Second Dog

Officer Giggles

I have a 14 month old intact male Newfoundland since he was a pup, my GF's neighbour recently split from his wife and now he is looking for a new home for his 10 month old intact male Dog de Bordeaux. Would love to take him but not sure how they would get on as iv never had two dogs before. I know they have two different energy levels so am concerned my Newfie although still only young mightnt be able to keep up with the his french friend. I know about the introducing them on neutral ground and give them more time together bit by bit but what do you guys think about it all.

Cheers

yeppydeppy

They will work out amongst themselves which is top dog - as long as they both know you're alpha male.

andreac

They really are chalk and cheese when it comes to energy levels. Your newfie will have seriously more energy than the DDB. They are quite lazy dogs and wouldnt be able for the same amount of exercise that a newfie would.

I cant see why they wouldnt get on but it could mean that you might have to walk them separately due to energy levels. Not sure if i would mix the 2 for this reason..

Oh i recommend you get at least one of them neutered if you do take him on. 2 Intact males can be trouble so i would highly advise it.

tazdogue

I have a DDB, such a gem of a dog. You'll love the short coat!!!! They are such slobs and i bet your GF will fall in love with him. Both dogs are relatively young so they should be ok but make sure you introduce them in a neutral environment. Ask to bring him out with you for a few walks with the new foundland and see how they get on.

Groom!

You could even go so far as to try the dog on a couple of sleepovers, along with the walks, so that the dogs really have a chance to get to know each other well before you commit 100%

I love both those breeds!

Officer Giggles

the two boys met this evening and the DDB was not impressed at all, he is a lovely fella and didnt mind me and the GF rubbing him, he did have an awful habit of jumping up but nothing that couldnt be fixed, he went fairly hard at my Newfie and nipped him on the muzzle a couple of times, my fella did his usual stand there staring back at the other dog wondering what the hell he was doing, once i put my fella back in the car the DDB calmed back down and was grand, the DDB is chained up in the garden by himself and i presume hasnt been too well sozialised with others, think it might be alot of hassle mixing these two lads together, im willing to put in the time to get my newfie together with a new friend but this would probably put me under too much pressure for my level of doggie experience

The Sweeper

Yeah, a badly socialised DDB is not a dog for a newbie owner, best intentions aside. (Any giant dog with poor behavioural skills is a lot of work, even though new owners have to start somewhere and involving a good behaviourist is very helpful, but two dogs...) Breaking up a proper scrap between him and your newfie could be like trying to halt a landslide - wouldn't fancy it myself.

Suggest to your neighbour that he contacts the DDB's breeder and requests help finding a new home for the dog. If he says 'what breeder' or 'I bought him off some bloke in a carpark' or somesuch, then you're best off steering well clear of the poor DDB as he'll probably bankrupt you in vet bills in the next two years as he reaches maturity and health issues start appearing.

marley123

DDB are beautiful dogs BUT they do need a home experienced with the Breed.
As The Sweeper said the best thing to do is contact the breeder & he/she should be able to help.. Will pm you a link to a DDB Group - UK based but they may be able to offer some solid advice..
& it goes without saying make sure the owner doesn't advertise the dog on the "free sites" - as the dog is intact god knows where he would end up

Officer Giggles

thanks for the link marley il get my GF to pass it on to the owner, he got the DDB off of a breeder alright he said he has all the papers and stuff.... yea im going to have to give this fella a miss i feel it would just be way too much hard work and dont think id even know how to deal with the DDB properly

andreac

Why doesnt he contact the breeder and ask them to take the dog back?

Officer Giggles

think he was probably seeing if anyone in the GF's area wanted him but thats isnt looking likely so as far as i can see the breeder is his only option

tazdogue

As an owner of a DDB i know how powerful they can be. Saying that mine can be walked by my 2 year old son on the lead (obviously not near any roads or traffic) without a single issue and you can see him even glancing to make sure he isnt pulling too hard on the lead at times. I have seen aggressive behaviour in other DDBs and they are an extremely powerful dog, no way would i even attempt to let my missus walk a DDB if i taught there was a hint of a chance that they'd kick off.
I would think that the dog in question just needs a bit of socialising, they are in general a very passive gentle dog with the biggest hearts you'll come across (I know thats a bit bias but ive never come across anything like them).
They do need to be socialised and trained properly as any dog with their size and power could be lethal.