How many dogs are too many? The ultimate answer depends on how many dogs you can handle in such a way that they are all well-cared for and you can cater to their well-being. There are dog owners who are perfectly capable of owning three or more dogs and can manage them very well, while there are dog owners who may be struggling with only one or two. The only way to tell how many dogs one could handle is by taking a careful assessment of the whole picture. Total honesty is key to obtaining a true, reliable assessment.
Evaluating Overall Space
Do your dogs have sufficient space? Are their living quarters crowded? Lack of space may lead to stress and this may lower the dog’s immune system and make them more susceptible to diseases, especially if their living quarters are dirty. It can be challenging to maintain a dog’s living quarters clean when dogs are occupying a small space.
Also consider noise. When many dogs are housed in not too much space, their barking may get overwhelming. This can overwhelm dogs over time and cause considerable stress. Excessive barking can be a sign that the dogs are frustrated and this may be due to lack of exercise and mental stimulation due to lack of space.
Also, when too many dogs are housed together the chances for fights to erupt may increase. While dogs can be quite social animals, fights are more likely to erupt when dogs are in small spaces and they don’t have much room to move away if there are dogs guarding resources towards other dogs.
Evaluating Overall Wellbeing
In other words, do your dogs look happy? Dogs thrive on individual attention from their caregivers. It may difficult to walk dogs, train them and provide them affection when you have too many of them. Unless you are a professional dog walker with years of experience under your belt, walking a group of dogs and keeping them under control can be a big challenge.
Not all dogs do well being around other dogs. Dogs may fight over certain resources such as food, resting areas, toys or attention. Serious fights may take place ensue if one dog does not get along with another dog and they are forced to live under the same roof.
Sometimes dogs must be separated to prevent injuries and this option should be evaluated carefully. At times, re-homing the dog in a home where he is the only dog may be the best option.
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Evaluating Health and Sanitation
Do your dogs look healthy? Are there strong odors? Happy dogs are healthy and there should not be overwhelming smells. While rescuing many dogs may look like a great act of charity, depriving them from living in clean and healthy quarters may be considered neglect. Lack of proper vet care, exercise and space are also contributing factors that may cause problems.
These are some very important questions to ask. The answers can make the difference between becoming a hoarder or a responsible pet owner. If you are struggling to care for your dogs or if your dogs are smelly and dirty these are indicators you own too many dogs. Animal Control at this point has the right to take your dogs and give them a better home.
Making a Honest Assessment
But how many dogs are too many? Is there really a magic number? With dogs, more than two may cause some challenges especially between same-sex specimens. Ideally, male and female combos seem to work the best. Male-male and female-female combinations may endure into serious fights at times. Are you able to supervise all your dogs to prevent a squabble from escalating?
Many times dog owners have found that their dogs get very well along. Their home has harmony and they have found the magic number. Then one day, they decide to add another dog to their household and their home is in havoc. The dog is a trouble maker or he/she is not accepted by the others and there are fights
Many times, these are only temporary issues but there are cases, where dogs may never be trusted together. Is it really worth it to disrupt the harmony?
What the Law Says
How many dogs are too many? When you fail to provide proper care to too many dogs in a household this may result in prosecution under animal cruelty laws. Penalties for neglecting dogs according to Animal Law Info may result in fines, animal forfeiture, and jail time.
While you may feel like your heart has unlimited space for many strays, you need to carefully evaluate and realize that you really can do so much. As with almost everything in life, excess causes more harm than good. What may seem to be a great act of compassion may end up becoming a collection of dogs that are fighting, dirty or worse, very sick.
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