ella has a temper

[nsgilmore]

i am the new mother of a 8 week old female named ella. her breeder was an acquaintance and he called to tell me that one of his females had been returned and wondered if i was interested in a female pup. (i had always had males and just love them so much). once i laid eyes on ella, i was hooked. however, i have never had a pup so young. both of my previous boys were at least 13 weeks when they came to me.
what a difference.
she bites everything, which i can deal with, and she has this little girl growl. i don't thinks its cute and i just don't know if maybe she left home to early, not my fault but i am the one to have to make this work. tonight we had quite a little temper tantrum. she was nipping at my pj pants and i said no firmly, but not harshly. she growled so i picked her up and held her on her back and she growled and squirmed and got real mad.it turned very loud and ugly. i remained calmly persistant, like my vet suggested and walked around with her in the same position until she settled down for at least 10 seconds the slowly released her and gave her a treat and had her do sit stays for a few minutes with high praise.
it just freaks me out because neither of my males ever growled or bit or fought back. is it her age?
am i doing tons wrong?
help!!!!!
nancy-ellas frustrated mom.

[AngelBunny]

You got Ella at 8 weeks old and you're her second home.

How old was she when her "breeder" sent her off to her first home??

[cryjay]

Hi, and welcome to the forums! Sounds like what you are doing is just fine. You can look through the other threads on this subject using the search button and you will find TONS of info on there. Another good thing to try if it works for you is to always keep one of her chew toys in your pocket and divert her attention away from whatever she is biting that is not allowed by telling her "No!" firmly then replacing it with her appropriate chew toy. See how that works out. Praise her once you have given her her chew toy. Good luck and keep us updated.

[nsgilmore]

thanks for the chew toy advice. ella actually went to her 1st home at 7 weeks and came to me 6 days later. i firmly believe that shewas meant to be ours. i did meet her litter mate brother whom also has a little growl of his own. could this possible be something that happens to litter mates who are trying to be the alfa? she was the largest female of the group.

[Greg_1111]

She is young . very young. She is still in "litter mode" have you ever watched puppies in a pet store interact. It can get really rough. But it will take time for the ideas you are trying to get her to accept to sink in. When you grab her and pin her like that, she is instinctively reacting with life or death aggression. Try to isolate her inanother room as soon as she does the nipping and doesn't respond to your negative voice. try that fro a while. Only leave her in the other room for a few minutes, then if she repeats the nipping , put her back in. But don't misunderstand my suggestion. As they get older, you have to be prepared to grab them by their scruff or collar, or leash and with confidence and intention, show them you are dominant when they chalenge your authority. But most of the time you want to be devloping your skills at timing and their skills at learning.

[nsgilmore]

you are probably right. she does seem paniced when i turn her on her back. my vet had mentioned this but i'll try the room time outs next time.

[LavenderRott]

Alpha rolls don't generally work. They will escalate aggression as you are putting a dog that is trying to show some type of domination into a submissive posture. You could try redirecting her nipping at a toy. If she growls at you, get up and ignore her.

[moondog]

When my dog was 8 weeks old, she was after everything with those little needle teeth, and she was after everything with GUSTO! Puppies use their mouths, that's what puppies do. I did not scold, or flip, or banish...I redirected her to an item she COULD bite, every single time. In the beginning, I would stuff her little mouth with a stuffed toy and tell her "This is what you can bite, you little rascal!" In time, she learned very nicely what is okay to chew and what is not...and she learned the names of all those things as we went along. She was a little pistol, but she never gave me any grief. As long as I gave her something she COULD savage with those chompers, her need was satisfied and my pj's (and toes and fingers and ankles and arms) remained in tact.

[Ilovemypuppy]

I did the same thing Moondog did with my girls when they were Ella's age , they were both like little 'land sharks'. I chose not to get overly upset about them grabbing things and I mean just about everything , I just re-directed them with a chew toy and praised them for chewing on the right things. Puppies this young are testing everything with their teeth and mouths.

You run the risk of spoiling your relationship and causing mistrust by getting too rough or using that awful alpha roll and pinning...those methods are out dated and can cause lots of problems. Patience, re-direction and praise work. I also never isolated in another room, but I would ignore them for a few minutes to show I wasn't pleased.Think about it...even a negative reaction gives attention....no attention, means it's not working and they will go on to something else. The same method works for jumping up on you..just turn away and say nothing...as soon as your back is turned, the puppy will likely sit (wondering what happened)..as soon as her little butt hits the floor..praise her with a Goooooood Girrrrl ! and maybe a treat

Remember to praise, praise, praise for every single little thing they do right though...they are looking for direction. Have fun with your puppy

They are really only puppies for such a short time..make the most of this very impressionable time to build a trusting relationship that will last a lifetime. It's worth all the extra effort and patience.

[samanthac]

Sounds like a perfectly normal 8 week old Rottweiler to me! 8 weeks is the normal and recommended age to send a pup home. My only concern is that if this pup was returned to the breeder, that he sent her out way too early in the first place. Pups should never leave their mother/litter before 7 weeks. Homing between the 7 to 8 week period is recommneded as that is the time that pups bond with humans the best. But never before 7 weeks. Can you tell us why she was returned?

Dogs are very honest. If she growls when you pick her up, she is telling you she does not like to be picked up. So do not pick her up unless you have to.

Please take the following advice to heart..NEVER, EVER, EVER, EVER force roll a dog onto their back or pin them down. This is a very dangerous and antiquated practice that can and will get you hurt when that dog gets older. You might well get away with this now, but I can guarantee you won't when that dog gets older. I suspect that you would get ugly and nasty too if someone put you on your back and pinned you to the floor. She is telling you that she does not like it and not to do it anymore. Please respect that.

Just a suggestion, but very few vets really understand training..they are doctors not dog trainers. It really alarms me that a vet would be giving the advice to alpha roll a dog with the potential for disaster that presents. Do yourself a favor and find an instructor with Rottweiler experience if possible.

As for the biting, it is normal, puppies explore and play with their mouths. She is still in litter mode and probably needs help in learning bite inhibition as she was taken away too young. When she bites, try redirecting her with a toy...you will need to always have a toy handy. If she persists you can ignore her...turn your back and walk away...all play stops. Dogs hate this. if she still persists at that time, I would CALMLY pick her up. not say a word, put her in her crate and leave her there. Do not yell at her, do not say anything...you must be matter of fact about it....this is absolutely crucial so you do not make the crate turn into a punishment. If you follow this it teaches her that when she bites, ALL interaction with you stops. She will hate that. There are other methods, but without knowing what level of dog ownership you are at/knowledge level of the breed you have, I will not expound on them here.

It does not matter how many other dogs you have, every dog is different and there is not one tried and true method that will work for every single dog...why do you think we have so many different training methods out there? Also there IS a difference between males and bitches...you cannot expect a female to act the same as a male.

Perhaps a puppy obedience class is in order, not only so the pup can learn some manners, but so YOU can learn how to handle her. Just be careful at this age not to over do it. Everything should be short, fun and full of praise and reward..and NO correction (can't correct a dog until they understand completlely what you want from them! Right now all you want to teach her is house manners....leave the formal OB until later.

HTH and rest assured you have what sounds like a perfectly normal and hellishly feisty little girl on your hands. Stick around here, read the archives, ask questions...rest assured that if you put in the effort, we will help you raise that little whippersnapper into a class act!

[flyballmom]

SIGH. Yes, ditto that here.

Originally Posted by moondog

When my dog was 8 weeks old, she was after everything with those little needle teeth, and she was after everything with GUSTO! Puppies use their mouths, that's what puppies do. I did not scold, or flip, or banish...I redirected her to an item she COULD bite, every single time. In the beginning, I would stuff her little mouth with a stuffed toy and tell her "This is what you can bite, you little rascal!" In time, she learned very nicely what is okay to chew and what is not...and she learned the names of all those things as we went along. She was a little pistol, but she never gave me any grief. As long as I gave her something she COULD savage with those chompers, her need was satisfied and my pj's (and toes and fingers and ankles and arms) remained in tact.

[moondog]

Originally Posted by flyballmom

SIGH. Yes, ditto that here.

LOL...How are those oven mitts holding up?

[samanthac]

Oven mitts? What oven mitts...I don't own oven mitts anymore...used to until we got dogs...they are an instant kill target in our house! Its like they know. Alas I just dodge them, stuff a toy in the mouth and pray for the best!

Isn't owning razor tooth raptors, er um, I mean puppies, fun! Poor, poor Beth! Wicked little snapperheads!

Anyone think chain mail is a viable option?

[flyballmom]

You guys are EVIL trying to get me to use oven mitts!! Then I'd smell like FOOD!!! My new mantra is "do not wear shoes with laces. Do not wear shoes with laces..."

Originally Posted by moondog

LOL...How are those oven mitts holding up?

[flyballmom]

Yeah, poooorr Beth! Yep I walk around the house with a toy somewhere on my person at all times. Getting too hot here for long sleeves...fish net chain mail maybe?

(sorry if we hijacked the thread... )

Originally Posted by samanthac

Oven mitts? What oven mitts...I don't own oven mitts anymore...used to until we got dogs...they are an instant kill target in our house! Its like they know. Alas I just dodge them, stuff a toy in the mouth and pray for the best!

Isn't owning razor tooth raptors, er um, I mean puppies, fun! Poor, poor Beth! Wicked little snapperheads!

Anyone think chain mail is a viable option?