is having two female dogs a bad idea, myth or true that they tend to fight?

Grummer

Grummer

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Hi I have a lovely young highly active border collie/huntaway cross female puppy, about 7 months of age now. I am feeling that she and i will benefit from a second dog. I will have a puppy as well as I have an oppurtunity to have a pick of the litter of german pointers. Male or female? as second dog. which and why? I am going to get one of those GPP because they will have similar energy level to meet her needs and also as their 'different approach in thinking' will be a good mix, i have a strong instinct on this one but am unsure male or female because i have come across wildly different opinions held by people I know so hence I decide to see if more people have clearer or better views on this issue of dog dominant/fighting potential or merely just a better match in the long run.

Please help me to decide.
Thanks.
ps the owner of the litters thinks a female is better, another thinks 2 females not good mix, dog and bitch better, another person thinks it boils down to the dogs?owners personality - not sex of the dogs, (or breed?!)

so thats why im confused...which view is more accurate (my hunch the seller and sex doesnt matter) but i dunno....
 
Either same sex doesn't mean to be together or either want to be fairest of all the time
 
I have three. Two females, one male. They are a great pack of best friends. Before Joey, I only had the two females, and they got along great.

For what it is worth, I had always believed that two males can be more of a problem, as they tend to try to be the dominant dog.
 
I have always heard it is the males that are more of an issue with fighting. But I can't speak from experience in that regard.

I have always had female dogs all my life. And they never fought.
 
Many male animals in different spieces will fight. For example: cats, rats, dogs, leopard geckos, etc etc.
 
sequoias said:
Many male animals in different spieces will fight. For example: cats, rats, dogs, leopard geckos, etc etc.
Click to expand...

Yeah I saw on TV 2 male snakes fighting over a female snake! Is was a real interesting to watch! I did not think snakes fought one another! I think if get you second dog while your first dog it still a puppy
the sex should not matter. Maybe you could bring something home that smell like the new puppy home so puppy # one will get use the new puppy 'smell'.
 
multiple-dog households require more knowledge of canine behavior and more management than single-dog households. I have 3 dogs - 2 bitches, one male.
All dogs get into scuffles, all dogs bite, all dogs growl and all dogs guard that which they consider theirs - SOMETIMES. Different dogs have various tolerance or threshold levels for these behaviors. Many people I come across want a "normal" dog - they want a dog who does not do these things I just described and who fits a model of human behavior. There is no such thing. I put that in this reply because part of dog behavior again is - scuffles, fighting. Not saying that fights involving injuries/blood are insignificant or appropriate, but ANY dogs can fight.

That said, two females CAN have the potential to have more significant struggles between them than between a male and a female. However, again, it is really MUCH much more about prevention and management than anything else.

ALSO - "dominance" as it is discussed in popular media is a MYTH. "Dominance" is a fluid behavior, NOT a personality trait. It refers to priority access to resources such as food, sex, water, territory and "human-related" things that the dog wants control of, such as toys, the couch, the remote whatever. A dog may display dominant behavior one minute and then another dog may display the same behavior regarding the same thing or something else. Dogs do not behave like wolves.
 
dogmom said:
multiple-dog households require more knowledge of canine behavior and more management than single-dog households. I have 3 dogs - 2 bitches, one male.
All dogs get into scuffles, all dogs bite, all dogs growl and all dogs guard that which they consider theirs - SOMETIMES. Different dogs have various tolerance or threshold levels for these behaviors. Many people I come across want a "normal" dog - they want a dog who does not do these things I just described and who fits a model of human behavior. There is no such thing. I put that in this reply because part of dog behavior again is - scuffles, fighting. Not saying that fights involving injuries/blood are insignificant or appropriate, but ANY dogs can fight.

That said, two females CAN have the potential to have more significant struggles between them than between a male and a female. However, again, it is really MUCH much more about prevention and management than anything else.

ALSO - "dominance" as it is discussed in popular media is a MYTH. "Dominance" is a fluid behavior, NOT a personality trait. It refers to priority access to resources such as food, sex, water, territory and "human-related" things that the dog wants control of, such as toys, the couch, the remote whatever. A dog may display dominant behavior one minute and then another dog may display the same behavior regarding the same thing or something else. Dogs do not behave like wolves.
Click to expand...

I know sometime a dog will not show all of traits until it full grown. Do you think if puppy #one was with the OP when she picked out puppy # 2 she could see how the puppies will get along? I am going to my daugter for Easter and her mother in law may bring her female dog and my daugther has a female dog too and Marty will be there ! I have no idea how all 3 dogs will get along!!
 
Uh oh...my sister in law is giving up her male dog and we will take him in. I hope he gets along with my female dog.

Anyways, I grew up with two female dogs and they got along fine. Probably because one was the mother and the other was the daughter. :dunno:
 
dogmom said:
multiple-dog households require more knowledge of canine behavior and more management than single-dog households. I have 3 dogs - 2 bitches, one male.
All dogs get into scuffles, all dogs bite, all dogs growl and all dogs guard that which they consider theirs - SOMETIMES. Different dogs have various tolerance or threshold levels for these behaviors. Many people I come across want a "normal" dog - they want a dog who does not do these things I just described and who fits a model of human behavior. There is no such thing. I put that in this reply because part of dog behavior again is - scuffles, fighting. Not saying that fights involving injuries/blood are insignificant or appropriate, but ANY dogs can fight.

That said, two females CAN have the potential to have more significant struggles between them than between a male and a female. However, again, it is really MUCH much more about prevention and management than anything else.

ALSO - "dominance" as it is discussed in popular media is a MYTH. "Dominance" is a fluid behavior, NOT a personality trait. It refers to priority access to resources such as food, sex, water, territory and "human-related" things that the dog wants control of, such as toys, the couch, the remote whatever. A dog may display dominant behavior one minute and then another dog may display the same behavior regarding the same thing or something else. Dogs do not behave like wolves.
Click to expand...

That's interesting to learn, thank you. I guess when two dogs are eating from two bowls, one empties his and reaches out a paw to the other bowl, the fight is on. :lol:
 
Grummer, you might want to read up on temperament testing. Google Volhard temperament test for a start.

I second everything dogmom said above. It really depends on the individual temperament, your management of the two, and what your lifestyle is like.

I have two males and they get along fine, but they are not best friends. One of my boys is in love with the female cockapoo across the street, and the other one, the smaller one, is best buddies with another neighbor's huge English mastiff. He can walk right under his buddy with room to spare.

Some things are just unpredictable when it comes to canine friendships.
 
I had 6 dogs when I lived way out in the country...2 males & 4 females...they all got along great!...Only problem was that one of the dogs would fight for my affection and it was a female. She was actually "the boss", but otherwise, they shared their food without any fights, same as with water....so I would say it depends upon the dog's temperament.
 
I had an altered female dachshund and unaltered male dachshund. They get along although the female tended to dominate the male. Maybe it is because she is abit bigger and/or I got her a year before I got him.
 
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