Simply Grand Posted December 8, 2011 Share Posted December 8, 2011 So I'm single and live on my own so am sole carer for my animals. I have two dogs, Saxon, a 2.5 year old toy poodle x and Riley, a nearly 8 month old Sheltie. I aslo gave two cats. I've found that having 2 dogs hasn't been a huge amount more work than one -I walk / take them to the park together, feed them together etc so the extra time is mainly in some grooming, training day to day and obedience classes, but I enjoy all of that so it doesn't bother me. Anyway I am seriously tempted to get a third dog. I'd really like to get an Aussie Shepherd and I think I could manage the three ok and would definitely commit to doing what I needed to do to make it work but I do want to know what I'd be getting into before I decide. It would obviously be a way off by the time I find a breeder, wait for a puppy etc (oh and get finances in order) so Riley would be a bit older, although he's quite mature for an 8 month old anyway so he wouldn't lead a pup too far astray! Alternatively I'd also consider an older pup who may be around his age anyway. So are there any single dog parents out there with three or more, and how do you find it? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redial Posted December 8, 2011 Share Posted December 8, 2011 I'm engaged but my fiance lives in America and studies so financially speaking I'm single. I live alone normally although staying with my mum right now. I own 4 dogs, but due to one dog being very attached to one of my mum's he stays here with her. 3 dogs is my limit financially. I also have a cat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlc Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 Hi, just wanted to add my 5c worth even though I'm not single, as you know I have 4 and all their needs are catered to by me, (bathing, grooming, excercising, training, feeding etc) My OH works long hours and the only amount of time he spends with the dogs is in the evening and his Association with them is purely enjoyment. My life with my dogs would be no different if I was single and I manage fine. My OH loves the dogs and if I ask him for help he will but this is not very often. In your case the only draw back would be if you had to go to hospital, but if you have someone who can take care of them then it should be all good. The biggest thing with me having 4 is I only have to work part time so have lots of time to spend with them, I know if I had to work longer hours I would feel guilty but that's just me, I know there are multi dog families out there that owners work full time and they manage fine. It's great for them to have each other for company too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlc Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 After reading radials post financially I hadn't given it a thought. If I was single I would still cope financially with their needs but because of hubbys earning I have the most spoilt pooches in town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Everythings Shiny Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 I'm single but live with mum. I own 3 dogs, 4 horses and two calves. Luckily mum helps me out as I've just started working fulltime (6 days) and I do feel like I'm neglecting my babies a bit, but luckily, the dogs generally entertain each other, same with the calves. The horses and ponies are pretty cruisey either way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuffles Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 I hear you met Riot the other day, does this have anything to do with your decision? From my limited experience, Aussies can be pretty full on pups and they really need lots of training not to be rough on the littlies. Ava loves to play with them and tries quite hard to be gentle but isn't always successful. In saying that they love to please so much that they tend to be very easy to train if you put in the time Also, Ava was a total destructo pup, she ate a Hound House, three clam shell pools, the front of the shelf in the pergola, all the plants including bark off the tree, the pipes on the hot water system... so I hope you're not too house proud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indigirl Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 I live on my own and have 10 dogs and 6 cats. Which sounds insane but 6 of the dogs are italian greyhounds, small eccentric little beasts who i would never take to obedience. They cant be let offlead unless in a fully fenced area so they dont get daily walks, instead they go to fenced dog park for a good run at least once a week. The 4 bigger dogs are more work. I exercise them in groups of 2. I do obedience with them while young and one i showed for about 3yrs. I breed/show the italians thats why there's so many of them lol. The bigger dogs are aged 7, 6, 3 and 5 months. So mostly spread out so I can spend enough time with each dog training them etc while young. The oldest dog was the easiest pup ive ever owned. Luckily for me the 5 month old boxer pup is also a very easy dog. The cats all live indoors and are purebred and low shedding. So no grooming etc required. They have access to an outdoor enclosure and i have a dedicated cat room so i can have cat free time when i want it. Six is def my limit cat wise. Feeding and vet bills are costly, but i dont smoke, rarely drink, and have a good job so I can afford it. I also live out in the stix so very easy to find open places to let bigger dogs run free. I also work 5 mins from home so can come home for an hour for lunch everyday which also helps. I found the jump from 2 to 3 dogs was really noticeable, but now one more doesnt make a huge amount of difference. I think 4 active larger dogs is my limit, would be different if one was really old and quiet. I have a kelpie x curly, a golden, a wolfie x bullmastiff and a boxer. With the iggies I think 8 is prolly my limit, as the oldest has just turned 6 yrs old, so they are also young and 'busy'. If i wasnt actively breeding i would only have a few of them, but living where I do and breeding means i keep my own stud dogs to reduce travel time/costs at least some of the time, even though i only have 3 entire females at this point. My dogs are my lifestyle and I really enjoy them all. I would be lost without them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megan_ Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 I am single, live on my own, work long(ish) hours (I'm away for about 12 hours a day) and I plan on getting a third. Given the breed and breeder that I want, this would most probably be in about a year's time, all going well. I think it is doable, but I strongly believe that it is important to spend at least a few times per week doing things with each dog individually. This not only helps stengthen the bond with you, but it helps develop independant dogs. You never know what the future may hold and I'd hate my dogs to fret if something happened to me and they had to be split up. Remember that the puppy won't be up for the same kind of exercise as the others for a while, so you'll need to be doing extra walks for a while yet. Also, I have one dog with issues so I'd never walk the puppy with her because I wouldn't want the pup to learn bad habits. My next breed will be significantly larger than my current two so I'll need to be able to give them time apart too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerraNik Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 I'm single and I have 3 dogs (+/- a foster dog). My maximum is 4 dogs so that I have enough time for training, grooming, etc. I didn't notice too much of a jump from two dogs to three. There is quite a bit more work when I have a foster dog, but that's mostly because they require intensive training and grooming to get them to a rehomeable state. Once they are trained up, I don't find there's much of a difference except for the extra food/vet costs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simply Grand Posted December 9, 2011 Author Share Posted December 9, 2011 Tlc it's your fault this is becoming am serious consideration, with all your encouragement ;) It is good to know you manage your four fine on your own. I've just started working as a rep for a mobile dog wash so am basically operating my own business and the hours are up to me so I'll be able to work times around doing stuff with the dogs and even bring them/one out with me sometimes so time wise I think I can manage it. Cost wise, I need to pay off a few things but once that's done another dog will fit in to the budget ok. I have enough people around (friends, family) who could look after the animals in an emergency and I'm sure Riley could stay with his breeders if need be, as could an Aussie hopefully... Anyone like to channel my mum and tell me why it's a bad idea?? (now she lives in the other side of the country she doesn't get to give me her opinion too often any more, hehe) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RubyBlue Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 Im single and live with two housemates. They provide company for my pets and will occasionally feed if I am getting back late but all walking, grooming, training, financial, etc is taken care of by me. I have two dogs (again ) and would not consider a third. Mainly because everytime I have looked after friends dogs and had three or more at any given time I have felt a bit overwhelmed by it all. Admittedly that could be because the third dog is not mine and therefore not used to the routine but also because of a physical management thing. I have labs and two normal sized adult labs weigh more than me! When I had Jackson, although he and Milly were both were normally well behaved on lead, even when Jackson was much older he and Milly would occasionally rev each other up to get to the barking dog behind the fence or left over maccas bag, over the years I have had to perfect the art of 'tree wrapping' to stop them. If I did get another one it would probably be another lab then I would have to walk around 100kg worth of dog . I also find I am not so good at keeping an eye on three dogs at the dog park. Though that could just be a practice thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redial Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 (edited) OK Cons of getting another dog are... (channeling my mother here) More poop, unknown how your dogs will accept it, even the most well bred pup can have temp issues, not just regular vet bills but unforseen bet bills that make it harder to pay off regular payments for your other dogs, more food, your other dogs training can go backwards when you bring in a new dog, the whole up 5 times a night thing again, more exercise, more barking (depending on breed and individual dog), who will look after an extra dog when you go away. Pros (channeling myself now lol) the more the merrier, it can add a beneficial dynamic tyour pack, gives you incentive to do more things, you can explore new avenues of pet ownership, you become even closer friends with the vet, more love and generally more fun, also character building Edited December 9, 2011 by redial Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitka Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 Like TLC even though im not single I provide for all my pets needs although I do only have one dog and one cat ( hopeing to expand that ) But I know my OH will help out if needed to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simply Grand Posted December 9, 2011 Author Share Posted December 9, 2011 Thanks for all the responses guys Wuffles meeting riot maaaay have encouraged me just a bit I haven't seen many Aussie pups around so when an adorable new one turned up at the dog park when I was already toying with the idea it did egg me on a bit I've given up on being particularly house proud even with these two, although they're not too bad with destroying things that can't really be put out of reach - clothes, sticks, anything plastic, power cords on the other hand. My house is reasonably well set up for containing dogs in various areas, which should help with destruction and also let me keep them separate when I'm out to avoid any squishing of small dogs. Well indigirl if you can manage that menagerie I should be able to cope! The cats are really easy to look after, they are 7 and somewhere between 14 & 18 (I acquired her 11 years ago and was told she was about 7 at the time, but if that's true she's a super cat as she'd now be 18 and is in excellent health!), they basically just need food, spots to lie around in and a brush now and then. Do you take all 6 Iggies out at once?? How do you keep an eye on them all? I try to keep a close eye on my two at the dog park, to make sure they're behaving and safe, and for poo patrol. Three would obviously be harder to keep track of, but I could rotate 2 at a time. Same with walks. And they'd all be in obedience and or possibly agility, and have separate short training at home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilmisssascha83 Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 After reading radials post financially I hadn't given it a thought. If I was single I would still cope financially with their needs but because of hubbys earning I have the most spoilt pooches in town. TLC can I just say I love your xmas siggy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simply Grand Posted December 9, 2011 Author Share Posted December 9, 2011 I think the fact that both Saxon and Riley are pretty easy to manage makes me less daunted than I might be otherwise. They really haven't caused me any stress which means a) if the next is difficult I may be in for a shock but b) because they're easy id have the time/energy for another more difficult one. Having said that, both were slow with toilet training but that was me not them, Saxon coz I didn't know what I was doing and Riley coz I was slack. It didn't really upset me though, just meant I used a lot of paper towel for a while. Riley barks so another possibly barky working breed could be a problem. I let Riley get away with it too much when he was younger though, I know for next time to be on it from day 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ons Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 (edited) I'm single and I have five dogs and 3 cats I really noticed a difference with having two dogs to three. Then when I had three after awhile I started fostering again and really found having four dogs was not much difference than having three only that I started having two walks of two dogs instead of one walk with three dogs which is actually more hectic. So I got Latte. Two of my dogs are goldens and two are coolies. Then I got a wonderful opportunity to get a show dog so got a little griffon which made five dogs. Because he is small he really hasn't made much of an impact space wise, he is an extremely active dog though but the youngest coolie and he play for hours. The youngest coolie and griffon are the most time consuming in that the coolie is very active and the griffon is small so need to supervise him around the larger dogs but I have a routine for them all, they all know where they go for the day when I'm not home and where to eat dinner etc. I do plan on getting a couple more show dogs but am moving to a friend's place first eta crates are a godsend in my place, one in the bedroom, one in the loungeroom, youngest coolie gets fed in the crate in loungeroom and sleeps in the crate in the bedroom, griffon gets fed chicken wings/bones etc in crate in bedroom and sometimes sleeps in the crate with his sister or if I'm taking the others for walks he goes in there. Edited December 9, 2011 by Ons Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowanbree Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 I live alone and have multiple pets, add them one at a time and you don't notice the numbers creeping up as much. However I am a sheltie breeder and have 2 aussies and aussies are very full on for the shelties. It involves a lot of time and commitment to have these 2 breeds and they are never left alone together even as mature adults. Love the aussies but they are so rough and the 15-20kg weight difference does cause some issues. I have a 12 week old aussie puppy currently and she is dynamite, makes shelties look like little angels. Last night i went out of the room for 5 minutes and she got the cat by the neck and pulled all his hair out. She didn't intend to hurt him, just jolly good fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazyWal Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 Single mum of two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minimiss Posted December 9, 2011 Share Posted December 9, 2011 I'm not single but I live alone (My boy lives down the road ) I'll be a 'Mum of 1' soon... So I'm looking forward to this new adventure!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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