Dear knowlegable people of the board.

My wife and I had decided to get two dogs for some time now.

I have a 10 week old male GSD that is just wonderful. He can be a bit willful at times, but as a whole he's been great. He's crate trained and when we put him in he just whines about it for 5 minutes and then accepts it. Sleeps though night and such.

We are going to introduce a 8 Week old female Finnish Spitz in a week or so. GSD will be 11 weeks old or so.

I'm expecting to have to do a lot of work to house break Finkie. I plan to crate her as well of course.

Can I crate them in the same room? Or is it essential to crate them in separate rooms?

Finnish Spitz are known to be a bit willful (we're getting one because they are also known to be super sweet with kids; and their hyper keen senses make them great watchdogs). Should I be careful about the GSD regressing in house-breaking training while Finkie is learning? Is there a way to prevent this (aside from not getting Finkie)?

I don't mind dedicating a lot of time and putting in the work to make this a harmonious family. I'd just like to know what is the best course of action to get us off on the right foot.

Can they be fed together? Walked together? I don't expect Finkie's bladder control to be as good yet. What happens if I get up to walk her in the middle of the night and not GSD (who can already hold it)?

Thanks for any advice!
David C

I think I would hold off on getting a puppy until
a later date - crate training two puppies is kind of like having two toddlers in potty training at the same time! eek! Also your spitz is a different kind of dog from a GSD - I would really research and read ALOT on spitz type/breed dogs - some breeders and websites can kind of gloss over a few things. Get them to clarify "willful" - your definitions might not match! Some spitz breeds can be very independent, stubborn and difficult to train in comparison to a GSD. Not that they are bad dogs - you just have to keep in mind that a Finnish Spitz was/is a hunting dog renowned for its rapid fire barking...... I think taking on another puppy to train especially as a new puppy owner is a a bit too much to bite off. I think you should have fun with training your GSD pup and hold off the addition of another pup until later - you might find out after a little more research that another breed fits better with your lifestyle and if you still decide on a Finnish Spitz you can apply all the stuff you have learned along the way.

YES, YES. YES I so agree with Lynn on this. Raising one pup is exausting, raising two would be mind boggling. Spend time enjoying your GSD, have him well trained before introducing another pup, any pup. Two puppy's will also tend to bond with each other instead of you. So you need time alone with each of them. This is easier to do if both dogs are not puppys. It is so hard to watch one pup all the time (never trust a puppy out of your sight)I couldn't imagine trying to watch or make the time for two pups. I know people do it all the time, but they are not beginners and they are braver than I. Get to know your GSD pup for now. Make his puppyhood special not something rushed because you didn't have the time because you were trying to raise two pups. AS for the Spitz, can't really tell you much about them other than I have heard they are hyper little guys. Do your homework on your chosen breeds. You won't regret it.

Hi David,

It is a lot of hard work, but my husband and I loved it!!! All we do though is sleep, eat, work and train dogs. And I believe we were lucky, it is very time consuming, having two pups. I don't know much about Spitz I'm afraid, our second dog is a Golden Retriever. My husband wanted a golden and I wanted a gsd and neither was budging! We had both had dogs before but only when we were growing up.

We got my dog Bode(GSD) at 8 weeks. After a couple of days he was dry at night. Brooks(GR) was picked up a week later at 7 weeks old. For about a month, Bode regressed in toilet training as Brooks was never dry at night. In fact Brooks took 6 months to fully toilet train, he was a pain and would lie in his own mess!! Fortunately after the month, Bode went back to being dry and never looked back.

We kept them in the kitchen in two crates side by side. We didn't seem to have too many problems with them bonding to each other, Brooks is very independent and Bode bonded very tightly to me. They were in a run together during the day until they were 5 months old, then Bode jumped out and decided he wanted to live in the main part of the yard. Since then we have kept them separate as they are both full males.

As pups they were walked together (and still are now), but they were fed from separate bowls in their own crates. Bode always gets to eat and go out first since he was the first dog we had.

If you are letting Finkie out at night, I would let the GSD out too.

My husband and I loved the fact that we could attend puppy classes together and help each other with training. The dogs are now almost 2.5 years old, Brooks is CDX, BH, OB1, CGC and Bode is CDX, BH, AD, SchH2, TT, CGC. Right now we are working on the UD for both and Bode's SchH3.

So if you are committed, and your wife will help you with training, it can work.

Louise

Lynn and Kim Thanks for your replies. I'm not the type to ask for advice and then ignore it. I don't like those type of people (why ask in the first place?). We'll consider this carefully. I failed to mention that we routinely do "near-impossible" things. Just a glutton for punishment I guess. Still, we are talking about living beings, not near-impossible home projects or that sort of thing. If it really seems too hard, we'll have to drop the idea.

Louise Thanks for giving me a bit of hope. If we try this, we will strive to be like you and your husband! Nice Website! My wife loves GSD's and has had them since childhood. I just love dogs altogether. We are both very dedicated people in eveything we do. Hopefully that will be enough. If we try this, can we tap you from time to time for advice?

Thanks and keep the replies coming!
David Chau

David,

WHY a Finnish Spitz? What about THIS breed is attractive to you? And are you ready for a breed that is "bred" to be a barker?

Hey Tracy,

Good Question.

I live on wooded 5 acres with the nearest neighbor about a half football field away. The next neighbor is much farther than that.

If there really were a problem or something out of the ordinary, then a barker might be not such a bad thing. Fact is, if it were just the barking - I can deal with that.

I've read that they're instinct is to bark at something out of the ordinary. I'll have to teach her that most things are .. well .. normal. Otherwise, they can be taught to be quiet most of the time.

While I was at the breeders, I didn't hear the parents bark once. Actually, most the barking came from beagles. The American bred Finkies are not used as hunting dogs. So a lot of them are not bred to bark, per se. If I got him from Finland, then that would be another story.

I also have tons of deer, turkeys and racoons to scare off.

The most important part is that they are supposed to be very very good with kids. And amazing watchdogs. This combination, I feel makes for a good pet. They can't be a protection dog, but that's why he have a GSD. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I was kind of a misfit growing up too. But with a lot of love and attention, I turned out alright. I figure its only fair I give her the same chance.

- DHC

I have a finnish spitz. She is 13 years old. I also have 4 GSD's. Yes trying to train two puppies will be exhausting, but I would not put off getting your spitz. They are a wonderful breed. When she does bark, it is only because she is alerting me that someone is coming down my driveway. She is also a wonderful hunting dog and has taught my GSD's to hunt with her. She was a big part in raising my youngest GSD bitch. Great with kids, and my other dogs. A wonderful compainion and terrific guard dog. It would be worth your sacrifice.

Thank you Angela!

I did end up getting Finkie and we love her dearly. But I noticed you have ONE Finkie and FOUR GSD, not the other way around.

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

Finkies are very different dogs. Our Finkie is very loving and very nutsy. But we wouldn't give her up for anything! You can see her at my web site: http://www.chautown.com

She's really good for a Spitz and she is very good at the "Quiet Time" command. She recently too a three hour train ride without barking or needing to meet all the new people. We love her very much! She and GSD are best friends!

David C