Socialization / Dog Park at 15 Weeks

[brunie's mom]

Originally Posted by SurfOnH20

Miket66..Hey I am with you..I take my 7-month old girl to the dog park often. She has a great time and comes home tired from play..Yeah, if you have a dominant animal maybe a dog park is not the place for a dog. Socialization with other animals is as important as with socialization them with humans. The one thing I have found out about this forum is that some people have VERY STRONG opinions and are sensitive about some issues concerning Rottweilers. Some understandable and some are completely narrow minded and unreasonable. So don't fell out of place when you don't agree with the majority. Maybe they are the ones who have it wrong...

Once again...you have a 7 month old puppy...and a 7 month old puppy should be social and friendly with most dogs. When you have a mature dog, she may not do well with other bitches in the park. This is reality...and something that you must understand.

Is your pup in obedience classes? Getting formal socialization , being able to work around other dogs with all sorts of distractions...is great for your puppy.

Most of us have STRONG opinions, because we have "been there", "done that"...and learned from our mistakes. If your dog get's attacked even once by a bully...it can make your dog dog aggressive. It's not fun to live with a dog aggressive dog.

Gina

[cstrzelc]

I would have to agree with MikeT66. Our pup Roxie is only 9 weeks, but we do plan on taking her to a dog park when she's older. We live in a condo and don't have space to let her run around off leash. So a dog park is the best possible choice for us.

Again I have no experience with dog parks yet, but I would advise at least checking it out once and forming your own opinion. That is what I plan on doing. I respect everyone's opinion on this site and they have already helped me much with my puppy.

As far as socialization, people in this thread have stated that you don't need to socialize your dog with other dogs. However, there are some well known dog trainers and behaviorists which bring dogs into a pack, many times, as their first course of action. I would imagine that socializing a dog has some positive attributes based on their expertise.

-cs

[crazyonehuh]

I don't think you can really start the socialization process to early. I got Ezabell at 9 weeks. I immidiately started taking her down to our local park. She not only loves to play and explore, but she learns the very important lessons of real life obedience. It is great to let other people interact with new puppies. It will teach your pup not to be intimmidated by other ppl. Of course, as its Alpha, you need to be aware of what its behavior is like at the park. Try to keep him/her inline and dont let him get away with things he can't do at home. Ezabell knows when we are close to the park. It gets her all excited to know that she gets to play. And dogs are like humans... the can find someone their size to play with and that the like.

[BrewskisMommy]

I actually have a great story of how a dog park helped my mom's dog to find his confidence. She has a rescue who had been chained to a tree for the first five years of his life (corgi-lab mix, not a rottie). He was unsocialized and scared of everything. After a while, and when he had come to trust her, she decided to take him to the dog park to see how he reacted since he had been in a foster home with other dogs and seemed to do well with them. As soon as he got off the leash at the dog park, he became a completely different dog. He ran and chased the balls and dogs, and actually learned how to use some of the agility equipment. It was as if the other dogs were showing him how to be a dog. After about an hour of playing, he came over and sat down in front of us with his tail wagging. That may seem normal for most dogs, but it was the first time that he had ever approached us on his own, and the first time we saw him wag his tail! Since he has been having his visits to the park, he has gained confidence at home as well. It really turned out to be a great therapy for him.

My rottweiler is 14 weeks, and I plan to take him to the dog park as well. I dont think that "the dog park" can be generalized as one experience. The dog park on wednesday afternoon could be a completely different experience than the dog park on saturday morning. Each time we go, we observe the dogs for a while, and decide whether we are going to let him in. If it doesn't seem like the right crowd, we'll find something else to do. They also have a "small dog" side that is often empty, so we use that if the big dogs are too rough. If you decide to try it out, be careful and use your common sense. If you have a bad feeling, don't be afraid to put it off until next time. I have seen that it can be an excelent experience for some dogs, and I think I'm going to give it a try with my little Brewski!

[crazyonehuh]

I just started reading a lot of the responses ppl have to this dog park socialization. C'mon ppl... NOT socializing a dog with other dogs or humans IS setting that dog up for failure. No one can ever be certain of any dogs health or behavior just like a humans. All dogs in my opinion should be able to learn as much as they can about life. Why simply raise any dog to do certain things and act a certain way? You may answer... "Thats what I want my dog to do". Dogs were not bred to be individaul creatures. They require interaction. What is the difference in going to a dog park or just going to pet smart classes? The FLOOR. Thats it!

[AngelBunny]

The general tenor of the postings are that puppy/young dog owners are pro dog park. People with dogs take a dimmer view.

As their puppies grow up and mature, time will tell whether the puppy owners' attitudes to dog parks remain sanguine.

[observer]

If you think the only way to socialize to other dogs is to turn them loose at the dog park, well, no.

You can socialize your dog to other dogs without turning it loose at the dog park. They can socialize on leash on walks or at classes, on "play dates" with KNOWN dogs in more controlled situations, etc. With a dog park, you can think you have a workable situation one moment, let your dog in there, and then the next minute some idiot shows up with a dog that doesn't play well with others, and you can all have a problem in the blink of an eye.

Facing reality, people are going to use them anyway. But, you have to realize that totally irresponsible dog owners use them too. After all, "dog park" sounds like such a nice friendly place. Dog parks have to be used with extreme caution. One bad experience with any loose dog, (and the odds of loose dogs go up at dog parks, obviously) can make a dog dog aggressive for life. My boss had that experience. Keeping her dog safe, and other dogs safe from her, is now a huge responsibility.

[moondog]

Originally Posted by observer

One bad experience with any loose dog can make a dog dog aggressive for life

Absolutely true....and it absolutely can happen in a blink of an eye - much faster than anyone can react to prevent it. I do wish all the dog park defenders would read that again and truly understand what that means to a dog after the fact.

The risk to your dog with known and well chosen playmates pales by comparison to the risk taken when entering an off leash dog park.

[observer]

Exactly, moondog.

The dog park concept is an easy way out for people, as it doesn't require finding known playmates or planning or scheduling with anyone else. And, like you said before, the concept sounds so "Disney-like" and friendly. And, under ideal circumstances, it can be.

But, there's really NO control over the situation if someone new shows up and acts inappropriately -- the chance of dog aggression and the long-term consequences of one blink-of-an-eye disaster to my dog are just not worth the risk. I've heard too much about what's happened to Gracie since she was jumped by a dog. She will NEVER be the same.

[SurfOnH20]

Simply amazing "Disneyland like" atmosphere. God forbid if something works better for someone else.We all live different lifes. If your dog is the "Alpha type" then I can understand not wanting them at a dog park. Or if your dog rolls over at the very moment when their rear end is being sniffed, then you probably don't want your dog at the park. Yes, dogs will naturally come together as a pack while playing. Is that always a bad thing ? I personally enjoy watching my dog interact with others while chasing balls, rolling in the dirt, etc. Now if I see a dog(s) where there is a potential for trouble, I'll just leave. It's just that simple. The majority of the time I see the same dogs coming and going from these parks. For the most part, I have had a tremendous positive experience taking my dogs to these areas. For me the risk is worth it but for others not.

[observer]

I think it's wonderful when dogs play together well, too. I just want to have control over which dogs are there, ALL the time. So, I don't use dog parks for dog play.

f you can always recognize "potential for trouble" and "just leave" before something happens, lucky for you and your dog. I wouldn't count on it, but if you insist you can handle whatever happens, then you are going to do what you're going to do. I hope for your dog's sake you are right.

[brunie's mom]

Originally Posted by crazyonehuh

I just started reading a lot of the responses ppl have to this dog park socialization. C'mon ppl... NOT socializing a dog with other dogs or humans IS setting that dog up for failure. No one can ever be certain of any dogs health or behavior just like a humans. All dogs in my opinion should be able to learn as much as they can about life. Why simply raise any dog to do certain things and act a certain way? You may answer... "Thats what I want my dog to do". Dogs were not bred to be individaul creatures. They require interaction. What is the difference in going to a dog park or just going to pet smart classes? The FLOOR. Thats it!

Who said not to socialize a dog with humans and other dogs???
You don't need to take them to a dog park to socialize...that's the point. There are many other good, safe ways to socialize a dog...and it does not have to happen in a dog park with unknown dogs, and owners.

If you've read any threads here you will see that it's not recommended here to take a dog to Petsmart classes.
Please do some more reading and educate yourself about the members here.

Come back here in 12-15 months and let us know how the dog park is going...then we will talk.

Gina

[OnyxGold1]

You will most certainly learn (as I did) that as your dog/bitch ages that dog parks are not all they are cracked up to be. When I used to live in Edmonton what would infuriate me the most was that all the owners would be standing around chatting, not watching their dogs in the slightest and then some little football sized dog would run up with an attitude and try to pick a fight with my big guy. Nervous laughter as the owner would run up to pluck off their little aggressive mutt which was dangling off of my guy's lip. It would happen daily and eventually you just stop going....or in my case I made it a special point that IF I wanted to give my guy a great off leash run we would go the off leash park extraordinarily early to stave off having to deal with idiot owners with overly aggressive dogs.

I knew that the day had come to stop going when my normally friendly placid boy would stiffen and hackle at the approach of a yippy smaller dog racing towards him.

When you're the owner of a large breed dog you have to expect that even in cases where an attack is fully provoked by the smaller dog that it WILL be your dog blamed ~~ perhaps not legally or by the authorities ~~ but certainly if it hits the media the headline will undoubtedly read something to the effect of ROTTWEILER MAULS CHILD'S PET. I'm sure we have all experienced the effects of negative press about our breed and it is blase attitudes like "it won't happen to me" that perpetuate the problem.

In my opinion you are setting your dog up for failure by continuing to use an off leash park after you have seen these behavioral changes occuring in your dog. To this day (and I'm thankful beyond belief that we bought our own 160 acres of doggie paradise) my old guy does not like little dogs which certainly wasn't the case in his early socialization. I think what everyone who isn't an off leash proponent is trying to say is WHY subject your dog to these negative experiences that may harden his/her attitude to other dogs in the future, unnecessarily?

My one girl also hates other dogs as a result of being tumbled by two overly zealous weimaraners when she was only a baby......the effects are lasting but thankfully my younger rotts have never experienced off leash parks and have only had the positive experiences of other dogs belonging to friends/relatives and in training classes.

While not even TOUCHING on the amount of diseases (vaccinated or not) that your youngsters could pick up from an off leash park.....that would be a thread in and of itself.

JMO
Heather Peters

[MikeT66]

I guess what ticks me off is people on here (and I dont care how much experience you have) telling other people what they should do and what is going to happen in a given situation and then getting ticked off when they go against the majority on here. Yes you so called senior/expert members have a worlds experience but does it make your way right all the time. Just because you have run into a certain situation at a certain time does not mean someone else will. Advice is one thing but beating other owners up because they raise their dog a certain way is BS. Unless you have written books about Rottweilers that I dont know about you are just like everyone else on here. You have just owned Rotties longer than others that is all plain and simple. Just like the way you learned from you experiences other Rottie owners will also learn the same way and they may not even have an issue. Oh and by the way I owned a Rottie before I got Ryker. His name was Dakota and I took him to the same local dog park I take Ryker to now and I did it from when he was a puppy until he passed away at 10yrs old and did not have one instance or issue at the dog park and he grew up to be a terrific dog. So I would say I meet the 12-15 months you speak of.

[JoJo]

The original OP asked if she should be looking for a different venue to socialize her puppy. The wise dog owners answered her by saying dog parks are not the place to socialize a puppy and for that matter a mature dog. In fact when speaking to most veterinarians, they will also agree that dog parks are not a good place. But for those who choose to go to dog parks so be it. You were told the reasoning why dog parks are not good. That's all one can do. So, point being, if one asks a question, that means they want to hear good advise. Especially from those who have the experience and wisdom. Those that don't want to take the good advise that is given, don't, but don't try and give bad advise in return, for you will be brought to task in a heartbeat. You see, this board is filled with people who have such passion for the breed that they think of the breed first and foremost and they will defend and protect it with everything they have. And their weapon of choice, is KNOWLEDGE and EXPERIENCE.