How do they make it work?

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ZaraD
Posts: 577
Joined: Sat Feb 04, 2017 10:06 am
Location: Staffordshire, UK

How do they make it work?

Post by ZaraD »

Hi all

Just a curious post, k love having Lara and Sampson but tow dogs is enough for me and I don't know how people cope with more than tow or how they keep the peace between three, four dogs!

When out on our morning walk we met a very friendly lady who was walking Three dogs a Golden Retriever, a German shepherd and a Grand Basset Griffon Vendéen, I asked how she manages and she said it's easy as she said tow are very placid breeds so just follow the GSD, and she said ones medium which makes it easy , she said they all get along very well no argument at all but she said that's because she's trained them one at a time the Golden was first then the GSD and then the GBGV she said the Golden is a girl and the other tow are both boys she said when she got her golden she said I did not get the Shep unitl my golden was well trained using positive methods and we'll socialized and I waited till she was spayed at 2 and a half years old then I got my GSD and he followed the golden everywhere and stuck with her she helped with socializing as once he saw her say high to strangers for example than he was happy to say high to she also told him off or came and got me if he was doing something he's not allowed she said the GBGV did not come until the GSD was again well trained and socialized and netured which wasn't until around 3yrs old and then she got the GBGV.

I wanted to ask if anyone else has more than tow dogs who get on very well? As there's no way in hell I could handle more than tow. It amazes me that they got on as I thought tow dogs of the same sex won't get on even if there neutered? She said it because the GBGV is laid back and easy going like the Golden
JudyN
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Re: How do they make it work?

Post by JudyN »

ZaraD wrote: Wed May 02, 2018 11:39 amIt amazes me that they got on as I thought tow dogs of the same sex won't get on even if there neutered?
No, lots of same-sex pairs and groups of dogs get on well (though there may be some 'interesting dynamics'). It's just that they're more likely to get on well if they are different sexes, and if they do fall out it can be a really bad situation. When I was a child we had two females, an older rough collie and younger Yorkie. They got on fine - I think the rough collie saw the Yorkie in the same way she saw us children - as another 'puppy' she needed to care for :lol:
Jasper, lurcher, born December 2009
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Nettle
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Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 1:40 pm

Re: How do they make it work?

Post by Nettle »

I've had up to six, and I have a friend who currently has 11, none neutered. Your friend is quite right - you need mostly mellow types (though some of mine were terriers!), and you need to get each one fully adult and trained before you get the next. Breeding our own does let us choose each new pup carefully to fit in, and when she had one of mine, we chose it together for the best match.

They need more beds and water bowls than dogs, and space to get away from each other. There is also a zero tolerance of any trying to annoy any other, and anything vulnerable for any reason has to be well-protected. Lots and lots of exercise and occupation (mine were working dogs, so very fulfilled and tired at the end of the day or night of work) and no opportunity to get tense over resources is a constant.

It is wrong to expect them to be 'friends' or 'play' with each other. Play often erupts into combat, so is not encouraged. Some individuals like some other individuals, but mostly we aim for quiet tolerance. A calm home atmosphere is a MUST.

I liken it to a swan - looks smooth and elegant on the surface but paddling like blazes under the water. :lol:
A dog is never bad or naughty - it is simply being a dog

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