This separate-but-equal arrangement is time-consuming, exhausting and seems to defeat the original intent of acquiring siblings. Even trips to puppy socials and the vet should be separate so that both learn to incorporate these episodes into their psyches without being overly dependent on their littermate.
This means feeding, walking and training separately, with individual crates in different parts of the home.
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Owners committed to raising a pair should ensure the puppies spend significant portions of every day apart so that each learns how to be alone-a key lesson in any well thought-out puppy program. This is obviously a burdensome decision for the overwhelmed owner to make, a sort of canine Sophie’s Choice, so he recommends that the new owner meet both puppies and determine which to take home. Dunbar agrees that it’s often best to separate littermates, especially if symptoms appear early, so that each has a chance to develop normally as an individual. Sometimes the most humane course is to re-home one of the siblings. Perhaps one puppy is a bit of a bully, which his littermate puts up with, but his rude behavior might not be tolerated by a new dog in a new setting.” “People assume that having two same-age pups that play together and interact constantly covers their dog-dog socialization needs, but they in fact don’t learn how other breeds play and have no idea about social skills with other puppies, adolescents or adult dogs. Wilde believes the problems are rooted in hyper-attachment, leading to hindered social development and communication issues. “They were so bonded to each other that I literally could not take one and walk a few feet away to practice loose leash skills because the other would scream.” Behavior specialist and author Nicole Wilde recalls a case in which two nine-year-old sibling Huskies attended her group class. “I have seen some nasty cases of bullying or outright aggression between dogs of the same litter, and it feels as though it is more common than between same-age dogs who come into the family from different litters.”Ĭohabitating siblings may become so emotionally dependent on each other that even short separations provoke extreme distress. McConnell, PhD is also against taking in littermates: “They are so busy playing with each other (or squabbling), that you become the odd man out… It seems harder to get their attention, harder to teach them emotional control, and harder to teach them boundaries,” she says. They’re always living with an enormous distraction-each other.”Ĭertified Applied Animal Behaviorist Patricia B. Tension develops in training and compliance as they squeeze the owner out of the relationship. The two combine to produce levels of energy that we can barely measure. “It’s more than twice the work it’s exponential. Many owners assume their interacting with each other is adequate, “but when the puppies are five or six months old and meet an unfamiliar dog in a novel setting, they absolutely freak out.”ĭunbar points out that raising littermates necessitates training two puppies-particularly challenging when they essentially wear blinders to all but each other. “It’s a disaster waiting to happen for the littermates because they don’t get socialized to other dogs or people, let alone to their owners,” he said. Ian Dunbar and I discussed raising sibling dogs. Over lunch recently, veterinarian and dog behaviorist Dr. In some cases the two dogs fight incessantly. Signs include fearfulness of unfamiliar people, dogs and other novel stimuli (neophobia) intense anxiety when separated even briefly and difficulty learning basic obedience skills.
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