What’s it like having two?

biaham876

New Member
So here we are, 5 months in with with our first dobe. Loving him insanely and thinking every bit of chaos/stress is worth it . This might seem crazy, but I think we definitely want to get a second one . Neo is such a sweet pup and plays so nicely with all dogs he meets big, small, young, old. I do believe he would enjoy having a sibling.

Some questions for the folks with experience raising multiple dobes simultaneously...

When is a good time to get another? Is it possible to have a male and female? Will two males fight?? Will we have to keep them separated at all times?
 
When is a good time to get another? Is it possible to have a male and female? Will two males fight?? Will we have to keep them separated at all times?
Welcome to the Form! :ntmy:

Good questions and we are glad you asked! Most people agree that 2 years old is a good age to get a second Doberman. It gives you time to bond with your first dog, get those ears out of bandages if they are cropped, (two cropped puppies will wreak havoc on those bandages LOL) and have all the basic obedience training down pat. When you have two dogs, it's essential that you give each one individual attention and training. So having two young puppies can be a trial. Ask a few people here who have done it! ;)

And the safest way to have two Dobermans, is to have a male and a female. Same-sex aggression is a very real thing. Unless you are one of the very lucky few, you will be crating and rotating the rest of their lives. And don't be fooled by the honeymoon stage if you do have two of the same sex. Sometimes it all seems like it's going to work out until suddenly, it doesn't. And from then on, you will have problems. I know there are a few people on our board who have two of the same sex or even more and have no problems. But it's a good heads-up to let someone know that it can be an issue. I've never had two Dobermans myself but if I ever did I would never have two of the same sex. When I got my first Doberman I remember the breeder telling me the exact same thing when I bought my boy. She said, if you ever want another one get a female. She said they will grow to be like an old married couple. She didn't even go into depth about same-sex aggression. She just told me to get the opposite of what I had already. I never forgot her advice.
 
I have and still am seriously considering it. Mine just made 2y/o.

Asked the questions and read a lot into it. Of course @MyBuddy is spot on and I wanted to add a little.

Reason to wait until 2y/o is to let them mature and make sure they have bonded to you. If you get another pup too early, then he will bond more with the pup and not you. I have learned with the Doberman, one of the reasons they are so smart and loyal is because after they bond with you, they are Velcro/glue to you. Within this, this makes them eager to please and be forever loyal to their owner.

Wherever I go, Ragnar goes....everywhere! So if you get a pup too early and for some reason you don’t have the time to train and bond with both of them, then they will bond with each other more instead of you. Then you will become secondary and they will make each other primary- which is not good because you must be the master with a Doberman. If you are not the master, then a Doberman will wreck your life and household.

Just things to think about.
 
Lots of good information here and it all makes sense. I’m going to pick our breeders brain a little also. I’m assuming with opposite sex you have to keep them separate when the female is in heat? Unless both dogs are spayed/neutered.
 
Welcome from Minnesota!

I agree that 2 years is a very good age gap since one is mature enough to be of some guidance to the pup but still young enough to play and tolerate a young pup. You definitely want to get opposite genders and you do have to keep them separated for a month or so when the female is in heat.
 
We got our second dobie in July precisely 2 years after getting our first. And I could only imagine two the same age at once. And I have a male and female to ensure no crate rotate will be needed.
 
Welcome from Minnesota!

I agree that 2 years is a very good age gap since one is mature enough to be of some guidance to the pup but still young enough to play and tolerate a young pup. You definitely want to get opposite genders and you do have to keep them separated for a month or so when the female is in heat.
Is keeping them separated still needed even if the male is not intact ? And I might add he has been around in heat females of different breeds before and has zero desire to even try breeding.
 
Is keeping them separated still needed even if the male is not intact ?
No, not at all unless you see aggression. I know Boris was already neutered when Della came in heat but he still tried so they all vary. Not there could be an accidental breeding (unless the male was recently neutered) but emotions can sometimes run high.
 
I’m assuming with opposite sex you have to keep them separate when the female is in heat?


I have owned an intact pair. You may have to do more than separate them depending on how persistent the male is. Some can be a handful, especially during standing heat.
It's not impossible for a male to bust out of a crate, take out doors and more to get to a female. I saw the evidence of where a dog busted down a door and tore off all the trim around it to get to a female, and this was a Beagle!
There are tips and tricks you can learn to avoid all that. We gave are female chlorophyll to take care of the scent. My dogs could be together because it works!
 
No, not at all unless you see aggression. I know Boris was already neutered when Della came in heat but he still tried so they all vary. Not there could be an accidental breeding (unless the male was recently neutered) but emotions can sometimes run high.
He has no fertility left at this point. My friend had to stay with me for a week and this was pretty soon after my male was fixed and he has a German Shepherd who was hot to trot and she offered to him multiple times and he had zero interest playing fetch and going about his normal routine was of far more importance.
 
Congratulations! What do you mean by crate rotate?
Crate rotate is what most people opt to do if they have two males typically or two females who have same sex aggression. So one dog will be out while the other is crated to make sure that a fight doesn’t ensue. I have a multiple male and female house hold but what makes mine a little different is my other male and female dogs are basset hounds which are very mellow and have no aggression. Which obviously lacks the potential of 2 Dobermans of the same sex. And thank you ! We didn’t exactly plan the second one but the breeders I got my Dobermans from pushed the female on me they called me for 4 days my first answer was no and slowly I became more open to it obviously haha Dobermans steal your heart. My best friend and his wife are German shepherd people and they slowly are getting converted to Dobermans from being around my dogs.
 
I’m assuming with opposite sex you have to keep them separate when the female is in heat?
Oh, yea! For sure. Sometimes super duper methods of separation don't work! My sister had Irish Water Spaniels. She only has one now but when she had more, she would actually ship the female off to a friend during the heat cycle! Just to avoid any problems and chaos!
 
So here we are, 5 months in with with our first dobe. Loving him insanely and thinking every bit of chaos/stress is worth it . This might seem crazy, but I think we definitely want to get a second one . Neo is such a sweet pup and plays so nicely with all dogs he meets big, small, young, old. I do believe he would enjoy having a sibling.
Agree with all the advice. Only thing to add is that at 5 months old, it’s easy to be in love because none of the teenage drama has started yet. The puppy drama is nothing by comparison! When I think about it, he kind of went from bad to worse :spit: More training made him more horrible because his rebellious and independent streak was so strong. They say Dobermans are typically given up around the teenage stage because it seems they forget all their training. I’d like a second one too, but I’m too afraid of experiencing the mayhem again :rofl:
 
It isn’t easy that’s for sure!

The person I would ask is @Archer since I believe, she has 5 with 2 being the same age.

With my twins it was a LOT of work both individually and together. As puppies I worked them separately to build their confidence as individuals. I worked hard to do things separately as well so they did not develop a total dependency on each other and not focus on me. once you get them trained individually then you can work on training them to work together.
 
Separate training times are a must, especially if both dogs are under a year old. It is recommended to get your second one after the first has had training and is around 2 years of age. I think that is what most do. I gave had two males 3 weeks apart in the past and now have, at times 4 makes ages 2, 3, 5 and 10. With two females ages 6 and 5 1/2. One standard Poodle (male) 3 Doberman’s (2 males, 1 female) and 2 Malinois (1 male and 1 female). None of our males can be out together and the females can’t be out together. Also have makes that do best to be out only by themselves. Our female Doberman when in heat could gave moods and it didn’t matter neutered or intact she would fight a male so she would have to be locked up and only out by herself when In Heat. We crate and rotate. All dogs get individual training time and they all get time out in the house with us either alone or with others that they get along with. Not something I recommend it pretty much is all we do is train or work dogs. But that is what like to do so it works for me but that is our life. If you enjoy other things multiple dogs might not be for you.
 

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