Having two Dobermans/dogs

[Ddski5]

Revisited topic:

I tend to wonder on this day to day. How much our household would change with another to keep Ragnar company.

So for those that have two:
1. Do you shut down all rough housing inside- only allow it outside?

2. How do you manage this? Put them both in respected corners when they act up?

3. What are your house rules for having two beast and how do you enforce?

4. What else am I forgetting that needs to be addressed?

 

[MyBuddy]

 

[BamMoMoMommy]

Well..ya got MY attention

This is our first time with two at the same time.....and it's been its own kind of experience...firdamnshore.

1. Do you shut down all rough housing inside- only allow it outside?

We shut it down inside. The only time we have issues with them smackin' the day lights out of each other inside is when we have crappy weather and they can't get outside for hours on end. We deal with it by making them go to their respective place/down/stay spots.

They are both crate trained, but we don't have room for their crates in our place right now. We never used the crates as punishment tho...it's a lot of redirecting attention.


We don't leave any type of toy out when we aren't home.....75 various chew toys...but the most popular one is the toy one of them has and the other one wants. We have never had an issue with them getting into a fight over a toy...the one wanting will wait for the one that got the toy...to get distracted... and move away from said toy..then WHOOOSH...in for the steal!!

But we also know never say never is a gotta do with them....so no point in leaving the temptations to get into it when we aren't here with them.

Not on furniture unless invited.....this rule came about after Bam arrived and one day they BOTH decided to "hop on pop" while he was sitting on the sofa with a cup of coffee in his hand...it actually wasn't an issue until Bam got here. Mo would always walk up, pause and wait to be asked up...one day Bam just jumped up beside DH..and Mo figured the rules didn't matter anymore. I think that's been part of the biggest challenge here is the "monkey see, monkey do" effect...and they don't monkey see, monkey do THE GOOD habits

Another thing.....that can cause some interesting kerfuffles...getting names mixed up...kinda like ya do with your kids.

The other night DH was trying to get Mo to the "this is where we take our meds" spot...and he was calling Bam instead of Mo. Bam was right there, sitting pretty.....Mo's was sprawled out on the floor..watching, making sure Bam wasn't gonna get a treat that he didn't get also.

I could tell my husband was getting aggravated...and he said
"BAM HERE NOW"....and I said
"UHHHHH..Babe..BAM IS THERE NOW!!"

He looked like I had socked him in the nose
He said "." Praised/apologized to Bam....called Mo over...and we both laughed about that all evening....and he isn't the only one who's done that.


And no doubt...... there's a ton of things that are slipping my mind right now about being the ring master/head wrangler of the Dobie circus we have here.

 

[Ddski5]

Thanks for that.

Both funny and informative.

 

[Ravenbird]

This is my opinion only, but my first thought is don't get a dog for Ragnar. Ragnar might like fun dog company, but he really doesn't want a dog. If you want another dog, get it for you/your family, not Ragnar!

Yes, shut down all indoors play. If the new one is a puppy it can't possibly learn the rules so all the hammering gets done on the older dog to lay down in place and stay and the puppy is on a leash or tether or X-pen constantly to keep it from jumping on the older dog. Training puppy is harder because puppy would MUCH rather play with big brother/sister. You have to work harder at isolating for training. We have a large fenced acreage and a small fenced backyard. I take the puppy & the 5 year old on an off leash run for about 20 - 30 minutes every morning and that's the only contact they get to have. Also, no collars when they play - I can relate a horror story about that in another thread (not these two, but years ago). If you thought training Ragnar was a challenge, imagine it with a constant distraction. I do lots of training alone, by putting Reckless (the elder) in another room or outside when I want to train inside, or if I want to train outside I leave her inside, but at 4 1/2 months it still feels stifling to have to separate constantly. At the end of the day Asha will sleep on her bed in the living room, recently without a leash if she's really tired and Reckless will be on her bed in the living room, so it's getting better, but still, LOTS more commands and constant No's and Stop It's to training the youngster with another impeccably trained 5 year old dog under the same roof.

It might be different if you are thinking of an older trained dog, but this is just my 2 cents on bring in a new puppy. Let us know what your plans are looking like!

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Absolutely NO wrestling, roughhousing inside, zip, zero, nada, ever. Inside is Switzerland and rules must be honored.

Lots of separate training and supervised outdoor play.

Puppy must earn all his/her toys, food and play.
Reinforce Ragnar’s rules and training.
Let the puppy watch you work Ragnar while in his crate outside. Puppy will most likely pitch a hissy fit wanting to join but that will be good distraction training for Ragnar.

Do not allow them to tag team the cats.
One on one, my twins are perfect with the cats, together they become hellfire missiles.
Keep them separated when you are not around by a baby gate or puppy in crate. Toys are iffy, I would not allow them to play with toys together until pack order is established. Puppy will have to learn respect for Ragnar without being terrified by him.
I never allow mine together unsupervised as they love to wrestle and tussle and a lot of times it escalates to me having to intervene.

Get lots of rest (you will definitely need it lol). If you get frustrated, just back up and regroup. I call it my; “Plan your dive and dive your plan.” Like we did when scuba diving. If something is not going as planned, ditch it and come up with a different plan.

If I understand correctly Ragnar has an edge to him so you may want to consider the temperament of the female to help you quell a challenge later on.
My two had their period of crate and rotate because of snitting with each other.
I had to up my game as their leader to get a handle on it because crate and rotate is very difficult and I wasn’t going to live like that.

Your puppy should learn a lot from Ragnar with all the training you have done with him. Make them both toe the line.
Wear a ball cap so you don’t pull your hair out and know that every time you question your sanity for getting another ‘Doberman’, they grow up fast and furious, but the joy, love and respect lasts beyond a lifetime!

Looking forward to your plans of adding another to the pack.

 

[Ddski5]

Following @Gelcoater closely and enjoying the read from afar.

My kids/wife always sending me picts of this dog, that dog needing a home. Yesterday received a pict from the oldest daughter on a beautiful Red picked up down the road- turned out to be a male though....how funny and ironic that the local Doberman rescue is full but they won’t consider me because I titer rather than vaccinate.

I tell them all the time “no”, not a good idea but tbh, I think it is a matter of time. They will get me the same way they got me with the 3cats. Just bring it home and I melt. My defense mechanism of turning the other way usually works until I establish eye contact.


Just doing my 6p’s.

Thanks yall

 

[Doberman Gang]

This is my opinion only, but my first thought is don't get a dog for Ragnar. Ragnar might like fun dog company, but he really doesn't want a dog. If you want another dog, get it for you/your family, not Ragnar!

Best advice right here. So many times i hear people asking if they should get another dog, to play with the dog they have to help wear them out. My advice is if you have time to train two dogs instead of one why not do more with the dog you have? That will benefit your dog more then another dog will. There is never a guarantee that the new puppy you get will get along with your dog or vice versus. Crate and rotate not always a fun situation, correction never a fun situation. If you truly love and want two dogs and are ok training them separately, willing to rotate if necessary then I say go for it.

 

[Viemarangelrock]

I’m going to revisit this thread in 2 days time when Titan arrives from Hungary.
I’m going to slowly digest ALL suggestions from you guys. keep them coming! I’m a double dobie virgin! .....if only a part-time one at that!

 

[Tropicalbri's]

My advice is if you have time to train two dogs instead of one why not do more with the dog you have? That will benefit your dog more then another dog will.

^^^^ This is absolutely true as I have questioned myself many times on having littermates.
Wondering if I did a disservice to them by not just having one and putting all the training into one instead of dividing time to train two.
Don’t get me wrong, their training is top notch with a glitch here and there when time and health interfere with training and activity.

It’s a lot of work training two at the same time and guilt from thinking I am neglecting one while working with the other. It’s a seesaw of emotions that is difficult to come to terms with.

I wouldn’t trade my two for anything in the world but I do wonder at what level in training and abilities they would have now if I only had one.
I do know how important it is to train everyday and make a point of doing so no matter how tired I am. They need it to be the best they can be.

 

[BamMoMoMommy]

Following @Gelcoater closely and enjoying the read from afar.

That green eyed monster....man when it bites..it doesn't shake off easy.

Puppy will most likely pitch a hissy fit wanting to join but that will be good distraction training for Ragnar.

We found doing this taught Bam he had to "wait his turn"......and both guys know "wait your turn" .
(Hand cue we use is both hands down, held out away from our body, with "wait your turn."

If Ragnar doesn't know to pause/wait at doors/entries/stairs.....might wanna brush up on that and of course teach the pup also.
That charge/knee clip x2.....well..one can put you in the E.R.....two can put you in traction.

Since we travel so much, no barking inside....this is a hearing saver in the Jeep. I have a friend who has three mixed rescues and I need a set of shooting earmuffs to ride with her...LAWDY!

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Since we travel so much, no barking inside....this is a hearing saver in the Jeep. I have a friend who has three mixed rescues and I need a set of shooting earmuffs to ride with her...LAWDY!

My friend’s Porty is a constant barker in a vehicle. I refuse to go anywhere with her
when her Porty is with us. I had to go with her to get an ECHO done on her Porty and one for Bacall. I loaded up both my kennels to go in the van so that her dog was kenneled for the trip. It was amazing the difference in her dog. Total quiet all the way to Miami. I wound up giving her one of my (too small for B&B)
kennels to keep in her SUV.

She said the kennel has eliminated the barking.
My two know better than to blast barks while in my vehicles. The occasional whine rears it’s head every now and then but I quell that quickly.

 

[BamMoMoMommy]

Total quiet all the way to Miami

OH HOLY COW...that woulda been the ride from hell if you hadn't had a solution for the barking. A constant yapping dog would have me saying
"Never mind...I'll get out here and swim the rest of the way."

Since we have to be in hotels so often...we can't afford barkers. One night....buttcrack0:30 a dog in the area we were in started barking it's head off.....so yep...we get a knock on the hotel door....DH gets up..... opens it...and the guy says
"Never mind...that can't be your dogs.....I'm still hearing barking.....yours didn't even bark when I knocked."
What he didn't hear...that is actually scary than the bark...was the low throat rumble/growl...outta both of them...which they started before he even knocked on the door.

Another thought that hit me about two..is load/unload...man that was a bugger for them to get the hang of the first few times we loaded them together.

Mo had his way and was used to having ALL the space to himself. We spent a good 10 days...two or three times a day...working with
"Bam goes first ...NOW Mo goes in.

(I'm tellin ya...we were flying by the seat of our pants and learning on the fly. Kids and a dog load/unload...I had that DOWN...two dogs....nope.....it was a lot of retraining for both DH and me!!)

 

[Oh Little Oji]

My two know better than to blast barks while in my vehicles. The occasional whine rears it’s head every now and then but I quell that quickly.

Oh man, the worst is when they position their beak between your head and a closed window and blast one.

And, wait. You know how to stop a Dobe from whining? Not just one, but two?!? I am incapable of stopping Oji from whining – mostly because he often doesn't realize he's doing it.

 

[Oh Little Oji]

I haven't had two Dobes at once, but I was going to say: No roughhousing in the house. Just like I have a no-running rule in the house rule for Oji. That said, the little cur breaks the rule with some regularity. #readyforadobervacation

 

[Gelcoater]

I haven't had two Dobes at once, but I was going to say: No roughhousing in the house. Just like I have a no-running rule in the house rule for Oji. That said, the little cur breaks the rule with some regularity. #readyforadobervacation

We have the same rule here.
No dog roughhousing in the house.
The new girl has no concept of it, Rocky does.
It’s almost escalated into an arguement between them as Rocky got snarky about it.
She’s figuring it out though.

 

[Gelcoater]

Daisy and Rocky, many years ago.

This is as close to roughhousing as is allowed inside.
Laying down. Noisy as all get out, but not banging into stuff or thrashing anything.

I think @Marinegeekswife called it Lazy Bitey face

If they get up, time to cut them off.

If Millie can contain her young self they might be able to do this one day.
They don’t cuddle up yet but it will come.
Getting used to sharing a space last night.

 

[GennyB]

4. What else am I forgetting that needs to be addressed?

The cost. Get another dog and everything you spend is doubled. Twice the food, vet visits, collars, leashes...........now you need 2 of everything!
Even trouble is doubled. What one doesn't think of, the other one does. And they both do it!
I've had 2 dobes for the most part for a couple of decades. The biggest problem is once you have 2 there's going back. Nothing like a pair at your side. My favorite is watching them run/play together or in our case mudding together.

 

[Kaiser2016]

4. What else am I forgetting that needs to be addressed?

Double the whining and shedding and nails and baths!

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Double the whining and shedding and nails and baths!

Line them up like a conveyer and go for it.
That’s what I do with mine. One watches as the other gets bathed, then when done with one the next one walks up head hanging and stands for its bath. I never have to tether them. They stand still until I am done and start drying them. That’s when they get the rips (zoomies) running around like crazy puppies. Lol