We celebrated our one year anniversary with Brewer two weekends ago, and I have to say it has been an amazing experience owning our first Husky. Mastering obedience class without breaking a sweat, navigating the neighboring creeks and lakes, exploring the local trails and river bottoms, pulling shoulders out of their sockets chasing after any number of ducks, foxes, and squirrels, tearing it up at the dog parks, the countless zoomies, the howls, and the general goofy and energetic behavior we have all fallen in love with.

Brewer's HIstory: Found running wild in Ely, MN at the age of ~2.5yrs. Rescued by MUSHR, fostered by one of Emily's friends from high school, and adopted by Emily and I 3-4 weeks later. Gets along with all humans friend or foe, very sociable with dogs regardless of size or gender (only one dog did not agree with Brewer), moderate to high energy levels, stuborn as all hell, and stuck to Emily's hip.

Something we have had to deal with since the day we adopted him, is that Brewer has a pretty bad case of separation anxiety. We have tried practically everything , and yes we have seen substantial improvements over the year. Problem being that he still randomly has a bad day in the kennel. We have tried not kenneling with mixed results, but the bad outweigh the good in our experience.

He is a healthy dog, with plenty of energy, and a good appetite. We haven't observed any changes in his behavior, so we are finding ourselves a bit stumped as to why he is having a sudden increase in bad days.

With that said, we are considering the possibility of adding a second dog so Brewer can have a buddy / companion. I've done a bit of searching on the site, and have found a couple helpful threads discussing the pros and cons of adding a second.

What I am looking for is if any members have found themselves in similar situations, what decision they made, and how it worked out? What were the key characteristics you looked for in the 2nd dog? Any other related feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Oh, and Brewer says hi

Getting a second, was the best thing I ever did for Delilah.

Also interested in what the opinions are. Has anyone noted any changes in obedience in their original dog when adding a second?

We got our 2nd when Koda turned 4 and he was where we really liked his temperament and manners. It was not a completely planned decision, though. It's the best decision I ever made. He is still extremely well behaved and taught Rogue appropriate manners- we had no issues raising her as she just mimicked Koda. Only change in Koda is he has a lot more playful puppy moments and is just overall happier. He is just as obedient. Rogue was 9 weeks, though, an older rescue probably works differently.

Mine are all definitely a lot happier in a pack. We got Zoey when Embry was a little over a year, and we got Ares when Zoey was 2, and Embry was 2.5.

If you're happy with were Brewer is training wise then I'd go with it. Just for the record, Embry had HORRIBLE separation anxiety from 10 weeks till we got Zoey. We couldn't kennel him at all because he'd injure himself. He destroyed $3000 in carpet in the first 3 months we had him. We haven't had one issue with him now that there are other dogs with him at home, we even can kennel him now and he is calm. Hopefully you'd get similar results with Brewer.

For a second dog, I knew for sure that I wanted a female, but I didn't want a puppy. Zoey was perfect, we got her at 4 months completely house broken and crate trained, which is what we were looking for.

I think your situation is really going to depend on if you rescue an older dog, rescue a puppy, or get a puppy from a breeder.

Ripley fell into our lap. She needed a home, we were close enough, and we really didn't foresee the reason why she should be put in a shelter or rescue if we could take her in until we found her a better home....

Our main concern getting Ripley was that she could not upset the balance of the house, and had to connect with Tika. It may sound selfish, but at the time and not knowing Ripley, Tika was our top priority. Though we didn't care about their personal Hierarchy, we didn't want Tika lose anything in getting a new dog.

We obviously still have her and would NOT give her up for anything.

The pros FAR out weight the cons.... in fact besides the fact I now have to buy 2 times the food and pick up 2 times the dog crap I can't think of a single other bad thing.... They have become thick as thieves and when one gets up the other follows. I don't believe we could separate them now if we wanted to. Tika is connected to Ripley's side and is always trying to play with her and though Ripley is more relaxed about the whole thing she protects Tika like they have been together since birth.


Training was never an Issue.... Ripley came to us at 4.5 years old with very little in terms of manners or training, or at least for our high expectations.

Having Tika there however seemed to show her right away that we could be and should be listened to... There was a level of trust to work off of because of how much Tika respected us. Tika helped be a role model for her and would try and show her where she was miss stepping.

Ripley now has a very firm grasp of basic obedience, she however knows very little in terms of tricks and we don't plan on teaching her many. That being said watching her get and start doing "PAW" pretty much from simply watching Tika do it was impressive.



The first 2 or so Months were NOT easy.... it was a trail every day and exhausting. She needed to learn who we were and we needed to learn who she was.... There was a lot of training to do in terms of just social behaviour.... She is know one of the happiest Pups I think I have ever had.

And let me just say.... A Full on Husky wrestling match is one of the best things to watch in the world.... I'm constantly in awe and captivated by them rough housing.


IF we had to Decide on taking her in all over again there would be no hesitation and we have ZERO regrets.

~Chris~

ETA - There was also ZERO resentment from either pup during the whole process.... As far as Tika was concerned she was happy as could be because she had someone to play with, and as far as Ripley was concerned, well she was going through enough as it is but never took it out on Tika or us.

Mya had horrible separation anxiety until she was about 2 years old. We didn't get Kody until she was 4 years old and had already gotten over it, but Kody never had separation anxiety and we got him at 12 weeks. Neither has Asia. I think it's because they always had other dogs in the house.

I, personally, think it's a great idea. Having more than one is the way to go! They entertain each other and Chris is right....a full blown husky wrestling match is awesome! I sit there and watch them until they're done (sometimes it's a long time..lol).

Now with Mya, we had to get a puppy because she's a total alpha dog and couldn't have another dog challenging her. Kody and Asia both completely respect her so it works out. If Brewer gets along with other dogs then I don't see why you would have any issues.

Good luck!

Jennet&Embry wrote:

...We haven't had one issue with him now that there are other dogs with him at home, we even can kennel him now and he is calm. Hopefully you'd get similar results with Brewer.

For a second dog, I knew for sure that I wanted a female, but I didn't want a puppy. Zoey was perfect, we got her at 4 months completely house broken and crate trained, which is what we were looking for.

I think your situation is really going to depend on if you rescue an older dog, rescue a puppy, or get a puppy from a breeder.

Jennet -

That is exactly right. We are hoping that a 2nd dog will have a calming effect on Brewer while he is in the kennel. We helped out MUSHR a little while back, where we too care of a 1.5-2yr old female, and he did great!

Like you, we are leaning towards a female that has already proven to be house broken and crate trained. This could be difficult since we will be dealing with a rescue, but they have always been extremely helpful and supportive. I have no doubt in my mind that MUSHR would work with us to find the "perfect" match, it just might take some time.

Tika wrote:

...Our main concern getting Ripley was that she could not upset the balance of the house, and had to connect with Tika....

... Tika is connected to Ripley's side and is always trying to play with her and though Ripley is more relaxed about the whole thing she protects Tika like they have been together since birth...

.... A Full on Husky wrestling match is one of the best things to watch in the world.... I'm constantly in awe and captivated by them rough housing... .

Chris, thank you for your response. I think you bring up a very good point in that it is extremely important that the 2nd dog does not upset the balance at home. More importantly, the two must connect with one another in a positive manner. And yes, observing two huskies rough house is quite the experience. We took care of a 1.5yr old male a few months ago, and watching them interact with one another was very interesting to say the least.

MelissaI wrote:

...I, personally, think it's a great idea...Now with Mya, we had to get a puppy because she's a total alpha dog and couldn't have another dog challenging her. Kody and Asia both completely respect her so it works out. If Brewer gets along with other dogs then I don't see why you would have any issues.

Good luck!

Thanks Melissa. Our only bad experience with another dog was while we were at a foster home checking out a 1yr old male who had a bit of an alpha streak in him. Brewer didn't appreciate a younger dog giving him attitude, and the 1yr old foster wanted Brewer out of his way immediately. Needless to say, we are going to have to be very mindful of this experience when picking out Brewer's buddy.

Thanks for all of the feedback thus far. It is greatly appreciated!

if you feel like its the right time, it is.
we only had Sierra for a month before we jumped for a 2nd, reason, sierra NEEDED a friend. she was stuck to my hip and we thought she was sad. being a breeding dog she was always around other huskies and i think she really missed that. We were also going to be getting married in a few months and hated the thought of sending her to a dog sitter alone and thinking she was headed to a new home ( we were her 4th!) so we contacted a husky rescue, we wanted to find a husky SHE liked not what we liked. going with a rescue we were able to sample a ton of huskies at one time and feel them out together. we brought in i think 5-6 huskies closer to her age and they could care less about each other, we brought in the only red they had who was about a 1yr at the time ( younger then we wanted) but they gelled right away and were hunting a mouse in the house before we left with who we renamed Jack. if you are going a puppy route then your gonna have to just see if Brewer will put up with a puppy. but since your worried about the separation anxiety finding a husky over a yr old might be your best bet. go to a rescue if you can so that you can "sample" the dogs out together and see what Brewer thinks, just know that that what you may want may not be with he wants/needs and be prepared for that. i think getting him a friend would be great, and yes he will show his good manners to the new dog but that new dog may show brewer some bad traits as well, nothing you cant fix though let us know how it go.

I would go along with whatever one else has state. A second dog is really good for the first dog.

We got Kerian about 6 months ago they guess she was just past 2 years a bit older than Blaze who turned 2 in October. Kerian did have some bad habits which she is getting better with all the time. Blaze has taught her some household rules or manners. Blaze also has taught some of his back habits to her an d she has taught some to him. It is work in progress but I would not trade either one of them.

It is fun to watch Husky wrestling match daily or so we get them here. I also enjoy watching the zoomies when they do them together chasing each other.

I had my Lab Ruby first, she was about 9 months when we decided to get Balon (I always wanted a choc lab, hubby always wanted a purebred Husky, we had several husky mixes lol). It worked out great. Both love to run around, both are young, so they are best buds. So far there has never been a fight, just play play play!

jbealer wrote:

...we wanted to find a husky SHE liked not what we liked. going with a rescue we were able to sample a ton of huskies at one time and feel them out together. ...just know that that what you may want may not be with he wants/needs and be prepared for that...

We would be working with a rescue that is based out of a vet right down the street from me, and I think you hit the nail on the head with saying that "what you may want may not be what he wants".

Thanks for the input Jennifer, always appreciated.

I've been watching Luna at Mushr, she's gorgeous
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/24251393

Jennet&Embry wrote:

I've been watching Luna at Mushr, she's gorgeous
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/24251393

Yes, we have been paying attention to Luna as well. What are you waiting for??? You could use a fourth

We probably should talk with MUSHR about getting her description updated

MicroBrewer wrote:

Jennet&Embry wrote:

I've been watching Luna at Mushr, she's gorgeous
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/24251393

Yes, we have been paying attention to Luna as well. What are you waiting for??? You could use a fourth

We probably should talk with MUSHR about getting her description updated

Hahah, no way. 3 is more then enough well for the OH at least

Jennet&Embry wrote:

MicroBrewer wrote:

Jennet&Embry wrote:

I've been watching Luna at Mushr, she's gorgeous
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/24251393

Yes, we have been paying attention to Luna as well. What are you waiting for??? You could use a fourth

We probably should talk with MUSHR about getting her description updated

Hahah, no way. 3 is more then enough well for the OH at least

Oh, sure sure...I will be sure to have them contact you asap about a potential adoption

Anywho, maybe we will look into introducing Luna to Brewer this weekend!?!?

MicroBrewer wrote:

Jennet&Embry wrote:

MicroBrewer wrote:

Jennet&Embry wrote:

I've been watching Luna at Mushr, she's gorgeous
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/24251393

Yes, we have been paying attention to Luna as well. What are you waiting for??? You could use a fourth

We probably should talk with MUSHR about getting her description updated

Hahah, no way. 3 is more then enough well for the OH at least

Oh, sure sure...I will be sure to have them contact you asap about a potential adoption

Anywho, maybe we will look into introducing Luna to Brewer this weekend!?!?

YAY Pictures or it never happened though obviously

Jennet&Embry wrote:

MicroBrewer wrote:

Jennet&Embry wrote:

MicroBrewer wrote:

Jennet&Embry wrote:

I've been watching Luna at Mushr, she's gorgeous
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/24251393

Yes, we have been paying attention to Luna as well. What are you waiting for??? You could use a fourth

We probably should talk with MUSHR about getting her description updated

Hahah, no way. 3 is more then enough well for the OH at least

Oh, sure sure...I will be sure to have them contact you asap about a potential adoption

Anywho, maybe we will look into introducing Luna to Brewer this weekend!?!?

YAY Pictures or it never happened though obviously

Turns out Luna is not crate trained...bummer.

You can train her!!

Delilah wasn't either, but she was easy. Now, I don't even bother crating her. She isn't a butthead late Cato.

mheath0429 wrote:

You can train her!!

Delilah wasn't either, but she was easy. Now, I don't even bother crating her. She isn't a butthead late Cato.

Very true, just not sure if I am ready to put myself in the position of having two busted up crates and twice the amount of damage in my house. We have been in communication with MUSHR the past couple days, so we will see what they have to say. I'd like to get out to the dog park tomorrow...maybe we will see if Luna is available.

Side Note - If anyone wants to take a road trip to MN and deliver this girl to me I will make sure you have your fill of our local food and beer scene!!!

http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/20507803