Rottweiler Acting Out Help!!!!!

[Optimus]

My Rottweiler is 16 months old and he recently started going to the bathroom in the house while we sleep. A couple of things about my dog. He demands affection constantly, he goes in the laundry room and the bathroom and then closes the door behind him. He use to be able to be taken out back without a lead, but recently started dashing 3 houses down where a Yellow Lab lives to wander around their yard. He now can only go out with a lead. I am a second time Rotty owner but I never experienced any of these behaviors with my first male. Someone please help..

[Rott-Wiley]

Is he neutered? Is he still in training classes? He should be.

That statement; "He demands affection constantly," -- That may be the answer to all your problems. He shouldn't demand anything!

I'm guessing you don't have a fenced in yard. He should be on lead then.

[RottiMomCT]

Crate him at night when you can't supervise him 100%. Take up all water and/or food after a certain time and take him out for potty and stay out with him until he goes.

How much formal training has he had? Any chance you can fence an area for him to be off lead in your yard? If he doesn't have 100% solid recall he should not be off lead unless in a secure area.

No two dogs are ever the same (now boring would that be?!?!)...I have never had a male rott before my boy Ben and I can honestly say it's all new to me, but after 4 years I think I've got it .

Keep up with training. At 16 months he's starting to 'feel his oats' and becoming a teenager...rebellious and sassy, trying to see what he can get away with...

[Optimus]

No he is not neutered. I don't know of any training programs in my area and my backyard is not fenced.

He thinks he is a lap dog; you say he should not desire to be affection and if so, what do you suggest?

He doesn't have any professional training. I quess my first Rotty spoiled me with his ease to train. I guess I thought they were all that smart and eager to please.

I do crate him at night when he does it, but when should I allow him to stay out again?

[AngelBunny]

He's using your house as his toilet because you're letting him. Crate him at night.

He demands affection constantly because you're letting him do so. Give him affection only when you want to do so; at any other time, make him get lost.

He's recently started dashing off to play with his Lab buddy because you're letting him. Keep him on a leash (and fence your yard) and that's the end of his running around.

Time to
1) get serious about his obedience work and
2) start practicing NILIEF (nothing in life is ever free).

[Rott'nKids]

not that he shouldn't be desiring affection, but that he shouldn't be DEMANDING it. If you give in (hard not to, isn't it?), you are doing exactly that, just giving in and this makes him think he's the boss, and will surely test you in other ways. What to do in this teenager-rebellious-bratty stage? Training, training, training and more training.

[Rott-Wiley]

The first thing I would suggest is to get him neutered. Is there any reason you don't want to do that? What about getting down to Ft. Lauderdale? There are several places to train there. I'm not familiar with any in Coral Springs but I'm sure there must be something there. Maybe you could check the yellow pages?

I didn't say he shouldn't desire affection, what I did say is that he should not demand anything and get it. That is the start of asking for problems. And when those problems do start, that's when you as the owner have to control when he gets the things he wants.

[Optimus]

So all of your replies say the same thing; he is getting spoiled and by giving in to him, we are just making it worse.

My wife thinks he is crapping in the house at night because we close all the bedroom doors and he is rebelling for that reason..

How long should I crate him for at night until I try to let him stay out again?

[AngelBunny]

You're absolutely right--your boy is dreadfully spoiled. What you and your wife are doing will only make things worse as he matures and gets more out of control. You really must make him straighten up and fly right.

Your wife is wrong in thinking he's using your house as a latrine because he's rebelling. Dogs brains aren't wired the way ours are and to believe a dog thinks the way we do is misleading and unhelpful.

Before going to bed, I put our dogs outside into the pen (really our fenced in back yard). Many times they'll just stand there, sniffing for a few moments before coming back into the house (thru the dog door). I do this regardless of how late or early I go to bed. The dogs know this is the signal that the day's ended & everyone must settle for the night. I suggest you take your boy outside for a short walk every night before putting him into his crate.

As for how long he should stay in his crate--that is impossible to answer because it depends on your dog's level of maturity and how rigorous you are with your training. At this point, you shouldn't be thinking about how soon he can stay out of his crate because from the sounds of it, he has a long way to go before he can handle that freedom.

[Greg_1111]

Training is essential, and it is on going. also,, they aren't static animals, they develop and mature and that goes for their personalities too. if you have taught the basics and think that they will just do what you want them to do without on going "reinforcement" you will be dissapointed. These Rottweilers are thinkers, and you have to constantly work with them. As in anything, if you get complacent, then the result of that will follow. It's happened to me. I did a lot of work for a period of time, then I thought it was all over, case closed. I was wrong, and she started to drift. I got back on track, and things are fine again. Mix all of your fun time with some commands and training excercises combined with praise and a treat or two. Most importantly, provide consistency and try to estabish a bit of a routine. You can't put a Rottweiler on auto pilot and expect obedience. They are inherently self reliant if left to their own devices

[RottiMomCT]

I realize I'm up in CT and cannot offer any personal experience with any of these facilities, but a quick search using the online yellow pages found these facilities for me:

Coral Springs, FL Dog Training Facilities

My suggestion would be to talk to the trainers about your troubles, find out about their experience, ask about specifically training rotties or other large breeds, talk to people taking a class from the trainers, sit in on the classes, find a trainer you like and get to work. Both you and your wife (and anyone else in the house) MUST be 100% compliant with everything taught in class in order for this to work. It won't be easy, and it may not be cheap, but the rewards are worth it!

Once he realizes that the more he does to PLEASE you the more affection/attention he'll get from youwithout having to demand it, you'll see a 'lightbulb' go on in his eyes and the change will amaze you.

[Rott-Wiley]

Are you close enought to drive to Ft. Lauderdale? That is an excellent club. It is the:
Fort Lauderdale Dog Club

Delegate & Secretary: Nancy Isakson, 1514 Sw 12th Ct, Ft Lauderdale, FL 33312-3320

We're not allowed to post email addresses here but if you go to the AKC.org web site and look up "F" in the member clubs you'll get all the information you need to contact the club and get the info on their training classes.

[samanthac]

Forgive me as I have not read all the other replies...

Originally Posted by Optimus

My Rottweiler is 16 months old and he recently started going to the bathroom in the house while we sleep.

Answer is simple. Crate him while you sleep.

He demands affection constantly

Your dog should not demand anything. He is the dog, YOU are the master. YOU determine what is and is not given and when. YOU set the rules and YOU must enforce them CONSISTENTLY with no wavering.

He use to be able to be taken out back without a lead, but recently started dashing 3 houses down where a Yellow Lab lives to wander around their yard. He now can only go out with a lead.

Unless you have a tall, physical fence surrounding your yard, the dog absolutely should not be allowed out off lead. What if he gets into a dog fight? Actually I should not say what, but when as chances are extremely high that he will at some point if allowed to roam. Say bye-bye Rottweiler and expect to get sued, especially if he kills a domestic dog or cat. What if he chases something and is so focused he gets turned into road pizza? Again probability is very high that this will happen if he is allowed to roam. Only takes a split second for an accident to occur. Or say he goes after some kid riding on a bike and the kid gets hurt as he is acting out his prey drive? Or say he chases some kid and takes them down because the kid is acting like prey and seriously hurts (or worse) the child. Have you ever for one second thought about the liability involved in letting your dog get loose like that? Every scenario there WILL be a sensational new story and ever single scenario will get you sued, prosecuted or even possible convicted should it happen. Also be aware that police officers can and will shoot large roaming dogs that appear to be a danger and are backed up byt he law in most cases.

Even with serious obedience and distraction training, he should not be anywhere off lead (except in a physically fenced yard or supervised training environment) for HIS safety....especially in a more urban/developed environment. Sorry if that is not convenient, but rarely is dog onwership.

Males are a whole different ball of wax. And Rottweilers vary in personality from one to the other....there is not one cookie cutter personality. Traits may be stronger in some than in others and each dog will present its own unique challenges.

My advice is to get this boy and yourself into formal training 10 minutes ago. You need to learn how to handle this boy as much as he needs to learn obedience. The only way he will respect you as a leader and listen to you is if you work with him, offer him firm and consistent leadership, make sure rules are established and consistently enforced and to handle discipline in a fair and unemotional manner.

HTH and please stick around and ask lots of questions here.

[TrishB]

"Nothing In Life Is Free" - is the NILIF program.

http://k9deb.com/nilif.htm

Read it, learn it, stick to it like glue. You dog has to EARN everything - nothing can just be given nor demanded. This program is tough love - but your dog will love you for it.

And crate while you're sleeping.

Please let us know how it's going.

[Judy Chrusch]

I agree with what everyone else said and I personally would crate him ALL the time with exception of training, feeding and potty and I say limit the attention for now bc he has you rapped around his little paw. Sounds like he's calling all the shots in your house. When my boy was younger and he gave attitude he spent alot of time in the crate and he learned real quick who really was the boss. It's a hard thing to do when they're use to being around you but with bad behavior comes consequences so OB train him first and foremost, crate him and limit attention, that in addition to what was suggested by others will do the trick but you MUST be commited to follow this through if you want a dog who is a pleasure to be around.

I have many concerns when your dog leaves the yard and hooking up with a female is one of them, as is attacking a child, another dog/cat, anything can happen . Look into fencing in your yard so you can have peace of mind but you have lots to do with him bc it will not get any better, it will only get worse and we don't want him to be another statistic and end up in a shelter or worse.

What kind of exercise does he get and do you do anything together like jog or play ball? What type of interaction do you have with this boy? Rottweilers love and require to work and do things and they LOVE to please so give your boy a chance to prove himself but it's ALL up to YOU. It's like raising children, they depend on us to do right by them and teach them right from wrong and to be good citizens in society, same goes for a dog, especially this breed. I hope all works out but you must show him YOU are alpha NOT him and as far as how long to crate him at night, do it for at LEAST a month then try him out again for short periods of time. But the GOOD attention has to stop for now.

Judy