I have two dogs, a 6 year old female poodle and a 5 year old male shitzu (sp?).
The Shitzu has a terminal brain disease and although we are doing chemo therapy, the long term prognosis is bad. Our poodle has been very lonely when Barney has gone for chemo. And our vet suggested we get a third dog soon, so that when Barney is gone, Roxanne (the poodle) will not be alone.
We have found a 3 1/2 year old Lasoaps (sp?) that needs a home after her owner died of cancer. I really want this to work for all the dogs. Any suggestions?
Thank you.

The first suggestion I’d have is to find a neutral place ( backyard of a friend’s house?) and have them meet to see how they like each other. If you don’t know how to observe dogs’ body language, it would be worth it to pay a trainer to come and observe and advise. Good luck.

My “puppy” Puckers, is a 14 year old, 70 lb hunk of love. I have been considering the idea of getting a new dog. I know Puck very well (I’ve had him since he was six months old) and I know that he gets along best with females of the same size or smaller than he is. I would like to have another dog, and I believe Puck would like the company. I would like to adopt an older dog from a rescue or shelter.

I have one main concern: my cat! I don’t know if anyone can help with this, but I’ll try. My cat, Zoe, and Puck get along quite well. She was only four weeks old when I found her, and she used to sleep on top of Puck or under his tail when she was a baby. She even tried nursing from him! He loved the attention and was very patient. However, Zoe does not respond well to other dogs when they come over. I do not want to increase the stress on her – are there specific ways to introduce dogs to cats?

If you have any advice, thanks!

Lindsay, read my post on How to Introduce a Kitten to a Dog. It will give you some suggestions. Also, ask if the dog you’re considering has been tested on cats. If not, ask if the shelter would be willing to test to see how she does. Introducing a new dog to a cat is doable. It just requires some initial management and time.

 Good luck. I know Puck will be happier for the dog companionship.

But you don’t mention how old the dog is that you’re thinking of adopting. Or if Bella and Gracie share one kennel or have two kennels next to each other. Or what the dimensions are (space is an important factor for influencing how dogs behave). Or if you leave food in the kennel.

I’d recommend you speak with a local trainer who could make a home visit, take a look at your setup, make recommendations, and perhaps be there to help introduce the new dog.

You sound like a very conscientious dog owner who any dog would be lucky to call her own. Good luck.

My husband and I currently have two female lab, pointer mix and are seriously entertaining the idea of adopting another from a friend that just doesn’t have time for her. Funny thing is she is the same mix as Bella and Gracie, same markings she actually looks like Gracie.
We love our dogs very much and want to give Malley that same love.

We have taken her a couple times and they all seem to get along great. She has not been alone with them though and although Bella and Gracie are sweet tempered dogs (there can be up to 4-5 dogs in our yard sometimes and have never had a problem) I just don’t know how they will treat her. Bella and Gracie are sisters and we have had them since they were 10 weeks, they are now 2.

When we are not home the girls are in the kennel in the yard. When we are home they get to run in the yard and sleep in the house.Luckily I work close enough that I go home and let them out every day at lunch.

What are your suggestions as far as introducing Bella and Gracie’s kennel to Malley without upsetting Bella and Gracie?

Cheryl

At the moment, the writing is going very well, thankfully. :)

This is a great post, not only on things to take into consideration when people are considering a new dog, but also on ways to make the introduction between those two dogs more likely to succeed.

I just wrote an article on my blog that details the “walking introduction” a bit more thoroughly – I thought that I’d leave a link to it here as it might be helpful to your readers (if you don’t mind).

http://www.naturaldogblog.com/blog/2007/09/dog-training-how-to-introduce-your-dog-to-another-dog-in-ten-easy-steps/

Keep up the good work, and hope that your break is treating you well (and your writing project is going swimmingly)!
-Neil

I appreciate the advice ~ Melissa :-)

Good luck!

We currently have a bichon frise boy (neutered) who will be one year old in september. We love him very much, although he is high energy, he has been fantastic for our family (we have two children who adore him and vice versa).

He absolutely LOVES to play with my brother’s dogs (mini pin and rat terrior) and cries when they leave. We notice that it is a great outlet for his energy and that he is very social with other dogs in the neighborhood. I myself, would love to have a female bichon (just as a pet, not to breed) and resisted not getting his littermate only because I read it best to wait.

We now have an opportunity to get a female pup from the same breeder. The sire is the same but the dam is not. We already know and trust this breeder so is it best to stick with her? Or is a bad a idea to get a pup that has the same sire and is the same breed? Not sure if it really matters or not but do know that he needs another small dog with as much as energy as he has.

Thanks so much!

Melissa

Sounds like this new puppy will be going to a very thougthful and loving home.

Good luck!