This article comes to us from Wayne Booth, of Canine Behavior Specialists, a dog training company in Nashville, TN.  Wayne also offers dog training information on his blog at DogTrainingBlogger.com .  I hope you enjoy the article.

This is a question I am asked quite often…. here are my thoughts on the subject.

Bringing home a new family member is an exciting event in anyone’s life. You may thinking – “I don’t want my puppy to be alone. Maybe I should bring home his brother or sister to keep him company.” Is this idea a good one or not? There are several things to consider before bringing home two sibling pups.

To begin with, as you probably know, a single dog is a huge responsibility that should not be taken lightly. Puppies require a lot of time, effort, love and attention that will be a significant part of your life when they come home with you. Two puppies is twice the amount of time, effort, love and attention and twice the responsibility. Be sure that you have the desire and the resources to offer that to two new family members.

Another thing to consider is that when two dogs are raised together, they bond a lot more to their sibling than they do to their human companion. Oftentimes, this affects their capacity to be trained, as they have less a desire to please their human handlers than if they had had time to bond closely and solely with their master. If a dog has his brother or sister to be close to, they may very well wind up too close and pay more attention to their sibling than to you.

Dogs are pack animals and two dogs together are a pack. Remember that packs are powerful things that function away from and outside of human influence and can be tough, if not impossible, to control. When a pack forms, a pack order must be established and this can mean problems for your brother sister team. Fights can break out when the two are bickering for the alpha role. This means that one or both of them could get hurt and that they could easily develop aggression issues, which are very difficult to deal with as a human handler.

If you are considering taking home two puppies from the same litter because of your breeder’s influence, be cautious. Remember that this is the breeder’s business and they may be just trying to make an easy extra sale with you. If your breeder encourages taking home two puppies at once without discussing the difficulties that comes along with having sibling dogs, steer clear and seek out a different breeder.

On the plus side, a brother sister duo may keep each other company and be able to play with one another. This, however, can happen by raising one puppy to adulthood and adopting another after you have the first dog trained. This solution is far less difficult than raising sibling puppies at once.

Remember that dogs don’t have the same emotional bond with their families that humans do and that a dog can be perfectly happy raised far from any of his littermates. The concept “I don’t want to separate them!” is derived from inaccurate assumptions about a dog’s family attachments and can lead to a very difficult situation.

If you must raise two puppies from the same litter at once, be sure to be in contact with a good dog behaviorist and your breeder as your situation will require a lot of work and you’ll need professional and experienced advice!

This is a great story, and it shows exactly what can be accomplished with dedication and a little effort.

When we first met Coco, his family was at the end of their rope. Coco was constantly jumping, barking, pulling on his leash, chasing the other dogs in the home, and constantly getting into trouble.  His owners were at the point of training him, or sending him back to the pound.  While he was simply displaying all of the typical signs of an untrained dog, it was a very serious and frustrating situation for his family.

Coco was immediately enrolled into our home manners package, and we got to work.  We made it clear to his family that in addition to us working with him and teaching them what to do, it was up to the family to be consistent with his training, and practice in between lessons.  Coco’s entire family remained consistent and followed through on their end of the deal; we saw huge improvements after just one lesson!

The next few lessons went the same way, we checked out what we learned last time, and moved him onto new things.  In order to manage Coco inside and around the home we worked on the following skills…

• Loose leash walking
• A solid recall and sit
• A “go to your bed” and lay down
• Dropping things from his mouth
• Quiet
• All of the other small skills that help us manage our pets

In the end, this story is not about superior dog training, there was nothing special about Coco’s situation or curriculum.  This story is simply about how dedication and communication can save a dog from a undesirable outcome and restore order and peace to a terrific family.

So if you are currently experiencing chaos and frustrations with your pet, contact Unleashed Unlimited and see for yourself how we can restore sanity into your lives.

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**UPDATE!!  This sale is over, but check here for more Sales on Dublin Dog Collars**

That’s right, our selection of Dublin Dog Collars and Leashes are back on sale; just in time for the holidays!  These collars make a great gift any time of the year, but they are even more perfect for all of the dog lovers on your list.

As you all know, Dublin Dog Collars are created from a special blend of polymers that won’t absorb moisture, retain dirt, or harbor bacteria found in your favorite play areas. So no more collars that smell like an old sponge, just rinse under warm water, and you’re ready for the next adventure.

These dog collars will not fade and do not stink, ensuring that they will look brand new for years to come. You wanted a collar as unique as your dog, now you got it. We should all be so Lucky!!!!

Check out our online store for all of the styles and sizes, as well as other great gift ideas for dog lovers.  You will be hard to find any site that offers these collars for this price!  In order to get the sale price, be sure to enter “dublinsale” in the promotions box during check out.  All Dublin Dog items are delivered via UPS and the 20% off sale runs until March 31, 2009!

One of our most successful advertising campaigns so far has been our vehicle wraps.  We have had a lot of success gaining exposure, generating leads, and building Unleashed Unlimited’s brand recognition with our other car, so we decided to get Tracey’s Explorer wrapped as well.  Take a look:

It is somewhat hard to tell by these pictures, but the hidden in the blue background is a photo of several dogs that has been “ghosted” into the background.

We would like the thank Patrick and the rest of the crew at Infinity Conversions for a job well done.  If you are driving in the Austin area and see either one of our vehicles, give us a wave!