If you knew then, what you know now...

[TrishB]

My very first Rottie, a little girl, will be arriving this Spring. I've loved the breed for years, done my research, found a breeder I'm thrilled with. I’ve found a dog trainer that I approve of and will be enlisting my puppy into classes. In addition to 'puppy supply shopping', all I have to do now is wait!

If you knew then (when you first got your rottie), what you do know now, what would you do differently? What do you now know that you would definitely incorporate into your training, supplies, approaches, etc.??

I'm sure your insights will be both educational and entertaining! :)

[Judi W]

We learn with each dog. The things that we learned with one are not necessarily what applies to the next. The best thing one can learn is how to read and understand dogs, not just the one on your leash. How to communicate with them and how to "listen" to them when they communicate with you. The thing I have always loved best is training and doing things with my dogs and that has remained a constant with each. That is where we learn each other and bring forth the best in each. It is the bonding when you spend that time together and the pride of accomplishment. Set goals. Each dog should be the "best dog".

[WorkinDogz]

In addition to Judi's always exceptional advice.... I think the thing I would say "every new dog owner" (not just Rottweiler; but for sure Rottweiler) would do well to do is not afford "freedoms" that the dog hasn't earned.

You can always give more; but taking them BACK can be a nightmare.

Best of luck :)

[Barbara Surplus]

Judi, you always manage to distill your wisdom down to its purest form and, in the process, depict what we all have in our hearts to say. Lovely.

Trish, I'd not have waited as long to own a Rottweiler. Our pre-Rottweiler days, in retrospect, seem a just a wee bit emptier for not having one in our lives.
Barbara

[sophie's-mom]

I would have had a supply of PIGS EARS in the house for those crying/screaming fits in the crate in the middle of the night!!!!!!

:D

[TrishB]

Originally posted by sophies-mom
I would have had a supply of PIGS EARS in the house for those crying/screaming fits in the crate in the middle of the night!!!!!!

:D

Thanks Sophies Mom!! I'll be sure to add them to the list. :)

[MountainDog]

The last post didn't sound right to me and the poster may want to reconsider?

........I would have had a supply of PIGS EARS in the house for those crying/screaming fits in the crate in the middle of the night!!!!!! ..........


Ok ..your dog wakes you up at ...let's say 2:30 AM.... howling and whining.

You get up out of bed, stumble down the hall, and drop a treat (pig ear) in its cage.

Isn't that positive reinforcement of a behavior?

MountainDog

[sophie's-mom]

I was not reinforcing bad behavior. I was easing the separation anxiety that my pup was exhibiting due to being taken from his littermates and mother at 8 weeks. My pup is now 4 month old and he does not cry/scream in his crate at night. He only needed the pig's ear for a week or two. He was being occupied, not rewarded. :)

I can see where it seemed that way, though.

[laurlitt]

My pup was out and about a lot of places with me and is very comfortable in public.... but I would have socialized him to a lot more things as a young pup (moving wheels... skateboards, bikes, skates, strollers, etc), (young kids, the yelling screaming kind, the soft gentle kind, the running around kind). I would have worked harder at making my dog comfortable having me around when eating and being able to take food items (bones, etc.) away from him... I can do so now, but I have to play a game with him (which I shouldn't have to do) in order to get it from him. Although he was very restricted in where he could go in the house for the 1st year, I would be more careful with every little thing he did and if I wasn't there to keep both eyes on him, he'd be in a crate or a 'spot'... I would bring him around obstacles that are challenging and new to him to build confidence (lots of different surfaces, noises, etc...) I guess my list could go on.

[frau]

I would have started Schutzhund training soon after she joined us. At about 12 months old she became leery of the strangers she had formerly loved. I am never comfortable with her around strangers now.

Just because your dog has been in obedience many times AND been socialized since a young pup DON'T think everything will automatically be hunky dorey. That wonderful dog can one day get hinkey on you.

Frau

[Soapie&Buddy'sMom]

I have a Rottie-mix, so my response is mixed :) But I can tell you, I would have started training Buddy and continued training him from day one. I would have given more respect to his differences then try to think I could turn him into another "Soapie". It sounds like you've done a ton more research and preparation than I did, which is great for you and your future pup. My only suggestion is to continue to be open for suggestions and expect ongoing learning. I've been a dog lover for a long time, but until I met the Rottweiler, I was never passionate about a breed. In fact I used to lean towards the small toy breeds, my first dog was a Pekingnese (and I still love them!) But there is just something unique and challenging and wonderful about the Rottweiler that makes me want to learn more and more.
Anyway,
Good lucK!

[Maddiesgirl]

I read it here, and then I saw it to be true, again and again. Think about what YOU are doing when the puppy is destructive.

Before I got my girl, the only Rottie that I had met was super destructive. I thought many were "land sharks" and Rott puppies would consume a certain amount of your house. So, I hoped getting a rescue who was 7 months might save me some. It turns out to not be the breed but the owner! When my Rottie does something destructive, I need only to look at what I have been doing. There has yet to be a time where I didn't find that it was caused by my actions, and was correctible.

Chewed the dust ruffle..enough exercise? Did we skimp on a walk b/c it was raining? Did I forget the Kong with the peanut butter? Did I get home a little too late 2 days in a row making her lonely? (she'll forgive me on day 1, late 2 days in a row, and there may be a price..) Always there is a connection to where I got sloppy. Fixing up my routines has been the fastest most reliable way to fix her behavior.

Some things are such common sense. If I didn't want her to chew fabric, why would I give her a rope or a towel to tug and tear. Changing the material of toys helped.

But most of all, a tired tired tired puppy is a good, not-eating-the-house puppy.:D

[moondog]

I am so VERY happy with my dog that I couldn't think of a darn thing I would have changed......that is until I read the thread in Working Dogs about herding.

If I had to choose a single day in Luna's life that has been the happiest, it would be the day, 5 years ago, that she accidently got to herd cattle. We were visiting a ranch in the spring, the air was cool and the grass was high. While walking the pasture with the owner, came upon a herd of cattle. When she took off to investigate, they obliged by sauntering off, which got the game going. I was worried that she'd get kicked, but she was so smart about it that she never got within kicking range. Kept looking back to me with the biggest grin you ever saw as she discovered she could make them go. I've never seen her happier. I came home calling it the "Doggie Make a Wish Day".

So, if there was something I would change, it would be this........I'd get her involved in herding while she was still healthy enough to do it. ;)