Rottweiler question

[cassiesmom]

Okay, dog people, I have a question. I went to Petsmart last night for cat food and litter. In the cat aisle with me was a young couple with a Rottweiler. My only experience with Rotties is my mom and dad's former neighbors - they had two who were always in the back yard whether it was good weather or not. This dog was magnificent. I can't think of another word. He was big, his coat was very black and shiny and he had that "I'm a happy dog" face. He was sniffing at all the big bags of cat food as his people shopped. They said he was 11 months old. All I could say was wow. He really was handsome, he just looked healthy and happy. Which got me thinking about the neighbors' dogs who were never well cared for - we used to put a bucket of cold water and ice over the fence in hot weather, because they never had clean water. I know that Rottweilers have a mean dog reputation but this dog at Petsmart was clearly not mean. The breed Web site said their heritage is working, so they're tenacious. Here's my question. Can a family teach a dog of a certain breed away from that reputation? You want tenacity, but not meanness - can that be taught to a dog? Or - is it true that all (breed of dog) are (characteristic) no matter how you teach them? (example - all pit bulls are said to be aggressive, all Rottweilers are said to be mean) I wish you all could have been there with me. I didn't ask to pet the dog, because both of his people were hearing impaired - but he did wag his tail when I was talking about him, so I think I was okay. I don't know if he is a hearing helper dog or not. He sure was handsome! Some day, when I have a proper house and yard and a more consistent schedule, I hope I'll get to have a dog.

Thanks,
elyse

[Pawsitive Thinking]

Can a family teach a dog of a certain breed away from that reputation?

Its not the dog that needs to be taught - its the people around who need to get rid of their misconceptions about a breed

[pitc9]

In my personal opinion, no matter the breed it's all in the way the dog was raised.

For example...
You could get a pit puppy from a well known dog fighter that has the meanest dogs in the city and raise it to be a therapy dog!!

It's all about socializing and training that puppy from the start.
We have (had :( RB Angus and RB Rocky) a few Rotties here on the board, and we also have a few pitties on the board and they all are sweet as pie!
Jada, Ebony and Diamond!! (along with others)

My sister used to live with a friend and they had 4 Rotties. I used to house sit for them when they went out of town and they all were VERY sweet!

[Ginger's Mom]

Your thread made me smile. I love Rotties. Fortunately for me, I have never met a mean Rottie, and I have met many many Rottweilers. My very first experience with a Rottweiller was while camping out for tickets about twenty years ago. One person in line brought his Rottweiler with him for the camp out, and this dog was a wonderful example of the breed. Of course the owner was a great owner; he knew everything about the breed, how/when/why it was breed, what it should do, how it should do it, etc. We spent a lovely 22 hours in line with this dog. He was happy, playful, attentive to his owner, and just a real pleasure to have around. I think everyone in line left there with a new admiration for the breed. No, dogs of a certain breed do not all have to be mean, or for that matter, not all dogs of a certain breed have to be sweet. To a large extent you can train your dog to behave the way you want it to behave, no matter what the breed.

[luvofallhorses]

I have a rottie mix and she's the best dog I have ever had. She isn't colored like a rottie, her mom was a rottie and she has lab in her. So she's yellow but I love rotties and never had met a mean rottie. It all depends how you raise and socialize them.

you will need to socialize them a lot because they are very people oriented dogs just like pit bulls are. :) you can't quit socializing them with people or they will go in a skiddish stage and that isn't good at all. my Jenny loves kids, other dogs, cats (LOVES our cats) some aren't good with cats so you have to watch out for that if you have cats.. she's great with other people, etc..

she's a big mushy face. :D

where are you located? there may be a rottweiler rescue in your area and they could help you more to research the breed since they work with them day in and day out.

we have had a few rotties where I work and they all were sweeties.
it all depends how you raise them and socialize them imo. they are wonderful dogs but just like with pitties you have to be very, very responsible and you have to be very dominant with them because they can get stubborn. make sure you let the dog know YOU are the leader and not him. good luck! :)

here's a list of rottie rescues in the united states :) I just saw you're located in IL so there are a few rescues if you scroll down. :)
http://www.rottrescue.org/national_list_rott_rescue.html

[cassiesmom]

My dad called the city about their former neighbor's dogs. They were in the yard in all kinds of weather, never got petted or played with. The city told him there was nothing they could do.

I wish you all could have seen this dog with me. He was just magnificent. Alert, strong, glossy black coat. I like to go to Petsmart when people are there with their dogs. Some day ...

[Freedom]

As with any breed, it depends on the people; and on what the line is being bred to do. Many Rotties are bred as family pets and they can be wonderful dogs. Friends of ours had one, before they even had children. As the children (3 in all ) arrived and grew, they woud reach an age and size where they could lean on the dog and get "horsey rides." They only did this with the parents watching, but that was in case the child fell off; the dog was a BIG rottie! That dog was always slobbery fun!

I believe many reputable breeders do more to breed for family life; and certain breeders focus on breeding for trial work (herding, tracking, agility, whatever depending on the breed). It's only the low lifes who breed for fighting today -- IMO.

I am SO glad you met this wonderful dog! Look at the impact he has had on you, he hee.

Oh BTW, if he was a service dog helping them due to hearing impairment, he would have been wearing an ID vest.

[Danegirl2208]

A reputation is just that..a reputation. In the public and medias eyes pit bulls and rotties are ALL "monsters"..which of course is just not the case.

A well bred rottie and pit bull should NEVER be agressive towards people. No where in either standard does it say they should be a "child killer," "monster," or "mean"..infact human agression is a serious fault in both breeds.

You talked about "tenactiy" above, which is obviously a trait that cannot be taught. It is a trait that is often taken advantage of in both breeds. For instance, the pit bulls tenacity is what makes them the breed of choice for dog fighters, they were bred to never give up.

Aslo have to point out that tenacity and gameness does not equal agressiveness. Here is a well known dogman pictured with his child and dog..the dog pictured was a fighting dog. The pit bull has been bred to be extremly people friendly. It's when people start breeding away from the standard and irresponsibly that we get the problems.
http://i19.photobucket.com/albums/b197/Blugirl2208/Dogs/php0ULxc1PM.jpg

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

Rottweilers, Dobermans, Pit Bulls, etc. are just like any other breed. As long as they're bred properly, are in the right home, and were raised properly then they will usually be incredible dogs. Sometimes you come across one here and there that was raised in a proper home and such and they just aren't a stable dog (like my Morgan), but the vast majority are wonderful. The dog you met was exactly like a Rottie should be. I'm glad you had such a good experience. :)

[Alysser]

Yes, dogs are only taught how they are raised. My mom knows a lady with a Poodle mix and I know someone who was watching a pitbull for her uncle. Now the Poodle mix is horribly behaved and anyone who tries to pet it gets snarled at, it sometimes even snarls at its owner but not usually. Meanwhile, this pitbull is the most loving and well behaved dog I've ever met BY FAR. The first time I met her she attacked me with kisses. I've never met such a sweetheart. Sometimes her tail would wag so much she would hit it against the wall, causing it to bleed.

This proves to me at least, that it depends how the dog is bred and raised. If you hit, abuse, chain a dog outside, don't feed it, etc. DON'T expect it to be kind and loving. Dogs need to be socialized properly with people and other animals from an early age and that effects aggression. If a dog who was chained in a yard all day and forgotten about, do you think it would be used to humans? That is what causes human fear and aggression. Dogs are not born aggressive, there is no way a dog can be born aggressive, try and prove it to me all you want, it just doesn't happen. If a dog is socialized as a puppy with people and different animals, and it is not hit abused, and trained properly, it will definitely shine through. I don't believe it is a common occurrence that a dog can be wired wrong, I believe people it is VERY frequent that people are though. And honestly, even the most abused and neglected dogs can make great pets when put in the proper home, it just depends on the people who choose to take on the challenge.


About pitbull fighting, well these dogs are trained to do this. They don't know any other life. They see that this blood sport makes their owners proud, and that is the reason they do it. Dogs are extremely loyal to their owners and they want to make them happy. That's how their trained.

Hope that helped you a bit. ;)

[Danegirl2208]

Sometimes you come across one here and there that was raised in a proper home and such and they just aren't a stable dog

That is an excellent point. As much as I'd love to say it's ALL in how you raise them, in many cases it is just not true. The dogs you hear about attaking people are NOT stable dogs and yes, in many cases they were born that way..but it is never fair to judge a breed as a whole because of these dogs.

[critter crazy]

Rottweilers are not naturally mean or agressive dogs. We have owned many, and own our Lovely Brutus now, and they are the worlds largest Teddybears!! They are very people orientated, and do not like to be seperated form their families. Rottis do not make great outdoor dogs, specuifically because of their need to be with their humans. All of our rottis have come from bad backgrounds, including one which came from a fighting backgroud, and every single one adapted very quickly to indoor family life. We have never had any problems wit anypf our rottis. They just always aim to please!! I love my rottis!!:D

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/mjones77/Our%20Family/100_5976.jpg

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/mjones77/Brutus/100_5290.jpg

[cassiesmom]

That is an excellent point. As much as I'd love to say it's ALL in how you raise them, in many cases it is just not true. The dogs you hear about attaking people are NOT stable dogs and yes, in many cases they were born that way..but it is never fair to judge a breed as a whole because of these dogs.

I guess that's what I'm trying to get at. It's not "All Rottweilers are mean ... oh my goodness, I'm in Petsmart with a Rottweiler ... he must be mean". This dog was DEFINITELY not mean. I could see how he might be protective of his family, though.

I saw on a TV program where a Rottweiler was doing inspections of baggage by smell for drugs. The suitcases came one right after another, but that dog never let up for even a moment until the handler instructed him that it was time to stop. I guess it is a combination of what is in the dog's genes and proper instruction.

I'll pipe down now. I just wanted to tell everyone about this very handsome dog that got me thinking :)

[bckrazy]

I grew up with one of the sweetest dogs on earth... who happened to be a Rottie! Named Rex. C: He was super laid back and friendly toward all people and animals, he was just a big teddy bear. And he was stunningly handsome, too!

I was once home alone with my older sister, and Rex was whining at the back door. We let him out, and he proceded to bolt over to the fence and bark his head off... a MAN dressed in all black was climbing back over the fence, in a hurry. D: Seriously. I don't even know what I owe to that amazing dog. And that was the one and only time he showed any aggression towards any person.

He was rescued from a very neglectful, and probably abusive, home. But he was just grateful to be loved, from the moment he came to live with us. I think Rotties are incredibly loyal, sweet, gentle, intelligent dogs, and I would LOVE to own one again someday!

[K9karen]

I couldn't agree more with what you all said. You all know my story. I have an idiot neighbor.

You all know me a long time. I'm a dog fanatic. But I've been told I suffer from PTSS (post traumatic stress syndrome) and I have to admit, my one bad experience has made me terrified of Rotties. I even went to the Phila dog show and stood next to the ones ready for the ring and talked to the owners. When they looked up at me, and I remembered how huge and powerful the jaws are, I nearly passed out.

Gawd, I pray I get over this. I've never been fearful of any dog. C'mon, I was puppysitting a red nose pit puppy and adored their RB black pit, Loco. he and I would have a kiss fest.

I just felt the need to say this. No offense to anyone and their gorgeous Rotties. And I know in my heart and head that it was a bad owner who messed me up. Big head rubs to all your lovely pups.

[kallisto4529]

I have owned a Rotti, my RB Natasha. She was one of the best dogs I have ever had the honor of having in my life. She was extremely large for a female, at her healthiest weighing 125 to 130lbs. She was raised with two Cocker Spaniels and thought she was there size, she was indoor/outdoor, she slept inside and she liked to be outside with the cockers for a while. she was so gentle and loving and i could just go on and on about her. But we had never had one before so we asked the vet how to handle her, she told us to socialize her, be very loving and gentle with her, not to rough house too much, due to her size and lack of knowledge with it, she might become to rough. She never in all the years we had her, growled or acted mean towards anyone. It is in how you raise them and how you treat them, it is nothing about them in particular.

[IRescue452]

I've never met a mean rottie. However, one of my uncle's rotties had rage syndrome and had to be put down. I've only ever heard of rage syndrome in springer spaniels, but either way it makes the dog too dangerous, especially for the owner themself. But this is extremely rare and can happen in any breed.
Rotties aren't meant to be aggressive toward humans. They are meant to work directly with their humans. They even have a long history with children. Being used as a cart-pulling dog on farms often meant pulling the little kids around the yard in the cart as well.
They do have a bad reputation though. It can be hard sometimes to own a dog and have people cross the street when they see you, or tell you to put the dog down just because of its breed. The neighbor of that same uncle once shot one of his rotties because it was roaming too close to his property. We're talking farms with acreage. He couldn't let the other dogs out of his sight because the neighbor's had this idea in their mind that all rotties were bad, and they weren't giving the dogs a chance.