Advice on getting 2 Weimaraner puppies?

Question

My friend has been looking for a puppy for quite a while now and finally has decided on getting a Weimaraner. When she went to the breeder to choose the pup and put a deposit on it she fell in love with another pup out of the same litter also and is now wondering if she could have them both together. (2girls). The breeder is a KC registered and has said that they would be fine, but what do you think and what problems could arise?

She owns an equestrian centre set upon about 80-acres and works from home, so the dogs would have a huge amount of space to excercise in and would be on their own hardly ever. Dogs have been in her life forever so she is not a new handler. there would be no other pets.(Apart from the odd horse from the centre)

Answer 1

Well two female litter sisters are better than two male litter brothers!  However I prefered, when selling two from a litter, to let brother and sister go together (provided of course, at least the female is spayed!!!).  There is always the risk of fighting for top dog with two from the same litter - although we have always kept at least two from our litters, and they are usually the girls, with absolutely no problems.  But mine is a breed that doesn't normally want to fight - the occasional scrap perhaps, but serious fighting, no.

If this friend is experienced, it will probably be fine.  But I'd think it better to look for one from two separate litters, say 6 months apart in age?

There's another point - often if you have two siblings, they focus on each other rather than the owner in terms of training.  So again, I think I'd not get two at the same time, much as it's 'nice' to think of two going from a litter together!

This breeder may just have two puppies to home so I think I'd be giving it a lot of thought before jumping in here.

Answer 2

I dont reccommend getting 2 pups at one time..  its harder to housebreak and train 2 pups..   for housebreaking, its double the pee, and double the smells.  For training, the pups tend to develop a closer relationship with each other, and are less focused on the owner.  If they start to develop any bad behavoirs, its harder to nip it in the bud because you have 2 of them doing it!

Its really best to get one pup at a time..  focus on getting the first one trained and housebroken.  6 months later, if the dog is well behaved and housebroken, then consider a second dog..  sometimes having a dog that's already housebroken and well mannered helps with training the second pup.

Same-s*x pairings are not always the best idea either..  opposite s*x tend to get along better than same s*x.

Answer 3

    Two pups are generally a poor idea, they tend to bond to each other not people. Better to get one then another 6-12 mos later. Along with the prefering each other to people bonded dogs are a problem when 1 has to go to the vet or you want to take one in the car not the other or when one dies. The left behind dog usually cries and is a nuisance. Our rescue has had to wean bonded pairs from each other, a long time process.  

Answer 4

I would echo what a lot of people have said here - getting 2 puppies from the same litter is generally not a good idea.  My friend got two mastiffs from the same litter after he lost his old dog.  They are great dogs (brother & sister) but they tend to amuse themselves.  If she really does want another one I would say to wait a while - I had 18 months between my first and second Irish Setter and the timing was perfect for me.  

We got our third Irish Setter four years later and I really noticed the difference after not having a puppy for so long (I guess it's like having children spread out over the years?!).  

Answer 5

Getting two puppies at the same time from the same litter is a lot of trouble. I should know, cause I did the same thing! My two are male Pitbull Rottweiler mixes. It's twice the work training them, plus you have to make sure you spend time with them seperately so they don't just bond to each other. On the other hand, it is nice for them to have the company. I also noticed they didn't seem to have any problems with mouthing my family, like a lot of single puppies do. I'd say if she has the time, she obviously has the space, to go for it!

Answer 6

I see no problem with it really, but make sure your friend socialize the puppies a lot with other dogs.

Weimaraners can get nervous and very anti-social if they don't meet enough other dogs in their young life.

But as with all dogs(most at least) you will have to tend to them, not just feed them and let them exercise them self, that will end up in a unhappy dog.

Answer 7

Aside from twice the work on training and house breaking there is no down side to having 2 puppies. I have 3male dogs and 1 female but they have there pecking order and everyone gets along great. She just needs to establish that she is alpha and everyone will get along great.  

Answer 8

I think it would be very unwise to buy 2 puppies from the same litter (by the way, breeders aren't KC registered, only puppies!) Most reputable breeders will not sell 2 from the same litter.

If your friend isn't experienced in the breed, it's even more unwise, Weimaraners are not the easiest of the gundog group to train and trying to train 2 puppies together is impossible, it has to be done seperately.

Some of the worst behaved dogs we see at our training are owned by perfectly capable people - who have taken 2 puppies from 1 litter.

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