Two Cavalier King Charles ... home alone?

Hello all,

I am new to this group and thought that maybe someone here might be able to
help me with some advice. I am thinking of getting two Cavalier King Charles
Spaniel puppies in a few weeks, but wondered if this is a good idea when I
work every day and will therefore need to leave them alone. They will
obviously have each other's company, and I can set up the house so that they
have easy access to both indoors and outside, where there is a good-szed
yard - but will they be company enough for each other, with me gone most of
the working day? If I get them, I plan to have a few weeks' leave from work
so that I can settle them in and, hopefully, train them to be accustomed to
me leaving them for a a stretch of time each day.

Any insights or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

flick...

Give some thought to making sure they will be *very secure* when they're out
in the yard while you are gone. IMO if it's possible for them to have a
yard or play area where they aren't visible from the street or sidewalk,
that would be ideal.

Dogs can get into trouble when they aren't supervised - digging under a
fence comes to mind. Also, a cute young purebred dog might attract the
attention of a thief. Perhaps that doesn't happen where you live, but it's
not at all rare here.

If you can do it, it might be better to have a trusted neighbor allow them
out in the yard several times a day, then put them back in the house.

flick 100785

Ian (Australia).

FurPaw...

Despite all advice to the contrary, two at once can be done. My
intuition is that the larger the breed, the more difficult it is
to train and manage them.

We raised 2 chihuahua pups, litter mates, M and F. Gordo and
Chile were bonded to each other, but they also bonded well to us.
We made sure that each of us handled and trained each one of
them, separately, so that they were not together 100% of the time
and each had alone time with each of us. We also worked, and
they were home together all day. For the first year, one of us
came home at noon everyday to let them out. They had free run of
the house once they were potty-trained and stopped showing any
inclination to chew on shoes, furniture, or power cords.

It was double the trouble, but also double the fun. They were
delightful together. They played a lot, right up through middle
age, and as they got older they snuggled together (when not on a
lap), regularly groomed and washed each other's face and ears,
and rushed in tandem to the fence to scare off any passers-by.

We were concerned when Gordo died this year that Chile would
mourn excessively, but she adapted quickly (she is by far the
more independent of the two). At 15.5, she's still going strong.

So I don't know if it's the best idea, but it worked well for us.

Paula...

I think the key here is how you handle it and how much you are willing
to put into it. If you are willing and able to do all the one on one
work and the putting up with the trouble that you did, it can work
out, but it will still be harder than one at a time. I personally

Ian P...

Many thanks for your collective advice on this. I have certainly been warned
by others of the risks of bringing up two puppies at the same time. I'm just
trying to balance those risks with the benefits for the puppies - less
separation anxiety, in particular. I think I'm ready for the risks. I've

Julia Altshuler...

While separation anxiety is certainly a problem for some dogs, I
wouldn't make the leap that that it is a risk for every puppy you bring
home. I have limited experience, but I got my first puppy when she was
10 weeks and started leaving her alone from the moment I got her home.
She did a certain amount of puppy chewing, grew out of it, and never had
a problem when she got older. The dog I have now has never been
destructive in the house. We leave her alone whenever we need to go
out, and she shows no evidence of doing anything more than sleeping on
the couch while we're gone, no neurotic barking, nothing.

I guess I'm trying to say that while there are solutions to behavior
problems like separation anxiety, and while getting 2 dogs at once is a
solution to separation anxiety, it doesn't make sense to assume that
every dog will have every behavior problem from the get go.

raised a number of dogs in the past, at one stage bringing up three
together, all of whom had had troubled pasts and behaviour problems as a
result. That was certainly a handful, but I ultimately, I think, managed to
get them more or less into some sort of order.

I'm by no means an expert, but I feel reasonably confident about meeting the
challenges, and am certainly aware of how much work and time will be needed.
But, not having had CKCS before, my main concern was whether or not they
would be okay with each other's company through the day, or if that breed in
particular needs human company in addition to canine company.

Anyway, thanks again for your insights and comments.

have a hard time with even one puppy at a time and so do most other
people judging by the people who come here for advice and the real
world puppy owners I know.

I still say the best way to get the best of both worlds is to adopt an
adult who is already started, if not finished, on training and then
get a puppy if you want two dogs who can entertain each other while
you are out. I do agree that if you are not home all day, it is nice
for most dogs to have a companion. OTOH, I have had at least one dog
who would have much preferred to be an only dog and just lie around
while I was gone in exchange for not having to share me or put up with
other dogs when I was home.