So you’re thinking about adopting a second dog? Do you have a vision that both dogs will be best friends, play and run around the backyard together, and then snuggle on the dog bed together at the end of the day? We have almost always had two dogs at the same time in our family.
But wait, how do you know they’ll be best friends? Are you friends with everyone you meet? Most of us have people we are acquaintances with because we have to be, then we have a small group of close friends that we go out and have fun together.
Don’t expect your dog to love every dog just because you do. And don’t be disappointed if your current and a newly adopted dog don’t hit it off right away. It’s okay for them to just coexist, they don’t need to snuggle and be best buds just because you want them to.
Just as a side note, I am going to refer to your current dog has HE or HIM and your new dog as SHE or HER, just to try and make things less confusing.
Prepare for Adopting a Second Dog
Step 1: Start off by selecting the right dog to be his companion
Think about your current dog’s personality. Try to find a new dog to adopt that will complement or match your current dog’s energy and personality traits.
Is your dog fearful or lacking in confidence? A perfect companion may be a confident dog to help teach him to become more confident in himself.
Is he a senior or low-energy dog? Then, bringing in a puppy or a high-energy dog may just annoy him. Puppies like to play, bite, and crawl over and will not leave your adult dog alone. Consider adopting a 3-5-year-old dog or even another senior dog.
If your dog has any behavior issues, please ask yourself, “Should I get another dog”? Those bad behaviors are only going to get worse when getting a second dog.
Also, consider gender and size.
Opposite sex may get along better than same sex. In general, I recommend adopting opposite sexed dogs. When that is not possible, the second best option is to have two males. Two females are the most likely to have issues.
Bringing Home Another Dog: Day 1
Step 2: Keep the dogs separate
Here are certain steps to take when introducing a new dog to your pack. These steps are very important to keep the balance in your house.
I learned about this process when we first started fostering. The rescue insists that we keep our foster dogs and resident dogs separate for a minimum of 24 hours. I’ll be honest, when I first heard this, I thought they were crazy. How was I going to possibly keep our dogs separate for an entire day? But they are right; it really works and creates a much smoother transition.
I’ve personally gone through these steps many times. Not only with my own dogs, but every single time we bring in a foster dog. It works; as hard as it may seem, these steps help create a calm and balanced transition.
Even the easiest, happy dogs can get stressed when another dog enters their home. It’s only 24 hours, one day of separation that can change the relationship of your dogs forever.
Step 3: Bring the new dog inside the house.
Do not allow the new dog to run loose in the house yet. Keep her on a leash; in fact, I recommend keeping her on a leash for several days until you get to know her behavior inside the house.
Use a bedroom or a baby gate to separate an area in your home for the new dog to relax and adjust to his new surroundings.
Keep this separation for 24-48 hours, depending on the dog. If they seem to be calm and both dogs are easygoing, then 24 hours is more than enough.
Remember, your newly adopted dog is undergoing a lot of new things and can easily be stressed out. If your resident dog won’t give her space, then consider a bigger separation.
Read the Bringing Your New Dog Home and the 3-3-3 Rule for more details.
Day 2 or 3 with Your Dogs
Step 4: The first meeting
After the 24-48 hour separation period and both dogs are calm, you can start the introduction stage. You need someone to help you with this step.
Never introduce your new dog inside your house.
If you have more than two dogs, introduce one dog at a time. Starting with the calmest and easy-going dog first.
Take both dogs for a long walk. The resident dog in front of you, the newly adopted dog behind with your helper (in a single file, not side-by-side yet).
Walk parallel to each other about 10 feet away, slowly working your way
closer together.
After a good long walk, when both dogs seem calm, allow them to sniff each other’s rears (it’s a dog thing).
Watch the dog’s body language, showing of teeth, growling, stiff erect tail, stiff body stance, ears back, or raised hackles. If any of these occur, give a firm NO, and continue walking. Do not allow this to escalate; as soon as you see ANY of those signs, separate the dogs and start to walk again.
Keep these first interactions short and sweet. Don’t overwhelm either dog with too much sniffing. Once they have a minute to check each other out, start walking again. Repeat several times until everyone is calm.
Once this meeting is successful, you may go on to the next step of bringing the dogs inside the house. The resident dog should be allowed to enter the home first, then allow him to welcome the new dog inside.
Step 5: Giving the new dog more space
You can take down the baby gate now and give your new dog a little more freedom. I still recommend restricting one area or floor of your home; in fact, I recommend this for up to a week or more.
If you have a fenced backyard, then allow the dogs to run around free outside together. Keep these sessions short, again, not to overwhelm either dog. Allow both dogs to come inside and investigate each other.
Never leave the two dogs alone. If you cannot closely supervise them, then put them in their crates or separate rooms.
Step 6: Resource Guarding
If your dog has never had another dog in the house, you may not know if he has resource guarding issues.
Resource guarding can be the guarding of people, food, toys, dog beds, or any object the dog feels it needs to claim. You need to be super-aware of the signs, and if you’ve never witnessed it before, it may catch you off guard at first.
Watch for a showing of teeth, growling, stiff erect tail, stiff body stance, ears back, whale eyes, or raised hackles. This is a time you really need to learn your dog’s body language.
If you have a resource guarder, then you will need to be super vigilant on feeding time, bones, toys, dog beds, or whatever he likes to guard. Even if you don’t think either dog is going to resource guard, I still suggest having separate feeding areas.
Read Why is My Dog Aggressive with Food – Resource Guarding?.
Day 4 and Beyond with Two Dogs in Your Pack
Step 7: Continue taking it slow
Take a lot of long walks together as a pack. Keep both dogs tired by giving them more than enough exercise. A bored dog equals trouble. Continue being super aware for several weeks or even months, depending on the dog’s personality and temperament.
Read Top 5 Reasons to Take Your Dog for a Walk.
Watch for any signs of stress in either dog. If either dog gets overwhelmed, reduce the time they have together and slow it down even more.
Why is it so important to slowly introduce the dogs?
A newly adopted dog is under a tremendous amount of stress. The resident dog is wondering who the heck this new dog is and why she is in his territory.
Mix these feelings together, and you will get a dogfight. Not because either dog is aggressive, but because it takes time to unwind and to help both dogs understand the situation.
Is it better to have two dogs?
Having two dogs is better for our family, but maybe not for yours. Consider everything that goes into owning two dogs: including picking up more dog poop, more dog hair, more training, and more expensive vet bills. Does your current dog really want a companion, or is it all about you?
I wish you all the best of luck with the new addition to your family. Having two dogs can be a lot of fun. Leave a comment below and let me know all about your new dog and how the introductions went. Any additional tips to share with the Rescue Dogs 101 Community?
Up Next:
I’ve just read your article and wished I had read this last week before bringing home a foster dog!
My first dog is having trouble adjusting as due to circumstances and my lack of knowledge weren’t introduced correctly.
They are very wary of each other and my first dog is very territorial and have had a fight- is there any way back for us with this?
Yes, start back from step 1. It may take longer now that there has been a fight, so you must take it even slower. Keep all future interactions positive and watch their body language very closely.
I need help, I have 2 girls (sisters Athena ad Lily, shepherd and pit mixed) that we got them when they were 8 weeks old. Almost a year ago we foster a male puppy (terrier, American pit mix) when he was 4 weeks old, and then decided to adopt him. Now a year later, Bam (puppy) is getting into fights with one of the girls (Athena). She is not having it with him. Last week Bam try to get in her food and they got into a bad fight. Bam ended up bleeding a needing his wound to be cauterized. Bam antagonizes and starts most of the fights, one of the girls handles him better but the other one responds aggressively to him (again, Athena). I am not sure what to do. Bam has also started to destroy most of the house when left alone. I am leaving him on his crate when we need to go out to prevent him from destroying things. I dont want to give up on him, or one of my girls but I am not sure what to do.
I’m sorry to hear about the difficulties you’re facing with Bam and your girls, Athena and Lily. It sounds like a challenging situation, but there are steps you can take to address it.
First and foremost, it’s essential to prioritize everyone’s safety, including Bam’s. Given the severity of the fights and Bam’s destructive behavior, seeking professional help from a certified dog trainer or behaviorist is highly recommended. They can assess the situation firsthand and provide personalized guidance on how to manage and modify Bam’s behavior effectively.
In the meantime, continuing to use the crate when necessary to prevent destructive behavior is a good temporary solution. Consistency with training and providing mental and physical stimulation for Bam can also help redirect his energy in a positive way.
Regarding the conflicts between Bam and Athena, it may be beneficial to supervise their interactions closely and intervene at the first sign of tension. Additionally, implementing techniques such as positive reinforcement training, desensitization, and gradual introductions in controlled environments can help improve their relationship over time.
It’s understandable that you don’t want to give up on any of your dogs, and with patience, dedication, and professional guidance, there’s hope for improvement in their behavior and relationships. Remember to prioritize everyone’s safety and well-being throughout the process.
Dogs are just like people, the way they were brought up, if they were abandoned, they all have different personalities. We have 2 dogs that were rescued, one from the field behind the house, one from the pound, and a Sheltie that my mom had. We recently lost our German shepherd we had for over 10 years we got her when she was 5 weeks old. We have always been able to adapt our dogs to their new home and each other with a little time and work. Work with them, today if its not easy nobody wants to do it, if there is no app or button you can push its to much for most. Dogs are the best people in the world, but they know what they have been taught, and it can take a little while to re-train them. The age difference is the big thing to work around, we always have had a senior dog when bringing younger dogs in, or field rescue is around 16, we have had her for 14 years and our new girl is 8 months, so far after just 4 days there have been no conflicts, but the little Collie is a bit of a drama queen.
We have a female spayed 14 lb. Rescue dog that’s approximately 5 years old. Two days ago we adopted a male neutered 1 year old golden doodle. We took our current dog to meet the rescue before bringing him home. I wish I’d read this info before! We’ve let them both have run of the house since we brought them home together. The new rescue wants to play with our other dog but she screeches at him when he tries. I made the mistake also the first day of giving the new rescue a NEW long rope toy thinking they’d play with it together! Wrong. They got into a fight (no one was hurt) so I have put up all toys. I need help.
Start back and step 1. Separate the dogs. Keep the toys and bones away. Walk them together, and as you see fit allow them to play in the yard for a few minutes at a time, watching their body language very closely. Just keep it slow.
We foster dogs through a local rescue unit and the dogs don't stop just because it's winter. Trying to take them on long walks while they adjust to each other is not feasible in our area. Any suggestions on how else to deal with this?
Thanks for any input you might have.
Even short walks will do a world of good. If taking them outside is not possible at all, then keep them separate inside the house for a few days until both dogs have time to adjust to each other.
she is mannered better and she is calmer so she is able to free roam a bit more but i may have upset him for that reason. with all the kids its hard because sometimes they need to be crated when my two small babies are running through the house. both dogs are beautifully social with the children but they are BIG.
What can i do now that she has already been in here and roaming and hes been feeling rebellious and betrayed
Start back at square one. Your male was there first, it’s his home, so make sure he feels comfortable knowing she isn’t taking over. Make sure both dogs get equal alone time with you or the main caregiver. It’s still very early, so they are both is still adjusting. Read the 3-3-3 rule to help clarify the adjustment period.
I have a male american bully named benz, he is almost 2 years old. I have six children ages 2-18 and my 3 year old daughter has ASD. Recently, a friend of mine needed to re-home his female XL american bulldog, she is six months younger than benz.
She has been here for five days but i feel like benz is having a hard time with it and i can tell he is mad at me, i dont know what to do but i want to fixxxx itttt ;'(
We have a different sort of situation here. We have a 5 year old female newfoundland and a 14 year old Aussie mix. They get along fine but don't interact any at all. Last September our daughter and her husband moved in till they can get a house and brought their 3 dogs, a 9 year old male golden, a 5 year old female golden and a 3 year old male Aussie/ shepherd mix. All 5 dogs get along but our Newfoundland isn't allowed to play with any of them because she plays too rough. Saturday we brought a young (not more than 3) female newfoundland home from the shelter. I only just now found your article, so first fail. We brought our Newfoundland in to meet her and tails were wagging, butt smells done and all was still good. No aggression has been shown by either. The thing is our Newf avoids her completely. If ours is on the couch and she comes near ours jumps down and goes to the other room. She's also upset with us and gives us accusing looks. Does any of this sound fixable or hopeless?
I would take a few steps back and allow them their own spaces so the new dog can fully decompress and the older dog can have her space too adjust. It’s only been 2 days so there is a lot of adjusting still to happen. Read the 3-3-3 rule. Also learning your dogs body language will be a huge help. Read this article: How to speak dog
Thank you for your input, I think we were expecting too much from both of them. It's hard to tell what the shelter dog has been through since she was a stray. She's very affectionate but doesn't know any commands, maybe she's a dumped mill dog. We will step back and just be more patient.
I have a 4 year old doberman, that was a rescue at 6 months old, brilliant with kids and people, not so much with other dogs especially when on a lead. I ended up with an XL bully supposed to be 14 months old but very large so could be older. I didnt mean to have another large dog I just ended up with him as I didnt want to see him put down as he couldnt be rehomed as everyone is put off by his size. I introduced them and they had a little squabble let them assert dominance and made a big fuss of Dexter (the resident Doberman) after a week of walking together and eating side by side sharing a bed or a sofa aswel as their humans, I am still scared to leave them alone together as Bruno (the bully!) Won't share toys. Dexter is now scared to play and barks at Bruno when Bruno is playing but only when he growls at the toys. I have been lucky for them to get along like this so quickly as I didnt seperate them the 1st day instead I gave each of them something belonging to the other so they could get each others scent spending the day out with the new dog so that they already knew each others scent before being introduced while the new dog had the day out to get used to us before the old dog. But now i dont know how to stop the toy gaurding from Bruno and dont want to leave them alone together untill its sorted.
I would not leave them alone together. You didn’t mention how long you’ve had Bruno, but I suggest taking it slow. Do not rush into anything. And remember, there is no guarantee they will ever be “best buddies”. I would work with Bruno and his toy guarding separately. Read Living with a Resource Guarding Dog