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Question: Labradors! 1 or 2? same litter or different ages?

(Posted by: HorseMad on 2010-07-23 11:56:36)

Im getting labradors and was wondering: - should i get 1 or 2? i dont want them to fight. i want them to be controllable and playful and affectionate, but not more so than the other so they are in spite of each other... make sense? well i would like a boy and a girl, both being 'done' so i dont have pups - should i get them from the same litter? i want a boy and girl, both being 'done', but i dont no if they will be happier as brother and sister together, or whether that will cause trouble and ignore me as the owner, maybe its best to get 1 from 1 litter and another from another litter.... but if i did that, training both together isnt an issue for me really but i dont want too much of an age gap, but i dont want them to get jealous of each other and 'fight' or dislike each other (even tho they will be puppies and should get on if brought up from the same age) is this making sense? so in conclusion: 1) should i get 1 or 2? 2) from the same litter or not? 3) if not, how long after i have brought the 1st one should i buy the 2nd one as i want them to get one, but not have years between them? i want them to learn from one another, and obviously myself :) please answer all 3 (if 2 is a 'different litters best' answer'), thanks! x

Posted by: Jayse Ö Think before you breed on 2010-07-23, 11:59:53

No reputable breeder will you sell two littermates together. Not a good idea as you will find it harder to train and socialise them individually and they will bond together more than with you. Even experienced breeders shy away from keeping littermates. One will become more outgoing, while the other willb ecome introverted. # Get one now, train it and socialise it properly until it is 2 years old, get it neutered and then get another puppy of the opposite gender and start again. ETA: I forgot to mention that Labs are like juvenile delinquents until around 2 years of age - slow to mature - imagine having 2 young thugs to deal with! LOL

Posted by: Matt on 2010-07-23, 11:58:01

2! the more Labradors the better! :D Same litter so they know each other

Posted by: heyhey on 2010-07-23, 11:59:01

The only thing I'd say when thinking about getting two is that it's a lot harder to find someone to look after 2 dogs when you go away on vacation than just one.

Posted by: Deborah on 2010-07-23, 12:01:49

I would get one puppy at a time. It is much easier to housebreak, train, etc when there is only one. Labs are very smart, but they tend to be pretty high energy, and having two puppies at once would be very difficult. If you do get two, then it is best not to get litter mates. Raising littermates together raises special challenges. Since they have been together since birth, they tend to be VERY close and bond with each other, to the exclusion of other animals and people. Only very experienced owners who go to a lot of trouble to separate them and work separately with them can usually raise littermates successfully. If you buy one, I would wait until your first is housebroken, and has learned the basic training commands. It is a lot easier to teach one dog at a time.

Posted by: Nicole on 2010-07-23, 12:02:09

1) two because dogs are pack animals, need companionship when you aren't around 2) same litter is fine, then they already know each other and get along 3) if you decide two different litters, it doesn't matter how far apart they are in age as long as you introduce them to each other on neutral ground to see if they get along before bringing them home together. good luck :)

Posted by: Ocimom on 2010-07-23, 12:02:39

Most all reputable Labrador breeders (and most other breeders) never recommend you get 2 puppies at the same time nor do you get them from the same litter. Puppies take a lot of work and its much harder to train 2 puppies unless you have a LOT of experience. Labradors are "puppy minded " for almost 14-18 months even if their bodies are grown. Its better to properly train one Lab in basic commands (which they will go thru the "brain dead " period at 6-14 months old) and have them potty trained before you bring in another puppy. So you are looking at about a year apart in ages between the first one and the second one. In the meantime you will have had your first one spayed/ neutered and then the 2nd one can be done at 6-9 months of age after you get that one. If you want them to learn from each other - they will..........all the BAD stuff. So get one well trained and the 2nd puppy will have a good role model and it will be easier to train the 2nd one if they are at least a year apart in age.

Posted by: DeeDawg on 2010-07-23, 12:08:20

Get one at first. raise the dog- bond with it- train it. at 12-18 months, you can decide whether not to get another. this ensures that the dogs bond with you, not each other first, and that you can train them the best. having two pups often encourages each other to create mischief, but having a trained older pup or young dog can encourage pups to appropriate play, and pups do learn from following the example of an older dog. so it's much better that one of them's trained. if you train the first dog and socialize it very well, it should be friendly with other dogs, and not fight when you get a new pup. psssst. dogs don't get jealous and fight (although some do get dominant, if they aren't well trained, or have poor pack order) and don't worry about the age gap. if you get one now, and another in a year, by the time that the older one is 3, and the younger one is 2, it won't make a difference at all.

Posted by: Lorraine on 2010-07-23, 12:08:23

Totally agree with Jayse. You are very likely to have two hooligans on your hands by the time they are 8 months old. Far better to have one well mannered adult and then bring another pup in who learns from the older dog. Two the same age can actually do each other damage as well. They play quite rough and it will get on your nerves when they are charging around. You say you want them to learn from one another - well that is EXACTLY what they do, only they learn how to be naughty and not good. They bounce off each other in behaviour and it is a very very hard job to get two well mannered dogs. You can do it, but it will take A LOT of time and training. I mean A LOT. Add on -- not meaning to be rude to anyone, but all the people telling you to get one puppy now and another later are all the experienced dog people on here. All the people telling you to get two and from the same litter I would assume have not experienced this at all.

Posted by: guru on 2010-07-23, 12:19:32

Same litter or different don’t matter as long as you are not breeding them. Same age is always a plus but not a requirement, its good to keep the ages close, older dogs are not as playful as younger ones they will keep each other company. When training them, do it separately and then together as some point. Dogs are pack animals, They want to be with some one, No dog wants to live alone. Remember twice the dog, twice the expense, Be prepared for that. Big dogs are require big yards and lots of exercise. ARE YOU READY FOR THE RESPONABLITY OF TWO BIG DOGS. THE WORST THING YOU CAN DO IS TAKE THEM ON AND THEN DUMP THEM WHEN YOU CAN’T HANDLE IT.

Posted by: Violet on 2010-07-23, 13:48:47

Hi Horse Mad, 1) It is your choice whether or not you want to get one or two Labradors, but I really recommend that if you do get two you wait until your first dog is around a year old. One puppy is already a TON of work, two puppies would almost be impossible, especially if you are a first time owner. I recommend you get one pup, raise him/ her right, make sure that you are the leader and that he has no major behavior issues. You want to make sure that you are 110% comfortable with owning and controlling your current Labrador Retriever. The last thing you want is a strong, adult Labrador being a bad example for your highly impressionable new puppy. 2) No, I really don't recommend that you get two puppies from the same litter. No reputable breeder would allow that. It would be much harder to train and housebreak them. If you wait until your first dog is older, then he will be more accepting of a new puppy. Adult dogs usually have a soft part in their big hearts for puppies, tolerating behavior that an older dog would definitely, NOT be allowed to do. 3) I think you should wait at least 8 - 12 months before bringing in another dog. As I said before, you don't want to get another dog until you are sure that you can handle two of them. If you feel that you aren't ready for another dog by the time your dog is a year old, there is nothing wrong with waiting a few more years until you are ready. By that time, your dog will have probably matured and won't be as rambunctious as he was when he was a puppy. I would give you more information but I already answered one of your questions regarding Labradors. I'll put the link up so you can see more info on them: answers.yahoo.com/ question/ index;_ylt= AtS02HRQFXLKqG2S1WYC6uzty6IX;_ylv= 3?qid= 20100720125358AA6Hmxr &show= 7#profile-info-vix226dqaa It makes sense for you to get two dogs of opposite genders because they are more likely to get along better, but that is not saying that two males or two females cannot become good friends. Before you even plan on getting two labs, make sure that you can even handle one. As I said in my previous answer, dogs are a lot of work so make sure you are prepared. If you change your mind and want an adult dog, here is a link to what came up when I searched "Labrador Retriever rescue UK ": dogsblog.com/ category/ labrador-retriever/ Remember that you can click the link to my old answer for more links or information. Good Luck!