What's your ideal number of dogs?

I really don't know. I've always only had 1 at a time until a year ago, and now I have two. I don't know that if I had more, any of them would get enough of me.
 
Like, 5 or 6. I love the chaos of big packs, and playing with my dogs is pretty much my only hobby.

But, to be fair, we are going to be building a house on 230 acres. I wouldn't have more than two dogs if I had to stay in this apartment, and having Finn, just one super easy dog, is nice while I'm in school, as most of my time right now is dedicated to studying.
 
Ideally I have two immortal dogs that can do anything and everything and never get sick or die.

Realistically I will probably always have 3, or maybe 4 depending on the specifics at the time. But probably most always 3 dogs at a time.

I have 6 in my house right now and yeah... there's no way that's a permanent thing.

The nice part about two is you can take everyone all the time. With three that gets more difficult. Also costs and stuff.
 
I think I could actually be really happy with just one until they became fairly senior. I'm not good at splitting my loyalties, and I always feel terrible when I take Gusto for a day of training or trialing and leave Meg at home - and I never, ever leave overnight with him and leave her home.

Looking ahead into the future, I worry that when I have a puppy, I will feel bad taking it out for all the regular training I would want to do, and leaving Gusto or Meg behind. Especially if it is Gusto left. Meg is really fairly content to stay home, but Gusto is quite sure he is supposed to be invited on all adventures.

The thought of having just one again, to completely bond with and take everywhere, is actually really appealing. But then I think two, because my two really do adore each other, and I think having a nice stable adult dog while raising a puppy is good for everyone. But then I think maybe three - one retired senior, one active competitor, and one up and coming puppy.

Three would probably always be my max. Two is probably my realistic answer. One would be perfect, if they promised never ever to get old.
 
I honestly don't want less than 2 for sure. I really enjoy having at least two and find they tend to enjoy each other too (well Mia would probably sell Hank...).
 
Three. One senior, one adult, and then a young whipper snapper. I would also be okay with having 4, if one or two were DH's dogs so they weren't "my" responsibility. But I really like three.

In this house? Two. It's too small for anything else unless the third addition is a smaller dog (or unobtrusive) and just meshed with everyone immediately.

I would also be fine with having 2-3 housedogs and then 2-3 more outdoor/guardian dogs. But that is assuming we ever get the land we want and could financially afford that many. Haha
 
In a grand and perfect world where I have lots of money and land, and all dogs get along easily, five or six. LOL

But realistically, I also think I would be happy with even just one big dog living with me to do sports and go anywhere with.
 
Dogs that were my own, 2 or 3. A younger dog and something(s) a little older/established.

I could live with more dogs though if my SO had his own, or similarly, I'm still living at home so between my mom and I we could handle more. But as far as enjoying providing for my own dogs, I'd be happy with 2 or 3.
 
BostonBanker said:
I think I could actually be really happy with just one until they became fairly senior. I'm not good at splitting my loyalties, and I always feel terrible when I take Gusto for a day of training or trialing and leave Meg at home - and I never, ever leave overnight with him and leave her home.

Looking ahead into the future, I worry that when I have a puppy, I will feel bad taking it out for all the regular training I would want to do, and leaving Gusto or Meg behind. Especially if it is Gusto left. Meg is really fairly content to stay home, but Gusto is quite sure he is supposed to be invited on all adventures.

The thought of having just one again, to completely bond with and take everywhere, is actually really appealing. But then I think two, because my two really do adore each other, and I think having a nice stable adult dog while raising a puppy is good for everyone. But then I think maybe three - one retired senior, one active competitor, and one up and coming puppy.

Three would probably always be my max. Two is probably my realistic answer. One would be perfect, if they promised never ever to get old.
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Pretty much me.

Just me as their owner, living alone, no spouse, etc... 2 would be my tops. I would have no real desire for 3. If it somehow happened upon me, I could likely handle 3 fine but it's not what I would want. As a pet sitter and also having family dogs that I've lived with and helped take care of all at once, I definitely don't have any desire for 3+.

I really kind of like having my 1 for the sake of traveling and I also take him a lot of places (vacations, errands, traveling, etc) but with the addition of Lola, my moms dog, who has essentially turned into mine for all intents and purposes, I've gotten a chance to see the benefits of having 2 dogs that really really get along well and mesh well. It's great to see their bond and be able to provide Jackson with a buddy that he truly enjoys having around. He's a lot less bored, they play well together, they really do keep each other company, so for that reason, I do think I'll try to have 2 here on out. But we just happened to get lucky with a dog that he just REALLY loves. Like at my dads house, we have 3 total and the dogs don't really care about each other nor do they play very much so it makes no difference to me having them there lol. With Lola, they actually enjoy each other & play etc. So it would be highly dependent on the dogs as well.

I feel sooo guilty when I take just Jackson somewhere now & leave Lola behind, so a lot of times I wind up just leaving both which I don't like that I do.
 
I have four. Two high energy, one that will go for walks and plays a few times a day but is happiest being a rug :p, and my newest addition and rescue. She's only been here two weeks and is in awful shape (mange, starved), so I don't know how she'll be. 3 are small dogs.

I like four, so long as at least one is lazy/less active, and most are small dogs. Small dogs you can combine to count as one normal sized pup. :lol-sign:

I'm in a decent place financially and space-wise, so I could possibly go to 5. I really enjoy having a pack. Each dog has their own thing, and I never feel like anyone's being slighted. I absolutely have a favorite (it's Nola, of course), but everyone gets their own time.
I also like having them close-ish in age. Mine are 5yo, 2yo in Feb, 1yo, and a 5-8mo old. People have complained that I'll have a bunch of seniors at once, but I would rather something that works for all our lives than something that makes it easier on me towards the very end.
 
Honestly I don't know. If you'd asked this 2 months ago I definitely would have said that I enjoy having a pack and that I can easily handle up to 4 without any worries. While that is true after having just Fudge for so long I am really seeing the benefit of only one dog. It's just so easy. Fudge is a naturally easy dog anyway but he just seems to adjust himself to whatever situation he finds himself in. He barely barks at all because there's no other dogs to set him off, I don't have to worry about overwhelming guests when they come over and I can take him everywhere with me. Most of that is definitely Fudges personality but I've certainly enjoyed not having to worry about those little things. Plus it's actually relaxing to walk him by himself haha. Usually when I have 3 plus dogs with me, I'm busy checking where everyone is and looking for other people or dogs so that I can leash up. With only him that has been super easy. The other main benefit for me is that when I'm busy I can hand out stuffed Kong's or bones and not have to be constantly watching for resource guarding and fights starting. I've also noticed that he seems much more relaxed as well.

Unfortunately for both of us were going home today where 5 other dogs are waiting to annoy the not out of both of us and he's going to have to share his new toys and dog beds. I think it might be a hard adjustment for us both.
 
I like 2 max. I could probably go back to having 1 dog but they get so much more enjoyment out of having a playmate and whatnot.

2 dogs are easy to give individual attention to, and easy to take out together. 3 gets more complicated (for me). I would not seek out a 3rd dog but would consider adding a 3rd if it was the right dog and the circumstances were right.
 
4. I could do three, but 4 is preferred. Although I have 5, Newt is hardly a dog, so it's really technically 4 :p
 
At this point in my life/any time in the near-ish future (probably for the next ten years) I think 2 would be my max. I'd maybe have three if at least 2 were well behaved, less high-needs dogs.

In my previous life/hopefully again one day when my kids are adults/semi adults (although maybe not then because who knows at the point traveling might be a priority), it might go back up to 3-4....5...6. I doubt I'd ever have more than 6. 4 or 5 would be ideal in an optimal living situation. It would also depend how close we were to family who could watch them in an emergency...boarding that many dogs gets crazy expensive.

I am not the kind of person who feels guilty leaving someone behind.
 
My opinion on this is changing. I think that 2 is probably ideal, if they get along well, and they meet my wants in a dog. 1 would also be good if it's a dog like Rowan who does totally fine being alone and thrives on all the extra attention; 1 would suck if it was a dog like Stitch who thrives on having at least one canine playmate and would be bored senseless with just me around. 3 is a little overwhelming as far as taking them places and working with them individually, but then again if all 3 were like Rowan it probably wouldn't be an issue at all. The fact that my house is very small definitely contributes to that; my current 3 in a larger house would be much easier.

I'll probably end up with 3-4 when I have more space/land. As things are, 2 would probably be best, or 3 if they were all pretty chill - which, alas, they are not :p
 
Well I've only ever had one at a time so I can't say for sure but I think I'd prefer to stick to small numbers. I probably wouldn't exceed two. I'd be just as happy with one. That may change if I end up with a dog who doesn't really fit my needs. For instance if I find myself with another Tucker I would want to add another dog because I can't do all the doggy stuff I want with Tucker, so I'd want another dog to fill that niche. I am the sort who would feel bad leaving one behind. I like the idea of having a dog who you bring everywhere and do everything with, your sidekick. I also don't want to have to do a lot of management among my dogs. The only sports I'm interested in at this point are obedience and rally-o, so stuff most dogs can do even as they age. I'm also very interested in regularly fostering so I'd always have a work in progress dog around and it'll be easier for a foster to have to mesh well with just one or two dogs. Also for practical reasons it's easier to find someone to watch them and easier to bring them along on vacations as well. It's more affordable.
 
I think 2 is ideal for me in most situations.

I'm also one who feels a little guilty dividing outings but I can handle it with 2 dogs. Three might be pushing it, unless I lived my ideal (and unrealistic) life of tons of land/work from home/hella moneys. In which case I could see myself with four.

I've had a lot of fosters and love that Venice enjoyed the company of most of them. It was nice to be able to do schoolwork or have a lazy day and let the dogs keep eachother entertained and exercised.
 
I like having more than one because they keep each other company and have a playmate. Right now my ideal is 3 because Gypsy doesn't like playing or being bothered, so Ryker and Panzer have tons of fun with each other. My ideal would be 2 well matched dogs with similar energy level. It really depends on the dogs for me.

I would never again have more than 2 hounds at once. Having more than one dog that absolutely cannot be off leash any where really makes things harder.
 
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