i need to get organised...few questions

hi all ... i would like to get organised before i bring the new little puppy home ,and i have a few questions if thats ok

for those that have 2 dogs did you have 2 crates for each of them ?
did you play separately with each of them or together ?
molly is totally toilet trained now ..she walks towards the door and i know she wants to be clean as she gives me the look ..lol im hoping the new puppy will follow molly outside and get the idea ,but i will do the same as i did with molly in the meantime ,is that what you did ?
how old was they when they slept in the same crate together or didnt they?
did you feed them together from the start or different times ?
i wont be breeding from molly so i will get her spayed ,is it advisable to get the boy done as well for health reasons etc ?
im sorry for all these questions but id really like to be all prepared as much as i can be ,if anyone else has any tips or advice i would really like your help ...

OOh isn't this exciting. I as you know have two Mali & Tasha . Mali had been our only one for18months before Tasha the Hefferlump came to join us. Firstly, the only time mine go in a crate is when they are at the groomers. When Tasha joined us Mali had her igloo which she loves, and Tasha had a bed that had been Mali's, but as you probably have seen they both have igloo's now. The first night, Mali was so upset making all sorts of noises to her objection that Tasha was in her room(utility) I now call their gated community.We told her to shut up and get on with getting to sleep. Sounds awful I know but it worked and from that night to this we have never had a problem.They adore each other so much

Playing well if one wants to play or two want to play do whatever they want. Tasha does not play anywhere near as well as Mali she has had to be taught to play.

Toileting neither Mali or Tasha give me a signal, Mali will if it is urgent. In fact I have had the odd Pooh accident this week with Tasha but I have had a bit of emotional upset this week as my Mum is far from well and I think Tasha has picked up on it.

Itakes a good three months for them to sleep together . Before I got Tasha an igloo I gave Tasha the big day bed to sleep on at night and they then started to sleep together. Don't forget I have two girls things may be different with a boy and a girl.

I have been thinking of having Mali spayed because she is a right pain when she is in season but at a cost of £150 + vat I am still thinking. I would definately have your new fella done one thing it is a lot cheaper too.I am not sure it would be neccesary to have Molly done as well.
I hope this helps and remember these are my experiences/opinions, maybe not everyone agrees.

Hi there,
Now that Panda has arrived I have had 4 dogs for the last three days. Our lab x weimerana does not have a crate it would just be too big for the room! but Molly our Bichon Frise and Isla our Cavalier have separate crates for night time sleeping next to one another and now Panda has her own crate as well. Although Molly and Isla get on really well and sleep, play together in the day, I worry about closing the crate at night and them not being able to get away if they wanted/needed to.

Maybe that's just me being super careful, but I sleep better with this arrangement as I know they are safe.

Sarah

hi ya hun im soooo happy and very excited i just want to make sure i have as much info as possible ...thank you so much hun after reading that it makes me want him here as soon as possible ..
molly loves her crate although she only goes in it when i go out (which isnt often im a bit of a hermit and ive suffered with depression so being here with molly is all ive needed and made me so happy)and also for bedtime so i wouldnt want to just expect her to give up her space for a new little one ,eventually i dont want them crated at all and would love them to just fall asleep together (hopefully) whereever they want .
i love your pictures at the bottom of the conversation sometimes i scroll to see that first !

hi sarah i think i would be the same with molly if she wanted her own space and couldnt get away from the new little one as she was here first ,and having a crate each at the beginning sounds ok to me ,more expense but hey im so happy at the moment i really dont care lol x

HI there,
I have two Biscuit was about 4 months old when we got Kimba who was 7wks. They both sleep at night in seperate crated to give them their personnal time.
Play together and seperate with them as usually it is hard to seperate the now. The follow each other around and lie together in their bed during the day. It took a few weeks to get to that stage as Biscuit just tolarated Kimba at first.
Feeding we have always fed them together from seperate bowls. It took a week or so for them to realise they had seperate bowls and would eat half the food from their own bowl but then swap over to the other bowls. It was so funny to see almost as thought they had wispered to each other lets swap now.
Lesley adviced me to get Kimba spayed not Biscuit castrated I think that is the right way round. I am sure she will correct me if I am wrong. I don't want to breed or show from mine.
Good luck with your new puppy it is alot more hard work but worth it when you see them playing or sleeping together.
Michaela

hi michaela ..everytime someone posts about their 2 i get more excited ,i know its not going to be easy but ive waited til my children had grown up to have all this spare time for my little furbabies so im going to enjoy all the good with the bad , thanks for your advice much appreciated xxxxxxx

Michaela wrote:HI there,
I have two Biscuit was about 4 months old when we got Kimba who was 7wks. They both sleep at night in seperate crated to give them their personnal time.
Play together and seperate with them as usually it is hard to seperate the now. The follow each other around and lie together in their bed during the day. It took a few weeks to get to that stage as Biscuit just tolarated Kimba at first.
Feeding we have always fed them together from seperate bowls. It took a week or so for them to realise they had seperate bowls and would eat half the food from their own bowl but then swap over to the other bowls. It was so funny to see almost as thought they had wispered to each other lets swap now.
Lesley adviced me to get Kimba spayed not Biscuit castrated I think that is the right way round. I am sure she will correct me if I am wrong. I don't want to breed or show from mine.
Good luck with your new puppy it is alot more hard work but worth it when you see them playing or sleeping together.
Michaela

I am going to throw something else into the mix as regards feeding Lol. I have fed Mali and Tasha separately Tasha in the Utility with their gate closed and Mali in the kitchen, because Mali is quite a slow eater and Tasha although not that much quicker she would steal the last crumb off Mali if we weren't on our guard -hence why she is called Fatso or Hefferlump she is so greedy.
Carol

oh noooo carol you forgot to post a pic at the bottom ..

Yes I must agree both of mine are very fast eaters. They eat as though there is no tomorrow. They eat their dried food in three minutes and their nuggets they swallow whole. This could be due to feeding them together thinking about it.
Biscuit weighs 7.1kg and Kimba 4.6kg so they are not big dogs though.

Definitely separate crates - not only to give them their own space but if ever one or other is off colour you are not stuck in a quandary with nowhere to put the second one.
You will need to do separate toilet training with the new puppy, he may well follow Molly but it won't mean he understands the house rules - these have to be taught .

As for neutering him then I take it you have decided against showing him? I would not neuter him before he has rached adulthood and his adult coat is in or you could end up with a wooly difficult to manage coat.

Personally I do not like neutering any of mine although Isabella will probably be spayed just because I am too old now to want to have to struggle keeping them separate every season. Josh will remain entire

hi lesley ive just ordered the other crate as i thought that would be best ,i doubt ill show hun they will both be family pets ,loved loads faults and all lol i thought it was better to get boys done for other health reasons and for behaviour maybe thats not the case in shih tzus ,if thats right then ill just get molly spayed ,the vet said 6 months is that too soon do you think ?

denie1234 wrote:oh noooo carol you forgot to post a pic at the bottom ..

Ooopps sorry Denise, I will put one on now

How proud am I, and look Mali's hiding under the bureau with her B***ing bone but I can't get under there I'm a little fatso.

oh what a gorgeous pic ..it could of been a wheres mali pic i couldnt see her til you said..lol

denie1234 wrote:hi lesley ive just ordered the other crate as i thought that would be best ,i doubt ill show hun they will both be family pets ,loved loads faults and all lol i thought it was better to get boys done for other health reasons and for behaviour maybe thats not the case in shih tzus ,if thats right then ill just get molly spayed ,the vet said 6 months is that too soon do you think ?

I believe in allowing bitches to have at least one season so that they mature a little before they have things taken away. As for health risks - neutering itself causes problems so you need to perhaps read up on both sides of the story. I am not sure what you mean by behaviour.... I had two un-neutered male dogs with four un-neutered bitches and had no sexual behaviour from the lads except when they had their tongues out when some of the girls were "ripe" in their seasons. Josh on the other hand has spent five years plus trying to rape my arm - behaviour which stopped the moment a bitch came into the house If you are going to have the boy neutered too then I certainly would wait until he has had his second coat as the lack of male hormones seems to cause the coat to become rather woolly and difficult. I am certainly not having Josh neutered - but probably have Isabella done just because I have a bad back problem and can't cope with the seasons and the hassle keeping them apart.