An editorial by Pooh.. an impassioned plea.

[Zeus "The Moose"]

Wonderful post! My trainer always told me that i was not attending puppy training classes, rather "people training classes". lol

[gaileena]

That was a wonderful report. I have a little problem with my 6 ½ month old, unaltered male, he is a great dog, but when ever I come home from work, or where ever, if he is not in his kennel, due to the fact someone else is home with him, he literally pumles me with excitement. Meaning he jumps on me, no matter what I do, he doesn' stop until he decides he is done. I have tried everything!! If he has a pinch collar on, the behavior problem does not occur, but my spouse says it is too dangerous to leave it on him all the time. I have tried repeating off, I have kneed him, I have turned my back to him, and even tried the ignoring part of it, until the excitement stops. Nothing seems to work. I think he thinks this is a game, but I fear he will accidentally hurt someone, one of these days. I am only 5''4, 128 lbs., and he can reach my shoulders if he is on his hind legs, and weighs 92 lbs., he can literally knock me over, if I'm not careful. Outside of that, he is a well behaved rottie. Seems to do it to women, more so than men. Any suggestions?

[brunie's mom]

Originally Posted by gaileena

That was a wonderful report. I have a little problem with my 6 ½ month old, unaltered male, he is a great dog, but when ever I come home from work, or where ever, if he is not in his kennel, due to the fact someone else is home with him, he literally pumles me with excitement. Meaning he jumps on me, no matter what I do, he doesn' stop until he decides he is done. I have tried everything!! If he has a pinch collar on, the behavior problem does not occur, but my spouse says it is too dangerous to leave it on him all the time. I have tried repeating off, I have kneed him, I have turned my back to him, and even tried the ignoring part of it, until the excitement stops. Nothing seems to work. I think he thinks this is a game, but I fear he will accidentally hurt someone, one of these days. I am only 5''4, 128 lbs., and he can reach my shoulders if he is on his hind legs, and weighs 92 lbs., he can literally knock me over, if I'm not careful. Outside of that, he is a well behaved rottie. Seems to do it to women, more so than men. Any suggestions?

Get into obedience classes with him. He is far too old, and big to be jumping up. As soon as you get home...snap a leash on him and take him outside....let him run around and get the zoomies out. If he starts the jumping...make him sit...and then step on the leash with your foot...so he has no leverage to jump. Keep giving him the "sit" command...and when he is quiet praise.

If your 6 1/2 month pup is 92 lbs...he is either very overweight or way oversized and poorly bred. Please do not allow him to grow this quickly...you may have orthopedic problems with him in the future.

Gina

[Steve n Gayle]

We have rescued a 6 year old female, just 3 days ago. We are Americans living and working in Germany. She was found by the police sitting next to her elderly owner who'd passed away several days before. She was in the shelter one month before we adopted her. We have very little information on her, except that she went into heat during her month there. She is going in to be neutered in two weeks. She was extremely happy to see the different volunteers at the shelter, and wanted a lot of petting. The shelter manager told us she felt Petunia was quite dominant (food and toy possessive) and would need experienced owners. My husband (second marriage for both of us) owned a rottie when his kids were young, a female. No dominance problems. I owned an Old English Mastiff female who was incredibly gentle and easy going. As soon as Petunia was home we noticed the dominance thing - forcing herself on us to be petted, rumbling in her throat when we dried her off from walks, rumbling at me. So we have choked on the floodgates of Google, trying to find the right way through this. Frawley's DVDs are arriving any day now, we have Petunia crated. And here is the rub. In my gut, not anthropomorphizing, I think she is a really centered, stable, good animal. We are very committed to being the pack leader, to the NILIF lifestyle, but, not having experience with altering dominant behavior, we are very aware of what Mick wrote about, the confusing or defense aggression. Everything is new, so we need to set the rules, boundaries and limitations immediately. Firm but without abuse. Got it. But then people are posting about how their rotties "talk" and it is just a rottie personality thing. Are we going overboard? Establish pack hierarchy first, obedience training next. I keep telling myself that even if we did misread the growling thing that all this structure can't hurt. But at the same time, another voice in my head (yes, it's true) whines about the loss of the big cozy doggy tv pillow on the floor. I know that can never be with Petunia. I know there will be great moments in the future with her, they will just be different and help define a new picture for me of how wonderful a dog relationship can be. I also know that we are in this for the long haul. We've never given a dog up. They are part of the family until it is time for them to pass over. But we could really use some guidance from the elders (not necessarily in age, but in wisdom) as we make this journey. Suggestions?

[RottsNScotts]

Congratulations on your new family member!

I think with a new, adult dog, you start with a very structured environment for some time so that they can clearly learn what the rules are and the how the relationships work. After some time that includes some work with a trainer that can help you with any dominant behavior modification, she may very well be the centered, stable, good animal you believe her to be! Just let her PROVE it and earn the privileges you hope she can have.

With a solid foundation of leadership and trust, she may be that big cozy doggy tv pillow! Just don't START there!

[Moosemom]

Re: editorial by Pooh...impassioned plea.
Amen to owner education! If you desire anything at all in life, you need to work for it. Owning a rottie takes real work, reading, studying and listening to those folks who have given so much to this wonderful breed. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and insight for the benefit of all of us. May we too be good advocates by example!