[Evan Hanson]

We got our puppy finally and you guys were helpful with deciding on 1 puppy instead of 2; however, I'm curious about another older dog.
We do have to leave him home alone for a bit during the day and I hate leaving him lonely. What is everyone's recommendation about adopting an older pup to keep him company?

 

[ksotto333]

Owning two dogs is totally different than having one. Tess was 3 when we brought Della home, and it was such an adjustment. I'm glad we had the time to get her to a great point of behavior and manners before bring another puppy into the house. They like each other but they each like me better. So I guess I'm saying enjoy your pup now, and bring another dog home in a few years.

 

[huntergreen]

Crate train. Keeps your house and dog safe while you are out. How long is the pup left alone?

 

[huntergreen]

Btw, nice looking pup!.

 

[Malibu]

I understand your reasoning for another dog. In a perfect world sure get another dog but 1st lets be fair to the dogs. Have you had a dog before. Have you had a GSD before. Do you train your own dogs and or have you had well trained dogs. I would need to know these answers to give you an answer. You would have 2 dogs in crates if you care about your house or a closed off room. You can not expect a puppy @ any age to just roam free. Then your hoping to add a rescue not knowing anything about it's past past into the mix.

 

[sebrench]

I'd raise this puppy for a couple of years, and then once he is trained and you are satisfied with his behavior, think about adding a 2nd dog. If you get a 2nd dog, do it because you think it would enhance your life, not to entertain your current dog. Though I imagine this is not the norm, I have two GSDs who do not like each other. They got along until the 2nd dog was about 8 months old. If I had acquired the 2nd dog only as a companion for the first, I would have been sorely disappointed. As long as you spend time with your pup and include him in your life when you are home, I don't think he'll be lonely when you're gone. He is adorable by the way, congratulations!!!

 

[Evan Hanson]

I have had dogs and most recently a 75/25 Shepherd/Mallinois. Good to know though. He has the cat to kick around but she pretty much steers clear of him. Some days he's alone more than others, 4 hours or so at a time, then everybody's home. We're having more difficulty with the crate training than we did our last pup. I figure all dogs are different. How does everyone do nighttime potty breaks?

 

[wolfy dog]

Don't get a canine baby sitter for your pup. Your pup will bond strongly with that other dog that way. Four hours alone in a crate is OK. Check out the crating at night on the various threads on the forum.

 

[huntergreen]

Even, how is the crate training gping.?

 

[Evan Hanson]

Update: He doesn't go in the house any more, thank the good Lord; however, we're still having issues with him going in his sunroom. This new house we bought has a fairly large sunroom we've given Link. It beats the pants off of any dog house I've ever seen, but I think it's a little too big. If we leave him home alone, sure enough, he'll go inside that room. I guess he considers that outside. I ended up fabricating a crate out of that roll up fencing that only has an exit out through the doggy door in the wall, and that works well, but I'd like for him to have the whole room and just use his door for when he has to go.

P. S. Link contracted Parvo back in October. Scary story short, we nursed him through, and oddly enough, that may have helped with his potty training.

 

[Evan Hanson]

Link is about to be 10 months now, but the only potty problems we have now is when somebody comes home and he gets over excited and leaks a bit on the floor. I hear everywhere he'll outgrow that. We're still waiting on getting him a partner.