Is it a good idea to have 2 male dogs?

[elizavixen]

Hi. I have been looking for a new puppy for a friend for Indy and I decided to email Indy's breeder to see if she had any puppies coming soon. She just emailed me back to say that she has 2 male puppies, 3 wks old. The mom had to have a c-section and there were only 3 puppies and 1 died but she has these two males. Anyways, I'm half-excited, half-scared. I always planned on having 1 male, 1 female. I just like things that way. But...I am very happy with Indy, he is a sweetheart, so I think it would be neat to get another puppy from the same breeder. I don't know if they are exactly brothers, she has 2 females and 1 male that she breeds so they may have different mothers. Ok, I'll get to the point. Do you think it is a good idea to have 2 male dogs? They are big, big dogs so fighting is an absolute no. Indy I don't think would mind at all, but I don't know about the puppy. Maybe if he grows up with him? And they will both be neutered. ? Just would like your thoughts.

[tuttifrutti]

I don't know how it would be a problem, but I have never actually owned two male dogs together. I do know that Ranger's best friend (before we got Snickers) was Cedar Cider, a neighbor's male dog. They also had a female, and poor Claire would get ignored while Ranger and Cedar Cider ran around having the best time. Ranger likes most of his male friends better than the female. I forgot to say, both Ranger and Cedar Cider are neutered, I don't know if that makes a difference.

[Sara]

Depends on the breed and temperment of the dogs in question. I know that with the Boerboels (not known for excessive animal and dog aggression) I would not sell someone littermate brothers too...unless they are experienced owners of large dog breeds LIKE the Boerboel... Boerboels are dominant so two males dont' get along especially intact...it's a trait Boerboel owners don't mess with as far as trying it out to see if it works. Mostly because of size and power in the breed... Not sure which breed you have again...

Neutering helps TREMENDOUSLY in dog on dog aggression of two males... I know that a neutered dog is more accepted by my Boerboel than a non-neutered dog and the same with the male Pit Bull... VERY Much dog and animal aggressive MOST of the time...but he'll play with select NEUTERED males and any female... Riot my Boeboel and Monty my Pit Bull don't get along...and likely never will...I don't plan on taking that chance... On one occasion did we have an accident...minor...but Monty ended up with a peirced ear and a nasty wound on his foot... ANYWAY...check with the breeder and research the breed on how often it is done to keep two males.

Boerboel breeders most often only keep a hand full of males (if that) because of their aggression toward the same sex... Females aren't generally like this in the breed... Cocker females most often dont' get along with one another...just an example...MANY breeds are different when it comes to this stuff...

What breed is this again?

[DeLaUK]

I know many people that have 2 or more male dogs together with no problems. What you need to go by is what type of personality is the dog you already have, is he dominant? submissive? have you watched his behaviour around other dogs? how did he act. Usually if theres going to be a problem it's when you have 2 dominant males (can also have problems with 2 dominant females, a dominant female and a dominant male). You only have 2 pups to choose from, the breeder should be clued up on their personalities by 3 weeks of age, and as tuttifrutti mentioned about neutering, it does help as it reduces the territorial issues, the drive is not there if theres a female around thats in heat.

[honeybears]

Hi, I have heard in general you dont want 2 females, and 2 males get along better with each other, I agreew with Sarah, about looking at the type of dog indy is ie submissive vs domominant. that will help in deciding and you can a lot of time by lookin at the pups what tehir temperment will be

honeybear

[Jamiya]

I also have always heard you don't want two FEMALES, but then again I have two females and they are fine together. Also, my sister has one male and three females and they are mostly fine. The male is the oldest dog and the one they have had the longest and is definitely the boss. He gets very grumpy at times and they have to watch HIM when they add new animals to their house. The girls generally don't give many problems.

I think it really depends a lot on the personality of the individual dogs, though. And puppies act differently than adults. I have heard of people whose dogs get along for a year or two and then start having problems when the puppy matures.

[nern]

I think Dukesdad has two males that get along well.

[elizavixen]

I don't really know if Indy would be considered dominant or submissive. He is a little of both. At the dog park, he gets along great with all the dogs, male, female, small, large, whatever. Some of the dogs there are very dominant and Indy lets them pick on him (some dogs go after him b/c he is so big) and he doesn't care. But then sometimes, he gets pushy with the other dogs, not aggressive/bad but he can get a little obnoxious. At home, with my other dog, I was never sure who was boss. Sometimes, Samantha ran the show and she was a very submissive dog. But then other times, Indy did what he wanted.

I really don't think there would be any sort of problem with Indy. He doesn't have a mean bone in his body. He has never once been aggressive towards anything. He just wants to have a good time.

My only concern is that, St. Bernards can be huge problems. They are so big/strong that even if you have a small problem, it is a big problem? if that makes sense. I have had this breed all my life and have never really had any problems with any of them. I did have one male who was very dominant and somewhat aggressive but then I got Samantha who was the exact opposite (very submissive) so they got along great. St. Bernards are not known for being dog aggressive. Most are just big and loveable and laid back.

The main reason I really want to get another puppy from this lady is b/c Indy is so good natured. It is something that I am very conscious about b/c I do NOT want any sort of aggressive dog.

Also, around here, St. Bernards are hard to find. And then you have to worry about health problems, temperment problems, etc. Indy is still young so I don't know about long term health problems, but for now he seems great. His hips seem fine. And his temperment is excellent (a little obnoxious but hey! you can't have everything).

I think I will email her back and ask her about their personalities. Although I'm not sure about her response, lol, she told me when I bought Indy that he was very laid back, much more than his sisters. Then I got him and he was a little devil-maniac. I kept thinking, I feel so sorry for whoever got his sisters if he was the calm one. I just thought that was funny.

[Shineillusion]

I agree with everything already said. It's a combination of factors; breed tendencies and individual temperment.

When I was breeding and showing, I had 3 males, who got along really well unless one or more of the girls was in season. And I had 7 females. My two bull terrier females got along with everyone but each other. Two of the beagles got along with everyone all the time. One beagle female got along with everyone but my dachshund female. The dachshund female, who was the smallest of the group, was also the most dominant, and ruled with an iron paw. Unless the beagle challenged her, she maintained order amongst all the other dogs, and didn't put up with any nonsense from anyone. We always thought she must have been a Marine DI in a previous life.

[charmedagain]

I agree with everything that has been said.
I breed german shepherds and i have males and females and they all get along great even when my girls are in heat they are all fine.

I believe a well socialised dog with humans and other animals does not usually have a problem when a new addition comes into the home.

What you could do is ask the breeder if about 1-2 weeks before you can take the pup home if it would be ok to take your dog down to play with the one that would be his pal this is a great way of seeing how they interact and you can see any dominace issuses.

When bringing a puppy into a home with other animals aslong as quality time is spent with both dogs and when your playing with one you allow the other dog to join in.
The main reason for dominance issuses when bringing a new puppy home is because the owner prefer spending alot of time with the pup and not so much with the older dog.

But since your wanting a companion for you other dog this should not be an issue like i stated if your playing with the pup allow your other dog to join in allow them to play together you will find there will be the odd snipe at each other but providing there is no blood draw or either dog is hurt allow them to sort out there differences.

When going for walks make sure you have both dogs with you, playing in the yard bth dogs with you.
The more you involve the dog you have the better he will react to the new comer aslo having bth animals neutered will also reduce dominace issues aswell.

Good luck on what you decide but if it was me i would say go for it but your choice.
Keep us posted..

Mike

[Angie]

[Sara]

My two female Boerboels live together without problems...even through heats they don't get too grouchy...My older female of the two gets assertive and more dominant acting but they haven't come to blows yet... They were more grouchy to one another when my Male Riot was in with them...

[winnie]

I dont know about two males but I have 3 females and they get along great. They sure love eachother. If you get a puppy and he grows up with Indy maybe you wont have a problem?

[dogangel]

There's no problem with having two males. Especially if one of them is a puppy. You may want to make sure with the breeder that you get the least aggressive of the boys though.
With boys, the real pack order will be established by the time they're 18-30 months old. This is when they try to find out who's got the Alpha position - and this is when you have problems IF they're both dominant.
By all means though, have them both neutered. This cuts off a lot of testosterone, and believe me, EVERYBODY will be happy with that!!!
Remember, there's no such a thing as democracy in a pack, so eventually everybody will know their rank, but with two mellower or one mellow and the other dominant this usually gets established rather painlessly. You only get ugly issues when you have two (or more) dominant guys of the same sex - be they males or females.

[Jamiya]

If you think about it, everyone with more than 2 dogs HAS to have two of SOMETHING.

[dogangel]

[2pyrs]

We now have two males Collie and Pyr. Two females one Pyr and a Jack.
Male Pyr fixed older around 5 years old Collie came as pup. Now and then they get in disagreements. Feeding time is when we have to be most careful. The boss in the house is the Jack she gets upset and the big guys run because they don’t like there feet pinched. Had a male Pyr 3 years old and a female Dane pup 6 months they hated each other to the point we had to place the Dane in a home.
I feel there are many things you have to learn about having more then one male or female in the home.
To me it is a hit miss try at best. Most of all I feel one has to keep and eye on the pup at all times till they both learn to live together. Intro is very important and takes time, don’t be fooled by wagging tails.

2pyrs

[lil96]

how have you been 2pyrs? we haven't seen you in a while