Thinking of Adopting a Companion for Your Frenchie??

Then you MUST read this...Continued...

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When people see this picture of our boys ‘spooning’ on the couch after a long afternoon at the dog park, we immediately get the “ooohhhs” and “ahhhhs” and the “oh, I want a second dog” comments. This picture is the reason we opted to get a second dog; a lifelong companion for our first dog and these priceless moments with our babies.

Let me start off by stating in what capacity I can speak; I am no Cesar Milan by any means, but I am not a novice dog owner either.  I would like to consider myself a smidgen more knowledgeable than the average dog owner. I have never lived a day of my life without a dog. My dogs have always been well behaved and trained to know the human beings in the house were in charge. We always adopted “mutts” from the local rescue agencies, dogs which came with all different types of issues; skin disorders, social anxiety, aggression, cancer – you name it, my family went through it. To that end, I feel I can call myself an experienced dog owner.

As many dogs as we had over the years, we never had more than one dog living under the same roof at the same time. When we decided to add a second Frenchie to our home, we honestly thought it would be a piece of cake. Our first Frenchie, Maximus, was very well socialized. From the time he was 10 weeks old, he was in obedience classes with 15 other dogs, he was in day care 3 days a week, we frequented the dog parks, went to Frenchie meet up groups, he was well behaved and responsive while walking in the city with tons of distractions and people. He absolutely thrived while in the company of his four legged companions. He loved the company of other dogs so much so, that it was a no-brainer for my husband and me to start looking for a second Frenchie that needed a good home.

Here were our basic assumptions during the adoption decision. We will be completely honest and candid; laugh at us if you must, but I would bet a week’s pay that many of you out there who are considering a second dog are making much the same assumptions.  

1)  Since Maximus is a very confident dog; the alpha in the park, at day care, the take charge Frenchie that was a force to be reckoned with (in a good way), there was no doubt in our mind, our little frog would be the alpha when the new dog arrived. Plus, this was Maximus’ house first, he should be in charge.

2)   Maximus and the new dog will be best buddies within a week.

3)  It would be so neat to own two Frenchies since so many people marvel at our one!  Most people who love Frenchies own more than one, and so should we! How hard could it be if we already have one? Same schedule, same food – just a few more minutes a day, a few extra cups of food a week.

4)  When we are not home, Maximus will have a friend. Also, they will play so much at home and in the yard, they will require fewer trips to the dog park and we can nix the extra lap around the block.

The Decision was Made – We Started Searching for our New Frenchie

After months of searching and being extremely selective of the dogs we applied for, Bruce jumped out at us from the computer screen. I came home from work on a Friday afternoon, logged onto the French Bulldog Village, looked at my husband and said – “this is him! I know it”. I was smitten from first sight and was so excited that his name was Bruce, which is my father’s middle name. I sat for two hours filling out our application making sure I had every piece of information filled out properly. I was bound and determined to adopt this dog!

Maximus’ first glimpse of his new brother

After a lengthy process and weeks of hoping, we were blessed to be chosen for Bruce; we were absolutely ecstatic!! We immediately headed out to buy toys, a bed, bowls, a collar and a few baby gates – all the fun stuff to welcome our new baby. We counted the days until we could bring him home. We read every website and article on how to introduce the pups for the first time – we had the game plan – we were ready, or so we thought.

Our Boys’ First Meeting

Maximus and Bruce met leashed on neutral territory, and then we allowed Bruce to sniff around the house without Maximus around, and then vice versa. We showed Bruce his food dishes, his new comfy bed, his toys, bones, etc. We set up baby gates so we could have them separated when we were not home. We did all the right things right.  We did all the things people and websites tell you to do.  Well. I apparently missed the chapters on what happens next, and what our game plan should be when you bring two adult dogs together…the jealousy, anxiety, fighting, growling etc. I briefly remember seeing these topics in the articles I was reading, but skimmed those paragraphs. Maixmus was not an aggressive or jealous dog, he didn’t care that I petted other dogs or even when other family dogs came over to play and took his toys – he could have cared less. We had had four legged friends in our home and yard before, and Maximus had loved it.  Bruce’s current owner had four dogs, so we knew that Bruce was socialized and calm around other dogs. From what Bruce’s owner told me, Bruce was picked on by his housemates, so he would be submissive to our pup. Maximus had never had a fight in his life, he would not get aggressive with the new dog, and he would undoubtedly be the alpha, so we would not have fights.

WRONG WRONG WRONG!

Within the first 48 hours after Bruce’s arrival, it was mass chaos in our home. We had six fights and I was at my wits’ end. Every time we took down a baby gate to try to get them to mingle, we had a fight within five minutes, we were constantly walking on eggshells. I could not figure out what the problem was. We took up all the toys, took up the food dishes, we stopped petting either dog, walked them for HOURS, literally HOURS, those first two days to walk away their anxiety, and nothing worked. Defeated and desperate, I reached out to Charlotte Creeley, one of the co-founders of the French Bulldog Village. With my tail between my legs and my pride in the gutter, I asked Charlotte if I could bring Bruce to her house for an evaluation, to see if he was the aggressor and if I had an aggressive dog on my hands. Within five minutes of meeting Bruce she said, “he is just a very alpha dog and will not back down, he has no reason to start fights, but he will end them if provoked”. I was flabbergasted to think my little Maximus would provoke a fight – Bruce seemed to be the one getting the better of the two, therefore I had convinced myself, incorrectly, that Bruce was the antagonizer. Charlotte gave me some tips, encouragement, a pat on the head and sent me on my way; this time prepared and with a game plan for stage 2.

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