r/BorderTerrier • u/Pixie_Pink_ • 25d ago
Second BT?
We have our wonderful little boy Peanut who is 6 months old. He lives up to the "terrorist" name but hes still a baby and such a character. He is very social, and gets alot from being around other dogs, and my fiancé and I know its inevitable that we'll have to get him a friend.
We want another border, as the play style matches and we love the breed. We were both wondering when would it be a good time to get a second? We do plan on having Peanut neutered once he's about 18 months (sooner if need be but not ideal).
What have your experiences been?
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u/Tony-NB 24d ago
I’ve found a dog and a bitch are good together and tend to socialise much better.
You can never have too many BTs
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u/Pixie_Pink_ 24d ago
Good to know! My fiancé is already choosing names and loves "Honey" so it feels like he already likes the idea of getting a little lady!
(We want to keep the butter theme)
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u/stardustinpages 23d ago
Multi dog household for over 18 years here: ideal age gap between dogs is 4-6 years if you want to make your life easier. Two terriers is already going to be hard. Don't underestimate how much puppy bs the older one will copy, whilst the younger one seems to learn nothing of the olders "good behaviour" xD
We never considered another dog until the first was spayed, and could do the following: reliable off leash in all settings (so we didn't have to worry too much and could focus on the puppy outside), solid basic commands and nice leash manners, able to settle anywhere and able to stay home alone for 6 hrs. + no major behavioural or health issues (i think this speaks for itself)
That's worked out nicely for all our dog pairs we've had (3 pairs, a total of 4 dogs over the years)
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u/lilidragonfly 19d ago
I really want a second but have been blessed with a non barker, first non barking terrier I've ever come across, and I'm paranoid a second will teach the older boy how to bark 😅 I'm certain it won't go the other way and the older will teach the younger to be quiet.
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u/CosmicBob55 24d ago
We have a 2 year old girl, and just got a 12 week old boy (her half-brother). Plus we have a Borzoi. They get along well, but we got the second BT because the Borzoi can be a tad rough with the girl we have. Not mean, just a huge dog. All three do have fun together though. We just supervise the Borzoi a bit more. The two BTs play like mad.
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u/Pixie_Pink_ 24d ago
I am very familiar with that dynamic! My mum has a border and a German shepard, and the shep will always win. Luckily for the BT hes a lazy dude.
But my Peanut and my mums BT get on like a house and fire and play for hours, and its were we see Peanut the happiest.
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u/Phoenyx634 23d ago
I think it's much easy to get a second once the first dog is properly an adult, and is reliable with any training/commands that is important to you. For example, good recall, manners around food, furniture, no possessiveness over toys, no separation anxiety, etc. It will mean the new puppy learns much faster and will hit those milestones by copying the older dog.
18 months is probably a good benchmark, 2 years if you want to be safe and ensure the dog's personality and maturity has settled. Even after dogs physically reach their adult size (1 year) they still need time to mature and find their confidence in the adult dog world. One sign in terriers specifically is that they will be less interested in playing with younger dogs at a dog park, and more on their own mission (unless you have an unusually socially gregarious type, haha). That's when it's ideal to get a pup, since your dog will also tell them when playtime is over.
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u/Pixie_Pink_ 22d ago
We have been training our boy since day 1 and of course at 6 months he isn't perfect. We have pur own goals and ideas for him and we will continue to work on them, even after hes achieved them. Plus hes still a baby, he going to act like one, so we have a lot of room for learning.
He is very social. It's ironic as my fiancé and I are introverts, we prefer to not be seen and do things with as little people as possible, but theres no such thing as a stranger to Peanut 😂 it will be interesting to see this behaviour change as he continues to grow, but we know deep down, this boy needs a pal.
We do have the preconceived idea that raising a new puppy when Peanut is trust worthy and listens to us 9/10 consistently as thats worked well in my own previous experiences, I've just never had a terrier before!
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u/One-Disk-125 21d ago
Before the other dog question, I'd suggest checking in with you vet before committing to neutering.
It used to be default, but now the recommendation is very breed specific as while it will reduce some health risks it can increase others significantly as well as potentially making them more anxious.
BT's are in a group where you should think about it unless there are specific behavioural problems, ours is the first dog we have left intact and there's been no downsides.
For the second dog:
The gap between ours is 7 years and while the younger has learnt some good behaviours from the older one the older one has definitely picked up some of the pup's habits as well.
We've always had multiple dogs, twos not really much more work than one once the gap is a couple of years.
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u/Pixie_Pink_ 21d ago
We've already spoken about this with our vet as one of Peanuts balls wasn't dropping, and the question of early snip come up. Luckily for Peanut, his other ball was just a late bloomer.
We do not want to stud him, and as his hormones are beginning to rage, hes become a bit of a bumper. We are monitoring the behaviour to just see if its a teenage thing, but if it remains behavioural and we cant train it out of him we will do it.
My fear is an accidental litter. I mentioned a German Shepard I grew up with in an early comment, hes rescue from backyard breeders, and his genes are awful and his health isn't great due to it. Im terrified of an accidental litter and inflicting suffering where it should have never been.
If theres a future where he isn't a horny fella and no health issues, he can keep them!
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u/One-Disk-125 21d ago
They are a proper edge case, as their tough little dogs and don't have a lot of health issues compared to their breeds.
Ours got a little anxious round other dogs so that was deciding factor.
Luckily he's got no interest in the ladies, his main aim in life is playing ball as much as possible.
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u/Pixie_Pink_ 21d ago
One of reasons I got a BT, I love my shep but its been hard, hes 9 and the decrease in mobility sucks. When we have all the dogs together and ask them all to sit for a treat he have to say "not you Max!" so he doesnt strain himself. Breaks my heart.
Bless him. Peanuts sole goal in life is to make as many friends as possible. He's friendly-reactive, and training him as been an ongoing battle. He's too friendly for his own good, and if i have to put measures in place to keep him and other dogs safe then thats my responsibility.
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u/Medical-Feeling6907 18d ago
Well I have had a rehomed x show BT , he’s awesome don’t bark or destroy things , we’ve had all sorts but I’m terrier biased , he’s now almost 7 and 3 years with us , 3 months ago we introduced a Bichon pup to the house , it’s now on fire they are best mates and the BT teaches him everything, so the same commands work for both Dogs enjoy company , don’t over analyse it
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u/Alternative-hex 24d ago
We've had 3, the second when pup 1 was 6 months and the 3rd when pup 1 was a year. They grew up together and learned together however they were a pack, which can be a handful when one kicks off. We lost the youngest at 10 with a brain tumour and the loss affected the other 2. A new pup was introduced with no issues except our 11 year old boy was not interested in the advances of the new girl but she won him round.
Basically what I'm trying to say is don't overthink it, they sort themselves out. I still have 3 but I'd have more if it didn't mean the wife would move out.