If you are thinking about adopting an African Boerboel, you may be concerned about how this breed gets along with other pets, whether you already have pets or are thinking of adding to your animal family in the future. The truth is, in many cases the Boerboel will do fine with other animals under certain conditions. Here we'll take a look at how the Boerboel will fare with other pets and what you can do to make sure your new dog and the other pets in your family will get along.
The first thing to keep in mind is that the Boerboel is among the most dominant of breeds and they do need a firm hand in training. Many believe that these dogs do better with owners that have experience with the breed or others that belong to the mastiff family (bulldogs and the like) which absolutely require consistent training with no overindulgence. While owners must be firm in their training, they must find the delicate balance between firm and abusive discipline, as they will not respond well to negative or threatening reinforcement. This sort of discipline can create a dangerous situation in which the dog feels the need to defend itself. Those that do not have previous experience with this sort of dog would do well to take a puppy obedience course with their Boerboel to make sure they start off with good training habits.
When it comes to Boerboels and other dogs, the general consensus seems to be that they do best when they are raised with other dogs already in the home. That is to say that, in most cases, a Boerboel joining a family that already has a dog or two should do just fine. Socialization is the key to making sure your Boerboel gets along with your other pets and they should be carefully introduced when the Boerboel is very young. Once the pecking order is established, the dogs should get along just fine and even come to consider the other dogs as an important part of the family. On the other hand, Boerboels do need a great deal of attention from their human families and may not take the addition of a new dog to the family very well. Also, if your Boerboel is a male, you may want to consider adopting a female as your next dog, in order to avoid any aggressive tendencies in the future.
As for mixing together your Boerboel with other pets, in most cases the same rules will apply as with other dogs. If your household already contains a cat or two, your new Boerboel should get along fine as long as they have been properly introduced. Adding another pet to the family when the Boerboel is older will depend on how well socialized your dog is.
In the end, it should be remembered that every Boerboel is different, so one will get along great with other pets while another will never feel comfortable with another animal's presence no matter how well trained he is. But good training and socialization from a very young age are the best ways to ensure that your Boerboel will get along with other pets and come to see them as just another member of their family.
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