# Uh-oh......What have I done??



## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

Well, where do I begin. We have been waiting for such a long time for our standard poodle puppy. I have spent this time though doing an incredible amount of research on this wonderful breed, focusing heavily on the grooming end of them. My husband and I are used to large intelligient breeds, as we had two beautiful, (raised together) smart German Shepherds in the past. We are confident and capable at training...........but I must admit the grooming part is intimidating to me.
Well, we were finally able to meet our girl, Cleo this past Sunday. We drove a long way to see her. We had originally hoped for a boy but the litter was all girls. 
Oh boy........they were so cute, and beautiful and DANG IT, if they didn't make us fall in love with them all!!!!...........so instead of 1 we are bringing 2 home. Its their fault, they shouldn't have done that do us!
They are 7 weeks now, and will come home at 9 weeks. We are so excited and eager to have them join our family.

So I am twice as concerned now about their grooming, I believe I have decided on the Andis AGC 2 speed professional clipper (heavy duty), which sells for around $150.00 + tax canadian. Any ideas on these from the experts here will be greatly appreciated.

Here are pictures of our twins!
Cleo and " we are still deciding"


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## *tina* (Jan 3, 2010)

Cute! Will the breeder groom their FFT before you bring them home?


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

*tina* said:


> Cute! Will the breeder groom their FFT before you bring them home?


Yes she said she will, and that will help. She actually showed me how to do the tails when we were there, and to set our 2 apart from the others.


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## Aidan (Mar 4, 2009)

I am happy for you in getting a new dog. Although, i'd warn you to do some research on the cons of owning and raising two young puppies at the same time.

I hope it works out really well for you! They are adorable.


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## neVar (Dec 25, 2009)

FFT is easy an you'll get th hang of it quick. get a simple clip when the hair starts to gt longr- and keep up the FFT yourself. you'll get more confident as you gt going. 

I groom my show aussies and a fw other pet trims and i still was nrvous shaving bella up the first time


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I suspect grooming will be the easy part - raising two puppies at once is hard, hard work! As Aidan says, do your research - it is important to spend a lot of time playing with the pups separately, and socialising them seperately, which can be very time consuming! Lots of fun, as well, of course!


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## flyingduster (Sep 6, 2009)

I was gonna go on about the two puppy thing too, and then I saw you've already raised a pair of german shepherds together before so you'll know all the drama about training them separately etc etc!!! GSDs are powerful smart dogs too, so it will be similar, though probably still very different! 

Congrats! Can't wait to see more photos of them!!!!! Ohh, 2 weeks will both fly and crawl by I'm sure!!!


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## Skye (Feb 19, 2010)

You can do it! I did the 2 puppy thing, with 2 German Shepherds. It was a bit easier, though, since I got one at 12 weeks, and went back for her sister at 16 weeks. The second one learned from the first. 

I sure do miss my Shepherds, but I don't miss the hair!  Even if you just do the "touch up" grooming in between trips to the groomers, you'll be fine. Enjoy your pups, they are adorable!


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## SnorPuddel (Jul 8, 2010)

two at the same time, my hat off to you !

Congrats


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## Vibrant (Dec 7, 2009)

Congratulations on your twins!!!
Wow, look at the coats on them already! Gorgeous!
Is the breeder in Ontario?


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## Purley (May 21, 2010)

Well, are they two girls or boy and a girl? They are really cute. You are lucky only coming home with two. I would probably have taken the lot!

Let us know what you choose for another name!


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## cbrand (Aug 9, 2009)

Ok, well I will go on about the two puppy thing. Don't do it!!! You will be short changing yourself and your puppy if you bring home a sibling. Housebreaking is very, very difficult with two puppies as is training. You will have to put one puppy away every time you train the other puppy which means that each puppy only gets half your time.

As a breeder, I never ever ever sell two puppies at once and I don't know any responsible breeders who do.


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## puppylove (Aug 9, 2009)

Yep, that's how I got my wonderful baby, Jackson. Turned out two puppies were just too much. Especially a high maintenance dog like a poodle. It worked out beautifully for me and Jackson and I'll bet his sibling is in a much happier home where he gets all the attention (which probably is not near as much as Jackson now gets). It was terribly heartbreaking to watch him go through being wrenched from his family but he got over it.


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

flyingduster said:


> I was gonna go on about the two puppy thing too, and then I saw you've already raised a pair of german shepherds together before so you'll know all the drama about training them separately etc etc!!! GSDs are powerful smart dogs too, so it will be similar, though probably still very different!
> 
> Congrats! Can't wait to see more photos of them!!!!! Ohh, 2 weeks will both fly and crawl by I'm sure!!!


Thank you for the encouraging words, and yes you are right about the shepherds, so we do have the experience of raising 2. I will post more pictures when they arrive.


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

Purley said:


> Well, are they two girls or boy and a girl? They are really cute. You are lucky only coming home with two. I would probably have taken the lot!
> 
> Let us know what you choose for another name!


they are both girls, and still deciding on a name.....they are pretty cute aren't they


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

Skye said:


> You can do it! I did the 2 puppy thing, with 2 German Shepherds. It was a bit easier, though, since I got one at 12 weeks, and went back for her sister at 16 weeks. The second one learned from the first.
> 
> I sure do miss my Shepherds, but I don't miss the hair!  Even if you just do the "touch up" grooming in between trips to the groomers, you'll be fine. Enjoy your pups, they are adorable!


Thank you for your encouraging words, Yes it can be done with 2, and we are lucky that we have the experience with training 2, who both turned out to be amazing dogs. We received compliments on them every time we had them out. You are soooooo right about the hair though, the shedding was excessive, and we are looking forward to another intelligient breed who does NOT shed.
thanks again


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

Thank you to all the replies, I realize that every person is different and some will have strong views. Please keep in mind that while we are new to poodles we are not new to training. My husband and I are extremly active and include our dogs in all activities. We are fortunate here that our property is quite large and completely fenced in. Therefore when he is training one, I will be training the other, seperate from each other, but the exact same training methods. Then the next time, we will train again but with a different dog. Our training is all positive, and we are on 'the exact same page' which is nice, no conflicting methods to confuse a pup. Therefore a pup will never be locked up while the other is being trained.
I realize the importance of seperating them and allowing each to develop their own personalites and bond with their humans.
Again because we are so active, the pups will always be involved in something with us. I.E. I love to kayak, and will alternate the pups, bringing a different girl each time. But we will also do things with them together, like bringing them on our fishing boat at the same time. We are also looking for a bike trailer to pull them along behind our bikes.
We are lucky here because one river that I enjoy paddling on also as a bike path around it, so we can 'switch' the pups as well, each having their own time with us.

We realize that this will involve more training time, but we also approach this in a positive manner, and as I have said before we do have the experience and maturity to handle that end of it.

Thanks again for the encouraging words.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Sounds like your dogs have a lovely life ahead of them!


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## Winnow (Jan 2, 2010)

cbrand said:


> Ok, well I will go on about the two puppy thing. Don't do it!!! You will be short changing yourself and your puppy if you bring home a sibling. Housebreaking is very, very difficult with two puppies as is training. You will have to put one puppy away every time you train the other puppy which means that each puppy only gets half your time.
> 
> As a breeder, I never ever ever sell two puppies at once and I don't know any responsible breeders who do.


I agree with you. I was asked for two pups from my last litter I killed the idea right away  Said she was welcome to a puppy from a later litter but not two from the same litter.

I sold two Cavalier pups together it is not easy and it has never been. They would have turned out better if they would have been only one in a home.


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

and yes, we are also well aware that this training method and encouragement of their individual personalities should continue for at least the first year.
Both together and individual time is and will be involved


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

fjm said:


> Sounds like your dogs have a lovely life ahead of them!


Thank you they most certainly will, these pups, like our other 2 (raised together) will be a HUGE part of our family, and will also be well mannered, well trained and well adjusted family members, equally loved.


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## ArreauStandardPoodle (Sep 1, 2009)

cbrand said:


> Ok, well I will go on about the two puppy thing. Don't do it!!! You will be short changing yourself and your puppy if you bring home a sibling. Housebreaking is very, very difficult with two puppies as is training. You will have to put one puppy away every time you train the other puppy which means that each puppy only gets half your time.
> 
> As a breeder, I never ever ever sell two puppies at once and I don't know any responsible breeders who do.


I agree as well. i have had folks ask about two, and I tell them they are more than welcome to come back in a year or two and get their second puppy. The first will be past the awful puppy stuff and will help train the second one to be the dog you want it to be. Two siblings together could be like a little piece of anarchy in your home. GOOD LUCK!!!!!!


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## Olie (Oct 10, 2009)

Congrats they are adorable, I walked away doing the same thing once - will I do it again NO!! Could I, YES!! I wouldn't recommend this to many because of the strict consistent time it takes and truth be told, most don't have this kind of time.

Your plan seems pretty good to me. We did something very similar. I am no dog trainer by no means, but what we did worked, thankfully. The first 3 months we felt like we were on auto pilot LOL! The key pieces (although many) I took away from my own experience was: (((For Us Maybe Not Others)))

Crates are a must. I was told to position crates in different rooms if possible - not even across from each other if they can see one another because of the built up anxiety it can cause. Also when removing them, doing it seperately and a few minutes of human time and potty break. 

The first 6 to 8 weeks we did all potty breaks one dog per person. Same with walks and training. LOL - I do not consider locking a dog up for 10-15 minutes of training neglect to train with the other I did this on nights my BF worked and my daughter was not home. OR I worked on the training together. After a few months we were doing things on a 50/50 basis of splitting time and training together -. 

*The worst case situation is 2 dogs feeling as one and having seperation issues to the point that the human is an after thought therefore impossible to train. *

ETA : Clippers - I have those Andis clippers and they work very well. I have a 15 and 30 B for the FFT a 7f for close body trims and I am thinking a 10. mine did not come with combs. Also I have a Laube speed feed - which I tend to use more for FFT. I paid around $100 for it.


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## Purley (May 21, 2010)

Not entirely on topic, but a guy I know has just got a blue male Doberman puppy and a black male Standard poodle puppy. His wife has MS and is in a wheelchair. I am not sure what she is going to do while he is in the City at work! 

Maybe they have a plan - I sure hope so.


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## faerie (Mar 27, 2010)

i got temperance at 6 weeks and at the same time my son gave me eva, my lab x who was 5 months. so i have been raising up 2 puppers at the same time. 
it's been busy and i love them and they are bffs.

congrats on your new furbabies~


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## *heather* (Jul 30, 2009)

kinda off topic a little, but at 7 weeks, shouldn't their faces, feet and tails be shaved? I'm also curious, is this breeder in Ontario?

They are darn cute, good luck with your new babies!  "_where there is a will there is a way" _


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## LuvPoo (May 8, 2010)

*Congrats. Grooming can be low Maintenance!*

Hi -

I'm in puppy mode right now & will be bringing a babe home end of month. We have owned two male standards as pets since 1992. Once your dog is past his very soft puppy coat, unless you are showing them or are attached to a fancy clip, you can cut their coats quite short and not have to deal with brushing them hardly at all. (Though they do need baths every 2-3 weeks, which is easy if the coat is short.) With both our boys we would sometimes groom them ourselves (Time allowing. This is going to take you 2 plus hours. They're big dogs.) Or have a groomer cut them this way:

You will want to get a book on basic grooming procedures. We used a professional Oster clipper. # 8 or 8.5 blade (close cut - these are current #s - some have changed since we bought our equip years ago. Call & ask.) on the face/neck/under ears and base of tail) #5F clipper (coarse, cuts to about 1/4 inch) on the body and ears. Scissor the top knot, ear fringe, end of tail, feet. It's essential to wash & dry the coat before clipping. Give it a good brush through. (A clean, sharp clipper will glide through a clean, brushed coat.) Do the short clip work - face, etc., first and then clip the whole body with the #5F. Finish up with scissors. (Get good, professional poodle grooming shears.) You will need to clean the clipper repeatedly as you work with Oster Blade Wash. I put about 1/2 " of the liquid in a small pryex bowl and dip the blade in, turn it on and off comes all the teenie hairs that have accumulated. The Blade wash also cools & lubricates the blade.) If you don't do this, the blade will get clogged and stop working smoothly.
This is a great cut for Spring, Summer, Fall. We would let the coat go a bit longer in the winter. (You can just let it grow out and clip the face, tail.) If the coat would get too long, we'd have a pro groomer do them, as scissoring the body is involved. (I think there are blades now that cut to 3/8" - #4F? So this might be a home solution.)
Regarding feet, we liked to look of trimming them to match the body, though a short shave works well too, esp. in the winter to avoid snow clumping between the pads. We kept our poodles ears clipped fairly close. SPoodles have beautiful, athletic bodies & nicely shaped ears. We always felt this sporty, "Utility" clip looked great.
Here are pix of our two late dogs, Jackson (2006 - 2010) and Ralph (1992 - 2007) in this cut. Hope this helps. Sorry - I don't know how to rotate these pix.


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## jcwinks (Jun 26, 2010)

The Complete Poodle Clipping and Grooming Book by Shirlee Kalstone was highly recommended to me and I have used it a lot and it has been very helpful. Was able too borrow it from oour local library, too. I've also watched a lot of videos on poodle grooming on YouTube!!!


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## calidani (Nov 22, 2009)

They are adorable!!


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## whitepoodles (Jul 5, 2010)

I must say I do agree with both CBrand and Arreau, as a breeder I will be very reluctant to sell two 9 wks. old puppies to the same client.
When two pups are sold together they bond to one another not to the owner. I have seen this happen at my house when I kept two pups from the same litter to run on and decide which one I want to keep. They always bonded to each other first then to me... Once I sold the one I decided not to keep my keeper started bonding to me strongly.
I will not sell two puppies at the same time to a pet client. It is hard enough to raise one properly and give them much attention let alone two. 
I do think thought that a very experienced person who has had two dogs at the same time and raised them properly has an advantage over someone who never was in this type of situation of raising two at the same time. So, hopefully the two standards will not rule the roost in the household.
Best of luck with your puppies, it seems that inspite of many opinions that two pups should not be sold together , you seem to be doing a good job. But I still maintain that as a breeder I feel comfortable in only selling one puppy at a time, never two at the same time.
Best if luck to you with your new puppies. Enjoy them...


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## LuvPoo (May 8, 2010)

I'm pretty sure that's the book I bought many years back. It had great tips.


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## Reesmom (Feb 4, 2010)

Sorry, but I have to agree with Cbrand as well. I recently had a refresher course on this subject. A couple brought 5 month old s'poo puppies for a groom. They are siblings and are so bonded with each other it is a problem. They aren't bonded with the owners at all. They can't even stand to be in separate rooms, which made the grooming experience a night mare. 

My husband and I got puppies at the same time several years ago. Separate breeds a few months apart. Even with us training our own dogs and spending time with them, we still had bonding issues, and mine went to work with me daily. I wouldn't recommend it.


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## Purley (May 21, 2010)

This is not entirely on topic, but I have some friends who just bought two brothers - Olde English Bulldogges - or whatever they are called. They also had two Cairn brothers who were about 13 years old when one died.

I know they brought the Cairns up, but the OEB are supposed to be very territorial, potentially protective dogs. When they told me they had got two I thought of warning them they might be in for problems. What kinds of problems do you get when the pups bond to one another rather than you - and you have a protective breed??


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## schpeckie (Jun 29, 2010)

Macker - I am getting 2 poodles (toy) next month - so upon reading alot on this site, it sure helped me get prepared! Sure, I know it is going to be challenging, but if you show them both the love and attention, I'm sure they will adapt wonderfully! I know that I'm going to be joyously excited when I get them!!


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## Rockporters (Jan 14, 2010)

Congratulations on your new additions! 

I'm sure you'll make it through, but Poodles are so different than GS! Definitely high maintenance dogs. (not just hair!) They are wonderful, but seriously a lot of work at times. More so than many breeds. There are days I'm exhausted from the brain picking. LOL, that is totally what they do, make you think and keep you on your toes all day long. The 3 hour bath and dry once a week is just icing on the cake LOL.


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## PaddleAddict (Feb 9, 2010)

I groom my mini myself and it's been nice to be able to learn on just the one dog. In fact, I know I could not do two right now! When he gets a full groom ( about every 4 to 5 weeks) it takes me up to five hours or sometimes longer. Weekly I do his FFT and he gets a bath and blow dry... That takes about 2 1/2 hours. 

He's still a pup (9 months) and he has about 2 inches of coat because I like it. It would be easier if I just kept him shaved down, but I don't prefer that look.


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## SECRETO (Aug 20, 2008)

Congrats on your new pups. I think as long as your experienced dog owners, having two pups isnt a big deal. Many breeders keep two pups out of there litters when they have two pups that are just too nice to let go. The dogs do fine and its done often. Plus, they're poodles and Im my experience with Shepherd pups vs Standard poodles pups, the Poodles are even easier. 

So anyhow, enjoy your new pups and Im sure you'll have a great time training your two new babies. 

Oh and about the Andis clippers....even the $100 Andis set you can pick up from Petco or Petsmart work pretty well. Ive had mine for 3 years now and they're still going strong. Just make sure you oil the clipper screws and clipper blade for a longer life. They also have a spray that cools and cleans in one that I like to use. When its time to replace a blade it's cheap..$20 bucks is all. 

Have fun


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

SECRETO said:


> Congrats on your new pups. I think as long as your experienced dog owners, having two pups isnt a big deal. Many breeders keep two pups out of there litters when they have two pups that are just too nice to let go. The dogs do fine and its done often. Plus, they're poodles and Im my experience with Shepherd pups vs Standard poodles pups, the Poodles are even easier.


Thank you Secreto for the kind words of encouragement and RECOGNIZING the fact that we are experienced dog owners, I truly appreciate your kind words and the kind words of many others.
One thing my husband and I have is patience, consistency and knowledge. This is a lifetime commitment for us.....no matter what.
Thank you again, and also thanks for the info on the clippers, I think I will be going with the andis brand
take care


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

Olie said:


> Congrats they are adorable, I walked away doing the same thing once - will I do it again NO!! Could I, YES!! I wouldn't recommend this to many because of the strict consistent time it takes and truth be told, most don't have this kind of time.
> 
> Your plan seems pretty good to me. We did something very similar. I am no dog trainer by no means, but what we did worked, thankfully. The first 3 months we felt like we were on auto pilot LOL! The key pieces (although many) I took away from my own experience was: (((For Us Maybe Not Others)))
> 
> ...


Thank you Olie, and the advice is truly appreciated and helpful


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

LuvPoo said:


> Hi -
> 
> I'm in puppy mode right now & will be bringing a babe home end of month. We have owned two male standards as pets since 1992. Once your dog is past his very soft puppy coat, unless you are showing them or are attached to a fancy clip, you can cut their coats quite short and not have to deal with brushing them hardly at all. (Though they do need baths every 2-3 weeks, which is easy if the coat is short.) With both our boys we would sometimes groom them ourselves (Time allowing. This is going to take you 2 plus hours. They're big dogs.) Or have a groomer cut them this way:
> 
> .


Thank you LuvPoo, I am so sorry to learn about the loss of your beautiful dogs, Jackson and Ralph, I know how difficult it is to lose a special, beautiful, 4 legged friend. I LOVE the clips that both of your beautiful dogs had, that is EXACTLY what I hope to achieve with these 2 girls, I hope I do as good of a job as you.
Thank you for the clipper advice.
Are you bringing home a boy or girl?


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

whitepoodles said:


> I must say I do agree with both CBrand and Arreau, as a breeder I will be very reluctant to sell two 9 wks. old puppies to the same client.
> When two pups are sold together they bond to one another not to the owner. I have seen this happen at my house when I kept two pups from the same litter to run on and decide which one I want to keep. They always bonded to each other first then to me... Once I sold the one I decided not to keep my keeper started bonding to me strongly.
> I will not sell two puppies at the same time to a pet client. It is hard enough to raise one properly and give them much attention let alone two.
> I do think thought that a very experienced person who has had two dogs at the same time and raised them properly has an advantage over someone who never was in this type of situation of raising two at the same time. So, hopefully the two standards will not rule the roost in the household.
> ...


Thank you for your opinion, I respect it because it acknowledges both sides and recognizes our abilites, experience and intentions.
While these 2 will be an incredibly important part of our family, they are still 'dogs' and will have boundaries to follow, boundaries which will be consistently, gently and properly instilled in them.
We take our committment to these 2 special girls quite seriously, life time for us. We also recognize the intelligience of this breed and look forward to the challenges of training them. For us, training is a life time affair as it was with our Shepherds.
Thanks again for the OPEN MINDED comments, that is why I joined this forum in the first place.
Take Care


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

schpeckie said:


> Macker - I am getting 2 poodles (toy) next month - so upon reading alot on this site, it sure helped me get prepared! Sure, I know it is going to be challenging, but if you show them both the love and attention, I'm sure they will adapt wonderfully! I know that I'm going to be joyously excited when I get them!!


THANK YOU!!!, I couldn't agree more!


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## macker905 (Mar 21, 2010)

Rockporters said:


> Congratulations on your new additions!
> 
> I'm sure you'll make it through, but Poodles are so different than GS! Definitely high maintenance dogs. (not just hair!) They are wonderful, but seriously a lot of work at times. More so than many breeds. There are days I'm exhausted from the brain picking. LOL, that is totally what they do, make you think and keep you on your toes all day long. The 3 hour bath and dry once a week is just icing on the cake LOL.


Thank you, We are fully prepared for the grooming aspect, and I am looking forward to spending individual time with these 2 girls grooming them.
I am sure I will make mistakes with their hair........but hey, it grows back.


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## Mandycasey'smom (Jan 3, 2009)

I did 2 puppies at once and from different litters so they are actually 3 months apart in age and felt like I was house training forever ( litterally was as turned out Casey's crate trained comment ment he was trained to crap in his crate).
Mandy trained in a week Casey was over 6 months old before somewhat reliable though unwatched in sunroom he would still piddle. 

We had a lot of property so well it was great to put them out to tire them out I had to drive to town to train on city st which I did.

Crates were a neccessity for my sanity LOL I needed a break.
We limited where they could be all the time and they did not get run of the house. If I wasn't in a room neither were they.

I went against the norm and trained them on a coupler to walk as really that is what they would be walking on for their life so started right away.
I can probably count on my fingures the times they had their own leashes on a walk. in 
2 1/2 years They are now out of the haltis and such and just using flat collars for most walks unless going somewhere like a market or such where I need complete control.
We had a 165 lbs mastiff and I will tell you that the 2 of them can pull twice as hard as he ever did LOL.

It is hard I wont do it again but glad I did it this way now.

Good luck and have fun. These 2 years flew by but every day now I look at them and think wow you guys are awsome.

another hard thing is to try not to compare their strengths and weeknesses. As with our kids they are all different and mature different. But thats what makes them fun.

Casey is still very much puppy like in that he still chews and still gets over excited at times but for the most when managed he is a good boy.
Mandy is doll who if given a run each day you hardly would know she is around unless youwant to. Doesn't bug but if offered loves to be on you.


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## bigredpoodle (Sep 13, 2009)

macker905 said:


> Thank you Olie, and the advice is truly appreciated and helpful


Training will be key..
To quote a dear fellow poodle friend, she says they *"pootato chips"* Bet you can have just one HA HA . We have two separate folks that purposefully bought litter mates and last check were doing fabulous. However we strongly suggested that they do obedience training, and they did ... So I agree with some of the others that if you are an experienced dog owner you should be just fine . So happy for you ! 
Congrats to you they look so stunning !!!!!!!!!!!


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