How many dogs is too many

taim

Just looking for some advice as how many dogs it is 'acceptable' to have?...We have two boxers since last summer, and we have been looking after two terriers too (they were my Mom's but she passed away in 2009 and they have been between my house and my brother's who lives next door ever since). One of my motner's dogs had pups in October and we have found homes for a few but there are two that I really would love to keep, a male and a female. Would 6 dogs be too many? We have loads of space to look after them and could afford to feed them all

anniehoo

taim wrote: »

Would 6 dogs be too many?

I think ya just answered your own question there

wrote:

We have loads of space to look after them and could afford to feed them all

Happy days. If your dogs are well looked after and you can afford the veterinary care that comes with owning them...well then...enjoy. Im jealous!:D

The only issue is "pack" dynamics with a large group of dogs but if you know what you're doing then i wouldnt worry at all.

SophieSakura

I don't think 6 is too many, as long as you can cope with that many! And I'm guessing the terriers adn pups are small, which helps.

Though I'd suggest getting them all neutered or you will definitely end up with too many! I'm sure you would be anyway with the new pups being related and all

Just remember there might be unexpected vet bills, neutering costs and all. You've only gotten your boxers pretty recently, so just be careful, cos some people end up getting too many pets too fast and they don't realise they can't cope. But you sound like you're a responsible owner and well done for taking care of the terriers

TooManyDogs

As someone who does have 6 dogs I think it depends on how much time you have to give to your dogs. I do agility with mine as well as all standard walking that all dogs should get.

For us to go away for the weekend it can be a small bit of a nightmare, we know a guy with kennels and he offered me a deal for 5 of the dogs to stay while we were on holidays for €80 per day, so for our 10 day holiday that would have been €800 :eek: Which actually is a good price for 5 dogs! (The 6th dog won't stay anywhere but our house and 1 other friends house) We normally depend on my sister-in-law moving in to mind the dogs and pay her so that means co-ordinating dates with her. Our holidays are camping ones where some or all of the dogs can come, or weekends away at agility competitions.

Like others have said, cost is a factor too, I do a budget and put aside money each month towards the vet for emergencies, yearly vaccines and worming tablets. I do the vaccines myself and get the worming tablets at a great deal (€3 per tablet) but worming costs me €27 every 3 months. I don't have insurance because for the 2 years I did have it I found it very expensive and the insurance companies difficult to work with. Now I save the money I was giving the insurance company and have arranged to pay the vet by installments in case of a large vet bill.

When you increase numbers of dogs you'll have to increase the time you have to give individual attention to each dog. In a big pack it's very easy to 'forget' about a dog, especially if they're the good dogs that just quietly go about their business and don't create trouble. You'll also have to focus on your basic obedience training, as much as 4 dogs is a pack, having 6 is another thing altogether. I have to be careful when walking with a friends badly behaved dog that if he starts trouble down the beach than I can make sure mine don't get involved because if my pack back him up it'd be curtains for the other dog by sheer force of numbers. Again it does take training to be able to walk them all together.

Walking can be problematic because the minute you arrive with 6 dogs you get either 1 of 2 reactions. They either give out to you for being so responsible for having so many dogs off lead, or you can't get walking because people are quizzing you about 'how many dogs do you have?', 'how do you walk them all?', 'how much does it cost to feed that lot?' etc etc There also aren't many public places you can bring 6 dogs to walk off lead safely. I'm lucky because I live in a rural area.

So that's my experience owning 6 dogs. Would I have it any other way?........ No!

magentas

"how many dogs is too many?" is answered by toomanydogs!:D

TooManyDogs

magentas wrote: »

"how many dogs is too many?" is answered by toomanydogs!:D

:D:D

Ponder013

magentas wrote: »

"how many dogs is too many?" is answered by toomanydogs!:D

LOL:D:D:D


I kept a carefull account of every penny we spent last year as we're buying a house this year and I wanted to be able to budget accordingly, I was really shocked to discover that We spent over €4,000 on the dogs (two small, relatively healthy terriers)

That was for food, worming, vaccines, flea treatments, the vet - everything, So I guess having six dogs would be closer to €7 or €8,000, and that's if no one needs extensive vet care/develops a long term illness/has an accident/needs a special diet.

If you are going to keep all six, you should def think about spaying/neutering, not only will this avoid six turning into sixty:D but will keep tempers under control. Your vet might give you a bulk discount;)

SophieSakura

Ponder013 wrote: »

I kept a carefull account of every penny we spent last year as we're buying a house this year and I wanted to be able to budget accordingly, I was really shocked to discover that We spent over €4,000 on the dogs (two small, relatively healthy terriers)

That was for food, worming, vaccines, flea treatments, the vet - everything, So I guess having six dogs would be closer to €7 or €8,000, and that's if no one needs extensive vet care/develops a long term illness/has an accident/needs a special diet.

I have 4 small dogs and no way did I spend that much! They needed no vet treatment, €6 each for vaccinations, €8 each for worming, they don't go through much food and we buy big bags (so probably less than €100 in a year) and a few toys and a collar and lead for the puppy, a new kennel €60 ish, new vet bed €20 . . . oh also I went through 25 tennis balls cos one dog kept losing them in the fields :rolleyes:

toadfly

Ponder013 wrote: »

I was really shocked to discover that We spent over €4,000 on the dogs (two small, relatively healthy terriers)

That was for food, worming, vaccines, flea treatments, the vet - everything, So I guess having six dogs would be closer to €7 or €8,000, and that's if no one needs extensive vet care/develops a long term illness/has an accident/needs a special diet.

Thats crazy :eek:

Can I be cheeky and ask for a rough breakdown?! I just worked out I spend about €800/year on two Yorkies for insurance, food, vaccinations, wormer etc. That doesnt include the odd vet visit, even though we have insurance we usually end up pay a few hundred a year at the vets. It has never gone over the excess for one injury thankfully.

DiscoZimpy

We took the dog in, aged about 4, after it's elderly owner died - 'George' (his name) became my boyhood companion from ages about 7 to 18.

ICE HOUSE

102

Asphyxia

Your only allowed to own a max of 6 dogs unless you're a breeder.

TooManyDogs

Asphyxia wrote: »

Your only allowed to own a max of 6 dogs unless you're a breeder.

That's not true. If you own more than 10 dogs you must have a general dog
license for the household rather than an individual one for each dog

ISDW

TooManyDogs wrote: »

That's not true. If you own more than 10 dogs you must have a general dog
license for the household rather than an individual one for each dog

Really? Can I ask where you got that info from, I've not heard that before.

The animal welfare bill wasn't passed, so I didn't think there was any limit on how many dogs (or breeding bitches:mad:) you can have.

teacherspet

Well taim, I have 6 dogs also, love every one of them to bits. As long as you have the space I don't see a problem. I have 2 neutered males, 2 spayed bitches and 2 not neutered bitches. They all are fed from Lidl and like Toomanydogs we also do agility.

TooManyDogs

ISDW wrote: »

Really? Can I ask where you got that info from, I've not heard that before.

The animal welfare bill wasn't passed, so I didn't think there was any limit on how many dogs (or breeding bitches:mad:) you can have.

From here -
http://www.meath.ie/LocalAuthorities/Environment/DogLicences/

I was kind of surprised myself, I just figured a general license came into play where you had so many dogs it was too expensive to get individual licenses, or a rescue where dogs are coming and going all the time. Maybe the info is inaccurate?

ISDW

TooManyDogs wrote: »

From here -
http://www.meath.ie/LocalAuthorities/Environment/DogLicences/

I was kind of surprised myself, I just figured a general license came into play where you had so many dogs it was too expensive to get individual licenses, or a rescue where dogs are coming and going all the time. Maybe the info is inaccurate?

Thanks, yep, thats what it says on there, but I've bought 11 licenses now for my lot at the local post office, cheaper than the general licence and nothing was said, so who knows?:rolleyes:

TooManyDogs

I'd say if you can produce any kind of a license you'd be grand. Mind you, I don't have any It really annoys me to have to pay licenses when the government do feck all to help the countries dog welfare problem

Ponder013

Rough breakdown of €4,000

Food (red mills winner, about 1.5kg per week, €18 for 5 kg) €300

Training treats, chews etc (about €5 a week) €260

Vet (eight visits, would have been 2 or 3 visits, but Ray ate a tub of slug pellets and Nuala ripped a dew claw out while chasing a rabbit - worked out at €80 - €100 per visit including meds etc) € 720

Dog walker, (twice a week,When we're both on long shifts at work €10 a time), €1,000 (luckily himself is on short time at the moment, so we're saving here)

Kennels, (four weeks in total at €25 per night (special rate because they share) €700

Wormer, drontal plus €6.50 each four times a year for 2 dogs = €52

Front line spot on flea/tick treatment €7.50 each six times per year by 2 dogs = €90

four new basket liners (I make them myself) about €30

groomer ( i wouldn't normally bring them but I slipped a disc and couldn't do it myself) €25 per dog by three times €150

I think that works out at about €3,500, I guees the rest went on toys, treats, and so on.

Granted, it was a bad year for vets, and this year no dog walker or groomer, and thanks to the recession, no holiday - so only a few weekend visits to the kennels, but still, the cost of a dog adds up - and you have to factor in things like injuries and the occassional injestion of poison - the vet said slug pellets are more dangerous than rat poison because there is no antidote - note to all dog owners, they are deadly (and apparently quite tasty:eek:)!

doubleglaze

Budget €1500 per dog per annum and remember that a dog is for life, so that could be for the next 14 years. You'd want to be very rich to be able to afford that. There'll be no bail-out for you if you get poor, no NAMA, no social welfare for dogs...

Think also of the impact of dog noise levels on your neighbours.

Bullseye1

One dog is too much if:
1 you cannot afford to feed it.
2 don't have proper housing/accommodation.
3 don't have the time to exercise it.

If you have plenty of property, time, money I don't see a problem with having a pack of 6 dogs.

SophieSakura

In some places it's illegal to have more than 4 dogs. But I don't think 5 is too many if you look after them

ISDW

SophieSakura wrote: »

In some places it's illegal to have more than 4 dogs. But I don't think 5 is too many if you look after them

Where? Do you mean in some other countries, or parts of Ireland?

dollydishmop

Holy smokes...you've inspired me to breakout the calculator:eek:

6 dogs here....but the 6th dog is a foster, and as such I don't pay for anything for her - its is all supplied/paid for by the rescue.....so my comparison to your costs, for my own 5 dogs (3 terriers, 1 collie & 1 pointer)

Ponder013 wrote: »

Food (red mills winner, about 1.5kg per week, €18 for 5 kg) €300

I buy 15kg bags of Madra at 2 for €25 (€12.50/bag) - 2 bags for 5 dogs lasts 5 weeks (the foster will eat 2 bags to herself over 5 weeks, but she's a deerhoundx lurcher!)
So you're feeding 2 small dogs at €5.40/week
I'm feeding 5 dogs (2 small, 2 large) at €5/week
€260/year

Ponder013 wrote: »

Training treats, chews etc (about €5 a week) €260

Just cause fights in my house....so rarely bother with chews etc...but training treats....I buy big boxes of biscuit treats,and one box would last a month or so.
€84/year

Ponder013 wrote: »

Vet (eight visits, would have been 2 or 3 visits, but Ray ate a tub of slug pellets and Nuala ripped a dew claw out while chasing a rabbit - worked out at €80 - €100 per visit including meds etc) € 720

Collie needed a check-up due to some worrying quick weight-loss over the winter, turned out to be a tooth abcess behindone of her canines....a course of anti-bs and a follow-up check €50 total
One of the terriers got frost-burn on her pads during the mega-sub-zero weather, and ripped one pad off almost completely...a course of anti-bs and some Alamycin spray - €20
I do the vaccinations myself,and buy them at €7 each (boosters) and €5 each for the kennel cough vaccine. So €12/dog = €60/year

Ponder013 wrote: »

Dog walker, (twice a week,When we're both on long shifts at work €10 a time), €1,000 (luckily himself is on short time at the moment, so we're saving here)

I work from home - phew!

Ponder013 wrote: »

Kennels, (four weeks in total at €25 per night (special rate because they share) €700

On average about 3 days per month - special rate, due to volume at €5/dog/night....so assuming we didn't take any of our dogs with us (although we usually have one or two who come away with us) we pay €25/night for all the dogs, not each.
€900 - ouchie - but still not bad for 5 dogs.

Ponder013 wrote: »

Wormer, drontal plus €6.50 each four times a year for 2 dogs = €52

I buy it either online, or at Crufts each spring - I buy it in bulkquanities,andit works out between €3-50-€4/tab...each worming session uses 5½ tablets
€88 at €4/tab
Considering moving the bigger dogs onto Milbemax...1 Milbemax is cheaper (@6.50ea) than 2 Drontal Plus

Ponder013 wrote: »

Front line spot on flea/tick treatment €7.50 each six times per year by 2 dogs = €90

I don't treat for fleas if my dogs don't have fleas...I haven't purchased flea treatments in years...
€0

Ponder013 wrote: »

four new basket liners (I make them myself) about €30

I stock up on the Lidl €6 dog blankets whenever Isee them....still have a few new-in-wrappersin the bottom of the hotpress. They are very hard-wearing, and will happily boil wash.
Haven't seen them to buy in the last couple of years though.
Bought a strip of vet bed at Pet Expo last yearfor approx €20 I think?

Ponder013 wrote: »

groomer ( i wouldn't normally bring them but I slipped a disc and couldn't do it myself) €25 per dog by three times €150

Do-it-myself...and fortunately my crew are pretty low maintenance on the grooming side of things.

Ponder013 wrote: »

I think that works out at about €3,500, I guees the rest went on toys, treats, and so on.

I think mine adds up to €1482 (€296.40/dog)
So not as scary as I thought.

In answer to your original post...how many dogs is too many...when you can't afford to care for them adequately and/or your own quality of life is affected...that's my take on it, anyway

For us 5+1 foster is pretty much our max I think...

Going on the costs you've given....if you are going to increase your dog numbers. get into the habit of searching around for better prices..and don't be afraid to push for deals. I'm sure even now your boarding kennels can do better than €25 for 2 small dogs sharing for instance

Big bags (15kg) of food will always be cheaper than the small bags of the same product...and even with 2 dogs you'll go through it quick enough that it won't go stale. And see if your food supplier will do you a deal on 2+ bags etc. For example, our supplier sells the 15kg of the food we use at €15 each....but he'll do 2 bags for €25...if we had the space, a half-pallet (25-30 bags) would be even cheaper

Ponder013

I suppose you kind of end up spending what you are prepared to spend on dogs, last year we were both fully employed and renting, this year he's on half time and we've bought, hence trimming the fat in a lot of areas, including the dogs.

Some things you can't cut corners on though, vet care etc. I agree with Dishmop about the flea treatment, I don't think it's necessary, but I do walk my dogs in woods and across fields, so I give it more for the ticks - I hate getting those suckers out:mad:

Dishmop, I'd love to have the confidence to vaccinate myself, but I'm not sure where you would buy the vaccine, let alone how much to give. My vet has my two on a three year cycle only giving certain vaccines every three years. I vaccininate for parvo every year though, we live by the coast and seals are big time carriers of parvo

SophieSakura

ISDW wrote: »

Where? Do you mean in some other countries, or parts of Ireland?

In some states in the US. Which I know kinda seems like it has nothing to do with anything, but they obviously think 4 dogs is enough for most people. Or maybe it's trying to stop dog fighting or something . . . ? I think 4 dogs is a lot, but for someone who really cares about dogs and can look after them, then it's fine