We made a mistake and bought two sibling female puppies. They are 6 months old and I have had no real problems other than one of them pulling on the leash. The main problem is that they have started to fight. Sometimes drawing .

So, I found leerburg.com and have started implementing the training recommended. I know Ed said that if you must keep both puppies, that they must always be seperated. If they are together, they must be on muzzles and supervised.

My wife says that she thought after full training that they would not fight and they would be able to be loose in the backyard eventually. I told her that they would never be able to run free due to the chance that the one time they decide to fight, they may seriously injure of kill each other. She said that we need to get rid of one of them.

My thinking is that even if we keep only one dog, that that dog can't roam free anyways due to us having a young child. No matter how good a dog is trained, if god forbid somehow that child gets outside without our knowledge, the dog could decide at that time to attack the child.

If that is the case that whether we have two dogs or one dog, that they are going to be on a run, then why should we get rid of one of the dogs.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks

Can you contact your breeder and ask if they will take one of the pups back? Many responsible breeders care that the dogs are in a good home and have a waiting list for their pups. At 6 months it may not be hard to rehome.

Are your dogs only outside dogs? Neither dog will learn how to behave appropriately around small children unless you are around to teach them. While you don't want to leave the pup and child UNATTENDED in a room together. That certainly doesn't mean children and dogs can't be together ever. You need to bring the dogs into the home (where dogs are supposed to be members of the family). So your child (and friends) can learn how to treat a pup and behave around a pup. Any you can be there to teach the pup how to behave and treat children.

http://www.leerburg.com/dog-kids.htm says it all. And it will be MUCH easier with only one puppy than the 2.

The dogs sleep with us at night, and I take my two year old around the pups all the time teaching the dogs and her how to be around each other.

During the day they are outside on two seperate, but close runs. They seem to love it.

We got these two pups from the shelter. They are lab for sure, and most likely terrier/rottweiler mixes. I think they have two different dads.

No matter how good a dog is trained, if god forbid somehow that child gets outside without our knowledge, the dog could decide at that time to attack the child.

I'm still a bit confused by that. A properly trained and socialized dog won't attack and injure the kids in the family. Now an unsupervised and untrained puppy may accidently knock over a child, or play bite them too hard.

And, frankly, I have 3 dogs that I know wouldn't ever 'attack' any child they knew. Now accidently knocking them over to say 'hey' could happen. But not 'attack'. So I'm not sure of the temperment of your dogs if they are so vicious. Or maybe they are just young and need alot more training and socialization?

Did you check out the leerburg site I posted? I wasn't getting that Ed's dogs are overly aggressive and would attack the children of the family either?

Maybe I misread?

He is actually right Jenn, tied dogs and children or people walking into their "territory" is one of the more common causes of dog bites, and particularly fatal ones.

Long story short, tying dogs out is not a humane or safe containment, reguardless of breed or training. I would suggest that you place one of the dogs and invest in a secure kennel for the remaining dog.

I would highly recommend the book Fatal Dog Attacks: The Stories Behind the Statistics. You can purchase it from Leerburg. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Great read, and it actually strips away what the MEDIA wants us to believe about dogs and who and why they bite.

wow, I did mis-read. I agree that un-socialized and trained dogs tied in the yard could absolutely be a problem.

I thought he was worried about the dogs in the house with his kids, and unless they were unstable and extremely aggressive, that seemed like something that was a training/socialization issue.

And I also think it would be better to raise one dog at a time.

Thanks for the info.

If I decide to keep the two dogs, is it better to build or buy them a long run so they feel free of the leash or is a long trolley ok?