[dallasff2000]

Background - I'm fur-mom to 3 rescues currently. The oldest 2 rescues (Bear & Pepper) will be 4 in September. They are sweet, gentle nature, non hyper, prefer to sit and watch everything kind of dogs.

Then, we adopted Riggs. He's a great puppy, but a handful from an energy perspective. He's 9 months old, very energetic, but knows basic commands, and overall has been a good puppy.

Here's my concern/question - should I get a similar dog for Riggs to play with. My older 2 dogs do not care for him because of his energy level. They are always trying to get away from him. I feel bad because he doesn't have a play mate to run and tumble with. The dogs all get along reasonably well, it's just that the older 2 will not play with Riggs.

Riggs has 2 brothers that still have not been adopted yet. Or, get a puppy. Or get an older dog (2-3 years of age). Or none of the above. Or other

 

[San]

We have two German shepherds (11-year-old and 4-year-old), and a Belgian Malinois (2-year-old), the Malinois is very dog-friendly and wants to play with the older two constantly, but the German shepherds are dog-neutral and have no interest in her. We actually keep them separated via gates so they are not bothered by her endless desire to play play play.

I would not get a dog for our Malinois to play with. If she wants to play, she has to play with us

Maybe consider taking the little one to agility, nosework or other dog sports, there are quite a few clubs in Dallas. We do sports with ours and it helps to burn off her energy.

 

[TWadeJ]

Another puppy may double the problem. What if BOTH then pester the older dogs? You never know what the result to the household mix will be with a new addition. I have 4 and it is not easy. Worth it though!

 

[jagger]

What kind of dog is Riggs?

 

[Sabina88]

You should only get another dog because you want to. If you get another puppy now you may end up with two energetic/high energy dogs. And have to teach basics and maners to two puppies at once. And theres no garuntee they will play with each other or they may just hype each other up.
Do you have any friends with dogs he can play with? For now I would wait until he gets a little older, then decide if you want a 4th dog.

 

[Moonstream]

I am not a fan of having two young dogs in the house, personally. I used to dogsit for my neighbor's very young lab pup when she was 9-11 weeks on days that both parents were out of the house/working, and I have now 1 year old Boston; at the time she was 9 months. It was the absolute worst- both dogs would get riled up in play and then pester my parent's dog (who is about 7, now, but very good with puppies), who I was living with at the time. I'm about to take on a board-and-train/foster through my school, which is a service dog training program, who will be a lab or golden between 8 months and two years. I'm dreading having another young dog in the house with my girl- it creates chaos.

I would strongly advise against trying to counter a high level of energy with getting another dog to play with. Work on teaching the younger dog the he isn't allowed to play rough with the two adult dogs, teach him manners, find him dogs to play with (at a dog park, if you're OK with the risk associated with dog parks, or friends' or neighbors' dogs). Make sure you're giving him enough exercise, and find ways to challenge his energy in constructive ways. If, when he's settled in and trained to a level you feel is "enough", then I would think it would be time to consider another dog.

It is just as likely that a second energetic puppy would also bother the adult dogs, and then you'd have two puppies bothering the adults. Additionally, two young dogs growing up together will often bond so closely that they have trouble being apart. Young dogs need to work on learning how to calm themselves when they want to play, not constantly play with one another. That's how you create a hurricane of a dog, lol.

What kind of exercise does he get?

I would probably work on getting a good exercise routine in place, and gate him in a separate area from the adult dogs for part of the day to give them a break. For now, if he is constantly pestering them and they are truly uncomfortable, I would probably only have him with them while on leash while you try to work on the behavior.