Advice on getting a rescue rottweiler

[rottilab]

Hello there, I'm new to this board (thankful I found it!) and am thinking about getting a female rottweiler from my local animal shelter. I saw her today actually, she was very submissive and willing to please, (a big 'suck' as the shelter staff called her) and also quite petite I suppose, roughly 50 lbs. She's 1.5 years old and was found as a stray... after meeting her I can't believe her owner let her run loose/didn't care, she seemed like a great dog. As this would be my first dog, I was wondering if this would be a suitable dog for me to have as a first time owner... and what things should I be looking at in this dog? Another dog also caught my eye, was a female LabX/Rotti mix (more like 90% lab, 10% rotti ;) ), and was also very good from what I saw.

Any information/help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[emorgan49]

The best thing about getting a rescue that is older is the what-you-see-is-what-you-get. The personality strengths and weaknesses are already developed. You just decide whether you can live with the dog. I'm on my 4th rescue. Three times I chose wisely and this time I fell for a pretty face!

[SABELLESMOM]

She sounds like a great dog, and in this case the old addage appears to be true about good things in small packages? Perhaps if you check your local paper or kennel club you'll be able to get her into a summer obedience course. These tend to be a bit more fun as the training tenda to be outside.
Spend time with her and have fun! Who knows you might even get hooked on other classes that are offerred! My friend does agility and another does carting. Two of us do obedience and conformation.

[austin]

She sounds a lot like my dog, when I found her at the shelter. She was extremely submissive and shy becasue of neglect. We got her into obedience training within a month of bringing her home and we socialized her around adults, children, other dogs and we always take her as many places as we can. She has now completely come out of her shell, and she isn't the same dog we brought home. I'm very glad for that and I wouldn't trade her for the world, but please understand that she might not always be as submissive as she seems right now. If you are willing to work with her and train her, she will probably be a fantastic dog for you.

[K-9Girl]

I just recently rescued a female Rottie. She, Annie, is about 2 years old and was starving to death when my neighboors finally let me have her....they had her chained up to a tree in the backyard.

When Annie first came to me she was shy, not sure of herself and very sick, but I could tell that she was a loving dog with a sweet temperment. I have now had her for about 2 months, she is not the same dog. She is alert, loving, loyal, very active, and always wanting to please. The first thing that I did was got her enrolled in an obedience class. She loved the class, I think that it helped her come out of her shell.

However, here are the drawbacks:
Annie was not house trained when I got her. She had never been inside a house before. I had to teach her proper house manners as well a house train her......and house breaking a 2 year old, 70 pound Rottie was not easy. However, she learned quickly and was house broken in about 1 week. Annie also had to learn that my bedspread (as well as other house hold items) was not a chew toy. She had to learn the differences between her toys and mine.

So my adivice to you is that if you are willing to put the extra effort into this Rottie, then go for it. Train, train, train. And, remember that the dog you bring home today may not be the same tomorrow. I can't imagine my family without Annie, she has become a special memeber of the family with a loving heart. Rescuing Annie has been so rewarding....and I am sure that it can be just as rewarding for you :)

Good luck and keep us posted.

Sara

[New NJ Mom]

I am so glad you are going to adopt. All my dogs have come from pounds / shelters. Try spending time with both of the girls. Take them for walks, sit outside for awhile offer them a treat. Your heart will tell you who to take home.

Of course you could get them both:D

[mark_sherry]

It sounds like you've got a good girl there. I got my 9-month-old Rottie girl, Brita, two months ago from my local humane society. She was very underweight but was extremely loving and came right up to me and my wife when we went outside with her alone. We fell in love with her right away. Two months later, she's gained some much needed weight, and she's built her confidence level up to a point that you'd never know she was from a shelter. We found out that she was abused, but we don't know how or why. She's always great around other people and children too. I just got her ILP from the AKC, and I intend to do some fun stuff (agility, obedience, etc.) with her in the near future. But for right now, my wife and I are just enjoying our new family member. If you feel comfortable about getting her, don't shy away because she's from a shelter or because she's a bit shy right now. The fact that she's from a shelter means that she's got a lot of love that she wants to give to a permanent family, and the shyness will take care of itself once she gets into that family.

[Zephyr]

Originally posted by mark_sherry
If you feel comfortable about getting her, don't shy away because she's from a shelter or because she's a bit shy right now. The fact that she's from a shelter means that she's got a lot of love that she wants to give to a permanent family, and the shyness will take care of itself once she gets into that family.

I really must echo and second everything said so far about rescue dogs. I was so fortunate [blessed if you will] to have found a wonderful girl at a local kill shelter too. She was underweight, had severe kennel cough and for the first 3 weeks, was sick as a ....well, you know. I spent my time wiping her poor snotty nose [and I mean copius boogers!], holding her when she coughed uncontrollably and then nursing her back from being very underweight. In three months she's really blossomed into a wonderful, loving, kind, gentle, caring dog. Since coming to our home, we've all felt a tremendous love for her and thankfulness at having this gracious creature in our home. I can't imagine life without her.

A rescue dog is the best of all possible things - loyal, happy to have a forever home and loving in return for a bowl of food a few times a day and fresh water. Talk about a marvelous creature, a dog, who asks very little and gives so much in return. Rotties are fine dogs - and I really truly love them the best of all breeds - and taking that dog home from the shelter will allow you the opportunity to do something wonderful and loving for yourself and family and the pooch who you bring home.

Go for it!

Payton

:D

[austin]

So Rottilab, I'm dying to know. Have you made a decision?

[rottilab]

Thank you all for replying! I appreciate all the advice given...

I've been going to the shelter pretty much every day since the first time I saw the dogs, to visit them and study how they are on various days. Turns out the little rottweiler girl is actually rottweiler/boxer mix, explaining why she's quite small. The weather seemed to have great affect on them during visits (it rained a little these last few days) and they were just stressed out and weren't too attentive. I'm going to be visiting for the rest of the week (today included) to see them again before I truly can make a decision. There were so many great dogs at the shelter, I just can't understand why people give them up (a noble 7 year old german shepherd female also caught my eye). I hope to have a decision by the weekend, although based on my visits, my family is leaning towards getting just one dog (everyone really likes the labx/rottie mix).

[Judi W]

You should take each on a bit of a walk on-lead of course, but off their exercise area.

I would also advise a health check so that you do not find yourself faced with unexpected and possibly unaffordable medical issues. Of course things can always arise, but it is good to at least have an idea going in if there are any serious issues.