To Much Love?

[05EVOMR]

Hi y'all

I did not have a chance to post in awhile, but i have a question or 2

my family LOVES Daisy, she is currently almost 14 months old, she is very smart, she knows how to play dead on her back, down lays on her stomach, sit, heal, stay, no, go, fetch.

we all hug her and show a lot of affection toward Daisy, even my Javanese cat loves her and Daisy loves the cat, they are always chasing each other and sleeping in the same crate together.

Is to much affection a problem for her down the road?

should we treat her like a dog and not like a family member?

sometimes actually most of the time when I think of her I just want to pet and play with her.

[Carol Burke]

What do you mean treat her like a dog, she is a member of your family. It's just like with kids, as long as they obey and do what is asked of them why shouldn't they be treated as a member of the family? I can't believe that too much affection is a bad thing.

[moondog]

I didn't know being a dog meant you couldn't be a family member! I am very affectionate with my puppy/almost a dog, haven't seen a downside yet. Of course, my definition of LOVE is part affection, part guidance, part structured training, part plain old fun, and 100% devotion.

Is that what you mean?

[05EVOMR]

Originally Posted by Carol Burke

What do you mean treat her like a dog, she is a member of your family. It's just like with kids, as long as they obey and do what is asked of them why shouldn't they be treated as a member of the family? I can't believe that too much affection is a bad thing.

I don't know?
I either read or someone told me that Breeds like Rotti's should not receive to much affection because they will take advantage.

I will never stop showing affection for my Daisy, NEVER!!

[Ninasmom]

Rotties thrive on love. But like Moondog said, it needs to be part affection, part guidance, part structured training etc...

Think about a child. With unconditional love that child will thrive. You give it structure and guidance, an education, you set boundaries for the child so that it can and will feel successful and safe... It's the same thing with a rottie.

[spoiledbabies3]

Originally Posted by Ninasmom

Rotties thrive on love. But like Moondog said, it needs to be part affection, part guidance, part structured training etc...

Think about a child. With unconditional love that child will thrive. You give it structure and guidance, an education, you set boundaries for the child so that it can and will feel successful and safe... It's the same thing with a rottie.

Ditto...and they will make a very solid member of the family! Most of us here consider our rotties members of our families, however,we also know that like all children...whether it be 4-legged or 2-legged...they need for the parent to be a parent. Good luck...Ninasmom said it perfectly!

[StephanieandToby]

Can you love a dog too much?? NO!!!
Can you SPOIL a dog too much? SURE!!

You need to find that happy medium between showing your love for her and giving her structure and discipline. Sounds as though it's "so-far-so-good" in your family!

[2rotties2luv]

Here is another perspective on the results of too much affection and not enough training and leadership (from a previous thread):

http://www.rottweiler.net/forums/gen...ighlight=fable

Remember that loving a rottie means setting limits, training, discipline and being a respected leader. Catering to a rottie's every whim, letting them have their way and letting them boss you around is not love, it is neglect.

This is why we say that while a dog may be a much-loved and cherished family member, it is still a dog and must trained and treated like a dog in order for it to become a good citizen and family member.

[aseemom]

I kinda liken Asee to a toddler. A great deal of affection and a many boundries. If you spoil a two year old child you can get a temper tantrum throwing nightmare. The same with a rottie, except in the short run a rottie can do MUCH MORE DAMAGE!!!!!!

[chivas]

I once got into a heated arguement over a conversation close to this. A breeder ( and I use the term loosely) told me that I should only give my dogs affection on MY terms and not give into when they come to me for affection. Well anytime my Chivas came to me for a pat or a cuddle, I would stop what I was doing and spend some time with her, the breeder told me I was letting Chivas call the shots by letting her do this and risking unacceptable behaviour from her. Chivas had her moments of being a handful but never in a dangerous way, she had seen 11 vets in her lifetime and ALL commented on what a well adjusted and stable dog she was. I told the breeder that I hope I am never too busy to show my dogs affection, she vehemetly disagreed with me, I did notice how starved for human contact most of her dogs were. They would about smother you to get a pat, while Chivas was never like that. Chivas has been gone almost 4 years now and still her primary vet talks of her, I miss her forever.

[TR Young]

05EVOMR, I see nothing wrong with you and your family giving Daisy plenty of affection. Georgia and I do the same with our Tara. As long as training continues, and Daisy knows who is boss, you aren't doing ANYthing wrong. I can't imagine NOT loving our dogs. That would be very unfair to them, as they provide us with unconditional love, obedience, respect, and devotion like we could never show in return. A dog who is beat upon will gladly return to their master's side for a little show of love (although I can't for the life of me fathom why... maybe it is a lesson in forgiveness that we have been given from someone that we need to heed a bit more). That is devotion that should be loved in return.
As was said in some of the posts above, be sure to temper the love and affection with training, and there will be no trouble!

[Denise L.]

I don't believe we can give too much love but is IS possible to "spoil" them just like Stephanie said.

My Cyrus is a very affectionate dog and when he comes to me for loving when I am otherwise occupied I will stop what I am doing and give him a scritch or two. When we are settled he gets loads of loving!

That being said, Cyrus comes to work with me and gets an unbelievable amount of attention and it got to the point last year that when someone left my office he carried on like a brat...a 95 lb. big, hairy brat!

So Cyrus only comes to work with me 2-3 X a week now. Sheesh! on graduation day he had 3 kids petting him at the same time at one point...can you see how that can lead to "King Cyrus Syndrome"?

He's a good boy though and I intend that he stay that way!

My Fluffernutter!

[SaranBear]

I am going to say that you can't love a dog too much. I would say that also that you can give affection inappropriately. I would also say that MY dog would very much like to run the show. He HAS run the show in the past and we thought we could "love" him into behaving. We forgot the discipline and boundaries part of loving him. At this point if he is seeking pats when we're doing something we ignore him and if he is being persistant (the nose under the arm, pawing at us, or barking) he gets corrected for it. When we are finished we initiate the petting. Sometimes it is only a couple seconds after that we pet him, but always when we say. He no longer tells us when to pet him. This works much better for us, and we will I think always have to be vigilant about him trying to run things.
You'll know you've given too much affection if he starts driving you nuts, tries to kick you out of bed, barks at the door when his walk wasn't long enough, and generally runs the house....

So all in all I think it depends on the dog.

[tuckersmum]

The best part of my day starts with Tucker licking my face to wake me up, that is if i'm near the edge of the bed, or lying on the floor just to give him big hugs. He is the perfect huggie bear! He knows who the boss is, but that doesn't stop him from being a rottie at times. I can't help but heap lots of affection on this noble beast, especailly when he crawls into my lap, and gives me those puppy dog eyes!