Sudden Lunge, Grab, Bite Episodes

[TrinaJ]

I would definately enrol her into obedience class and would probably go even further and enrol her in either agility or flyball to get some of the energy out of her system.

She sounds like a very high energy dog (I have one of those is she is 6 months old today). We currently do 2 obedience classes per week (Wednesday night and Saturday afternoon). I am going to be enrolling her into agility classes also (not sure what age she has to be to do this or at what stage her obedience levels need to be at however, I will be finding out on Saturday from our instructor).

Have you tried games of tug with her when she gets into these moods? Or redirected her with her own toys? I am constantly dropping Jett when she jumps, but that is really subsiding now , however she is still 'mouthing' so the redirect with the toy really helps.

Good Luck.

Trina

[Gudrun's Mom]

My little 10 months girl also does what you described. It is infrequent and generally occurs when she didn't get her normal brisk walk that day. We have had some ice storms and that's about the only time that I don't walk her. She has been through basic obedience and is presently working on her CGC. I also am teaching her tricks and of course we play with her toys quite often. I think that you will notice this happens more frequently when a dog is bored like the others mentioned. Rottweiler are smart and generally need a purpose or activity to challenge them.

[MollyBellesMom]

Thanks to everyone for the advice on Molly. I so appreciate it and I guess I'm starting to get more in tune with Molly, because alot of what was said here, I thought myself, to be true. I am definitely up for getting her more exercise and to that end, I'm playing with her more and trying to exercise and engage her more and I've already seen a difference. As far as a behavior/obedience class, I already spoke with our trusted vet and have a referral and plan to seek a consult asap. Also, we're having tests run on Molly and after a full physical have discovered a few minor problems, but I think they too, could be contributing to her behavior. As soon as medically she's under control, I will definitely be getting her into obedience classes. As far as your comments, Sablesmom, I'm doing the best I can with what is already a very full schedule and you're right, I love my children and my other dog too and there are only so many hours, in the day. I also have my own physical limits and suffer from a chronic condition, which doesn't always leave me with the energy, I need to meet Molly's daily requirements, but I'm sure trying. She really is a good dog.

Quick question too on the boredom, has anyone tried using a tread mill, when walks aren't possible, as many times a day, as I'd like to give her? Any success? Molly is also overweight and we're not having alot of luck getting the weight off, despite dietary changes and daily exercise, so I'm thinking this might help. I know her weight at present poses alot of other risks so I really want to help her be a well balanced dog all around, physically and mentally. Thanks again everyone.

[fostermom]

With all my dogs (and fosters) I judge whether I'm overfeeding or underfeeding by how they maintain their weight....I cut down a bit and wait to see if they start to loose weight. You can use kibble as treats (I always give them a "reward" for coming when called out of the yard)...and then just reduce their meal by the amount you've given them as many people forget that treats can really add calories to their diet...or maybe offer carrots/apples as snacks. Half of mine LOVE that, and the other half don't recognize that as food. Make sure you're feeding a quality food...I would think something heavy in grains would tend to pack on pounds. I really like Eagle Pack, Innova, Canidae...but there are quite a few others to choose from.
The amount I feed each dog seems to vary so much...my big male gets two cups a day, split into two one cup feedings...my smaller dobe mix gets almost double that...so again, I just monitor their weight gain or loss to figure out how much to feed. When I've been trying to get certain dogs to loose weight, they've actually been cut down to 3/4 cup twice a day....if I remember correctly, she's an adolescent or young dog so I wouldn't think her thyroid would be an issue, but you could check with your vet. My one girl came to me at four years old and 20 lbs overweight...she looked like a little porker, even "snorted" like a pig!!! She'd get winded after walking part of a block. Now that the weight's off, she's MUCH more mobile. Extra weight is really hard on their joints as well so it is important to get that weight off. Best of luck.