two..for a couple reasons..
first off they have each other to communicate with..in ways i cannot
secondly they exercise each other, in ways i could not
if i only had one dog, i would be unable to fill in for what is missing ]
Exactly my reasons for having two right now
. I find that they both want 100% of my attention at the same time!!, so I don't think I can handle three dogs on my lap at once
. That, plus my dogs love to be hand fed, and I have two hands, so it works out perfectly for us right now