Hi there. I'm new here but looking for opinions from other experience lab owners. I have a two and a half year old black lab named Ruby. We had her from 8 weeks, she is incredibly loved and spoiled. She is a very good dog, the only issue we still work on is her jumping and excitement when new people come in the door. I just saw by chance a two year old male yellow lab (DJ) posted on a rescue site by a family who didn't realize the energy level labs have and just don't have time to give him for walks or to expel energy. They are looking for a family for DJ who can give him the time and space that he needs. They've had him since 10 weeks old. I happened to see this and immediately called and I am now contemplating adopting DJ. We will take Ruby to meet him this weekend coming up to see how it goes. Does anyone have experience with adopting a bit older dog like this? I am excited on one hand, but very worried on the other hand as to how Ruby will feel to have another dog come into her territory and then stay. Can anyone share similar experiences? Do you feel it is rude for me to ask this family for a weekend "trial" with DJ? Part of me feels like that sounds wrong, but we want to commit 100% to this if we do it, and I need to make sure that this is the right thing to do for us and for Ruby. Anyway, just looking for opinions or others experiences with bringing in a second dog who wasn't a puppy. Thanks!
I think it a good idea to have a weekend trial. My neighbour's Father died, leaving a Lab and a family had her for a weekend and then decided to adopt. I had a rescued dog who was 13 months old and had only lived in kennels, I put him in the boot of the car with my two girl German Pointers and drove home for about an hour and a half. I was young then and didn't worry about anything! Jake was a nervous wreck having never been socialised, so when we got home, I made a safe den for him in the utility room and let him choose when he wanted to join the family. The first night I put the other two dogs and the cat in with him and they settled fine! They all got on well and no problems at all afterwards.
From what I know about rescues they would usually have a meeting before any commitment and if there are other dogs in the family they would ensure there are meetings between the dogs and would encourage "trial" visits too. Certainly seems tougher proving yourself to a rescue than it does to many breeders.
A weekend trial is a good plan, but please bear in mind that a weekend isn't really long enough to test the water , so to speak , as the rescue dog will be confused and your own dog may be also ! I have rescued several times , pups who were doomed from the start and much older dogs , and so far have not encountered any issues re the resident dog accepting the newcomer . I`ve always found that whilst vigilance is important , a relaxed attitude pays dividends , they will usually sort out the pecking order all for themselves . Good luck , oh yes , and welcome to the forum !
Thank you all for your replies! I guess I almost feel guilty that I'm "betraying" my resident dog by doing this (or contemplating doing this). I guess that's kind of silly of me to think that. I agree that a weekend is definitely not long enough for things to calm down, but my thinking is it's better than nothing. There are no adoption rules in place here, since I'm dealing directly with the family who owns the dog, not a rescue organization or shelter or anything like that. I'm hoping that I will get a gut feeling, either good or bad, once I meet the people and the dogs meet, etc. We will see! Thanks again.
Good luck. I've not done this myself, so can't advise like the others can, but I'd say, having recently added a puppy who my two older dogs (only 2.5 years themselves) really didn't like, that you shouldn't give up immediately if that's the case. Because my puppy and my boy now absolutely adore each other. It's been a lot of work and lots of careful introductions, but to see them playing together now is a delight. If you'd seen them at first, you'd have thought the world was going to end. So, take some time to think about whether their personalities should fit and, if so, then even if the first introductions don't go brilliantly, you will get there with time and patience.
We adopted Coco, age 16 months, from the ManxSPCA. We were allowed to visit Coco as many times as we liked with our resident dog, Belle (also a rescue) - we walked them together in a field. We spent 4 weekends meeting up, and OH went on his own in the week. They offered us a trial, but we felt we'd got to know him enough and didn't envisage returning him. (he'd been out on a weekend trial before we met him & the trial failed - he was too strong for them - we were so lucky). The ManxSPCA are keen to send dogs out on a week's trial. I think it's a great idea if you have a resident dog, but we were convinced already, we could all make it work. When we adopted Scooby, we had Belle. Scooby was desperate and he just landed on us one Saturday night. We spent a miserable 2 weeks wondering what we'd done. Belle was unhappy. Scooby was unhappy. Then one day they turned it around and rubbed along OK. That could have turned out terribly.
I adopted mine at 7 months, but didn't have another dog already. Some dogs take a long time to settle in, mine took a couple of months until he was more relaxed. I think it's a good idea to take Ruby to meet DJ somewhere he knows, because then you get a better idea of how they get on. I'd also suggest taking them for a walk together before the trial period. If you put two adult dogs together in a garden and stand watching them, it's quite stressful for them. Walking together is easier for them to get to know one another, and have a nice experience together. A trial period is a good idea. If he's a dog who adjusts to change quickly, then a weekend might be enough. I might ask for a trial period of a week, which would give him a bit more time to settle in. As well as being the right thing for you and Ruby, it's in DJ's best interests if you make sure it's a good fit!
Hi and welcome from Hattie 9 years and our rescue Labrador x Pointer Charlie. Hattie was 4 years old when we rescued Charlie. We all went to the rescue centres fosterer including Hattie to see Charlie. I had numerous phone calls with the fosterer who basically told me a lot of lies about Charlie. It was our only meeting and Charlie came home with us. I would say Sue @edzbird did it correctly so if you can do that it would be much better and give you a clearer idea about the dog. I would advise you NOT to feel pressured into taking the dog if you have any doubts at all. Be 100% sure before/if he leaves with you as it's very difficult once he is in your home, you might realise you have made a mistake and then what? Good luck. xx
See how your dog goes at the meeting and if all goes well see if there can be a weeks trial. YOu'll know well and truly by then. We tried a rescue last year but it was extremely dominant and after 4 days it charged through/over me to get to our resident dog. It took a few days before they took it back but was clear it wasnt going to work at all. Previously when we had got the resident dog years before the meet and greet went well with our then current dog. Both in the back of the car were fine and while she basically tolerated him for a month while he learnt the rules obviously it went well and he stayed. See how your dog goes at the meet and greet and go from there - if it does go well and you get home and she ignores him thats fine our old dog was 'when is he going back' for some time but after a while learnt to use him (she was 13 he was 2 ish) as her back up.
Our first Chocolate was a 4 yr old rescue, and she was a great dog. Actually very well trained and socialized. She was our only dog for the next 12 years. We got our pup, Cooper when our second lab, Tilly was a little past 9. They have always gotten along fine, though sometimes Tilly wishes Cooper would just leave her alone. They do play together and they don't fight or ever act like they dislike each other. When we kennel them they go in the same run. We did not give Tilly a chance to Veto Cooper, but we were pretty sure they would get along OK.
