Like many couples with one young child, musicians Timothy Long, 44, and Christopher Herbert, 31, often wonder if their darling daughter Pumpkin, 2, needs a sibling. She’s incredibly social, loves having her friends over — “they wrestle for hours” — and gets anxious when left alone. “She’s so dependent on me for company,” says Long. “We’re just waiting until we move and get more space.”
Pumpkin isn’t a precocious toddler. She’s an energetic basset hound mix the pair rescued from the streets of Bushwick nearly two years ago; they’ve spent the past several months browsing adoption Web sites and debating whether or not to get a second dog.
Just as city parents deliberate over the practicality of adding another baby to the brood in a metropolis where space is limited and day care prices high, so do the city’s dog owners. That’s with good reason, says Andrea Arden, the director of Andrea Arden Dog Training. That old adage about how it’s as easy to have two dogs as it is one? “Absolutely not true,” she says. “That’s like saying it’s as easy to have two children.”
Not only are there the obvious practical matters like higher vet and kibble bills but, depending on their ages and breeds, doggy siblings may not be on the same walk schedule or even belong in the same dog park. And, while two pooches living in the same household can potentially be great playmates and help alleviate an owner’s guilt, there’s also the potential a first and second dog might not get along. “Do not get a second dog for your dog, you should get it because you want a second dog,” she says. But, the first mutt’s age and temperament should be a big consideration. “A second dog has a huge impact on the first’s life and happiness.”
She recounts one horror story of two wealthy West Highland white terriers who couldn’t stand to be within 30 feet of each other in their Fifth Avenue townhouse and had seriously injured each other in fights. She worked with the contentious canines for months to no avail.
Sometimes, she says “you can do all the training you want, and two dogs just don’t want to be near each other.” Fortunately, the dogs’ owner had a second home in California, and one of the dogs was relocated to the West Coast.
Some owners even seek psychic help to prevent doggy family drama. Shira Plotzker, a medium and pet communicator in Nyack, NY, says she regularly has clients call her wanting to know if their dog would want another pet around. “They’ll say, ‘Tell Mommy I want to be the only one,’ ” she says, “or ‘Tell Mommy I want a friend.’ ”
Of course, there are plenty of canine siblings living in peace in New York apartments. Adam Marsh, 39, and his wife, Kay Kikuchi, 37, were hesitant to get another dog in their village home after they’d had such a great experience raising Astor, a 5-year-old Pomeranian. “I just felt like we did so well with the first one,” he says. “I was really nervous.”
All his fears were quickly overridden last summer when he saw a Chihuahua-dachshund mix outside of the Union Square Petco in need of a home. “When you’re looking at these strays, it’s like that terrible Sarah McLachlan video,” he says, referencing the singer’s heart-wrenching campaign for the SPCA.
Drawn in by the dog’s big eyes and woeful tale of being found in a garbage bag after someone literally threw him out, he took the dog home for a test run with Astor that went “pretty well.” They named the “Chiweenie” — as the mix is called — Cooper and he quickly found his place in the household.
“Astor is definitely the boss,” Marsh says, and he and his wife “definitely have his and her dogs.” Astor is more attached to Mom while Dad and Cooper share a special bond. Father and doggy-son even competed in a 5K together last month and they came in fifth place, averaging around an 8-minute-mile pace — not bad given that Cooper weighs just 6 pounds. Astor’s been a good sport and never snapped at his younger brother. “They get along really well,” Marsh says. “No regrets . . . Cooper’s a great addition to the family.”