# Question



## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

So I've allways been told that if you were getting a second dog,that you should make sure both dogs are the opposite gender,and one is at least younger then the current one you have,so as to help with dominance issues.

However, I was told today, that you could have two males and they would establish rolls,and pretty much be cool.

So...Is this true? Or a load of bologna?


----------



## Pittielove29 (Dec 21, 2009)

Not true. It could happen, but still not true none the less. You've already stated that Bruno has problems greeting other dogs, so staying with the safe choice of a younger female would be best. Just make sure you're truly prepared for another dog no matter your choice.


----------



## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

Oh, I'm not saying this for looking to adopt.
It was something we learned at the shelter in training class,so I was curious.

Maybe it works with other dogs? I don't see it happening though. :/
I already told myself, if I got another dog, it would be a female.
Maybe not even a pit bull. Who knows. I'm still not sure I even want another dog right now.
Kinda happy just having one.


----------



## Indigo Bully Connection (Dec 21, 2006)

What you were taught is a good rule of thumb... When dealing with these types of dogs specifically an owner must keep in mind that those rules really don't apply. If you get the Bulldog Fever as I like to call it... You need to get dogs for yourself, and not as play mates for your own dogs. Yanno?


----------



## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

Indeed!
I keep telling myself and friends,that Bruno doesn't need a "friend" he's NOT a pack animal.(my friend can't grasp that)
So if I get another dog,it's going to be because I want that dog.
but also only if Bruno approves.
I think Bruno would be better with a smaller dog anyway,he seems to be ok with the smaller ones.


----------



## jayandlacy (Sep 21, 2009)

I have two intact males. My oldest is 6 my youngest just turned one. It is true if done right. I get my newbies at baby age. Before this we had Chico who was 4 when we got Ice. both intact males. They do establish who is the boss between the two of them. Chico was the boss, Now Ice is since he is the oldest. (Chico passed a year ago which is why we got Kaos) My male dogs love eachother intact and all. We have only had 1 fight and that was over a ball, Ice wanted the ball. It was no big deal, no blood shed. 

My dogs are always together supervised and not. I know many people don't agree with this but I am not going to seperate them and cause more issues, Kaos has seperation aniexty and has only been crated 3 times in his life, I have no crates gave em all away. My Kaos was rubbing his entire muzzel raw the whole thing was scabbed. My dogs have their own room and that is where they go if we have to lock em up. It works for us, that doesn't mean it would work for you. My males have never even met a female dog ever.

You should follow the opposite sex rule, I am not telling you that you should be like me, I'm just saying this is what we do, we have had two males for over ten years that have gotten along just fine, never bloody battles. I prefer male dogs, and don't much care to own a female, probably never will own a female, we had one before and I just like my boys better.

I got another dog cuz I like having more then one, but Ice was depressed for 2mths after Chico died. He never had been alone ever. He does enjoy having Kaos around, and would be depressed again if he didn't have him.


----------



## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

I have two boys and there super attached to each other. Marley was about 8 when we got Dosia and Dosia was around 8-9 weeks. Marley kinda adopted him. He loves playing with little puppies. We are very fortunate to have boys that get along so well


----------



## buzhunter (Sep 3, 2007)

All depends on how the dogs are bred. Gender can mean nothing to a pit bull and you'll never have one establish dominance over another since it's likely that neither one will ever submit and never stop thinking about finishing the job, ever. As far as pet quality/non gamebred dogs go, it's going to be more likely.


----------



## william williamson (Feb 26, 2006)

theirs no tried and true measure for any of this.
I used to bring home any assortment of strays,big to little.had some jump right in the mix and bang it out.
I always tell folks that dogs are like convicts.they are gonna act 'bout how they want.
in all my years I've never seen a pattern.
I've seen folks retire a game,like dead game dog to the home,and seen with my own eyes,the dog cower when this little old mutt showed his junk.
they crated the pit when they'd leave,and other than a kinda allofness to the game dogs presence they didn't feed into it.the mutt set the bar and the 6x GC followed it's law.
I've seen dogs submit to cats,birds and even monkeys.
the one thing that awlays ruled in my home is ME.when I raise my voice,
I am Zues to my dogs,or they go.will not have any greater authority than me.


----------



## buzhunter (Sep 3, 2007)

Hard to imagine a 6x winner avoiding anything but it does happen. Every dog can come to a point in his life where he's had enough.


----------



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

It depends on the breed and temperaments of the dogs.

With any breed your best chance of success is to have opposite sex dogs. It is very possible to have 2 females or two males of any breed live in happiness. HOWEVER when talking about the APBT or even bully you can have issues because DA is a real part of the breed as you know.

Kaos died at the ripe old age of 12 and he could be with any female in my house, he was Alpha and things were never deadly even if he got in a scuffle. It was just the way he was, he brought up ever dog in my house and they were able to get along. Monsoon my current male not so much, he likes the females but if they get into a fight I have no doubt he would kill them so they are separated unless closely supervised. Kaos or monsoon will not tolerate another male bully breed however with another male if a different breed they were fine.

Most male pit bull type dogs will not tolerate another male but of course there are always exceptions. 

If you want another dog then when you find the right one then go for it but remember it should be female for the best results and you need to be ready for the time you might have to separate them. If you do not think you cod have two dogs on different rotations then do not get a second dog. Also with any pit bull type dog never leave them alone even if they are best buds. I learned that the hard way many years ago and my beloved border collie was killed by one of my dogs.

There was a post above about two males getting along just fine now that they are around six years old, I have two females that were fine till they were 7 and 8 years old, then they tried to kill each other and have to be separated at all times now. They lived in perfect Harmony never a sign of any problems till one got sick of being the underdog and that was the end of it. So it can happen at anytime so do not get too comfortable when it comes to this breed.


----------



## MistaMista (Aug 15, 2010)

nice topic!


----------



## william williamson (Feb 26, 2006)

buzhunter said:


> Hard to imagine a 6x winner avoiding anything but it does happen. Every dog can come to a point in his life where he's had enough.


hence my wording.I all but told that old ******* I had to see it.wasn't about to call him a liar,hehehe
he said,"why sure ya'll come by ta the house,i'll have momma fry us up a mess o catfish and we'll set the dogs out".
I spent about my first 10 years wasting God knows how much time being amazed.one day an old dude told me,"son,thats A bulldog, get used to it".
so these last 23 years I just say,"ok, it's a buwdawg".


----------



## GTR (Mar 5, 2010)

Pack hierarchy is a dynamic thing. What works one day, doesn't always work tomorrow. You stand less chance of having a problem if you rule with an iron fist, but the moment you are out of the picture, the rules change. Fights over pack status can be to the death. With pit bulls, once the fight begins, it often does escalate to a do or die situation that normally would not happen in other breeds where submission can save a losing dog's life. Pit bulls often do not heed submission attempts.


----------



## FloorCandy (Feb 19, 2009)

performanceknls said:


> It depends on the breed and temperaments of the dogs.
> 
> With any breed your best chance of success is to have opposite sex dogs. It is very possible to have 2 females or two males of any breed live in happiness. HOWEVER when talking about the APBT or even bully you can have issues because DA is a real part of the breed as you know.
> 
> ...


So true. It is so common for me to see on forums (all different breeds) how an older dog and a younger dog who got along for a decade, suddenly try to kill each other. Either the young ones sense the weakening of the older dog with age and decide to take the top spot, or the older dogs become grouchy as they age, either from aches and pain from age, or because they start to realize their inability to protect their place in the pack, and start to strike out before they give the younglings a chance to unseat them. As a dog ages and loses their strong senses (eyesight, hearing etc) they become more fearful and easily confused.

My mom's 16 year old dog attacked Miko 2 weeks ago. He has always had food aggression, so we keep food out of the equation, but she just ran past him (as puppies often do) and he turned and lunged at her. Even though he has very few teeth and a weak grip, he gave her a scrape on the cheek, and a scrape I never even saw on her side. The scrape on her side got infected, she fevered off and on for 5 days (misdiagnosis by vet) until the infection suddenly surfaced and ruptured (there was no lump until literally 10 mins before it burst). Even a tiny scrape can cause problems because of the bacteria in the mouth, and neither dog in this case is any type of bull dog. Extreme care must be taken, and you can never assume that because they were fine yesterday, that they will be fine today or tomorrow.


----------



## buzhunter (Sep 3, 2007)

william williamson said:


> hence my wording.I all but told that old ******* I had to see it.wasn't about to call him a liar,hehehe
> he said,"why sure ya'll come by ta the house,i'll have momma fry us up a mess o catfish and we'll set the dogs out".
> I spent about my first 10 years wasting God knows how much time being amazed.one day an old dude told me,"son,thats A bulldog, get used to it".
> so these last 23 years I just say,"ok, it's a buwdawg".


 ********, catfish, and bulldogs. God bless America. :clap:


----------



## Saint Francis (Jun 2, 2010)

Two gamebred male, eventually not intact, pit bulls lived in harmony for 13 years supervised and unsupervised. It was a disciplined household and I was very dedicated. Not bragging, probably lucky or an exception to some degree. My mom always did call me exceptional though


----------



## buzhunter (Sep 3, 2007)

Not surprising at all. Being gamebred only increases your odds of getting a hot or game dog.


----------



## Me&Max (Jul 29, 2010)

GTR said:


> Pack hierarchy is a dynamic thing. What works one day, doesn't always work tomorrow. You stand less chance of having a problem if you rule with an iron fist, but the moment you are out of the picture, the rules change. Fights over pack status can be to the death. With pit bulls, once the fight begins, it often does escalate to a do or die situation that normally would not happen in other breeds where submission can save a losing dog's life. Pit bulls often do not heed submission attempts.


I Like the iron fist velvet glove..... we generally try to rule that way.... but adresing the question by the OP..... I have not had much luck with 2 males, didnt matter if they were fixed or not..... I`ve had a tough time with Max even wanting to kill females..... that WERE fixed.....


----------



## Saint Francis (Jun 2, 2010)

buzhunter said:


> Not surprising at all. Being gamebred only increases your odds of getting a hot or game dog.


You are correct sir. One was quite warm, while the other was lukewarm, just not to eachother.


----------



## buzhunter (Sep 3, 2007)

Just curious, but how did you know these dogs were in fact "gamebred"? Is it just what you were told, or did you have knowledge of the stock that produced them?


----------



## Saint Francis (Jun 2, 2010)

buzhunter said:


> Just curious, but how did you know these dogs were in fact "gamebred"? Is it just what you were told, or did you have knowledge of the stock that produced them?


Lukewarm pup had more "local" blood in him until about 4 and 5 generations back, then you have Wise, Stephany, Norrod, Patrick lines. Warmer pup's pop was Tant's Bruiser (1xw) with his grandpa being Tant's "CH"Yellow" (6xw). Jeep/Redboy on both sides with Jocko on his pa's side.


----------



## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

I plan on,if I get a 2nd dog,crating both,when I am gone. 1 out in the living room,1 in my bed room.

Just in case one ever got out. I also would not feed them,or give them bones together.

Is it ok to treat them together though? I'm not sure on this. But like I said. I'm not sure I want another dog atm. 1 is kinda plenty for me right now.
Although I must admit,there was a Pitty UFA today, I almost took home with me. Such a sweet dog.


----------



## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

FloorCandy said:


> So true. It is so common for me to see on forums (all different breeds) how an older dog and a younger dog who got along for a decade, suddenly try to kill each other. Either the young ones sense the weakening of the older dog with age and decide to take the top spot, or the older dogs become grouchy as they age, either from aches and pain from age, or because they start to realize their inability to protect their place in the pack, and start to strike out before they give the younglings a chance to unseat them. As a dog ages and loses their strong senses (eyesight, hearing etc) they become more fearful and easily confused.
> 
> .


That is what happened Vixen felt Tasha was old enough and wanted to kill the older dog and take her place as alpha bitch, Tasha said she is not dead yet and whooped her Booty! lol Vixen got the worst of it when when she jumped Tasha then we had a yard accident a few years later (totally my fault!!) and Tasha at 10 years old still put her in her place! lol Both bitches are gamebred and it was not pretty they are both very drivy and not wanting to back down. They are the main reason we have so many break sticks in the house.



Xiahko said:


> I plan on,if I get a 2nd dog,crating both,when I am gone. 1 out in the living room,1 in my bed room.
> 
> Just in case one ever got out. I also would not feed them,or give them bones together.
> 
> ...


I treat my dogs in a sit and will give cookies if they get along but that take training so they do not try and steal treats out of each others mouth. they need to sit and wait for their turn.


----------



## william williamson (Feb 26, 2006)

I like that statement iron hand,velvet glove.
when you have 2-3 dogs,this is A way to create and develop harmony.
I have had 2-3 dogs for ever in the house.pits,and an ACD.all of them in their own way full of pi$$ and vinegar.
I learned A long time ago to use food or treats as the device where I interject my boss status,and firm control/discipline.
one will out eat the others and go on the hunt.I am always,for all these years,either in the room or they get seperated if I'm rushing the feeding or busy.
I step in,set the rule,and an agressive approach to the dogs desire to intervene on another dog.
food is the #1 reason for interpack fighting,or in fighting.attention/jealousy is second.scenting or interlopers is the third.
the thing is that dogs key into these things as their hereditary traits.
thats why even though the pit is not heavy pack,he is canine-canis/family,canidae/genus,carnivora/order.
when you manage these basic,yet primary catalyst to ignited situations,do it,do it firmly,and do it perpetuelly,(which means constant motion) your chances of having problems go down significantly.and should something happen,your guilt to the situation is fleeting.I pride myself in having warriors without A kill.

why just today my pit and ACD went bat sh!& crazy.I jumped up and put them in DOWN and OUT.down is stopwhatever your doing,as in dead in your tracks stop.I wait for them to acknowledge me and give them their own moment to settle.and out means to either back from whatever it is they are doing,or come to me.I use out 2 fold.I've been in situations where my dogs are between me and a "situation".they can serve me better by being on guard where they are.it's safer for me.
well, my brother and A friend got A kick out of it.they laugh at me for my "perpetual" attention to my dogs.yet,after 33 years,it's not me on the front page with A bad situation on my hands.


----------



## Xiahko (Feb 24, 2010)

Bruno and MoMo use to eat treats together,it did take time for Bruno to learn,that MoMo's treat was NOT Bruno's treat.
But he learned eventually.


----------



## coppermare (Jun 25, 2010)

Glad this was brought up. It's something I've been thinking about lately with my two dogs. Neither are pits by the way. Their issue is not being raised together and jealousy. I told Mike tonight jokingly I should tie them both up just were they can barely touch noses and leave them there for days dang it! I just should turn them loose and whomever begins it gets the crap beat out of them by me. Wouldn't do any of that of course but good grief one is neutered the other not but it's nothing but pure dang jealousy and some territorial issues. I'm so tired of having to spend time in lock quarters with each of them and the other whining the entire time. Such babies!!


----------



## Saint Francis (Jun 2, 2010)

coppermare said:


> Glad this was brought up. It's something I've been thinking about lately with my two dogs. Neither are pits by the way. Their issue is not being raised together and jealousy. I told Mike tonight jokingly I should tie them both up just were they can barely touch noses and leave them there for days dang it! I just should turn them loose and whomever begins it gets the crap beat out of them by me. Wouldn't do any of that of course but good grief one is neutered the other not but it's nothing but pure dang jealousy and some territorial issues. I'm so tired of having to spend time in lock quarters with each of them and the other whining the entire time. Such babies!!


Aww come on!! You know you like it, and I think deep down they get a kick out of making you crazy LOL!!


----------



## coppermare (Jun 25, 2010)

Saint Francis said:


> Aww come on!! You know you like it, and I think deep down they get a kick out of making you crazy LOL!!


Uhhh lemme think a minute. NO, not after spending 9 hours a day in 110 heat index and them sitting home in the AC kicked back watching television and eatin dog biscuits...LOL....gimme a break. Yeah I think it's a secret plot to make me crazy and them take over the house. Don't they know that they wouldn't have those biscuits without me working? Guess not their dogs.


----------



## dylroche1 (Mar 14, 2010)

I have 2 males.. They get along pretty good they have there moments but I keep a firm hand on both of them and nothing has ever gotten out of control.. I also never leave them to be alone with eachother... Definately is a lot of work but im up to the challenge and think every minute of it is worth it.


----------

