Bulldogs are more adorable in twos and everyone seems to know it. But it’s not necessarily a good idea for you, the pups, or anyone else involved to have two bulldog puppies at the same time. It’s also not a good idea to get the second puppy before the first has hit its one-year maturity mark. There are several reasons for this and here are some tips to properly bring in your second puppy.

The First 14 Weeks

Who a puppy bonds with is critical. Bulldogs are known to be the type of dogs that ‘love everyone.’ That’s incredibly true, but every dog has someone they look up to more than anyone else. This bond happens within the first 14 weeks and is considered the “critical phase” or “imprinting phase” of a puppy’s life. It’s similar to a bird following the first animal it sees, thinking it’s the mother. If you bring two puppies home who’ve already spent the first 8 weeks in the same litter together, you’re setting yourself up for failure when it comes to those puppies respecting and following you more than they respect and follow one another. Puppies who imprint on one another have a tendency to be more difficult to train, and there are much lower success rates breaking bad habits.

After the First 14 Weeks

After the first 14 weeks you should be good to go then, right? Not so much. After the first 14 weeks your puppy will look up to you the most, but he still has a ton of learning and adapting to do. Puppies need consistency more than anything else, and it’s nearly impossible to catch two puppies’ antics and direct the punishment properly. This results in a high level of regression. A 6-month-old puppy that is potty trained may start wetting in the house again once he sees the new puppy get away with it with minimal scolding. You want to be sure your pup is well set in its ways and in its training before you get a playmate for it.

Be Serious About Training

If you really want a playmate for your cute little bulldog, take your time and do it right to avoid buyer’s remorse and other negative stress. The first thing you need to do is be serious about your training. Your pup should know all of the commands and manners that you need him to know before you bring an addition into the home. This typically takes a year and sometimes longer for the strong-willed breed. Taking it to puppy training classes and doing the homework will help to remain consistent and strengthen the bond between you and your pup.

Be Serious About Socialization

It’s important for you to have your pup well-socialized with other dogs before you bring the other puppy home. This is to get your puppy used to sharing its things and listening when there are distractions. Invite friends with dogs over and have a community training session. Take your bulldog on walks in public places and do some command testing/training at the dog park while off the leash. Having your first puppy understand that it needs to obey you no matter the circumstances will better help it resist regression, and also help you to better communicate that lifestyle with the younger pup, who will most definitely look up to the older one.

Do the Same With Both

Finally, once you bring your second puppy home, make sure you give it the exact same training. The training you did with the first pup wasn’t so that you wouldn’t have to train the second, it was to make the training easier. Take it to the same classes, social gatherings, and dog parks to train the exact same way you did the first one. This will help to ensure you have to incredibly adorable, well-behaved bulldog puppies. 

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