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Frequent Contributor
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Registered: ‎12-05-2011

I would love to hear from any sheltie lovers that have more than one. We are in the process of bringing home a little brother or sister for our 19 month old male sheltie, and I have been told this should be pretty easy, but any tips on this would be appreciated because our little Kelsey has been the king of the house up to this time. TIA

Respected Contributor
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Registered: ‎03-11-2010

I'm a Sheltie lover, but our Sheltie died some time ago, and we didn't have more than one, so I don't qualify to answer your question, but here I am anyway! LOL

How fun to have two Shelties. They are such beautiful dogs. Do some internet searches as to how to introduce the two dogs. I have read that your dog should meet the new pup on neutral ground somewhere, but not sure about that. You want as smooth a transition as possible to keep things happy at home. Good luck, and let us know how it goes.

Here's one link just to show you: http://www.petmd.com/dog/training/evr_introducing_a_new_dog_to_a_resident_dog

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Registered: ‎03-16-2010
I am a Sheltie lover. I once brought a puppy home when my girl was 6 years old and she thought she had a baby. It was so cute, she took care of the puppy and corrected her as if she was her own. Shelties are such docile dogs really. in 2012 I decided that my Sheltie needed a friend. She was 3 and I found my puppy. We took a 9 hour drive to get the puppy and we brought our 3 year old. She loves to travel and stays nicely in a hotel. So she met the new puppy and the Sheltie parents. She was a little reserved at the house and I don't think she really realized that we had a puppy until we got home. She did fine with the puppy and now they are fast friends. I am glad that I did it when I did. My puppy/who is now a little bigger than my older one is about playing and they run and have lots of fun. Both are females and I take them to agility. I call them "my girls" and they live up to that name nicely. I just love them so much. With a new Sheltie just make sure you socialize it as much as you can when it is young. I have had 9 Shelties and they are all different and the same too. However, my puppy was very shy and afraid of loud noises, the garbage truck, etc. I really had to socialize her or she would have been snappy. I got her at 8 weeks too so it was not something that happened to her, I don't think. I just think the fear was bred into her. Fear is not a desirable trait in a Sheltie. I know that but I worked with her for a long time. The Agility has helped her a lot. I love them both. My older one is a Sable and White and my younger one is a Blue Merle. She is cute with a Blue Eye and a Brown eye. She is the first I have ever had that was not a Sable and White. I have a lot of Sheltie experience and training experience so if you have any questions just give me a shout out and I will try and help.
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Posts: 88
Registered: ‎12-05-2011

Thank you happy gal and conlt for responding, and happy gal I am so sorry that you lost your Sheltie, I feel your pain as I too have lost a precious pet. I am feeling a little bit of anxiety about this venture because of course I want both babies to be happily adjusted, but I have found a friend that runs a Sheltie rescue who is helping me, and another Sheltie owner ( she has 6 ) who has offered to advise me, and now I have met you, conlt, who I can also call on, I am hopefull with so many in my corner that this will all work out in the end. I will let you know how it all goes. Be blessed.

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Posts: 88
Registered: ‎12-05-2011

Conlt I loved reading about your girls, and how they were introduced, you have had 9 Shelties, when I mentioned to someone that I wanted to get another Sheltie they said that they were like potato chips, you cannot just have one, and of course she has 5 of them!

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Registered: ‎06-22-2010

I don't own any Shelties, but I think they're beautiful!

Don't cry for a man who's left you--the next one may fall for your smile.
-- Mae West
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Registered: ‎03-11-2010

I have a Westie now, another fun dog for sure. But when I see people walking Shelties, with their little prancy way of walking, their smooth muzzles and sweet faces, it reminds me of the dog we had as our kids grew up.

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On 4/10/2014 share said:

Conlt I loved reading about your girls, and how they were introduced, you have had 9 Shelties, when I mentioned to someone that I wanted to get another Sheltie they said that they were like potato chips, you cannot just have one, and of course she has 5 of them!

Yes, I have had 9. My family got our first one is 1976 and we have been smitten ever since. I have had all Females but both my sisters and my brother have had males. All have been equally nice. I have adopted older ones, I have had Puppies and I have had a few given to me. Your Shelties will do fine because that is just how they are. It may take a short time to adjust. This last time when I got my puppy in 2012, I was afraid because my Halo is so attached to me and was the queen bee. Halo still is the queen bee but she loves having Abby around. It was also easier to train Abby because she basically copied Halo. In fact, before I took Abby to Puppy School, I taught her to sit, come, lay down, stay and to walk on a loose leash. Halo had a blast doing these tasks with her for a treat. I am so glad that I did take the plunge and get Abby because they are so active that I thought that Halo needed a friend. I just love to watch them run together and play in the yard. I also think Abby is keeping Halo more "fit" although Halo was never lazy. I have had up to 3 at a time and they always got along.
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When we finished Puppy School Abby won the final competition by being the dog that could "go to her place" from the furthest distance. Abby won 6 weeks of Canine Good Citizen School which is a $120 value. So we went through that and she earned her AKC Canine Good Citizen Certificate at 9 months. Halo has her AKC Canine Good Citizen Certificate too but it took me a lot longer to train Halo. Maybe because Halo was so spoiled, she got away with everything.
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On 4/10/2014 conlt said: When we finished Puppy School Abby won the final competition by being the dog that could "go to her place" from the furthest distance. Abby won 6 weeks of Canine Good Citizen School which is a $120 value. So we went through that and she earned her AKC Canine Good Citizen Certificate at 9 months. Halo has her AKC Canine Good Citizen Certificate too but it took me a lot longer to train Halo. Maybe because Halo was so spoiled, she got away with everything.

That's excellent! I looked into the Canine Good Citizen rating, even got the book about it, but decided I didn't have it in me to work with the dog to that degree. You can be very proud of your pups. (There is another class called "Nose Work" which I think my dog will enjoy.) We'll think further about CGC, but not for now.