Hi there! I am fairly new to the group and need some feedback. My husband and I have an adorable two-year old Silver Lab named Senator. He has always been one of the most mellow, well-behaved dogs that I've ever known. He travels EVERYWHERE with me. We decided we wanted to get a second dog, so that in the future he would have an excellent friend to be with when we become busier during the day. After some research, I thought it would be safe to get another male lab. I had people reach out to me and say that they had multiple male labs in their home and they got along fine. Senator also has male dog friends. One even stayed the night at our house and ate from his bowl! (on accident, not on purpose!) No sign of aggression. Ever. Just a week ago, we brought home our second male lab puppy named Pharaoh. They met outside and Senator seemed excited to meet a new dog. But as soon as Pharaoh came inside our home, Senator became aggressive. The first two days were awful. I had to constantly keep them separated and I became almost scared of my dearly beloved Senator. Honestly, it's gotten MUCH better since then. We've taken them to a few new places together, make sure they go on a walk together every night. They seem to actually like each other now in that short amount of time. BUT, there will be completely random moments where Senator acts aggressively. (We keep them away from each other while eating and make sure Pharaoh doesn't go near Senator's feeding area.) Senator is intact. He's always been so mellow that we never felt the need and were actually hoping to breed him soon, but now with a second male dog should we have him neutered? I have heard from others that it takes a couple of weeks for the first dog to fully accept the second dog, so should we wait on that? Any advice would be great.
I have 2 entire male lab crosses and have had no serious problems. Boris is 5 and Jacob 3 yrs 6 months. Jacob was14 weeks when he came. The only problem came when I gave them bones , for the first 3 bones I had to supervise and keep an eye on them for the First couple of house, but now there is very rarely a problem. I have also had my sisters labs come and stay for extended periods. Both labs are entire. One is an old boy 12 ,when he first came ,the other was 7. When they first came there was friction between the Jacob and the 7 year old. When I went out I would put them in separate rooms after the first month they all settled down. My sisters dogs have been a way and then returned there has been a bit of friction between Jacob. and the 7 year old for the First hour, but they soon settle down.
I have had entire males together before with no problems at all. They adored each other, but there was a greater age difference. I think you have a big puppy and a little puppy. At 2 labs have not quite mature yet. Give them space and time, and you will get there. Neutering won't help this behaviour. When I have had mixed sex dogs together, it has taken quite a while for them to get on. I think you just need to be patient.
