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Two girls ?

Hollyett

Active member
After searching and finding a very good breeder, Im happy to say that next week we shall be travelling to pick up Belle. She will be our second cavalier. We have Holly who is 13 months. I was going to get a boy but when I saw Belle I fell in love with her, the breeder said in other breeds she would recommend a boy/girl ratio, but cavaliers are so loving that you can have two females. Holly is very submissive with other dogs, always sitting down as they approch her, and even though Ive had her spayed when sone dogs try and hump her she just lets them. But now Im worried because some people are saying I shouldnt get another female. Has any one got two females? and whats your opinion on this.
 
I think everyone shall have different thoughts on this but I have one male cavalier and 4 female cavaliers and they all get along wonderfully. They are all neutered/spayed and I am sure that helps. They each have their own wonderful personality. No problems with the four girls together for sure...they curl up together often and play well.
 
Sorry I wont be of much help on this topic but I just wanted to say congrats on your new edition Im sure everything will work out fine as Ive seen other member with 2 girls
 
I think you should be fine. I have a boy and a girl myself but that wasn't a "planned" situation. I know from this board Karlin has both sexes, Charleen has both sexes, JaneB has 2 girls, AngieB has 2 girls, and I am sure there are others but they aren't on the tip of my tongue right now and they all seem fine. :flwr:
 
I have two girls. We do not have any problems. I think with cavaliers you don't have that much of an issue. Congratulations :flwr:
 
Two girls are generally fine, as are two boys. :) Most trainers don't recommend adding in more than two of the same sex unless you are ready for managing potential problems, which can be quite serious but most of the time, just take vigilance and common sense and wtching for potential flare-ups. Many trainers feel the problems come especially with multiple females, especially if not spayed. As so many dog people say, there are good reasons why the word 'bitch' is a pejorative term and all the reasons you associate with that term on the human side are based on female dog behaviour... :lol: I don't know of anyone who has had problems with two females though.

The dynamics really tend to shift when there are three as there are many more relationships to sort out and the third can alter the relationship between the first two (they had one relationship to sort -- between each other. Now there are SIX relationships to sort -- each dog has two. Two strong dogs can also bully a third, etc -- plus you get pack behaviour which means all three+ behave in a different way than when there were two. Generally I don't think this is a problem with cavaliers but people need to be aware that the whole situation needs more managing. For a second I'd say either sex tends to work fine, but I'd sure suggest a third be a different sex if you have two of the same sex. :)
 
Someone asked a similar question on another Cavalier board, so here is my response from there:

Well, we have 9 girls and 3 boys and everyone gets along great most of the time. The only exceptions we have to watch for are:

1. When one of the girls are in season. Usually not a problem because the in-season girl is kept separate from the boys, but every now and then one of the boys will get a little possessive of the door to our bedroom where the girls in season are.

2. That darn Kate (our second oldest girl) will many times go into guard mode for the first few weeks a new litter is moved into the living room, usually at about 3 - 4 weeks old. Any time one of the other dogs gets too close to the puppy pen, Kate will "discipline " them. Including the mom.

Sounds like you won't have either of these scenarios, so I really don't think it will matter. It's just a matter of keeping a close eye on the dogs when a new one is introduced and watch for any tussles while they sort out who is in charge. Heck, we have dogs coming here all the time for dog-sitting and I don't ever recall it taking more than 1/2 a day for the visitor to become one of the pack; usually it's more like 2 or 3 hours.
 
Bruce H said:
Someone asked a similar question on another Cavalier board, so here is my response from there:

Well, we have 9 girls and 3 boys and everyone gets along great most of the time. The only exceptions we have to watch for are:

1. When one of the girls are in season. Usually not a problem because the in-season girl is kept separate from the boys, but every now and then one of the boys will get a little possessive of the door to our bedroom where the girls in season are.

2. That darn Kate (our second oldest girl) will many times go into guard mode for the first few weeks a new litter is moved into the living room, usually at about 3 - 4 weeks old. Any time one of the other dogs gets too close to the puppy pen, Kate will "discipline " them. Including the mom.

Sounds like you won't have either of these scenarios, so I really don't think it will matter. It's just a matter of keeping a close eye on the dogs when a new one is introduced and watch for any tussles while they sort out who is in charge. Heck, we have dogs coming here all the time for dog-sitting and I don't ever recall it taking more than 1/2 a day for the visitor to become one of the pack; usually it's more like 2 or 3 hours.


Again, I have to agree with Bruce. The only other issues I can see when you get a multiple cavalier household are toys, food and treats (chews). These either resolve on there own or the humans carefully dole out when and where the dogs get these important items.
 
We have two females, one of which is a mill rescue. We havent had any issues due to their sex. Cedar tries to steal Willow's chews, but that's about it. (And Willow generally lets her have it, so it's really only a big deal to us, who feel its unfair :roll: )
 
Thanks everyone, I will keep a close eye on the girls. Really excited about Belle joining our family, Im sure things will be fine, cavaliers are such beautiful loving dogs. I will post a photo of Belle to show everyone.
 
Just to add, I haven't had any major problems with two girls either. It's been pretty smooth, all told. My Holly always seemed like a sweet submissive girl who would let other dogs do whatever... and so she still is, but she's also quite clearly The Boss. Amber appears on the surface to be a cheeky little thing- but in fact she's much more submissive than Holly is! It's so interesting to watch them play and learn (and sleep :lol: ) together.

If I were you though I'd make sure you have thought of strategies to cope with any little flare ups BEFORE the new little girl arrives.
 
I think it's down to the individual dogs. I had two springer bitches together for 14 years with never a cross word, yet know someone who had to rehome a cavalier bitch, Joly's sister, because she and her mum fought badly, after getting on for 18 months.
 
Congratulations on adding Belle to your family. You will love having two Cavaliers! I have two girls who get along very well. Katie (my older girl) is very patient with Lexi so I think that helps. As everyone else mentioned, I think Cavaliers in general are just happy, sweet dogs so there shouldn't be any problems. It is really fun to watch them play together. :lotsaluv:
 
Congrats adding a new addition! We have two females. One Lab and one Cavalier. No problems. The only time I watch is if they are chewing a treat. This weekend Libby, my cavalier was giving lots of warnings to the big dog!
 
Congratulations on your new baby, Belle!!! I, too, have two girls and they are beautiful together. Lottie the older one is so patient and always gave in to the younger one. She seemed to become motherly although they are both spayed. Enjoy your two girls. They are very loving. :) :flwr:
Julie and the girls
 
This is close to the subject I wanted to raise.

I have a female, and have only ever had female dogs.
I want to get a 2nd Cav, my question is do males pee on everthing constanly?
We have a large yard, but the dogs would be inside most of the time.
My husband is in a wheelchair and we have had visitors male dogs here that have peed on his chair before.

I would like to hear from all you Male Cav owners if you have any problems with peeing, or any other problems that occur with males please.
 
My intact males forget they are housetrained when I have a girl in season in the house. They are usually pretty good other times.
 
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