shoiuld i get a second staff?

just needing some advice on whether i should get another Staffy because, 1 love them and, 2 my current girl Ella could use some company.
She is coming up to 7 months and her training is going well. i guess there are positives and negatives to getting a second. i would like a boy but think it would be wise to wait until Ella is about 1 yr old so i have her trained and that way i can focus on the new boy more knowing Ella wont run off at the park and things.
what difficulties have you guys found with having 2? is it harder to walk down the street and manage them at the park? or after the training faze is it not a problem? we have a friends 2x jack Russel's living with us for 3 weeks now so im getting a taste. Things are going well.

also i would like a much stockier style boy. what do you guys think about these two as a breeding pair. i know its not everyones taste and they are probably not the breeds exact standard, but as long as im happy is the main thing as im the one who has to live with it.

He is 19kg and she is 22kg

I've never had 2 staffies but I have grown up with always having at least 2 GSD. I from personal experienc always liked to have the youngest dog at about 4 or above before introducing another dog. Found it was easier just to have 1 to train while also having a better balanced older dog to help out.

Minimum 18 months to 2 years gap would be the ideal and opposite sexes . You should also give some thought to neutering your boy as you wouldn't want to have any accidents would you , if you were to get a girl and waited until 18 months ish then you could still hang on for a few more months to get your boy neutered allowing him to fully mature but 18 months would be ok

Other points to note regarding these 2

Firstly they are both Blue and Blue / Blue matings are generally not a good thing and can promote health problems ( colour dilution alapecea)

Are they both KC reg and health tested ??

You really need to do a lot of research into getting a pup please read these links for some guidance

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/thinking_getting_a_dog

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/l-2-hga

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/how_to_recognize_a_back_yard_breeder

http://staffy-bull-terrier.com/how_to_buy_a_dilution_colour_dog

Ive only got daisy so not much help I'm afraid, as said above they are not suitable for breeding both being blue but there is so much you need to look into when breeding please think it through carefully if that is what you are thinking about doing.

No. You can't mate blue to blue there are health implications to it.

Follow the links given to you please. You're in danger of becoming a backyard breeder if you buy a bitch just to use her for breeding.

Taking a closer look at the photo you've shown us of the bitch, it's clear she's been used for breeding already, so you've probably already stepped into backyard breeding territory. Why would you want to put her through more of that for no reason other than personal gratification? Dogs aren't just breeding machines. Especially not a one-year-old bitch who hasn't even fully matured yet.

Aside from breeding, I'd wait until the bitch is fully trained before you consider getting another dog. Two dogs can be very difficult, particularly if you still have to finish training one while you start the training of the other.

Thanks so much for all your input. very helpful. i will take your advice and wait until Ella is 2 yrs old. she is desexed so a boy will work out well.

yes both of these dogs have been health check and are clear of HC & L2Hga and come with main registration papers.

just to make it clear as i think some people might be getting confused with my questions, ive got my young girl Ella who is 6 months and desexed and was asking about a brother for her as a playmate to join our family. the other dogs are pictures from the breeder i was thinking of purchaseing from. i dont not have any intention of breeding at all myself.

this is a puppy the two just had.

Glad to hear the breeder health checks and that the dogs are registered - it is very important to be aware of the health issues involved with blue/blue mating though, not responsible breeding unfortunately.

Wonderful to hear that you've no plans to breed Thank you for clearing up any confusion there!

i did not know about the Blue to Blue mating so thanks for the add education. i will now add this to my check list when looking for a breeder

The checklists that Dave posted in the links above have some great information that will help you along as well

Remember you can always pop on here and ask about pups/breeders you are looking at as well though .. we are more than happy to look at puppy pics all day, and there are plenty of members who can give advice on breeders and breeding

yes as others have said blue on blue is a minefield of problems
both the dogs shown are deff not breeding (or what a reputable breeder would use)quality .to me the b1tch is just a breeding machine (cash cow to them)and saddly i feel she will be breed on every season as she looking a little long in the tooth.
and yes i would allso go along with the minimum 18month gap between them

grnman wrote:i did not know about the Blue to Blue mating so thanks for the add education. i will now add this to my check list when looking for a breeder

Hi Dave ,

As a rule of thumb a "good breeder" should know about not breeding blue on blue full stop so just by the fact that this one has tells me its not a good breeder . There are many of these in the UK , unfortunately there is nothing to restrict them under KC rules and the more naive people think that they will get a good dog from 2 blues. Additionally the class of people tending to breed like this will charge an extortionate amount of money for these blues when realistically a good breeder will never charge more for a blue which is perceived by many as a rare colour when in fact certainly in the UK it is fast becoming the most common colour in staffords.

In the UK for example a good , healthy stafford from good healthy parents with all the relevant tests in place should be between 5-600 pounds with no premium for specific colours or markings , possibly more if you are buying for show stock . Also be very wary if someone is charging different amounts for different pups out of the litter , due to markings and sex etc . Good breeders do it for the wellbeing and betterment of the breed and don't really make that much from the dogs , its for love not money.

I don't know the story of your girl , whether you paid a lot , whether she is registered , tested , well researched etc , so please forgive me if my comments are like teaching your granny to suck eggs

Quite commonly from the members of the forum we do it a little the wrong way the first time as we don't have the experience ( Me included as although I was very lucky how it turned out I bought Tilly from a BYB as I just didnt know , joined the forum to find out more on the breed and then realised about all the problems facing staffords from reputation , overpopulation , bad breeding , bad sellers etc , took my education and did it right 2nd time round with Tommy and I believe the situation is almost identical in Oz with the shelters fit to burst with rescues etc )

grnman wrote:Thanks so much for all your input. very helpful. i will take your advice and wait until Ella is 2 yrs old. she is desexed so a boy will work out well.

yes both of these dogs have been health check and are clear of HC & L2Hga and come with main registration papers.

just to make it clear as i think some people might be getting confused with my questions, ive got my young girl Ella who is 6 months and desexed and was asking about a brother for her as a playmate to join our family. the other dogs are pictures from the breeder i was thinking of purchaseing from. i dont not have any intention of breeding at all myself.

this is a puppy the two just had.

I'll admit I did misunderstand your first post - I thought the pictures of the two dogs you put up were ones you were intending to breed from. Sorry about that!

What so I think of those two as a breeding pair? I think they're awful. Neither are standard staffords, both are blue. A terrible combination.

Caryll wrote:What so I think of those two as a breeding pair? I think they're awful. Neither are standard staffords, both are blue. A terrible combination.

hugely agree with this

back to your origonal quesation, yes... but wait if you can. two dogs are amazing together but it depends on the work you want to do.
I got Laska when marley was around 11 months old and although it didnt impact the dogs it impacted me making sure they were okay. going through the puppy stages so soon after the first was a real drainer and to be honest I was knackerd. one knock on effect was marley stated to wee in the puppy pads again as i was training laska.
Now over a year on I can honestly say I love it, i have my lil laska tom boy that she is and marley the protector of all...except when he hides behind me lol.
you do have to be strong however and stand in when the mini squables over toys etc but if you have done your homework that takes seconds. although marley knows he is top dog over laska he lets her win in chase and ball games and laska knows not to take the pee with him or ill stop the games outright, the sweetest thing is when i catch marley looking back at laska when they meet a new dog, if she is okay and play bowing he will trot on and leave em to it. if the other dog is dominent he stands in front of her tail up and over his back despite her chewing away at him all morning he still looks out for her. you learn alot about pac dynamics as well. love em both to bits and although maybee getting two so young was a mistake I can say i wouldnt change a thing right now