Are you considering taking 2 puppies from the same litter? Please think twice!
What is Littermate Syndrome?
Puppy siblings may bond so closely with each other that it makes bonding with their human caretakers and other dogs more difficult. Evidence suggests that behavioural issues may arise during key development periods because the two puppies’ deep bond impedes their individual ability to absorb and grasp human and canine communication.
Since fear is the canine’s default reaction to odd or unfamiliar stimuli, this muddled understanding of the world around them can lead to impaired coping mechanisms later on.
It’s important to note that there’s no guarantee two puppies from the same litter will develop behavioural problems associated with littermate syndrome.
Signs of littermate syndrome include
Littermate syndrome can vary in degrees of severity.
Some of the most common signs of littermate syndrome is intense anxiety when separated, even briefly. Fearfulness around unfamiliar people or dogs. This fearfulness can occur when the puppies are together or separated from each other.
Because the two puppies have bonded so closely, they don’t know how to interact with other dogs or with humans.
How do you deal with littermate syndrome?
There are many tactics you can use to prevent and lessen the effects of littermate syndrome. Prevention is always the first step that should be taken, and this starts as soon as you bring the puppies home.
One of the most important things you can do is to ensure that the two puppies spend a significant amount of time apart each and every day. By allowing them to spend all of their time together, the two may become hyper-attached. This leads to feelings of distress if one is separated from the other by even a small distance. Each puppy needs individual time and training; maximize this time apart with separate walks, vet visits and feeding times. Time apart can also include crating/sleeping arrangements, play time and training times. Personal training time should be seen as incredibly important in dealing with littermate syndrome because it encourages your puppies to look to you for direction, not to their sibling.
The longer you wait to deal with littermate syndrome, the more difficult it is, and the more traumatic for the puppies. As soon as the puppies are old enough to begin socialization, every week that goes by makes it harder to remedy the problem.