultimately, a better match. But it’s a form of speed dating, Dr. Borns-Weil says. It’s hard to tell from one, or even two or three visits to the shelter, whether two dogs will do okay together over the long run.
“When I wanted to get a new dog for Patches,” Dr. Borns-Weil notes, “we went to the shelter, and I made a short list of dogs that I liked and that she liked. We chose Dobby, and it turned out that when I got them home, it wasn’t the best match. Patches would never have ‘popped the question’ if she and Dobby had gone on more dates.
“A dog might enjoy another dog initially,” she says. But the two dogs may not display their full range of behaviors in that situation, and they have to make a quick decision based on initial impressions. We’re layering our own best judgment over that to create what is essentially an arranged marriage that may or may not work to best advantage.”
Dr. Borns-Weil doesn’t regret bringing Dobby home, and she doesn’t think Patches regretted it, either. “They were co-dogs, and they did okay,” she says. Patches wasn’t left by herself in the house all day, and Dobby was given a forever home. Dobby just wasn’t able to break through Patches’ independent nature.
Given the unknowns of putting two dogs together forever after just a short meet-and-greet or two, is there anything people can do to increase the chances the two pets will at least feel okay about each other, making the addition of a second dog a net gain instead of a net loss for dog number one? Absolutely.
One thing to keep in mind is that two dogs in the same household almost always work it out; their social natures just won’t let it play out any other way. Second, it’s not all about chemistry. There are some good rules-of-thumb to apply.
What We Know About Adding A Second Dog
While you can be reasonably sure when bringing home a second dog that your first dog will be better off for the company but never certain just how well it’s going to work, following the three rules here will increase your chances of a better pairing.
1. Generally speaking, don’t shoot for female-to-female. It isn’t that two female dogs never get along. In fact, it’s not common for two dogs of any gender to fight if they live in the same household. But two different studies have shown that fighting dogs are more apt to be both female. Mixed gender sets or neutered male-plus-male is more likely to work, Dr. Borns-Weil says.
2. Activity similarity is more important than breed similarity. “Breed similarity helps to the extent that there are behaviors more common to some breeds than others,” Dr. Borns-Weil says, so two dogs will likely “get” each other. But when pairing dogs, “breed” is really only important as a marker for activity levels and proclivities. “It helps to have dogs with similar exercise capacities and who like to do similar things,” she remarks. A dog who’s something of a slug and a dog who likes a lot of activity may have some challenges finding common ground.
At least as important, it can be harder for you if you have two dogs with different interests and different ideas of a good time. Having a dog who likes to romp through the woods for an hour or more and a dog who simply enjoys playing fetch for 10 minutes and then just wants to sniff some bushes before going back to the house means you’re going to have some difficulties satisfying the instincts of both. It makes catering to your two dogs’ needs more time-consuming.
3. Similar age doesn’t matter as much as similar health status. A lot of people suppose that it’s important that the second dog be around the same age of the first. Or, conversely, they wonder whether bringing a puppy or fairly young dog into the house will revitalize an older dog. But rather than resting the choice of a second dog on age, Dr. Borns-Weil suggests resting it more on what your first dog is up for. For instance, she says, “an older dog can get revitalized by the introduction of a younger dog, but only if the older dog is not so sickly or slow that a young dog would just become a stressor.” You cannot turn an arthritis-ridden pet in pain into a frisky young one just because a new dog brought into the household has energy to burn.
“I once had a dog, Otis May, with severe hip dysplasia,” Dr. Borns-Weil recounts. “This was before the days of total hip replacements. When her canine companion died, I got her a tiny companion because she could not tolerate rough and tumble.”
How will your current dog feel?
Many people get a second dog to keep the first dog company. They worry that their dog may be lonely when left alone. While this is a legitimate concern, it should not be the sole determining factor when considering the addition of another pet to the family. Dogs are inherently social animals that live well together in groups, but that does not mean that all dogs get along.
Most dogs will welcome a new sibling, but it is not always smooth sailing. The furry family member you have now will face many changes when a new dog enters the picture and may feel a bit displaced. He may not like sharing his territory, toys, food, resting places, or humans. Luckily, you can help him adjust to his new companion if you prepare in advance.