doodles on schnoodles
Fantasy Pups
Just for fun, today my son will guest-blog to talk about something other than our puppies... but he will still blog about puppies!
People ask whether we would be willing to adopt out two puppies to the same family. The answer is the same whether we adopt one or two: only if you can show that you are prepared for the responsibility. Of course, we will need a lot of more convincing before we would send you home with two puppies -- a lot -- but it has nothing to do with "Littermate Syndrome". Here my son explains why... There are thousands of websites that discuss so-called "Puppy Littermate Syndrome". The phrase has become so common in the "dogosphere" that many people -- even not a few vets, trainers, and breeders -- take it as a scientific term. It is not. The whole concept is based on "junk science". Turns out that there is not a shred of scientific evidence to support this so-called "syndrome". But first, what does the term mean? There are many definitions out there, but they all boil down to the same thing. "Littermate Syndrome" refers to any undesired behavior expressed by a pet (usually a dog) that was raised with another animal from its own litter. That over-broad description alone should cause anyone with a training in science to wince. But as with all junk science, there is plenty of anecdotal "evidence" to back it up. This "evidence" is frequently contradictory behaviors. "The siblings are too affectionate to each other and do not value the affection of their owner" versus "The siblings are too aggressive with one another and jealous of their owner's affection." In other words, it doesn't matter what the behavioral problem is, the cause just has to be that the pets are siblings because "after all, they are littemates and what else could it be?" Clearly that is not a scientific explanation - unless a direct causal connection can be found -- this is called an aetiological connection -- between being conceived together in the same womb and exhibiting a specific list of harmful behaviors, it is rash to lump the behaviors together to imply that they have the same cause. (At least we can be thankful that no one is blaming it on vaccinations!) In fact, not only is there no evidence showing that the undesired behavior is caused by the littermate connection, there is not even statistical evidence to show that the undesired behavior is more frequent among littermates. (That is, there is no positive correlation). The myth justifies itself by claiming that littermates have a deep bond which prevents them from bonding with their human companions. Sounds good, right? But there is no evidence that littermates actually have such a bond, and wild dogs definitely do not show a propensity to form stronger social interactions with their own siblings than other dogs - in fact, it is just the reverse. Another account goes like this: puppies are more apt to bond with their own species than with their human companions because they "speak the same language" and so it is easier to learn one another's language then the foreign language of their human companion. Sounds good, right? The "language" argument commits the fallacy of anthropomorphism, an attractive argument, but far from scientific. Note that by this "language" argument, the "syndrome" would not only be displayed by littermates, but by any puppy raised in a house with another dog. Either way, both accounts ignore the demonstrated scientific fact that, because they are pack animals, dogs are capable of forming multiple non-exclusive bonds. Additionally, domesticated dogs have been bred to be capable of bonding outside their species, and the result is that they are not only capable of bonding with human beings, but with other non-threatening, social species (e,g. cats, horses, and sheep) just as easily and quickly and intensely as with other dogs. It is important when "reading" a dog's behavior to know that dogs are not people; they do not communicate by language. They interpret some behavior instinctively and other behavior by a learned association with pleasure or pain, whether that behavior is displayed by another dog, a cat, a horse, a sheep, or a man. So they "understand" anyone in there pack just as well as anyone else -- either by instinct or by a learned association. If the dog's companion (whether it be a man, cat, sheep, or another dog) behaves consistently, the dog will "understand" whether they are dealing with a friend or enemy, and how to behave to illicit the most favorable outcome. They may not do what you want, or what the cat wants, or what the sheep wants, or what the other dog wants, but they will "understand" whether to avoid the situation, ignore it, submit to it, or encourage it. So where does the myth come from? As with all myths, there can be multiple origins. But one is probably that people who try to train two puppies at once often do not give enough time to training each puppy and so undesirable behaviors result. Another cause is probably that people who raise two puppies at once assume that they can neglect their puppy's socialization because "it has another dog to socialize with them." In other words, the bonding problem is not on the side of the puppy, but on the side of the human being. Finally, it may be that trainers attempt to train both dogs together rather than separately, as if they have a school room full of children all sitting in a row of desks. (Yet we know that even with human children, individual tutoring can be more effective at times than mass education.) The fact is that it is sometimes more difficult FOR TRAINING A PUPPY to have in addition to the dog trainer another animal in the household (whether the other animal is a littermate, or a non-related puppy, or an adult dog, or even other human beings!) This other animal may distract the puppy's attention during training sessions. The solution is to separate the puppy from these distractions during training. Which is why most of the websites that address how to "cure littermate syndrome" simply state basic advice to overcome any situation which would interfere with a puppy's training or neglect its socialization.. So be smart. Whether you have two puppies, or a puppy and children, or even a puppy and an under-cooperative spouse, you need to establish a plan to train your puppy that gives the puppy adequate training time, and is sensitive to distractions. One final note. "Distractions" are not always bad. These other animals can also be an asset in training. This is because the behavior of other animals can reinforce what the trainer is trying to teach. It could be a child letting the puppy outside for potty time; it could be another puppy being rewarded for offering a paw or sitting on command. So use common sense: get others involved when it can help, and out of the way when it can hurt. So if you want to raise a puppy and a goldfish (tough and easy), or a puppy and a kitten (tough and less tough), or two puppies (tough and tough), or a puppy and a baby (tough and very tough) or a puppy and quintuplets (tough and nearly impossible!).... go ahead. Just be aware that you are committing yourself to training multiple individuals, and you need to prepare yourself to meet the needs of all. Renowned Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists Dr. Suzanne Hetts and Dr. Dan Estep have made this 5-minute video to debunk the Littermate Syndrome Myth and to redirect the tidal wave of bad information out there. When littermates display behavioral problems that have nothing to do with being littermates, we do our pets a disservice by being distracted by this myth.
25 Comments
Reg
12/9/2018 10:00:02 am
You say this syndrome doesn't exist, then say what you need to do to avoid it. mmmmmkay.
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Brian
5/28/2019 08:09:19 am
The answer to your question is in the article. We are successfully raising two female Aussie littermates. Commit yourself to training them both together and separately.
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Christine Edmond
4/16/2021 06:55:35 pm
I thought the article was about Dobermans
Christian King
1/17/2020 07:29:26 pm
This comment might get deleted but you are an idiot. If you had paid attention while reading this article you would have realized that all sorts of unwanted behaviors that are supposed to be caused by this littermate syndrome need solutions. In other words. if you raise do dogs and they are aggressive towards each other, you need to solve this whether or not this litter mate syndrome is true. That's why he proposed solutions.
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Brian Tripoli
1/19/2020 06:01:35 am
I am sorry that you miss the point and sorry you feel the need to insult someone you don't know. My point is that continuing the myth that litter mate syndrome is real is unfortunate. To be sure behavioral problems need to be addressed, but there is NO SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE LITTER MATE SYNDROME EXISTS. PERPETUATING THIS MYTH IS STUPID AND ENGAGING IN SUPERSTITION., There, simple enough for you?
Less heat, more light!
Reg, in Korea there is a myth that electric fans cause death. They beeve this because in the hot Korean summers in these small Korean apartments, people are found dead with electric fans blowing on them. So they sell electric fans with timers that automatically turn them off after 20 minutes. If I said, "Fan Death is a myth but buy these fans with timers to avoid Fan Death," then as you are implying, I would be committing the "Garlic Fallacy": "Vampires are a myth but to wad them off, wear garlic."
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Brian
1/27/2020 09:35:23 am
Hello Marie, I may have been too brief in my initial response, but all I was trying to say was an echo of your point in your very last sentence in your post above about the responsibility of raising two puppies.... One must devote the time, and set-up a training schedule of separate and together times. I guess I am sensitive to all of the misinformation about dog rearing in general and litter-mate syndrome in particular. We've been given unsolicited advice more that once to give away one dog before getting too attached. Or another gem.... Raise them in separate rooms. This kind of advice causes nothing but unnecessary heart ache and stress for the owners and defies common sense. Dogs and humans have had close and strong bonds for over 12,000 years, with litters living together for generation upon generation. But miraculously in the past 20 years or so canine behavior has changed. Sorry if I belabor the point, thank you for your blog.
Christine Edmond
4/16/2021 06:54:07 pm
THANK YOU. If they are born together, they relate to each other. It takes so much to stop that bond and make them pay attention to a MERE human. My Doberman's breeder (back in olden times) LYNN WOODS, recommended we NOT get littermates as it would make it very difficult to train them. There would be TOO PREOCCUPIED with each other. Not so complicated, really.
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ccrow
9/10/2023 09:27:02 am
Actually, it's not so complicated to make sure they get training time away from each other. Sure they relate to each other; by your reasoning nobody should ever have more than one dog as they will relate to each other rather than the mere human.
Debra
5/3/2019 07:24:48 am
Thank you so much for publishing this. I’ve never had dogs that weren’t siblings and have never had any problems, so I was surprised and confused when I started being cautioned against adopting littermates in my current search for puppies. Your article has renewed my commitment to siblings, as I feel very strongly that it’s a much less stressful transition for them.
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Christian King
1/17/2020 07:30:42 pm
The transition is the same for them. You, however, will have a lot more stress lol.
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Joy
1/27/2020 08:44:48 am
We have just acquired two sister puppies and wondered about how much separation one would recommend for them? I see the great bond they have with each other, but I don't feel that they aren't listening or wanting to be around us "humans". It seems very natural that they want to be around each other which provides comfort and entertainment. I have read some articles that suggest doing most things separately - raise the 2 dogs apart, but this seems unnatural.
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I am raising not two but three dogs from the same litter. I've had them since they were born. The mother was originally my dog but she has since moved and lives with my sister while I kept 3 of the 5 pups. I managed to find homes for the 2 dogs (well, 3, but I took one back when I realized he wasn't cared for well enough). Anyway, the two females I originally kept started to get aggressive towards one another about the time they reached maturity. It started to get very bad at one point but I managed to get them to get along after lots of hard work. Fixing them both helped curb their aggressive behavior ever so slightly but I still do not, ever, take them out together. They sleep in separate rooms, eat separately, and both have their own spaces away from the other. After taking the male dog back, the situation improved tenfold. It's almost as if their male litter mate thought them how to coexist, how to play together. I love seeing them play together and it happens often, few times a day. Yet the aggression is still there below the surface, any little thing can get them in 'attack' mode.. even if it rarely ever goes further than that. My experience tells me that the syndrome is real. Of course, as with everything else, if you put enough time and effort into a problem, you can solve. That however does not mean the syndrome is bogus.
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VIKAS KESAVAN
4/29/2020 10:13:24 am
Amer, is it because they are from same litter? What if they are from different litters?!
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Yes, as I said in the first sentence of my response. Given how this article is about the "litter mate" syndrome, I am not sure what the point is in asking what would have happened if they weren't (litter mates). Both females are excellent with other dogs of either gender. The situation has been improving though, however slowly.
Felicity
8/4/2021 07:37:14 am
It's not because their litter mates, it's because thier tempermants are incompatible. You'd have the same result with two unrelated dogs with the same tempermant. Constantly fighting is the biggest reason for rehoming a new dog after all
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ccrow
9/10/2023 09:23:50 am
This has nothing to do with them being littermates and everything to do with them being two females. I have a similar situation with two unrelated, different age females. Also, if this is all 'littermate syndrome', how do you explain yet another littermate in the mix improving things?
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VIKAS KESAVAN
4/29/2020 10:17:33 am
I read many articles about the so called 'syndrome'.. I am inclined to believing that it really depends on owner to ensure that a healthy bond is developed among dogs and humans - and its not really a result of getting puppies from same litter. I will return to this thread after a few weeks or months with my observations and experience.
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DIane
12/18/2020 08:42:20 pm
I found out about littermate syndrome after we had lost both dogs to old age - and finally understood why our younger dog never fully grew into himself.
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Marie
12/19/2020 01:39:18 pm
Fair enough. But those arguing for Litterrmate Syndrome commit another fallacy - anecdotal evidence. That's because the only people who report on the supposed "syndrome" are those who happen to have difficulty raising sibling puppies. This evidence is not weighed against those who have successfully trained sibling puppies. This makes it appear that there is a correlation, when in fact it is probably just unintended cherry picking. Add an imaginary causal link to explain the false correlation, and suddenly anecdotal evidence becomes a theory! As argued in the blog posting, it seems much more probable that the difficulties reported are simply the normal difficulties of training a puppy, times two.
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Felicity
8/4/2021 07:39:50 am
I've raised nothing but siblings. Multiple dogs over the years. Never had a single problem. No difference in any of them when their sibling died first either.
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Carol-Leah Loran
5/4/2021 08:17:10 am
I bought 4 Yorkie litter mate puppies without any knowledge of this syndrome. 2 males and 2 females. They have all been altered. They are now 18 months old and we have not seen any of the problems yet and hope we never do. They are all very loving, wanting to cuddle whenever we are sitting. They play well together and alone. After reading all the information on this syndrome I feel extremely lucky and will keep a lookout for anything negative. Scary stuff but I won't be getting rid of any of them.
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P. Hayes
11/15/2022 03:10:30 pm
Just because littermate syndrome does not occur in every case or even 50% of the cases of people adopting a pair of pups from the same litter. However to flat out call it a myth it’s very dangerous. I see in one, comment, someone suggests that helping the pair to create a bond would take care of the problem. For God’s sake! That shows clear misunderstanding and inability to identify the problems that come along with syndrome, Which is a very real and scary thing. There’s too much ground to cover and one comment, so I’ll address the naïve comment about helping the pair develop a good bond. Hello! It is in fact partially due to the intensity of that bond which can lead to the problem. Instead of telling people not to worry about a very real problem, you encourage them to ignore it or deny that it exists. Those who didn’t know anything about it and adopted littermates, find themselves in a terrible situation are being told that *they* are doing something wrong? it can’t be littermate syndrome, because it’s a myth? Why would you not err on the side of caution?
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BreederHello. My name is Marie, and I have three Schnauzers that fill my life with joy! With the help of my children and grandchildren, I am raising Schnoodle puppies and placing them in good homes. Feel free to browse through my website and enjoy the pictures! Archives
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