You’ve gone to the shelter, excited about the photos they posted on social media of a big litter of pups that look like just the kind you’ve been waiting for. It’s near closing time—you couldn’t get there until after you got off work!—and the shelter staff is clearly buttoning things up for the night. It turns out that the litter was popular; there are just two puppies left from which to choose! As you approach their pen, you see that the littermates are entwined in a small single dog bed. They blink at you sleepily, and then approach the front of the kennel to greet you, almost as one—and the thought of taking one home, leaving the other completely alone in the cold concrete shelter kennel, brings tears to your eyes. They are clearly so bonded! How much harder could it be to raise two dogs, you think to yourself? If we adopt both, they can keep each other company at home!
STOP! Don’t do it! Whether the idea of adopting two puppies just occurred to you, or you had been planning to adopt two all along, every trainer I’ve ever met would advise you to think twice and adopt just one. Because training and socializing littermates well is more than twice as difficult as training and socializing one puppy.
There have been littermates in several of the group puppy classes I’ve taught recently, and in every case, the family who adopted them looks overwhelmed and sounds regretful about the decision they made to adopt two. It’s noteworthy, also, that each family has told me that if they knew then what they know now, they would not have adopted two. They love their dogs, they are working hard to make it work, but they had no idea that certain things would be so difficult. Things like:
- One pup is anxious and a little reactive, which the other is generally very calm and takes new things in stride. But when the anxious dog barks and growls at new sights and situations, it makes the other pup bark and grow suspicious also—and increasingly, both dogs bark when they see new people or something unfamiliar!
- You are crossing the living room when you realize your sock is wet. You discover a series of wet, urine-soaked spots on the carpet. Which pup is having trouble with house training?
- You find some vomit in the puppy pen. Which one isn’t feeling well? Which one may have swallowed a sock and potentially needs to be taken to the vet?
- You’re trying to train both puppies the basics: sit, down, stay, etc. Except one puppy leans fast and dives for all the treats, and the other is disinterested in competing . . . So, as time goes by, one pup knows a few things, and the other hasn’t really learned anything at all.
- One pup had to go to the vet and you’ve discovered that the other is petrified to go outside without his brother. You thought that this pup was just a little less confident without the other, but it turns out that without his guide, he’s terrified of everything!
- Or, one dog had to go to the vet—and that’s when both dogs starting howling, panicking in their crates, tearing at the crate doors with their paws, vomiting—in an utter panic at being without their littermate. Who knew they were that bonded?
If that last scenario doesn’t give you the shivers, consider this: What if some disaster befell your family, and you had to rehome the dogs? It’s hard enough to find a good home for one adult dog; who will possibly take on two dogs who can’t be separated?
Don’t just take it from me: Here are two articles from the WDJ archives written by professional trainers who have seen it for themselves:
“Are Two Pups Better Than One?”
“Problems with Adopting Two Puppies Simultaenously”
I totally disagree. Our girls are litter mates as were their predecessors. They keep each other company and go everywhere together. They were very easy to train. Our current set is half Rottie and Half Lab. One has a more Rottie temperment and one a more lab temperment. They are 13 now and our precious girls!
I can only somewhat agree with this article. Currently on our 2nd set of Springer Spaniels, this time sisters, there are small differences between the two pairs. Some training was challenging, separating them helps, some jealousy is present and much be addressed immediately and copy cat behaviour is present. But the joy of watching them play, run, keep each company, hunt and develop their own personalities more than compensates.
I find this article baseless and comteptable .If a person wants to adopt two shelter dogs ,with a kind heart, that is a good deed.I’v had a litter of six puppies,all of whom had entirely different personalities,and yet got along splendidly. A little pee nothing compared to the joy of the doggy joy.
I, too, disagree entirely with the generic statements made in this article. Getting two Labrador Retriever brother and sister siblings was one of the best choices my fiance and I ever made. The two are insperable, they find comfort in each other’s presence. They play together, sleep together, behave exceptionally well, and are just a joy to have in our lives. There is NO territorial fighting or fighting over who gets what treats or who gets a specific dog bed, or who gets the spot on the couch next to me during morning coffee. They couldn’t care less. They just want to be together. If one has to go to the vet and the other is left home, the one at home just sits by the door quietly waiting for the return of their littermate. My case is not everyone’s case but it is my experience with siblings.
My same experience completely, just with two boys. I have no regrets and would do it again. I still have 2, just different ages.
We have 2 failed foster girls who are wonderful. They love each other but have no problem being alone. Keeping both of them was the best thing we did for them & us.
I also had 2 Labrador siblings, boys. It was the best experience of my life. They were different enough that they complemented each other. I did training with them separately, each one a different day. There was no jealousy, no fighting. I separated them enough so there were no issues when one was left home. The hardest part for all of us was when they passed away. One at 13 and the other at 14 1/2 years old. I can understand the reasoning to not get 2 at the same time, somewhat. You need to know what you’re getting into. It’s a commitment both in time and money. Not for everyone.
I disagree with this article. We had littermate cocker spaniels (M/F). They were wonderful together and apart. We also had another 2 years older CS at the time.
The odd part about this article and the comments is the fact that they are totally opposites as far as experiences go, or the interpretation of experiences. Those who did adopt/bought litter mates claim it was a success while trainers and vets who saw the failures did a thumbs down. I see a LOT of comments on how close the littermates are and how much they rely on each other. That’s what is wrong with that attitude. They rely ON EACH OTHER, not the owner which is totally wrong! Yes, litter mates can be managed and grow into independent adults but not the way I see it described here. One poster did it right. They need to be separated, not kept in the same puppy pen, trained separately, walked separately etc. but it’s totally ok to spend time on the couch with the family. The vets and trainers of course only see the failure of those not following the rules of separation. I do not see how any puppy can develop its individual personality with a litter mate constantly present. One of them will be dominant even if it is not obvious. The word, INSEPARABLE, does not give me a good feeling.
I’m not sure whether I agree with this, as I’ve never been in the situation where I could adopt two at once and so have no experience. It sounds a bit over the top to me, since all pups are different. My question is, since many shelters have bonded pairs that are not actual siblings, would your advice be the same? Not puppies, but adult dogs rescued or relinquished due to deaths, old age, change in financial situations…
I am a bit surprised this is “publication” worthy. I see it really biased and unfounded. As a CPDT-KA trainer, and AKC trainer, evaluator and judge, I literally see 100’s of companions a month. My classes routinely have litter mates from Golden Retrievers, Akitas, Pointers, Cockapoos and the assorted pitties and rescue mixes. An article would be much better served if it discussed POTENTIAL sibling syndrome with pitfalls. To blatantly say don’t do it is just plain disappointing. To me this is to the level this article should be pulled, minimally a correction/retraction is an ABSOLUTE. Nancy Kerns, you have failed miserably on this one!
Totally disagree with this. I had 2 male GSD littermates. They were great together. They were with me and each other for 12 years. Easy to train. People loved seeing them together.
Completely disagree with this article. As a recreational musher and Siberian Husky owner for 35+ years, I can say the easiest to train and best teams I ever had were littermates. Outside of some minor ‘disagreements’ on occasion, everyone gets along very well and works together like the proverbial well-oiled machine. The hardest part is knowing they will age together and dealing with the grief (both me and them) when one passes.