Quote:
Originally Posted by dobe8  Hi,
My dad recently bought 2 male australian shepard pups which are litter mates. I know that you aren't supposed to have 2 male dobes in the same house but I wasn't sure if it depends on the breed of dog. Is anyone familiar with this breed or know if the same theory will apply when the reach maturity?
Seems like trouble waiting to happen.... |
What happens with adult males (intact or neutered) does to a very large extent depend on the breed.
I had an Australian Shepherd for nearly 13 years. He was an intact male and basically he didn't fight. It wasn't that he couldn't--I was there when he knocked a couple of other dogs (one Dobe and one big Pointer mix) on their butts. But once he'd knocked them down (and he was outweighed by at least 20 pounds by each of those dogs) he did nothing further--the other dogs decided that they didn't want to play that particular game with him and left. He lived amicably with my male Dobes, raised the male puppies I brought into the house, introduced breeders puppies to hairy dogs and generally was a useful, entertaining dog in my pack.
I think that probably a couple of male Aussies (although there are some males who are same sex aggressive it is much less common than in Dobes) would get along fine.
HOWEVER...!!!!! (I bet most of you can guess at what I'm going to say next--because it's already been said) I would NOT raise littermates of any sex together. The results are generally pretty unsatisfactory--neither pup gets enough attention, enough training etc. I think the littermate issue is far bigger than same sex in Aussies.
I'd never have gotten littermates and as it stands now I'd be looking to rehome one of them and when the first pup is two or three get another. If you think Dobes can be destructive and hyper try Aussies--and for even more trouble try two Aussies. Like Dobes, they need a job and if you don't find one for them they'll find their own and you are not likely to like the results.
But good luck trying to convince your dad of that.