Littermate Syndrome

    • Gold Top Dog

    Littermate Syndrome

    hey my two boxers pups are sisters and i never heard of littermate syndrome intill i joined this site so i asked my vet and she never heard of it. so is this a real problem or a world that gone too pc.

    • Gold Top Dog

    There's alot of information out there about it so I would guess it's a real thing...however... same sex aggression is also considered a "real thing", and it does not apply in every case either. I don't have littermates, but my same sex boys get along just fine. Since you could qualify as "possible littermate syndrome" AND "possible same sex aggression", I would just make you socialize them really well and make sure that you do different things with each dog, that they have their own space, that they're taught to play nice...everything you would normally do with 2 dogs. I'm still a novice dog owner myself, but that's what all the websites I found say, lol.

    • Gold Top Dog

    I'm not sure that it's an issue with them being littermates, but in many breeds it is common to have same-sex aggression or aggression/vying for position among dogs that are the same age.  Also it's more likely the littermates will be very similar in temperament which is not always a good thing.

    As of next weekend I will have three boys, two intact, but they are all 2 years or more apart and have different very temperaments and two different breeds.

    • Gold Top Dog

    "Litermate syndrome" is just a term used by humans to blame the dogs when the human does not provide training, discipline and human's ignorance

    • Gold Top Dog

    I'd never choose two bitches from the same litter. Mother and daughter is bad enough. LOL. And, espence....sssure.

    • Gold Top Dog

    OP, here's a good article on this issue: http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/13_1/features/Problems-Adopting-Two-Puppies-At-Once_16190-1.html

    Maybe it will give you some insight into the problems that can arise and how to prevent them.

    Good luck with your pups!

    • Gold Top Dog

    When I think of "littermate syndrome" I don't really think of 2 dogs from the same litter, same sex, being aggressive towards each other (although it can happen). What I think of is 2 dogs, same litter, same sex, being too attached and too focused on each other. Take 2 Goldens I take care of for example: Great dogs, very happy-go-lucky, love people. At dog parks they do not pay any attention to any of the dogs there, only each other. At home, they're constantly playing together, sleeping together, eating together; they do everything together. Now, when one has to go to the vet and the other is left at home the one left at home melts down; barkings, whining, crying, shaking, drooling, until the other comes back. The owner has an extremely hard time getting their attention because they're so focused on each other. They're not comfortable or happy when seperated- ever. They melt down when seperated.