YG update

[Apamaria]

Hi guys, it's been a while so I thought you might want an update.
YG was quite amazing for a few days after his first real correction, but then he actually got to have a go at some tiny fluffy doggie so that was a setback. He actually thought he could go back to his old gratifying ways and to some extent he did, damn! :(
I figure I wasn't punishing him correctly, since it was like he wasn't even noticing the correction!

Added to that, it's spring and there's a lot of bitches in heat (only way to explain his craziness right now, sniffing, pulling, marking like crazy, panting inside the house and general whininess and restlessness) No he hasn't been neutered, I started to feel bad about it so I put it on hold so I could see how our behaviour modification would turn out.

Anyways, I don't think I'm strong enough to correct with the choke the proper way, so I've resorted to other methods: we've had a few wrestling matches which I of course won (eventually I would lie on top of him having a conversation with him, along the lines of "Give up yet? Huh? I will not take this crap from you!!!" until he would relax and try to lick my face), I bit his ear once, and I've also utilized the choke like in this thread (which i have to say is working very well!) He still wears the muzzle, since he can still at times get pretty miffed with me trying to stop him.

So the situation right now is YG will not pull, whine, struggle or growl at other dogs at a distance of say 5 meters. He will look intensely at the other dog(s) but I intend to stop that also. He's almost completely stopped trying to harass people (incident of lungeing at people are now once a week tops) and when he does, he gets corrected.

I'm working on my authority, and am getting better every day I hope!

Sadly it was too much to hope for that his good behaviour would last, but I realize that 2 years of bad behaviour are unlikely to be wiped out with just one correction. So we keep working at it, both of us learning as we go along.

It's practise practise practise and hard work ahead of us but I'm determined to rehabilitate him! It's also easy to lose sight of how bad he really was when I got him, and how much he has improved already.

[Judi W]

Anna,
You will get there.

Your post reminded me of another thing that should be used when dealing with an uppity dog.

Do not allow him to mark when he is out walking. He can relieve himself on his own property.

Marking the neighborhood for a problem doggy can be his way of saying "yeah, I own this place"!!!! He is only allowed to lift his leg when you specifically give him permission. (don't believe him when he tries to tell you he really has to pee - he's scamming you)

[Judy Chrusch]

Hi Anna, boy do I agree with the peeing thing, Judi also told me to NOT let Czar pee whereever he wants when we're on our walk so now we pick a tree after his walk, then he is allowed to pee . Has worked like a charm bc I have a uppity dog to point too. He thinks his s!!! don't stink sometimes:D . But living with me, it doesn't go his way, lol, he tries buuuut!!! We have to laugh sometimes at Czar bc he'll eye up a tree, look back at us and we'll say either yes or no, too funny!

Judi W's. advice is always right on, we're so lucky to have her here:D. So control where your boy pees and you'll see a difference. Keep working at it and you will have a rottweiler that is a joy to live with.

Judy

[Apamaria]

...I was planning on doing exactly that, getting real controlling :D
Thing is, we live in an apartment so we don't have a yard. I'll just have to randomly decide where he can go and where he can't.
Incidentally, yesterday he lifted his leg on the elevator door while we were waiting to go down and out! Didn't have time to react there, I was just caught by surprise!

Nothing happens without my permission anymore, that's for sure, at least until he's behaving better!

Thanks for the support guys!