Should I get 2 puppies to grow up together?

I am often asked this question and quite frankly, there is no simple yes or no answer.  The positives are endearing things, like watching them playing together and interacting with each other.  Plus they'll be great company for one another when we have to leave the house.  Right?  And especially in the case of litter siblings, there's this warm fuzzy notion about how cute it is for them to remain together from the nest for the rest of their lives - oops,  at least for the rest of the life of "one of them" but I'll come back to that later.
If you are thinking of getting 2 puppies at the same time, I encourage you to continue reading.  If you can handle the considerations then go ahead and enjoy your puppies!  

1. It's important to understand that 2 puppies at once are double the fun, but they're double the work too.  Imagine keeping an eye on two for potty mistakes, for starters.  Then there's TRAINING.
2. TRAINING. Each of the two is an individual in his/her own right.  So in order to allow each to become the best dog they were bred to be, training should be done separately with the other out of sight to encourage independent learning and character development.
3. PACK.  Two puppies form their own little pack when they spend a lot of their time together as babies.  When one is naughty, so is the other likely to be.  But if one is in trouble and the other not, the innocent puppy will feel and unjustly be affected by your correction of the other. YOU should be pack leader to each of them as an individual. The only way to accomplish this is for you to spend quality time with each of them separately.
4. SEPARATION ANXIETY.  Puppies who are raised as a PAIR will be more likely to stress in the future if circumstances require them to be apart for any reason.​​

 5.  RAINBOW BRIDGE.  When that Day inevitably arrives for the first,  one will go and will leave behind a grieving pal whose sorrow will be deeply impacted by your own sense of loss and sadness.  Add to this, the fact that because they are so close in age,  your own second loss will probably occur soon after.  

My personal recommendations:
1.  If you already have a dog, bring in your new puppy when your first is fully grown.  He/she knows your expectations and will be a mentor to the puppy.
2.   You may worry that your old dog will not accept a newcomer into the family. My research  and feedback over many years shows that the reverse is true.  Any early diffidence usually melts within the first week.  And your puppy will extend the active years of your old beloved.

Baby Cobberdog Rutlands Eddy arrived in the USA December 2018. 13 year old Rutlands Mocha was quite wary of him. Here they are just one week after Eddy's arrival sharing her bed.