Well I'm not sure I am typical, but I can tell you some of the mistakes and rewards I had getting a second dog with Penny Lane.

I always had a one dog household because I lived in apartments and didn't have a yard for the dogs. I didn't feel that in the area I lived in, I could safely walk two dogs at once. (city area - lots of traffic)

Last year when I bought a house I decided it was time to get another dog. I had made sure that Leo had remained socialized by putting him in daycare once a week, weekly visits to the park, petsmart, training classes - that sort of thing.

I fell in love with Penny Lane at the animal shelter. She was so scared in the cages next to the big dogs and when I put my hand in her kennel, she just melted into me. She was older (6years old) and I thought she would be a good addition to my lifestyle. I decided to adopt her the week I was closing on my house. I took Leo in for a meet and greet and they basically ignored each other, so I thought they would get along fine (mistake #1). I took her home and she hid under the table for about two days. I really thought she had a submissive personality. She was pretty needy, but I was crazy about her and wanted to make it work. I wasn't really worried about Leo because he was so used to being around other dogs with no problems. (mistake #2)

When I took Penny Lane in to get spayed and vet checked she had some medical problems. She had bad teeth, an infected dew claw and a cyst the size of a grapefruit on her ovaries. $700 later - she was all better.

When she had been with us for about 6 weeks, her and Leo got into a major fight and Penny Lane had some bad wounds on her leg - another trip to the vet ($300) As Penny Lane became a little more confident in my house she also became more and more snarky with Leo. I really began to think that I was just not suited for a two dog household. I didn't have any problem with the financial obligation, but I was terrified that I was making both dogs' lives miserable. I deeply considered rehoming Penny Lane, because I thought she would be better off in another home.

I brought in a behaviorist to help me manage the household, bought books, did a great deal of research and made the committment to make it work. Penny Lane is on Prozac and Leo has learned to ignore her when she gets snarky.

Now even with all this, I will never regret adopting Penny Lane. Her and Leo have become great pals - they play together, sleep together and are always there to greet me when I come home.

I don't really think my situation is typical - I just think I should have done a few things differently. Bringing a second dog into my home is not really twice the work - but it is close. It is also twice the cost. I should have had Leo better trained before I brought a second dog into the house. Bringing an untrained dog into the house kind of helped Leo regress in his training. I probably should have adopted a younger dog without the anxiety issues Penny has. When we did the meet and greet, I should have looked for a dog that Leo started playing with instead of ignoring. I should have adopted a dog that was a little more independent and didn't need constant attention from me (which is what I think caused the most friction).

Six months ago, I would have said "I wish I still had a one dog household". Now I say "I am so happy I have a two dog household".

If you make the right match with Lefty - you will love having a second dog in the house.

BTW - walking two dogs at the same time can be very tough if you have a puller. Gentle Leaders help a lot, or you can buy the waist leash with a second leash attachment - it really works well to help train loose leash walking. (If we hold onto a leash our natural tendency is to let the dog go forward - but if it is attached to your waist, our natural tendency to stop. which stops the forward motion of the dog)

Sorry this is so long - I just wanted to give you an idea of a worst case scenario that turns out good.