Getting two puppies at about the same time?

[moosebytes]

Good or bad idea? We recently lost our 11 year old yellow boy (5 months ago) and so we know what work /time/patience puppies demand. Both of us are retired and are at home 24/7. Rural country locale. each pup would be from a different breeder. We have no children or other pets in the house.
Would we be biting off more than we can chew, so to speak.

BTW: This is not the situation we were counting on...it's come about because we've had to put multiple deposits down
at 2 different breeders so that we can be somewhat assured of having a pup by the end of August, and we really don't want to "eat" one of the deposits if both litters produce a yellow/male that we are looking for. We'd love to have two, but are wondering just how draining it might become, especially in the first few weeks of house/crate training. I run 40-50 miles a week and DW is quite active as well, so physically we could probably handle it if we had to...I guess. Also, both of these "take home" dates would be about 7-10 days apart.

[Laura]

I think you will get a lot of replies on this one, so I will keep mine brief. I wouldn't do it, personally. I've had multiple dogs at once, and two of them were only 3 months apart. It was fine for the first dog, but once we got the second puppy it was much harder. The problem wasn't so much the housebreaking and general puppy-rearing. It was that the second puppy bonded more to the older puppy than any human. Buster thought he was Jake's dog. It made training a challenge and, although I made it a point to take him to training by himself, he had anxiety without Jake around. I don't know if I am explaining it well, or if it is even all that common, but I found the human/dog bond harder to achieve with two puppies at once.

[dxboon]

Good or bad idea? We recently lost our 11 year old yellow boy (5 months ago) and so we know what work /time/patience puppies demand. Both of us are retired and are at home 24/7. Rural country locale. each pup would be from a different breeder. We have no children or other pets in the house.
Would we be biting off more than we can chew, so to speak.

BTW: This is not the situation we were counting on...it's come about because we've had to put multiple deposits down
at 2 different breeders so that we can be somewhat assured of having a pup by the end of August, and we really don't want to "eat" one of the deposits if both litters produce a yellow/male that we are looking for. We'd love to have two, but are wondering just how draining it might become, especially in the first few weeks of house/crate training. I run 40-50 miles a week and DW is quite active as well, so physically we could probably handle it if we had to...I guess. Also, both of these "take home" dates would be about 7-10 days apart.

I think it is a bad idea for most average pet owners. Although some especially committed families could do it IMO. You'll be getting puppies, so no running 40-50 miles per week with them until their growth plates are closed (18 months is generally discussed as the time when this happens on average), or you may produce joint issues; something to which this breed is already prone. I'm assuming the parents of these litters are already being tested for all the commonplace health issues that afflict Labs, so you certainly don't want to over-exercise the puppies and create problems.

With two puppies at once, you might want to run a web search on "littermate syndrome." If you want a better chance of having two independently well-adjusted adult dogs, each puppy will need separate time with you for bonding and training. Having them do everything together always is a recipe for one or both to possibly develop separation anxiety from one another.

I think your ability to be successful raising two puppies simultaneously is dependent upon how honestly dog-savvy you are, and how much time you are willing to put into wrangling both puppies to behave to the level that you want in a housemate for the next 10-15 years.

[WhoopsaDaisy]

I think you could do it if you did their training separately and walked them a part for a whole. It doesn't sound ideal though... I wonder if one of the breeders could hold on to your deposit for another litter a couple years down the road? That way if you really want two dogs (I hear it's best, I've never had two) you wouldn't lose any deposit. But you'd be a little less stressed!

[doubledip1]

I was 22 when Luna came home, at home all day, and exhausted every single day when she was a puppy. I can't imagine 2 at the same time. I agree with Katie, one puppy now and another 2-4 years down the road.

Otherwise, good luck.

[Doreen Davis]

We lost 3 older dogs all in the same year (2014) and brought a 7mo chocolate lab in May 2014) , followed by a 5 mo in November.

We are retired, active etc. In a nutshell, I almost died....my husband loves them but ultimately much of it has fallen to me as I understand the upfront work it requires to have good dogs over the long haul. We're in the country and have the time to focus on them and engage outside training and doggie play care, but it is a huge undertaking.

If you are dog savvy, litter mate syndrome aware, and truly understand puppy v older adult one investment then go for it.

But as much as I thought I remembered Amy's puppyhood, it was a shocker when we had 2 pups vs a 15yo and 2 14yo's.

[janedoe]

Argos and Nikki are littermates. I always said that two pups are four times the work. If that appeals, that's great but don't do it just because you put down deposits. Working from home and doing well on little sleep helps.

[SunDance]

Our first two dogs after we got married were sibling Akitas. We were both working full time (although Bob's presence was a moot point since he has never had anything to do with training).

I trained separately but got instruction from a "train the trainer" trainer at my home with both present. I then trained separately and together. I walked separately and together. I had no problems...it did take more time (and I was only in my early/mid-30's so the energy was there).

Sunnie had her puppies 6 years ago (me in my late 50's) so I had five little ones to deal with until they found homes at 9 weeks. Even with that (lots of loads of wash daily) I wasn't exhausted and that was a lot more to do with pups at that age...although the only "training" I was doing was trying to steer where to go to the bathroom and maybe understand their names and a bit of "sit" as we went along. (For the record, Sunnie joined our family already pregnant coming out of a shelter.)

It sounds like you have the energy to do this as long as your heart is in it and it's not really just about not losing the money. ("if we had to...I guess" concerns me)

[JenC]

We kept 2 littermates 7 years ago. It worked out fine, but I don't do much else other than work and take care of the dogs. I'll leave HOW to care for 2 at the same time up to your own research and others comments. It's doable, but it's a COMMITTMENT!!! I am facing the possibility of 2 again this fall, a few weeks apart with come home dates, probably similar to you. I'll do it but I am nervous. I take care of my mom now too and I don't have the help at home like I used to when the others were growing up. Do your research and think about the double amount of work. I am sure one of the breeders will hold the deposit until another litter.

[Tanya]

is it doable? sure. but doing it RIGHT is going to be at least TWICE the work of just one puppy if not more. I kid you not. it's TONS of work to do it right and end up with two well rounded trained dogs.

If your biggest reason to try to not "eat up the deposit" I'd say probably best NOT to do it. And just ask one of the breeders to bounce the deposit to a litter a few years down the road (so it's not "lost").

So the question to ask yourself is - do you HONESTLY have the time, energy and patience to do it. the dogs will need seperate one on one time wtih you daily for training, socialisation and bonding. they absolutely have to be treated as individuals with thier own training, walks, ect especially the first year. Ideally seperate training classes and outings to meet new dogs/people/places and not "the puppies" that you manage as a unit.

While they won't be "littermates" you can still run into all the same issues as you would with "littermate syndrom".

Some articles: Problems Associated With Adopting Two Puppies at the Same Time - Whole Dog Journal Article

Raising Siblings

This one does address puppies from two litters:
Littermate Syndrome: raising sibling puppies | Supporters of Alberta Animal Rescues