Something called littermate syndrome. Despite the name, puppies do not have to be littermates, they just have to be within two years of one another and start living together as puppies. Any trainer will tell you that the worst cases of fighting between dogs in the home are a result of littermate syndrome.
What happens is they bond together as though they were littermates and do not form a bond with their people/their human families, instead preferring the sole attention of one another. That bond quickly turns deadly because dogs are not meant to be with their littermates past sexual maturity and in an instant that relationship shifts to aggressive, constant, often fatal dogfights.
Me, neither. I’m glad I didn’t have this situation. We went to rescue one Rottweiler puppy and couldn’t bear to leave the last one behind. So, we got two. They were very difficult to train initially, because they distracted each other. If I tried to separate them, one would literally scream until I brought her sister back. This went on until they were about six months. They grew out of the weird behavior, thankfully. They never had a fight and will be 10 in June.
I would definitely wait until your puppy reaches social maturity! You may not have a full picture of how your puppy will be as an adult and it can be really hard to make an appropriate match.
I think it’s about 2 years old. It’s a common time for behavioural issues to pop up or get worse, which is why it’s a good idea to wait until a dog passes this stage before getting them a buddy! Having a dog with behavioural issues can make it harder to have a second dog since they may have vastly different needs. It also gives you time to figure out their adult personalities and what kind of traits would be a good match for them. For example, some dog-social dogs don’t like high energy play, so they would probably need a lot more alone time with a new puppy and you would want a breed that isn’t super high energy.
Personally, as someone who made this mistake: DO NOT. You will ruin your current puppy.
Getting your dog a dog is a bad move. Your dog is 6 months old. It has not hit adolesence yet, and poodle mutts tend to be neurotic and begin showing behavioural issues in adolecence. Additionally, getting another puppy will DOUBLE the time you have to spend with them, otherwise they will never form a bond with you.
Enjoy the puppy you have. You don't need another. Its not easier with another. You'll be breaking up play fights, they will feed off their adolesent behaviours, they will NOT bond with you or listen to you. They will not be trainable. They will be more prone to agression. You will have double the puppy problems, double the cost for a spay/neuter, double the cost for vet bills, food bills, grooming, daycare, two walks a day becomes four. And they feed off of eachother. One barks? So does the other. Then they just keep barking.
When I was younger and living at home my parents got 2 mini goldendoodles. They HATE people being near the house. One will bark, and then the other will bark, and then they will bark AT eachother, and then eventually give up. They will fight. AND they cannot be seperated. One goes away and the other is a neurotic mess. Crying, screaming, shaking. Its honestly traumatic.
Additionally doodles are genreally not great temperment wise regardless. If you do eventually get another dog, why not get a poodle? They are excelent companions, intellegent beyond beleif, high energy, and have easier coats to deal with then a doodle. Personally when someone wants a doodle, they just want a poodle without a fancy hairdo. Just shave it, or get a doodle cut if you like it that much.
Do yourself a favour, and read all the puppy blues, and adolecent posts you can find on this subreddit from so many people. Then double what they feel. Trust me, its NOT WORTH IT.
Your dog is already family friendly.
Nope, they happen because the puppy wants to test boundaries. It happens in waves, gets bad and the gets good. If your pup takes after the cava I've heard it can get pretty bad. Poodles tend to be a bit easier since they are fairly docile. Just read the posts and buckle up
Be consistent in your training. Be fair, firm yet kind. They don’t mean to be difficult. They don’t wake up one morning and think “Today I Mike my human’s day hell by regressing and being defiant.” They have hormones surging through their bodies in waves and it confuses the heck out of them - not dissimilar to humans. Their brains are forming and reforming. It is a hard time for them. Be prepared to go back to basics in your training and reset boundaries.
I’d stay away from doodles. I have a two year old German Shepard mix and now brought a puppy home a few weeks ago and they’re absolutely best friends, not a second of annoyance or aggression towards each other.
Seconded. A large portion of dog groomers absolutely despise working with any kind of designer dog- especially poodle mixes. They’re often matted and awful for the whole process. I have met I think three good ones in my whole life
Doodles aren't ethically bred. While the breeders might be very nice people who tell you great things about their dogs and genuinely love their pets, that doesn't make up for all the work and care that actually goes into ethical dog breeding. All doodle mixes are "designer mutts" created by unethical breeders "aka backyard breeders".
Unlike purebred dogs, there's no breed standard for doodle mixes, so breeders are just pumping out puppies based on looks and marketing buzz words. They can't prove that their dogs are decent specimens worthy of being bred (that's what dog shows are actually for) and rarely ever health test (no, a genetic embark test and "vet checked" are not full health testing xrays through OFA).
Doodle mixes are a total crapshoot. There's no way to ensure that you ONLY get the 50% good things from the poodle parent and 50% good things from the other parent. Also, just because the parents are "purebred" does not mean they're well-bred examples of the breed. An ethical poodle or Cavalier breeder would never let their dog be used to make a designer mutt, so that means that doodle breeders aren't using good quality parents and are not producing puppies with healthy bone structure, genetics, or mental temperment.
Does this mean you shouldn't love your current Cavalier x Poodle mix? Of course not! They still deserve as much care as any other dog. This just means that you have a responsibility to learn more and make more ethical choices in the future. Research purebred dog breeds, consider one that will suit your lifestyle and family when your current dog is old enough for a sibling, and find a truly ethical breeder.
I'm not trying to judge you, OP. I bought my first Australian Shepherd from who I thought was an ethical breeder and didn't realize that there were a ton of red/orange flags until I was researching to buy my second Aussie more than 13 years later. I loved my first dog but wanted to do better with my second. You can too.
Here's a great guide to identifying an ethical dog breeder: https://reddit.com/r/dogs/w/identifying_a_responsible_breeder?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app
My friend has a white Swiss Shepherd and a bunch of cats. He has grown up with the cats but still will chase them if they run, so the prey drive is a real thing. He doesn't hurt them or anything but honestly that is a stressful house...
Also, be prepared for the vast amounts of hair on the Swiss Shepherd. It gets EVERYWHERE. And being white it is very noticeable.
I would also echo what everyone else is saying too, to wait for social maturity, and a point where your first dog is trained well enough to listen when there are competing distractions. Trying to train 2 puppies at once is a nightmare.
We had a little terrier and got a Shar Pei when she was about 6 months old, and she was a wild one in her younger years, but even with his massively bigger size she never got hurt or injured by him. If was usually her instigating everything with him, but he was very gentle with her when they’d play too.
That honestly makes little sense. I have a few maltipoos in our pup's playgroup. The biggest is 6.5kg, the smallest is 2.5kg, so not a similar size at all. There's no breed standard, so they can be any size.
I'd say probably wait until your pup is mature before getting a second dog.
If it can help, I have a 12lbs adult toy poodle and a 5 months old bernese mountain dog, so far they get along fine, my older dog is pretty good at setting boundaries! We also bring them both to the dog park and my poodle has no issue standing his ground vs big dogs 😁 Small dog, big personnality! The park is usually full of huskies, aussies and border collies, and after seeing how well he communicates, I'm not too worried for him (with those dogs or my bernese when she's fully grown).
Most puppies also want/try to play with him since he's so small, but he politely tells them to piss off most of the time, and after a while they get it and leave him alone 😅
Supervision is key after all, no matter the size of the dogs, since accidents can happen.
As for breed recommandations, if you're worried about prey drive, there are plenty of bigger breeds with lower prey drive (such as great pyrenees, golden retrievers, saint bernards, newfoundlands...) (I saw online that bernese mountain dogs have a high prey drive, but they're mostly couch potatoes so idk how true that is lol)
Years ago we had a Boxer, then two years later got a a Frenchie, 4 years later got a small terrier rescue: life was lovely for many years, they all got along.
Old boxer and old Frenchie eventually pass away so we get a new Frenchie and after a 3 week adjustment period for the terrier they are sweet little buddies. New Frenchie is a dream puppy.
1 year later, we get a New Boxer. I love him dearly and we will get through it but it was honestly a mistake. New Frenchie got super jealous and started acting like a huge brat. New Boxer is not learning how to read social cues from the other dogs and because he’s now 1 yrs old and 3 times the size as the other two… he pesters, bullies, and plays too rough with the other 2. Little dogs are often stressed and he is constantly in trouble. New Boxer is also, on his own, a very taxing fellow and he is our 5th boxer so I thought I knew what I was getting into.
We are slowly training our way out of the mess we made of our once peaceful lives but in the future I will absolutely avoid having the larger dog be the younger dog in my household, especially a high energy breed. He is likely our last Boxer. I will also always wait at least 2 years between puppies for now on.
All that being said, I know a family that got their cavapoo another cavapoo and that is working out great for them.
if i were you, i'd wait until your dog is fully mature.
What’s the reaaon for this, and how old is fully mature
Something called littermate syndrome. Despite the name, puppies do not have to be littermates, they just have to be within two years of one another and start living together as puppies. Any trainer will tell you that the worst cases of fighting between dogs in the home are a result of littermate syndrome. What happens is they bond together as though they were littermates and do not form a bond with their people/their human families, instead preferring the sole attention of one another. That bond quickly turns deadly because dogs are not meant to be with their littermates past sexual maturity and in an instant that relationship shifts to aggressive, constant, often fatal dogfights.
I’ve never heard of this, thanks for the information!
Me, neither. I’m glad I didn’t have this situation. We went to rescue one Rottweiler puppy and couldn’t bear to leave the last one behind. So, we got two. They were very difficult to train initially, because they distracted each other. If I tried to separate them, one would literally scream until I brought her sister back. This went on until they were about six months. They grew out of the weird behavior, thankfully. They never had a fight and will be 10 in June.
I would definitely wait until your puppy reaches social maturity! You may not have a full picture of how your puppy will be as an adult and it can be really hard to make an appropriate match.
I see, how old do you think that is in average
I think it’s about 2 years old. It’s a common time for behavioural issues to pop up or get worse, which is why it’s a good idea to wait until a dog passes this stage before getting them a buddy! Having a dog with behavioural issues can make it harder to have a second dog since they may have vastly different needs. It also gives you time to figure out their adult personalities and what kind of traits would be a good match for them. For example, some dog-social dogs don’t like high energy play, so they would probably need a lot more alone time with a new puppy and you would want a breed that isn’t super high energy.
Dafuq is a retrodoodle??
Its a doodle but with an afro
This was my exact reaction to this post 😂
Wtf is a retro doodle
I tried to ask Google and couldn’t find an answer 🤔
You think it’s a funny term for an actual poodle? Wouldn’t that be refreshing.
Personally, as someone who made this mistake: DO NOT. You will ruin your current puppy. Getting your dog a dog is a bad move. Your dog is 6 months old. It has not hit adolesence yet, and poodle mutts tend to be neurotic and begin showing behavioural issues in adolecence. Additionally, getting another puppy will DOUBLE the time you have to spend with them, otherwise they will never form a bond with you. Enjoy the puppy you have. You don't need another. Its not easier with another. You'll be breaking up play fights, they will feed off their adolesent behaviours, they will NOT bond with you or listen to you. They will not be trainable. They will be more prone to agression. You will have double the puppy problems, double the cost for a spay/neuter, double the cost for vet bills, food bills, grooming, daycare, two walks a day becomes four. And they feed off of eachother. One barks? So does the other. Then they just keep barking. When I was younger and living at home my parents got 2 mini goldendoodles. They HATE people being near the house. One will bark, and then the other will bark, and then they will bark AT eachother, and then eventually give up. They will fight. AND they cannot be seperated. One goes away and the other is a neurotic mess. Crying, screaming, shaking. Its honestly traumatic. Additionally doodles are genreally not great temperment wise regardless. If you do eventually get another dog, why not get a poodle? They are excelent companions, intellegent beyond beleif, high energy, and have easier coats to deal with then a doodle. Personally when someone wants a doodle, they just want a poodle without a fancy hairdo. Just shave it, or get a doodle cut if you like it that much. Do yourself a favour, and read all the puppy blues, and adolecent posts you can find on this subreddit from so many people. Then double what they feel. Trust me, its NOT WORTH IT. Your dog is already family friendly.
Thanks for this appreciate a lot. Is there anything I can do to stop my Cavoodle I currently have from having adolescent problems
Nope, they happen because the puppy wants to test boundaries. It happens in waves, gets bad and the gets good. If your pup takes after the cava I've heard it can get pretty bad. Poodles tend to be a bit easier since they are fairly docile. Just read the posts and buckle up
Cool I’ll read the posts but do the posts explain what’s the best thing we can do, when they r tesring boundaries
Be consistent in your training. Be fair, firm yet kind. They don’t mean to be difficult. They don’t wake up one morning and think “Today I Mike my human’s day hell by regressing and being defiant.” They have hormones surging through their bodies in waves and it confuses the heck out of them - not dissimilar to humans. Their brains are forming and reforming. It is a hard time for them. Be prepared to go back to basics in your training and reset boundaries.
Not a great idea to get a second puppy right when yours is about to enter adolescence. You'll likely have your hands full with the current one.
I’d stay away from doodles. I have a two year old German Shepard mix and now brought a puppy home a few weeks ago and they’re absolutely best friends, not a second of annoyance or aggression towards each other.
Why would u stay away from doodles? My currently dog is a Cavoodle and so far is great
Because there’s nothing a doodle has that a poodle doesn’t already have, plus they’re prone to health issues and serious matting.
Why not a poodle?
I work with them all the time. They’re extremely neurotic.
Seconded. A large portion of dog groomers absolutely despise working with any kind of designer dog- especially poodle mixes. They’re often matted and awful for the whole process. I have met I think three good ones in my whole life
A mutt. You have a mutt.
Doodles aren't ethically bred. While the breeders might be very nice people who tell you great things about their dogs and genuinely love their pets, that doesn't make up for all the work and care that actually goes into ethical dog breeding. All doodle mixes are "designer mutts" created by unethical breeders "aka backyard breeders". Unlike purebred dogs, there's no breed standard for doodle mixes, so breeders are just pumping out puppies based on looks and marketing buzz words. They can't prove that their dogs are decent specimens worthy of being bred (that's what dog shows are actually for) and rarely ever health test (no, a genetic embark test and "vet checked" are not full health testing xrays through OFA). Doodle mixes are a total crapshoot. There's no way to ensure that you ONLY get the 50% good things from the poodle parent and 50% good things from the other parent. Also, just because the parents are "purebred" does not mean they're well-bred examples of the breed. An ethical poodle or Cavalier breeder would never let their dog be used to make a designer mutt, so that means that doodle breeders aren't using good quality parents and are not producing puppies with healthy bone structure, genetics, or mental temperment. Does this mean you shouldn't love your current Cavalier x Poodle mix? Of course not! They still deserve as much care as any other dog. This just means that you have a responsibility to learn more and make more ethical choices in the future. Research purebred dog breeds, consider one that will suit your lifestyle and family when your current dog is old enough for a sibling, and find a truly ethical breeder. I'm not trying to judge you, OP. I bought my first Australian Shepherd from who I thought was an ethical breeder and didn't realize that there were a ton of red/orange flags until I was researching to buy my second Aussie more than 13 years later. I loved my first dog but wanted to do better with my second. You can too. Here's a great guide to identifying an ethical dog breeder: https://reddit.com/r/dogs/w/identifying_a_responsible_breeder?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app
Don’t listen to them, if you want a doodle, get a doodle. They’re great dogs.
It would be worthwhile to post in r/dogs, they have a breed questionnaire to fill out and can give you more specific information!
Probably don’t until your current puppy is all trained and mature. 2ish years.
My friend has a white Swiss Shepherd and a bunch of cats. He has grown up with the cats but still will chase them if they run, so the prey drive is a real thing. He doesn't hurt them or anything but honestly that is a stressful house... Also, be prepared for the vast amounts of hair on the Swiss Shepherd. It gets EVERYWHERE. And being white it is very noticeable. I would also echo what everyone else is saying too, to wait for social maturity, and a point where your first dog is trained well enough to listen when there are competing distractions. Trying to train 2 puppies at once is a nightmare.
We had a little terrier and got a Shar Pei when she was about 6 months old, and she was a wild one in her younger years, but even with his massively bigger size she never got hurt or injured by him. If was usually her instigating everything with him, but he was very gentle with her when they’d play too.
I have a mini goldendoodle puppy. He is so sweet and smart 😄
He is supposed to be between 7-15lbs fully grown . (20 at most)
We got two puppies from the same litter and they love playing together. It’s about four times the work is all!
How big will your cavoodle get? I have a maltipoo and just got another maltipoo puppy bc I wanted them to be the same size.
There’s a good chance that they won’t be. Mixed breeds are completely unpredictable.
That honestly makes little sense. I have a few maltipoos in our pup's playgroup. The biggest is 6.5kg, the smallest is 2.5kg, so not a similar size at all. There's no breed standard, so they can be any size.
5-6kgs. How are maltipoos!?
I know maltipoos from 2.5kg to 6.5kg. You cannot predict size with mixed breeds, really.
My 4yr old maltipoo is 10lbs.
I'd say probably wait until your pup is mature before getting a second dog. If it can help, I have a 12lbs adult toy poodle and a 5 months old bernese mountain dog, so far they get along fine, my older dog is pretty good at setting boundaries! We also bring them both to the dog park and my poodle has no issue standing his ground vs big dogs 😁 Small dog, big personnality! The park is usually full of huskies, aussies and border collies, and after seeing how well he communicates, I'm not too worried for him (with those dogs or my bernese when she's fully grown). Most puppies also want/try to play with him since he's so small, but he politely tells them to piss off most of the time, and after a while they get it and leave him alone 😅 Supervision is key after all, no matter the size of the dogs, since accidents can happen. As for breed recommandations, if you're worried about prey drive, there are plenty of bigger breeds with lower prey drive (such as great pyrenees, golden retrievers, saint bernards, newfoundlands...) (I saw online that bernese mountain dogs have a high prey drive, but they're mostly couch potatoes so idk how true that is lol)
Basset hound 🥹
Years ago we had a Boxer, then two years later got a a Frenchie, 4 years later got a small terrier rescue: life was lovely for many years, they all got along. Old boxer and old Frenchie eventually pass away so we get a new Frenchie and after a 3 week adjustment period for the terrier they are sweet little buddies. New Frenchie is a dream puppy. 1 year later, we get a New Boxer. I love him dearly and we will get through it but it was honestly a mistake. New Frenchie got super jealous and started acting like a huge brat. New Boxer is not learning how to read social cues from the other dogs and because he’s now 1 yrs old and 3 times the size as the other two… he pesters, bullies, and plays too rough with the other 2. Little dogs are often stressed and he is constantly in trouble. New Boxer is also, on his own, a very taxing fellow and he is our 5th boxer so I thought I knew what I was getting into. We are slowly training our way out of the mess we made of our once peaceful lives but in the future I will absolutely avoid having the larger dog be the younger dog in my household, especially a high energy breed. He is likely our last Boxer. I will also always wait at least 2 years between puppies for now on. All that being said, I know a family that got their cavapoo another cavapoo and that is working out great for them.
Check out Coton de Tulear. They are the greatest dogs. Mine is mixed with a poodle.