Thinking of Another Cairn

[Cybenator]

Our current carin (Cherokee) say that 3 times fast, will be 2 in March and we are considering a playmate. Probably a male to go with the female. Both will be fixed so breeding is not in the picture. The breeder we got Cherokee from current has 4 males available. Is it best to mix the sexes, or does it even matter if both are fixed?

My question is, we are concerned about how to keep them seperated during the day until the new pup can some what defend himself, or is this something we shouldn't be concerned with? We only crate at bed time and will have a shared area for both dogs durning the day while we are at work. How about feeding schedules? Currently we feed Cherokee once a day, but as a puppy it was twice a day. We waited time after her surgery before switching to adult food.

Are cairn generally gentle with pups, or should we keep an eye on both at all times? We realize there will be times wihen Cherokee will show her dominance, and ruff housing overcourse wil be the norm.

My wife works odd daytime hours, so only on rare occasion will they be left alone together longer than a few hours at a time.

[kayharley]

Cherokee is adorable!! And yes, do get another one

I have an 11 year old female, a 16 month female and a 4 month old male. They are all fixed except the pup and his day will be coming up soon.

I can't speak for other families of Cairns but I never had much of a problem with them all getting along. There have been some issues and a few minor tiffs but so far nothing to the point of aggression. My older one, Winnie, is the "alpha" (well, acutally I'm alpha but I let her think she is) Winnie gets fed first, she gets petted first. The middle child, Madison is far more active, still a puppy so she's the one I need to discipline most but she's very sensitive, intelligent and loving.

And then there's Elliott, the male pup. Poor chap stuck in a family of girls He's a darling, smart and has a great personality and disposition. I can't imagine my family without all of them...(and if hubby would let me, I'd get another)

I feed the two older ones twice a day and the pup eats three times.

All my dogs have their own crates but Winnie, the older one has free reign of the house. The most they are ever in their crates during the day is probably 2-3 hours.

As far as Cairns being gentle with puppies, I think it depends on the dog, it's upbringing and disposition. I do think it's important to make sure the new pup knows his/her place in the family. This way the puppy doesn't have the stress of finding her/himself.

[bradl]

Conventional wisdom (and some observation) seems to suggest it's nearly ideal to mix the sexes.

Different dogs are, er, different, but again observation seems to support the idea that puppies come with a 'puppy pass' that lets them get away with stuff (around their elders) that the elder dog would not otherwise tolerate. When the 'puppy pass' expires the adult generally makes it clear in no uncertain terms what the boundaries are for the juvenile. Unless the dogs simply don't get along from the get-go, I wouldn't look for problems in getting along.

I would consider crating them both, personally, as that keeps the mischief down and removes any possibility for them having a tag-team destructo derby on your house. I'd worry more about delinquency than them getting along. You could use a combination of baby-gate for them both, with the puppy confined to an ex-pen within the 'zone.' If you learn your puppy is a climber, you'll want a lid for the ex-pen, or go back to a crate.

Personally I think 2 is a fine age for Cherokee, too - she will have the energy to keep up with a demon pup and love having a puppy to teach the 'tricks of the trade' to. Bitches often seem to rule the roost, so even as a new male reaches challenging adolescence, he is unlikley to make a serious or dramatic bid for top dog. Most likely he will become a sweet boy as so many are.

Different folks will probably have different recommendations on transitioning the feeding schedule. We personally switch from 2 to 1 meal sometime between 6-12 months, based on nothing in particular.

[toomanypaws]

I have 3 females, 3 yrs, 1 yr, and almost 8 mths. Until recently I had to babygate my oldest from the youngest as my oldest took her role as alpha dog very seriously. When I first brought my youngest home, my oldest wasn't very tolerant of her. The middle one loved her! I had to be very careful when the 3 were together. I would babygate the oldest away from the pup when I couldn't watch them. We just returned from a week in a log cabin w/ our cairns. All 3 were together in the cabin w/o any growls and now that we're home, I can now let all 3 play together w/o my oldest going after the pup. We also have 2 large males (lab & aussie). My first cairn was a male rescue that attacked my lab every chance he got so we went w/ females and this has worked for us.

My 2 youngest are crated when I'm not home. I don't worry about them getting along while I'm away as much as I do destruction. My middle one is the chewer. If anything falls to the floor or is on the floor, it's hers.

For the 1st 6 mths, my pup was fed her extra meals in a port-a-crib away from the others. Now that they all only get 1 meal a day, I feed the 2 youngest ones in the kitchen and babygate the older one in the breakfast area.

Having 3 cairns may not be for everyone. There are times it gets hectic w/ barking and their demanding attitudes but I have grown to love these cairns so much that I honestly can't imagine life w/o any of them.

[hallswel]

Go for it. We got Rebel a friend, I wanted a Cairn but got over ruled. But to answer your question, Rebel was wonderful to his new baby brother Robi. When we left them alone they were both crated. Now Rebel is a little over 2 and Robi is 14 months and we leave them gated in our Florida room.

Believe it or not Rebel is not the agressive one, Robi is. Of course Rebel can very easily get the best of him so it does Robi no good and he never gets loved when he acts ugly. I think he is learning. One thing for sure Cairns are easier to train and catch on much quicker!

This was when Robi was 3 months

[Eliz222]

I have two females and they get along great. They have both been spayed and neither one is Alpha....at least I can't figure out which one is!

I had one breeder that refused to give me a female puppy because she believed that having two females together is not a good idea.

The breeder that I adopted Finch from has several females together and all of hers get along well.

I think it depends on the dogs, and I guess we were lucky. The breeder showed us how to introduce Scout to Finch on the first day and they have never had a fight. For the first few day Scout kept "standing" over Finch. I couldn't figure out why she was doing this, so I called the breeder. She said that Scout was showing her dominance over Finch and to just let her do it.

Scout was never rough with Finch and they have enjoyed playing with each other from day one. At the beginning their play was not fair because Finch could slide under the couch and Scout could not fit under! Scout could jump on the sofa, but Finch was not able. This gave each an opportunity to get away from each other, when needed! Finch was crated, and still is, when we are not home.

[Eliz222]

I forgot to add that we adopted Finch when Scout was 2 years old.

[bradl]

The breeder showed us how to introduce Scout to Finch on the first day and they have never had a fight.

Would you mind describing that process?

[Eliz222]

Brad, I don't know if this is what has kept them from fighting, but it was how we introduced Scout to Finch. We rubbed a towel on Finch's face and rear end. We took Scout to a neighbors house (in their backyard) and let Scout smell the towel. After a few min we brought over the puppy. She said that the smell of the puppy would be non threatening to Scout, and "meeting" for the first time, away from our house would be less stressful for Scout too. After about 15 min., we brought both of them into our yard and let them run around together. Scout spent most of the time sniffing Finch. We brought them into the house and haven't had any problems with them at all! We made sure that we fed Finch away from Scout and that we spent alot of time alone with Scout. The only "incident" we had was when Finch was about 3 months old and I was in the family room playing with both of them on the floor. Scout peed on the carpet for no reason! I just cleaned it up and continued to play with them. I THINK it's because of the puppy, but since she can't tell me, I'll never know!

[bradl]

That sounds like a good process and may prove helpful to folks integrating a new dog into their pack. Thanks!

[Mama Kim]

I would love another Cairn but I'm not sure I could handle another dog and three boys. Do any of you also have children at home and have more than one Cairn? My husband is gone during the week, and to be honest, it's all I can do to manage three boys and one dog.

[kgemind]

We adopted Sofia when Annie was 5; Sofia was about 18 months I think. I asked my vet before getting Sofia and he stressed not to do it! Boy, was he wrong! Annie is so mild mannered, Sofia has never interrupted Annie's domain. Sofia made herself right at home and have never regretted bringing her home. And yes I would like to adopt #3 soon. We want a dark female that we will name Dorie (after Toto's Dorothy). Let us know what you decide!

[toomanypaws]

Mama Kim, 3 cairns work fine for me but I only have 1 dd and she's a great help.

[Guest posting as: Darcys mom]

Cherokee is a precious girl. I love the wheaten color. Before our two previous "children" went to doggy heaven, we had a female and a male. We got the male, Toby, first as an 8 wk. old puppy and about three months later we decided he needed some company so we got our girl, Dustie, she was six wks. old. Toby was so mild mannered, he put up with almost anything from Dustie; they even ate out of the same food bowl which I understand is most unusual. They were both fixed so no problem there. We never had any dominance problems either. I guess we were lucky in that regard. I too never figured out if either one was the alpha dog. Again, it just depends on the temperment of the dogs. Obviously, other folks on this site have three Cairns and seem to have no problems. Now we have the one Cairn female (Darcy) and one mixed breed also female. They get along great.

[Mama Kim]

Thanks for answering my question, toomanypaws. I'm just afraid I'd be overwhelmed with three kids and two or more Cairns.

[kayharley]

To be honest...as much as I love and adore my three, there are times when I feel extremely overwhelmed keeping up with them. Luckily my youngest son is soon to be 18 (but no help, if you know what I mean) If I had small children at home, there is no way I would be able to handle more than one Cairn at a time!

Cairns are like kids, especially my younger two....they need attention, discipline, constant surveillance, monitoring, supervision.....I've been on vacation for the past 7 days and I'm totally exhausted!!

[Mama Kim]

My kids aren't itty-bitty any more but I still fear the situation would be more than I could handle. The twins are 10 and the oldest is 14. They are a big help with Piper, but one Cairn can get into so much mischief. I just cannot even imagine how much trouble two or more could cause! Yet, I keep thinking I'd like another Cairn. I think my instincts are correct, though. I think my house would be a three-ring circus with three boys and several Cairns. Expecially since my husband is gone on business for the majority of the week. It'd be me against the kids and the dogs. *sigh* I really love these little critters, though.

[kayharley]

My inner voice kept saying "Sandy, are you crazy wanting 3 Cairns?" My heart said, "Yes".

I've never regretted it no matter how tired I get, how many paper towels I go through, how many bottles of Natures Miracle are in the recycling bin and how many land mines I clean up in the yard everyday (and how many I step in )

It's all in their eyes.....the love, mischief, excitment, curiosity, mischief, ....

[Scully'sMom]

Well, I don't have kids, so I can't contribute much, but I can't help thinking that it must be like when someone has a bunch of kids. They must always say "How will I do it?" Yet, they do - and the majority do it well.

I think if you're meant to get another Cairn you'll just know when it's right.

[Guest Curious]

We are seriously considering adopting a rescue Cairn.

My question: Is there a certain age cut off for introducing a younger dog into a household with an older dog or does it depend on the older dog's personality?

Our female Cairn is almost 6 years old. She is very friendly with all people and very docile

She does sound like a ferocious beast when larger dogs are headed our way on a walk or when passing our home or in our yard.

However, we vacationed for one week this past summer with a pair of Westies who live together. We all took walks together, and there were no incidents. She even appeared to want to join in while they played together, but stood off to the side.

On one occasion, the male Westie did attack her. The attack appeared unprovoked. Although, the male Westie does have a "jealous streak". The female Westie also joined in. NO injuries occurred because we were keeping close watch over all of them.

She has since been extremely cautious of meeting other dogs her own size on our walks.

The bottom line: do you think I will be able to introduce another dog without problems?

I want everyone to be happy and safe. I do not want to traumatze my dog by bringing a new dog into the household. I also do not want to traumatize a rescue by bringing him into a new home, and then possibly having to return him if they did not get along!

I realize there will always be a transition period when introducing a new dog into a household. I would really like a companion for our existing dog, in addition to the joy a new dog would bring to us.

Any advice or resources anyone can offer would be greatly appreciated.

[CathyAnn]

Curious....we brought a new Cairn puppy, male, into our house to join our 12 year old female about a year and a half ago.

Your story sounds familiar with regard to the attack. While we were out on our evening stroll, another dog twice her size bolted from a garage and attacked her. Fortunately, she only sustained a cut on her nose. But, since then, she has been very reluctant of 'other' dogs.....can't say I blame her, though. This was a few years before we got the male pup. So, we weren't sure how she'd react.

Anyways....we went with a puppy rather than an older dog due to the 'dominance' issue. We felt like she might be able to handle a puppy rather than another adult dog. She was bigger, stronger and able to hold her own with him being small.

I am sure some will disagree with me, but it has worked out pretty well for us and them.

Let us know what you decide....and WELCOME!

Cathy

[bradl]

While I often recommend getting an older dog to folks (junior dogs are the best kept secret in dogdom in my opinion), I'd probably go with a puppy in your situation. More work for you, but would allow your girl more control over interaction, and their relationship would evolve over time as the pup matures.

[ParNone]

A lot of it depends on knowing your dog. I got a Collie puppy, when Murph and Maddie were both around 11 years old. I just knew based on their history that they weren't going to do well with an adult, small dog with dominant leanings. They especially didn't like other terriers, so I narrowed my list down to Collies and Goldens and ended up with at 9 week old Collie puppy.

I approached it with the philosophy that they were going to help raise Oz and I really never had much issue with them all getting along. He learned right quick to follow their rules or else some hair yanking was in store for him from Maddie.

I will say it has been more chaotic with 2 young Collies and 1 Senior Cairn, then it was with 2 Senior Cairns and 1 young Collie. Never know what'll happen with the new mixture to the pack, I guess. I probably would have gotten another Cairn after Maddie passed, if Murph could have gotten along with'em, because when it was 1 Collie and 1 Cairn, things was very harmonious.

Les...