Bottle fed pup, not raised by mom

[paso]

My 7 mo. old female rot was bottle raised by breeder because the mom got a uterine infection 7 days after birth. The litter was removed and fed by bottle until I picked her up at 6.5 weeks because she was eating solid food. My question, who has experience with dogs not raised "normally" by mom. I notice she has a harder time understanding rules than my other rotties who were in traditional litters. She is very jealous of other animals paying attention to "her people". Her temperment is 90% very mellow and a newly arriving 10% of more agressive behavior that she seems to be trying out. She will also not quit chasing the family cat. She knows this is off limits play, but refuses to care. My other rotts were alot more mindful of the rules so I am wondering if her lack of mom could be creating additional challenges to her training. She is currently the only dog in the house, my other rotts have since passed. She has always been the only dog in the house.
Thank You for your input.

[Grendl]

I cannot speak to your specific situation, but I do know that 7 mos. is a typical age for Rottie pups to begin showing some independance and checking to see who's in charge. That could be the 10% aggressive behavior you are seeing. Counter it with more training. Also, it is the natural dispostion of some Rotts to always want to chase the family cat. There again, training helps alot. A dog with good level of obedience will be easier to control around the cat. But you probably already know this. Anyway, I hope someone with experience with bottle-fed pups responds to your query.

[TrishB]

Something to keep in mind is that pups learn incredible amounts from their mothers and litter mates. They learn about bite pressure, when to release, how to read body language, limits, etc.

Your puppy missed this. Arranging play dates so that she can learn how to interact is key.

Now that she is 7 months old, she is challenging you. She may push you harder than most would, due to her lack of being taught limitations as a pup.

You must decide what is and is not acceptable. Stick to it and be consistent. If she is not allowed to push her way in between people, NEVER allow her to do so. Even one time will set back her training. She must learn to earn everything.

Do go back to obedience classes as those too will help to strenghten your role and to encourage limits.

[Debbie]

I have had Heidi since she was 2 1/2 weeks old (she's now 3 years old) and I had to bottle feed her. Our Doberman, who was nine years old at the time, essentially fostered her and showed her the "doggie ropes" but we also kept her crated when we weren't home and reinforced our rules over and over again like we did with every other puppy we've ever had.

She grew up very well adjusted and is the best possible house dog. She is no longer crated (we stopped using it at about 1 1/2 years but she is still comfortable in one which is a blessing since she had TPLO surgery and needed it for a while). She never chews anything up, stays off furniture and out of the garbage. She is also the funniest dog I have ever seen with a personality that wins over everyone who has been leary of Rotties in the past.

Each dog just has a different personality and yours may need a bit more refining but I don't think it can necessarily be pinned down to the bottle raising. Everyone agrees leaving mom too early is less than ideal, but it does happen and those babies can and do grow up well. Just keep working with her - she was probably destined to be a spitfire no matter what. :D

[paso]

:) Thank You so much for your info. She is definitely a spit fire as you say. She is the pup that crawled over an 8 inch board before her eyes were even open. she was very independent even then. My husband chose her for those very reasons. I had an inkling that she had the handful potential then. She has not disappointed me. I am going to take her to pupppy classes in the next session so she learns more socializing. She has a desire to protect me from other animals that want to come see me. I don't want this to be acceptable behavior. I have made sure she has positive experiences with other dogs, but her first instinct is either jealousy or perhaps protection. She is mostly a super dog, and is learning basic obedience at this time with me. We have sitz, stay, plotz and foos down pretty well.
Again Thank everyone for all of the great input.
Sierra

[livertw]

These dogs are a challenge. I got Daisy the day she was born from a friend who owned the mother. Mother died giving birth. Half the pups died and five were alive. One died at two weeks. The vet suggested that we not name her or get really attached, because her chances were not really good. She was very small and spent her first days on our laps wrapped in a sweater or in a box with a heating pad. We didn't have Daisy's tail docked because we thought she had been through enough trauma. We fed her with dropper for a day until she learned to suck from a tiny bottle. Biting was a challenge as she grew, and we had to be very strict with her. She was taken to puppy school as soon as she had her shots and the vet gave the OK. We did socialize as much as possible. Now at 2 1/2, she is very person friendly, but not nearly as dog friendly as she used to be. We are going to concentrate and work with a trainer on overcoming this dog aggression. Daisy is very affectionate but did miss out on the socialization of being raised in a litter. In retrospect, I should have searched immediately for a nursing doggie mom to foster the new pup.