New puppy and adult dog?

[Loba]

Any suggestions and constructive advice very much needed please.  A friend of mine has a 6 year old easy going desexed male Labrador and is getting a new Lab puppy next week.

Last time she had two dogs  (different ages) she found that the puppy bonded far more closely to the older dog than it did with her so she really wants to avoid that thus time. 

The current Lab doesnt have a crate although the puppy will.

[The Spotted Devil]

The most important thing is regular evaluation of "where is the value" - I have mother and daughter so I understand this all too well. The questions I would ask on a daily basis are things like "can I recall each dog/puppy when they are running with the other? Will the dog/puppy choose to play (ie train!) with me rather than each other?" If the answer is NO then I limit the time they spend together and increase the 1:1 training and evaluate the level of distractions. Mine love playing together and hang out together when I'm not home but a nod from me and they are just busting out of their skins to play/train with me rather than each other. Em, the mum, has always been like that but it was a bit more work to get her daughter, Ginny, on the same wavelength. There are certain triggers too. If we are at the oval I tend to run and train them individually as Ginny is much more responsive. If I'm going to let them run together - they are both super high energy - I make sure I've got TIME and we are in a SAFE environment so I can wait until Ginny's run herself silly before I start working on recalls. Set them up for success is the key!

[Dogsfevr]

To be honest you would expect that ,the dogs are there own company 24/7 & i presume she is getting another dog to be a friend for the other one .

What it comes down to is each dog deserves time & effort which she will need to manage anyway as the older Lab is going to get older & the younger one will require more effort & more time to keep its brain active so it needs individual time which is very easy as it can't go on the longer walks the older dog would do(i presume she walks them ) So the pup will need to be happy to stay home on its own whilst the older dog sticks to its normal & the older dog will want time out from the puppy anyway ,easy going doesn't mean a match & some dogs can be to laid back & get bullied so she needs to watch how the older dog deals with the pup but im a firm believer anyway on older dogs deserve time out & peace & quiet & the youngsters need to learn to be independent & happy to play outside on there own

 

Most people get two because it makes life easier for them & they feel less guilty that there on there own so she needs to be more interesting than the other dog .

Also depends what the other dog did that makes her say it bonded more with that dog & not her,depends on the kind of relationship she has with the current dog .

[Scrappi&Monty]

As mentioned before; it is very important to make sure the puppy has alone time. Otherwise she will have to deal with separation anxiety... not fun! 

When we got our younger dog there were originally a few fights between him and our older dog, but then they bonded really well and are best mates. They both get really upset when the other leaves (especially the younger one when I walk the older one). 

And also while the pup is young make sure it learns a reliable recall and to listen when playing with the other dog etc.