Here’s Why You Really Should Get a Second Dog

I was full of trepidation but now can’t imagine life without this pair of mutts

Toby Harnden,

AARP Experience Counts

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En español

Published June 06, 2024

Colby (left) and Loafer

Courtesy of Toby Harnden

For more than two-thirds of my life, I’ve had a single dog.

There was Gumbo, a Bearded Collie, brought home from a farm in northern England when I was nine. Then Finn, a rascally Irish mutt who traveled the world with me and now rests in peace in my yard in Virginia. And Loafer, another rescue, a mischievous stumpy-legged Bassett and terrier mix who captured my heart after Finn departed.

A dog has always been a central part of my existence and I truly hope that the Texas sage Kinky Friedman was right in his expectation that “when you die and go to heaven all the dogs and cats you’ve ever had in your life come running to meet you.”

Last November, after relentless prodding from my teenage children, I broke the mold and got a second dog. Colby, according to his DNA profile, is mostly Pit Bull and American Staffordshire, with some Bichon Frise, Shih Tzu and Boxer thrown in for good measure.

I was full of trepidation, not least because Colby had been in a shelter for eight months—and had been adopted and then returned three times. The wonderful shelter staff didn’t sugarcoat it. Their assessment was that he was a “very busy, high energy, high motor” dog who jumped up and engaged in “destructive chewing.” Among the things this lanky beast liked to chew were hands and forearms.

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“Why change the winning formula of a single dog?” I pondered as I went to collect him. Loafer was eleven and the best dog ever, since Finn.

We decided not to change his name, in part because he’d become so used to Colby (though at during one adoption it seems he was called Angus) but also because we felt it possible we might have to take him back.

Six months later, I am so glad I took that leap of faith. I can’t imagine not having two dogs. Here’s why you should take the plunge and go for number two:

1. Makes your old dog younger

Colby arrived on the scene like a hurricane and Loafer didn’t know what had hit him. There was lots of growling from both of them and a few full-on fights. But they soon worked it out and Loafer was clearly reinvigorated. The exercise did everyone a lot of good.

I’m averaging more than 15,000 Fitbit steps daily and I’d hazard that the stimulation and change might give Loafer an extra year of life. It had been years since Loafer had chased a squirrel but this, along with swimming in the creek, is now a regular activity for him with Colby.

2. Your old dog teaches your new dog how to be a dog

Colby was clueless when he arrived, as the trail of destruction he left in his wake demonstrated. But Loafer is a generous soul who loves people and animals. He was a food thief and a wanderer in his youth, but he learned to be chill and where the boundaries were.

Somewhat comically, people have recently taken to describing Colby as “calm.” I wouldn’t go that far, but he’s picked up some of Loafer’s chillness, along with the house rules that Loafer and I had worked out. The biting that had no doubt prompted Colby to be cast out of three homes stopped very quickly.

Yes, it was like introducing a wild teenager to a sedate, middle-aged gentleman. But who doesn’t benefit from intergenerational friendships?

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3. Keeps you on your toes

I’d gotten so used to Loafer I had forgotten that all dogs weren’t like him. I remembered that when Colby jumped out of the truck and started running around a parking lot next to a four-lane highway. The difference was reinforced when he leapt over the back of the sofa and landed on top of a friend with a cup of coffee in her hand. It was a feat of athleticism and sheer, joyful idiocy that Loafer could never have achieved.

Change is good and Colby has certainly shaken things up.

4. More love to go around

Rescue dogs know they have won the canine lottery and Colby intuitively realizes this more than most. Loafer is a cuddle monkey but Colby takes things to a new level—his hugs involve him wrapping his limbs around you. He’s a mushy goofball who adores every member of the family and will do anything to please.

Of course, Loafer always gets special attention and he is number one. Colby sleeps, very happily, in a crate for now, while Loafer has on-the-bed privileges and a respite from his brother. But the amount of love in the house has not just doubled but increased exponentially.

5. Companionship

Loafer used to spend long days alone in the house. Now, he always has company. When I’m working (someone has to pay for the dog food) or preoccupied, Loafer and Colby are engaged in some kind of scheme together. Going bananas when there’s mail or an Amazon delivery is a new team sport.

Courtesy of Toby Harnden

Colby wants to be with Loafer all the time and takes his cue from his older brother. The pair of them are lying at my feet as I type, Loafer emitting the occasional satisfied groan and Colby snoring.

There is always a subplot involving a bone or a chew toy. When I get back, the pair of them are often asleep on the sofa together.

6. Transition planning

Finn’s death at 14 was devastating. No other way to put it. There was an emptiness in the house for a year until Loafer came along but the pain of Finn leaving us made me wonder whether I could ever get another dog.

When Loafer goes—hopefully a few years from now—then Colby will be here to console us. There will still be walks and hugs to fill the void. And then, there will be another dog to whom Colby will pass on all he learned from Loafer.

Bottom line

Yes, there is dog hair everywhere and the level of chaos rose considerably before it began to subside. It’s harder and more expensive to get them looked after when I travel. You should certainly think through the practicalities—and then take the plunge with number two.

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Toby Harnden is the senior editor of AARP Experience Counts. A naturalized American citizen who was born in Britain, he spent almost a decade in the Royal Navy and was later a war reporter in Afghanistan and Iraq. He is a recipient of the Orwell Prize and the author of three books, most recently First Casualty: The Untold Story of the CIA Mission to Avenge 9/11.