[vkschoch]

Ok, now that we've got two in the house there are all kinds of new things to deal with.

First of all, they have had a few little squabbles over toys and one over rawhide that we had to break up. All in all they're pretty friendly and play well together but every now and then one or the other gets possessive and starts a fight. We've been able to stop the fights with a firm no so they don't seem too vicious. It seems like this is to be expected while they're still trying to figure out who is dominant. Do you guys with more than 1 agree? Is it normal for them to have little fights in the beginning? How should we deal with them? We've just been stoping them, redirecting them and usually removing the item that caused the fight.

Secondly, how can we give them things like rawhides without causing a fight? Will we need to give them treats in separate rooms forever?

Thirdly, I'm concerned about bedtime. Squeegee has always slept in our bed and I didn't think Chamois would be ready to so I laid out a blanket for her to sleep on. After a little while she decided that she wanted to get up on the bed. She kept coming to the edge of the bed and he would go stand in the way of her getting up. If she hopped up,Squeegee jumped off and laid on the floor. We couldn't get him to stay on the bed if she got on. Eventually they both decided to sleep on the floor which just makes me sad b/c I love my bedtime snuggles with Squeegee. After a little while he got on the bed and then around 3 am she got on and he didn't move. We're in bed now and she's on the floor b/c he kept blocking her way up. I guess my question is: do you guys think I should try to make him let her up here or just let them work it out on their own?

Thank you all for your help!

 

[Murphys Dad]

I can't really help with the first 2 questions, but about the bed thing: what I would do is have them both sleep off the bed.
The past few nights I'm having Chloe sleep in her crate and I have to say that although I love her in bed with me, I sleep a LOT better with her off it (so I can't really imagine how it would be with 2 on the bed

).

Now that I think of it, I think that about the treats, just give each of them a treat and once they start to fight, take the treats from both of them. Logic says they will get the point after a few times. Just a thought!

 

[DaisysMom]

Well, with Max and Daisy they both get the same treat at the same time. In the beginning she would try and take Max's but they both quickly learned that I would take their treats away if they fought. So now, they each get one and if Daisy finishes hers first then she waits until he finishes before she goes near him. I will say that even though Daisy and Max get along 99% of the time, there is that 1% where they get grumpy with each other. It's usually Max who is being the grouchy one too. So, I'll separate them when that happens, which isn't often thankfully.

I'm afraid that I can't be of much help with the bed issue since both Max and Daisy sleep with me. Daisy sleeps at the foot of the bed, and Max is my cuddle bug who sleeps next to me.

 

[RosCole]

Well, since we are fairly new to two beagles and anticipating our third I can share my experience with you.

The treats: Roscoe and Cole are opposite when it comes to eating, Roscoe takes his time, Cole just inhales! I have taught (and it took some time) Cole to sit and wait after he eats his treat and give him the ok to move only after Roscoe finishes his. As of right now treats are supervised but Cole is a fast learner and knows the drill.

Toys, bones and those things you want to leave them alone with. I still intervene periodically. When I buy toys/bones I get identical pairs. Cole tries to horde all of them for himself. I am persistent in taking that which is not his away from him with a firm no and give it back to Roscoe. I still have to do this a few times but repetition is key and he is getting it, because the minute I get up to intervene, Cole runs back to his spot with one toy/bone only!

So, my suggestion is supervision for awhile until they get it.

Roscoe and Cole do fight on occassion but it has never escalated to dangerous levels. I don't step in unless it is getting serious. Sometimes I clap my hands or stomp my foot and they separate and go on playing. I think its more play fighting than anything else b/c neither of them seem to mind or have gotten hurt.

The bed, well we are suckers. Both sleep in bed with us, even though I swore Cole was going to sleep on his own bed. I still flip flop on this issue b/c as Chloe's Mommy mentioned above, I do sleep much better when they are in their own beds!

 

[BookerMoose]

We've had Moose, Popcorn and Buzz all arrive since Booker and therefore have seen lots of different dynamics, and hopefully can therefore reassure you that all of this seems completely normal and to be expected.

Firstly, the minor fights sound like healthy we are trying to figure out who is top dog activity and I think they are to be expected - just keep them supervised and make sure they don't escalate. They do have to eventually work it out so if you stop them from any fighting at all it could confuse things - Popcorn still snarks at Buzz several months after his arrival - as I think they still have not 100% sorted out who is dominant because we stopped her whenever she growled or acted out at Buzz. We do find that rawhides and pigs ears and bones seem to make them extra primal and therefore we have tended to hold off giving them anything like that right at the beginning, or given them extra supervision for a while to make sure nothing untoward happens.

As for the sleeping - I think you have to just give it time to work itself out. I suspect once the top dog has been sorted out they probably will both end there with you - but right now it seems to be tied up in that. I do know that Moose is uncomfortable sleeping with us if Buzz is also on the bed - he doesn't mind if Popcorn is there, and Popcorn and Buzz are fine on the bed together, but Moose seems to think he is not allowed up there if Buzz is there a lot of the time (but other times all three will happily squeeze in). We just keep a dog bed close to ours and hopefully they sort it out during the night - often there is a different dog in the dog bed in the morning than there was at night!

Good luck!

 

[vkschoch]

You guys are the best! Thanks so much for all of the advice. It's always nice to know that you all have been through this same thing before.

 

[Erin]

We have had our two for almost a year in a half. They were picked up by animal control together so we're not sure if they've always been together or not. Honestly I think Daisy likes Rocky a lot more than he likes her. LOL For the most part they get along fine, although Rocky is quite grumpy with her sometimes. I think it's because she picks at him non-stop, wanting to play. Sometimes she'll just walk by him and he'll growl, but it's always just been a growl. If she pushes him (which she often does) because she wants to play he'll eventually just go find some other place to lie down. And they will occasionally get a little too rough when they do play and I've stepped in a couple of times, but usually by the time I step in they're pretty much over it. They've never hurt each other. As for the bed, Rocky chose on his own not to sleep with us during the night, and eventually we got them both sleeping on their own beds in our room. I was a little sad when Daisy started sleeping on her own bed instead of with me, but honestly I sleep better.

And they're so cute on their little beds!

 

[cheezyridr]

my two wrestle constantly, i never worry about it until i hear a yelp. usually it's because somebody got a hold of the other one's ear a little too hard. it's never seemed like a big deal so i let mine do what they will. sometimes i want a little peace and i will tell them to knock it off. after a couple of times they will chill out. i expect the wrestling will get old after a while and they'll find something else to do.
they like to play tug of war with a piece of rope we have. funny part is. they'll both want the same end, while there is 4 more feet of it dragging along behind them.

 

[cobismom]

Casie (wt. 23 lbs) Cobi (wt. 36 lbs) are our two boys...Cobi is 7 and Casie is 18 months. If there is food involved, forget it, they dine separately or in their kennels. They each have a chew bone, but they chew in their kennels. Cobi is definitely the head dude and he let's Casie know it if there is food involved.
Otherwise, we only have tiff's when Casie gets a little to playful, and Cobi has had it with the puppy, meaning Casie. Casie likeds to chew on Cobi's ears and ankles...very tender spots...and Cobi will take so much and then I'll hear a high pitched bark, and that means we have to go to separate corners for a moment. I love having two beagle, but it is like having two kids...patience is a virtue.

As far as sleeping, both of them sleep with us. And they have their own corners of the bed. When it is cold, they snuggle with each other or us under the covers. When it's warmer, Casie will sleep at the head of the bed and Cobi at the foot so he can look out the window. We kenneled Casie until (and might have to again) he was housebroken...and then he slept on my side of the bed in his kennel.

Your two will work out whose the leader and who is the follower. Watch closely if you hear the signs of a rumble, but they have to make that distinction just as if they were in a pack. And actually, to me it's rather interesting to watch the dynamics.

Good luck!

 

[Smeagle]

I feed meals separately for a few reasons. Being new to the house Chamois might feel a bit stressed eating next to or near another dog and it might be easier on you all to separate them at feeding times until she has settled in?

As for treats, I don't feed in any pack order, and I teach the dogs that resources like food are something that I control, not them. If I give the three dogs a treat at the same time, the first dog to obey my command (i.e. sit) is the first one to get the treat. This encourages them to focus on me and not the other dogs, and that they know the key to getting a treat is in obeying me and not beating up on the other dog.

 

[Java]

As mentioned by other members, I wouldn't worry too much about the roughhousing because that's essentially their playtime. You should be able to discern when the roughhousing escalates into something less desirable some of their body language (tail positioning/wagging, hair standing, play stance). Unless you hear one yelping or see obvious signs of distress, they're most likely having a blast.

As for feeding, like Smeagle, I make sure they understand that it is I that controls their food. I've trained them to wait until I tell them it's ok to eat after I drop food. The relatively short wait has them sitting and making eye contact with me (also the Now? How about Now? Now look that an attentive beagle has).

Good luck! I know having 1+ beagle is not for everyone, but you've made a great decision as you've rescued another dog, increased both dogs' quality of life, and brought more love into your home!

 

[randyc]

We sue to worry about the two roughhousing .... but that's all it was. Very rarely has it escalated and when one yelps loud enough, the other stops.

We had a problem with Charlie finishing his food within a minute then trying to eat Josie's. I stand and watch them eat and when he tried to go for her dish he was told no and moved away. After a few months, he no longer goes to her dish. Treats ... they get little bite sized treats normally. When they get cookies, charlie gobbles his up and tries to take Josie's. Josie sees it as a game and eggs him on. Trotting passed to get his attention then running away with him chasing.

Sleeping ... they both sleep in the bed with us. Charlie started in a crate next to the bed until we were confident he would not have an accident on the bed. They are bed hogs, but they keep you warm. Charlie will sometimes jump off and sleep on the floor for a bit. Then come back later on in the night. Josie bundles up under the covers and passes out. They work great as secondary alarm clock because they get up and start jumping around on the bed to wake you up, then jump off waiting to go outside. I have never been late to work by oversleeping since we got these two.