SFR Adding a new dog to the pack?

Sorta fishing-related
ThomasM

ThomasM

corvus ossifragus
We currently have Yuki, a 5yo Belgian Tervuren which is essentially a long-coated Malinois (in Belgium they are all lumped together, often interbred then sorted after birth). She's a very high-working/prey drive dog but not quite so crazy as the military/police line Belgians as her breeder specializes in SAR dogs.

We have been on the fence of about getting a second dog for a while and recently our dog's breeder sent us a listing from the Tervuren rescue org about a dog that would be a good partner for Yuki - male, not super high drive, tolerant of a pushy female. Talking to friends, some say having a second dog is a small marginal add to the first and others say its a 200% increase... Probably dog dependent.

I've been around working dogs my entire life but I've never owned two at the same time myself. We have a 1.5acre yard with about half fenced and live next door to an extensive trail network. We also have 5acres on the river over on the OP where we spend 30-40% of our time. Post covid, I'll be working in the office 50% of the time and my wife will be almost completely remote so we're in a pretty good place for providing a good environment.

Since there are a lot of sporting dog owners on this forum, I'd appreciate any shared perspectives on having two(or more) dogs vs. one. An obvious one is what you do with them when going fishing. I have a drift boat coming soon that should accommodate them (open stern area). Do you find the marginal effort required for your second dog is more/less than 100% of the first? My wife's biggest concern is what to do with them when we travel - a week or so once or twice a year.

I'm treating this as a really important family event so would appreciate any experience -based insight y'all are able to give.

Thanks in advance. Yuki going to her favorite place below.

 
Thomas Mitchell said:
We currently have Yuki, a 5yo Belgian Tervuren which is essentially a long-coated Malinois (in Belgium they are all lumped together, often interbred then sorted after birth). She's a very high-working/prey drive dog but not quite so crazy as the military/police line Belgians as her breeder specializes in SAR dogs.

We have been on the fence of about getting a second dog for a while and recently our dog's breeder sent us a listing from the Tervuren rescue org about a dog that would be a good partner for Yuki - male, not super high drive, tolerant of a pushy female. Talking to friends, some say having a second dog is a small marginal add to the first and others say its a 200% increase... Probably dog dependent.

I've been around working dogs my entire life but I've never owned two at the same time myself. We have a 1.5acre yard with about half fenced and live next door to an extensive trail network. We also have 5acres on the river over on the OP where we spend 30-40% of our time. Post covid, I'll be working in the office 50% of the time and my wife will be almost completely remote so we're in a pretty good place for providing a good environment.

Since there are a lot of sporting dog owners on this forum, I'd appreciate any shared perspectives on having two(or more) dogs vs. one. An obvious one is what you do with them when going fishing. I have a drift boat coming soon that should accommodate them (open stern area). Do you find the marginal effort required for your second dog is more/less than 100% of the first? My wife's biggest concern is what to do with them when we travel - a week or so once or twice a year.

I'm treating this as a really important family event so would appreciate any experience -based insight y'all are able to give.

Thanks in advance. Yuki going to her favorite place below.

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That's a beautiful pup! I say get another one, they can keep each other company when you're not available and then you have two pretty pups
 
Two dogs has been the magic number for us. Our 2nd puppy was significantly less work then having one considering they can rely on each other for play time and the young pup pretty much did whatever big brother did, so he picked up on training and behavioral queues much quicker. That doesn’t replace the need for walks or serious tennis ball time but it helps keep the energy levels manageable and a lot less bad puppy behavior that’s for sure. When they would start wrestling in the house, opening up the door and letting them chase each other around the yard for an hour or two is a big deal. Besides all that, they are best friends now. They do literally everything together. As I write this they are sitting on the couch enjoying the heat from the fire. Can’t beat it. And when you come home, you have two dogs fighting to greet you. I really enjoy taking the two of them fishing. They completely entertain themselves while I do my thing swinging flies on the river, and only periodically come see what I’m up to if they hear the sound of my drag.

Live from the couch:

image.jpg
 
I think you should get a small bossy dog, like a JRT. The gentle giant vs. napoleon complex dog dynamic is hilarious. On a more serious note though, the logistical benefits of a smaller dog are definitely desirable IMO, once you start increasing the pack size.

My wife and I hope to get a lab and JRT, one day.
 
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We've had many pairs of dogs over the years, most recent working dogs were Australian cattledogs, a brother and sister who were inseparable.

Also had big dog/little dog combos, most notably a wonderful German Shepherd and Scottish Terrier duo, who got along great and were 'tag-team' diggers.

Dogs are, essentially, social pack animals.

A pair of dogs is ideal. A single dog can get very lonely when its humans are busy. I don't think having two dogs detracts in any way from their devotion to their humans. Just makes for happier dogs (unless they're incompatible...had two female Norwich Terriers who engaged in bloodbath fights, which ultimately meant finding a new home for one of them).
 
jaredoconnor said:
I think you should get a small bossy dog, like a JRT. The gentle giant vs. napoleon complex dog dynamic is hilarious. On a more serious note though, the logistical benefits of a smaller dog are definitely desirable IMO, once you start increasing the pack size.

My wife and I plan to get a lab and JRT, one day.
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JRT's are wonderful dogs, once they get past the first two years of ripping apart furniture stage.
 
We had two rescue prey-driven Lab females; one PB, and one mix that lived to 12 yo & 13 yo respectively. On our wooded-brushy fully-fenced 1 acre, they were great playmates, keeping each other company, discovering what critters had crossed through their yard, napping together when we were working or otherwise occupied. They came running together when called too. But when I took them out biking or fishing off-leash... Individually, they focused on me. Together not so much, and would take off together to explore. I miss them dearly.

I have a 3-4 yo rescue Lab again; who was neglected and untrained. He's a velcro dog, and we're his focus. Yet we still need work on emergency recall. But I took him out fishing to a remote Curtis Creek and after letting him off-leash, and giving him the ground rules in language he understands (whistle... "TREAT!") it was a perfect day.

I don't believe a 2nd dog would be right for us at this time; maybe later.
 
Brian Miller said:
But when I took them out biking or fishing off-leash... Individually, they focused on me. Together not so much, and would take off together to explore.
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This is what our family dogs were like, too.

On their own, they were very well trained and well behaved. Together, they were often uncontrollable.
 
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If you’re considering a rescue dog they should let you have a trial adoption. Been through this when our Pit Bulls best friend, a Dachshund, died. We rescued an English Bull Terrier and they got along very well. Unfortunately the EBT had a grade 6 heart murmur and died two years later. We then got a young EBT that was well trained but started attacking the old PB when they were fed and it progressed to attacks on the PB when he was being shown attention by one of us. The PB was terrorized by the EBT and I had to return it to the rescue organization. Most rescues can tell you if the dog has been socialized to people, other dogs, cats, etc.
 
A second dog, in our experience (20+ years of multiple pups), is not 200% more, in fact, other than the additional cost of food and poop scooping, probably less work needed than for 1 since they entertain each other. Have not had an issue with 2 pups being uncontrollable when fishing or hiking, they both pretty much come on command, though the little one, Coco, tends to take a second whistle if another pup is around - Absolutely encourage 2 pups, I cannot see a downside.

cheers
 
Robert Engleheart said:
If you’re considering a rescue dog they should let you have a trial adoption. Been through this when our Pit Bulls best friend, a Dachshund, died. We rescued an English Bull Terrier and they got along very well. Unfortunately the EBT had a grade 6 heart murmur and died two years later. We then got a young EBT that was well trained but started attacking the old PB when they were fed and it progressed to attacks on the PB when he was being shown attention by one of us. The PB was terrorized by the EBT and I had to return it to the rescue organization. Most rescues can tell you if the dog has been socialized to people, other dogs, cats, etc.
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^^^This is super important to us. Yuki is 'pushy' with other dogs, very dominant so we're looking for a male that's bigger than her and even tempered.

In the past, we have always gotten puppies but due to media, movies, etc. there are a lot of people buying Belgian Shepherds (Malinois, Tervuren, Groenendale) that are not equipped to handle working dogs from police, military, SAR backgrounds and backyard breeders willing to sell them. This has resulted in way too many sad stories of these guys being abandoned. The lucky ones end up in breed rescue where they are pretty selective in finding 'forever homes'.
 
Thanks all for the feedback.

We will be picking up Yuki's new packmate from California in the next couple weeks. He's from the breed rescue non-profit and we're eager to get him up here to his forever home. According to the foster, he loves the river (hence the muddy feet) so he'll be right at home with us.

Only a year old and no behavior or medical issues, just untrained. So we feel like we hit the jackpot. Now we just have to think of a good name.

IMG_6032.jpg
 
Thomas Mitchell said:
Thanks all for the feedback.

We will be picking up Yuki's new packmate from California in the next couple weeks. He's from the breed rescue non-profit and we're eager to get him up here to his forever home. According to the foster, he loves the river (hence the muddy feet) so he'll be right at home with us.

Only a year old and no behavior or medical issues, just untrained. So we feel like we hit the jackpot. Now we just have to think of a good name.

View attachment 9234
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Beauty!! (I don't mean for the name, I mean "he's a beauty!!)

cheers
 
Canuck from Kansas said:
Beauty!! (I don't mean for the name, I mean "he's a beauty!!)

cheers
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Funny! Since since our leading contender for a name right now is "Beau".

Since they are a Belgian breed, we use French for verbal commands and have been Googling things like "Top Belgian Names For Male Dogs" and there are actually published lists. The internet is a weird place.
 
Thomas Mitchell said:
Thanks all for the feedback.

We will be picking up Yuki's new packmate from California in the next couple weeks. He's from the breed rescue non-profit and we're eager to get him up here to his forever home. According to the foster, he loves the river (hence the muddy feet) so he'll be right at home with us.

Only a year old and no behavior or medical issues, just untrained. So we feel like we hit the jackpot. Now we just have to think of a good name.

View attachment 9234
Click to expand...
He looks happy.
 
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