IF, we were to adopt another weiner dog...

Valerie · June 11, 2008, 09:57:02 PM

Not sayin anything for sure yet... but, we did see a doxie up for adoption at our local humane society website last week... and... well, we can't stop talking about her, and what life would be like if we adopted her...

I am going to call tomorrow to see if she is available still. :xfinger:

We are excited for Cookie to have a sister, but worried that it will be hard for her to go from a pampered only child to sharing "her" home with another doxie.
Does anyone have tips on how they managed to make the transition?

Kelly · June 12, 2008, 06:45:53 AM

Hi Valerie,I'm Kelly in Illinois and I want to tell you that I'm sure Cookie would love to have some company.My family and I have 4 and they all came from Dachshund Rescue of North America and all of them watch out for each other and snuggle together not only are they company to each other they are company to my family and I.
If this pupper is no longer available here's the rescue web site:www.drna.org!

JetEd73 · June 12, 2008, 07:04:58 AM

My expeirence

Cookie with ignore the new dog for about a week. Then for the next week they'll talk trash to each other. On the third week they'll be best buddies.

Dont worry about it, the big dog (you) sets the pace and the little dogs fall in line.

Barb · June 12, 2008, 07:14:15 AM

Woo Hoo - sounds like it is MEANT to be !!!!

Rudy was an only for about 8 months after we got him - I really stressed about how he would adapt to Brandy - no worries because he took to her instantly. I think JetEd is probably more realistic - but you never know. Is there any chance they could meet before you make a decision? If not, I feel sure it will work out - as long as you are a big part of their transition. Please keep us posted - we are excited for you !!! And a big plus is you will be giving a pupper a much needed home - THAT rocks !

DeeanDave · June 12, 2008, 07:19:14 AM

Sarge was an only pupper for seven years before we rescued Looie-Angel in 2005. Only took him about a day to accept the fact that Looie-Angel was here to stay and they became the best of buds. When Looie-Angel went to the Bridge last October, Sarge was again an only pupper until December when we rescued Duggie. With Duggie, Sarge gave us the look of "You brought home another one!" but he accepted him immediately and now they are the best of buddies. Cookie will do just fine! Good Luck!! Dee

Kari · June 12, 2008, 08:14:54 AM

I don't have any advice as we are a one pupper household! But I bet she would love the company!!

sollysmom · June 12, 2008, 09:14:40 AM

When I brought Solly home, I had a 4 year old red smoothie named Heidi Ho. It was rough at first, but I had read an article where it said to keep the hierarchy. In other words let Cookie know she is still #1. Its like when you feed them, put Cookie's bowl down first.
When you go for walks, put Cookie on lease first, etc. This way she will not feel like the new pup is taking over. Hope this helps.

Darcel

Brekkesmom · June 12, 2008, 09:50:39 AM

My newest dachsie is a 5- to 6-year old named Robinton, who was neutered a week ago. Tomorrow will be the one-month anniversary of his arrival. My other dachsie is Brekke, an almost 7-year old female. She did ignore him for about 3 days, got jail time for her "potty mouth" to her brother, and now they are buddies. Robinton is the first dachsie (I've never had any other breed) I have gotten as an adult dog. The others were puppies from 6 weeks to 4 months of age. He is so bonded to me - a real snuggle boy. He says, "I like the food, the toys, and the creature comforts here, and am happy to have this as my furever home!" My two have adjusted very well to each other.

DP · June 12, 2008, 10:57:19 AM

I would recommend adding a second dog.

We purposely added a second boy to our family thinking it would cure Champ's Velcro dog syndrome and give him someone to play with....Well
Smokey arrived and we did all of the things we were supposed to do. We introduced them on neutral ground (more than once I must add) and they seemed to hit it off really well, we had the separate kennels.... etc. What happened when we got Smokey into our house was a different story. Champ copped a BAD!!! attitude with us and with Smokey. He stayed on the back of the couch looking at us with a "Was I not good enough for you, you had to bring that home?????" look. We also got the "I will never speak to you again," look. Smokey got the snarls and big teeth "I'm going to kill you," look. Smokey had no clue (hence the nickname Clueless) that Champ was wanting to kill him. He thought the snarls were just a game Champ was playing. We never left the dogs alone together and Champ was not physically aggressive with Smokey. (Well Champ is just not physical about anything but food. He's a lay on the couch allllllll day kinda dog.) This standoff lasted 3 weeks. I remember it well. It was a Sunday afternoon and Champ was behind me on the back of the couch snarling and Smokey was on the floor barking at Champ and I was reading the comics. All of the sudden Champ leaped off of the couch toward Smokey (Champ leaping is startling enough as it is but the location was a shock too) Smokey took off running not knowing what was going on and Champ (the lazy one) was full speed after him. I'm leaping off the couch too because I'm thinking Champ has had enough and is going to go for blood this time. I make it to the kitchen and Smokey is in the corner under the cabinets with his tail tucked scared to death and Champ is in front of him barking tail wagging wanting to play. I'm :meme: :scratch:

From then on Champ won't admit it but he likes Smokey and misses him when he's gone. They now sleep in one kennel together with Smokey under the bed and Champ on top of the bed.

You do need to keep the pack order for the first few weeks and watch them together. But they will form a pack and be friends. I thought Smokey would help Champ with the Velcro dog syndrome but what has happened is he was contagious and now we have 2 dogs with Velcro dog syndrome.

Again you will need to supervise them together especially if there is any aggression or posturing but it should resolve itself once the dogs know their place in the pack with you as the lead. The feeding order will help the dogs understand who come first and around our house Champ lets you know that his bowl MUST BE PUT DOWN FIRST! (he is the vocal one)

Delia and girls · June 12, 2008, 12:02:53 PM

I've only had 4 dogs in my adult life. Of my first 2, we added the second when the first one was about 2 years old. Heidi, the older one, was sooooo laid back that the puppy and her took off playing right away. We were lucky because we were young, dumb, and clueless. We didn't even think about it. We just brought Nugget home and told Heidi she had a sister. Luckily, Heidi said, 'OK, follow me and I'll show you where things are. Then we'll go out back and play!'

The 2 I have now are only 5 months apart so when we brought Ilsa home, Gretchen took one look at her and took off running. Ilsa was in hot pursuit and they didn't stop until they couldn't keep their eyes open anymore. They've been best buds ever since.

Soooo, the only advice I know to give is what I've seen on Dog Whisperer...introduce them on neutral ground and take them for a LONG walk immediately. The walk helps them bond and when they get home, they're too tired to care about who's turf they are on.

Dianne · June 12, 2008, 05:37:39 PM

We seem to have a semi-revolving doo...or as our vet said last week, "when I get old I want to come to your house too!"

I you are uncertain, use neutral and take them for a walk. It works great! Remember you are the pack leader and no agression is allowed...unless it's mine.

If you want a laugh you should see me on my knees defending a food bowl to teach Dottie. Hey, at least I don't bite and I've had my shots:)

Even Jude has gotten over most of her aggression and all three are snuggled up against DH on the sofa right now. Patches is 12 and he doesn't care. Dottie is 8 and was invaded by Jude who we think is just 3. Needless to say, it's never a dull moment. And, nothing sleeps better in the winter than a 2 or 3 dog night:)

Valerie · June 12, 2008, 05:56:41 PM

Well, today I pulled up the humane society website to call them and saw that Dutchess was adopted already

My heart sank and I just felt so sad. Even though we never met her, we talked about her for the past few days and were excited to bring her into our lives. I guess that shows that we are ready to get another. I was surprised she was adopted so quickly, she is 10 yo. So I know I should be happy she got adopted so fast, but selfishly am sad for our family.

I really do appreciate the posts and advice- its definately something for us to refer to when we DO get our 2nd dog.

Kathleen · June 12, 2008, 06:01:04 PM

I'd also say be absolutely sure in your own mind, "This guy is OURS". I got Winston at 8 weeks, then Murphy when he was four months old and Winston was six months old. We drove from Seattle to Northern Idaho to get him and he was mine before I saw him, mentally. Winston loved him from the second he saw him in the breeders house. When I was looking for a third, a woman came over with a little female puppy that she was claiming was purebred. I knew from the second I saw her that she was crossed with Boston Terrier or French Bulldog. Because I wasn't sure, both my dogs snipped at her. When I brought Reilly home a few weeks later, I was mentally sure again, and both dogs welcomed her with open paws, so to speak.

I had a foster for nearly two months (he just got his forever home on Thursday), so when he came, knowing it would be fairly long term, but that he wasn't "mine", I had a few days of struggle, but they all gave over and accepted him pretty quickly. Everyone was crated while I was gone though, until I was 100% sure that there would be no problems.