New owner, trying to get started

[Tango589]

Hello Forum...

Just got a baby rotty, shes 6weeks old.. looking for any advice anyone has on potty training, or what to expect... shes already had her first set of shots, just need to take her to the vet for everything else that gets done at 6wks.. boy does she sleep alot.... like 70% of the time, and the rest of the time its peeing or eating... shes very demanding it seems too, anytime me or my fiance are not right within 5 feet in her clear view of sight, she starts whinning and wimpering and wont stop till we give her attention.,... is this normal....??

[Dante's Dad]

Very cute picture.

I have a 10 month old rottie, drives me crazy at times but he is so worth it!

Is your puppy purebred? That white marking makes me ask.

Good luck with your puppy and some advice I can give is crate train him, you will think yourself for it later

[Storm's mom]

Hi Tango,

She's a cutie. I just love looking at those huge paws. There is alot of information in the archives on things like potty training. This site is great for finding out information. Don't be shy if you have a specific problem. Welcome to the forum.

[danyp1]

Please read this. And welcome to the forums its a great place.

http://www.rottweiler.net/forums/sho...py+development

[Tango589]

Originally Posted by Dante's Dad

Very cute picture.

I have a 10 month old rottie, drives me crazy at times but he is so worth it!

Is your puppy purebred? That white marking makes me ask.

Good luck with your puppy and some advice I can give is crate train him, you will think yourself for it later

no shes not purebred.... her father was rott, and mother was a pitbull... but its obvious which one she takes after....

[LavenderRott]

Please make sure that you read the link provided.

A puppy should not be seperated from it's mother and siblings until it is at least 8 weeks old and most responsible breeders prefer 10 weeks. As a matter of fact, in several states it is illegal to sell a puppy under the age of 8 weeks.

At her young age, she is not going to be able to control when she goes to the bathroom as much as you would like. She needs to go out as soon as she gets up and about 15 to 20 minutes after eating and drinking. To save yourself lots of late night trips outside, you may want to consider picking up her food and water 2 hours before bedtime.

Stick around and ask all the questions you have. Even if you think it is a stupid question, someone here will have an answer.

[Bec]

Congrats! She is cute! Rotties generally like to be in the presence of their family. They are very loyal. Ours is almost a year and still follows me constantly. She likes to be in the bathroom when I'm taking a shower and sleeps at my feet EVERY night. You will be frustrated, angry, sad, happy, proud, every emotion you can think of, but if you do right by this pup with lots of training and attention you will be so happy with the way she turns out.
You know with the mix she is it would be super cool to get her welltrained enough to be a Canine Good Citizen, some sort of ambassador so people can see that Rotts and Pits really are wonderful! Well, work on potty training her first,then move on to bigger things. ;)

[Tango589]

how often should i be feeding her at this point?? i dont want to starve her, but i dont want her eating all the time either.... i got her Iams Large Breed Puppy Food, supposed to be good for puppies 1-10 months... is dog food enough or does she needs something else to supplement her needs??

[LavenderRott]

Iams is really not good dog food. You want to check the first 5 ingredients of your dog food and pick one that doesn't have meat by products or lots of grain. Canidae seems to be one of the best out there right now. Puppy food is also unnecessary.

There are several members who feed raw food. You can search the archives to learn more.

As to how many times to feed her, you should probably feed several smaller meals throughout the day.

[Carina43]

Originally Posted by Tango589

how often should i be feeding her at this point?? i dont want to starve her, but i dont want her eating all the time either....

Four meals a day at that age is what I'd suggest...and check out other foods, Iams isn't that great a choice. You can do a search in the nutrition forum for "puppy feeding." And truthfully you may not know now if she's truly going to be real big, many pits are under 40lbs. Though just by her feet...what does she weigh now?

Yep, it's normal for her to want to follow you around; like many other breeds Rottweilers are sort of velcro :) dogs anyway...not sure about pitbulls. And she's very young; remember until just a few days ago she was surrounded 24/7 by a bunch of other little puppies, it's all she's known! Quite an adjustment for her.

You might want to check out one of the "Dummies" books like "Puppies for Dummies." PetsMart & big bookstores usually have it in stock, or you could try Amazon. "Rottweilers for Dummies" is great too, but since pitbulls and Rotties have fairly different (generally) personality traits I'd think one of the more general puppy or dog books would be more useful for you.

She's very cute, big feet! I can sort of see pitbull in her face.

[DNeff]

Much of the whining and crying behavior you are seeing is due to this puppy being separated from her litter much too soon. There are many critical skills that the puppy needs to learn from it's mother and litter mates during this period. Since she is no longer with them, you will have to work extra hard to make sure to teach her appropriate behavior.

It's going to be extremely important to socialize your puppy with as many people as possible. Make sure all interactions are short and upbeat. Never pressure your puppy to meet anyone they are not interested in visiting. Ask visitors to give your puppy a small treat if she approaches or shows interest. Try to invite as many new people over to your house for puppy visits as often as possible.

Another important aspect will be teaching bite inhibition. This something that would normally be learned while the puppy was still with it's mother and the rest of the litter. Since your puppy was removed early, it will be especially important for you to help her understand how to inhibit her bite in a gentle and consistent way. The first article in the links below has some excellent information about this.

If at all possible see if you can locate a few well vaccinated dogs that your puppy can socialize with. The dogs you use are of critical importance. They must be friendly with puppies, tolerant of normal puppy behavior, but willing to appropriately correct bad behavior from the puppy. These dogs, should be friendly and have good dog to dog communication skills. It may be necessary to find a skilled trainer to help you find these types of dogs, but it will be well worth your time. If your puppy does not get some quality (and quality here is important not quantity) dog to dog interactions during the critical socialization window, they are more likely to have a harder time communicating and dealing with other dogs in an acceptable manner. You can look for a trainer by searching here: http://www.apdt.com/trainers-and-own...-a-trainer.htm

Last but not least, it is critical to get your puppy in to a quality puppy class as soon as she is allowed to attend. Be sure to observe a few classes verify that the instructor uses appropriate methods and that the puppies are having LOTS of fun!

Here's a list of excellent puppy training books:
**After You Get Your Puppy by Ian Dunbar
**Positive Puppy Training Works by Joel Walton
**Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson
**The Power of Positive Dog Training by Pat Miller
**Your Outta Control Pup by Teoti Anderson
Purely Positive Training by Sheila Booth
Toolbox For Remodeling Your Problem Dog by Terry Ryan
Dog Friendly Dog Training by Andrea Arden

Books listed with ** are MUST haves.
All these books can be purchased from www.dogwise.com

Below are a list of articles about puppy development and tips on raising a puppy correctly.
http://www.jersey.net/~mountaindog/berner1/bitestop.htm
http://www.paw-rescue.org/PAW/PETTIP...Inhibition.php
http://www.doberman.org/articles/puppy.htm
http://www.flyingdogpress.com/puppack.html
http://www.k9chops.com/articles/personality.html
http://www.canadawestieclub.ca/breeding/lonepup.html

Good Luck!

Dawn + Osa
U-CD Cammcastle's Mystic Riven CDX OAC OJC OGC OAJ NA TT CGC
http://members.aol.com/dplantier
http://members.aol.com/rottweilerworld

[SABELLESMOM]

She's lovely! And very sweet, I'm sure. Yes, Rotties are velcro dogs. My 82 lb velcro dog is sitting on my foot at the moment! :D And I love it.

Your baby is so very young, that's why she's sleeping 70% of the time. You'll have to take exrta time with her training and making sure she is well socalised to people and other dogs as well. She is missing some of what she should be learning with her mother and littermates, right now.

Best wishes with your lovely new little girl! Spend lots of time with her and you won't be sorry and train hwer to be a good citizen and represent the breeds positively. :)

[Rocky's_mom]

Could you maybe return her and let her spend the next couple of weeks with her litter mates?

Welcome to the forums!

[Tango589]

Originally Posted by Rocky's_mom

Could you maybe return her and let her spend the next couple of weeks with her litter mates?

Welcome to the forums!

i wish i knew prior to getting her, at what age they should be seperated from their mother.... i never would have gotten her so young.... as for reuniting her with the rest of her litter for a few weeks, i wish i could... but it was my understanding that there werent gonna be any more left soon... so that wont work.... and ideas on how to aculmate her to the new surroundings quicker so that i might be able to get a night of sleep... she sounds like a wolf howling at night....

[Dante's Dad]

A stuffed animal may help, a warm water bottle, maybe a ticking clock close by. These are all things that I have heard to work, we got lucky with Dante and he only cried in his crate for one night!
Hope this helps a bit.