rottie puppy

[chelsea1978]

i really hope i dont offend with what im about to say, but feel the need to be honest here.

firstly, i love rotties and had one and a german shepherd for many years.

yes i agree rotties can be extremely loving and misunderstood, but please dont fool yourself into thinking that only ones which arent trained correctly or are encouraged to be aggressive can be dangerous.

a friend of mine had an adorable rottie who had never shown any sign of aggression, and then one day suddenly it turned, similar to what sophist above talked about.

my point is these breeds are UNPREDICTABLE. i know all dogs can be but rotties are known to hold an aggressive temperament which is why they may such excellent guard dogs. they can be raised and trained wonderfully and yet still turn. i personally would not have one around my child. kids often dont know what they are doing and innocently may do something that startles or angers the dog. this is why so many dog attacks happen to young children

 

[donna-c-86]

it is not just these breeds which are unpredictable, ALL breeds are they are just animals at the end of the day. In fact it is the smaller breeds which are most likely to bite probably through feeling intimidated. I have a large strong dog which I got from a rescue home and he came with many problems but he is now the perfect gentleman! He has never been aggressive to my child and I trust him with him and dont intend to rehome him just because im expecting another child. But always be cautious, I would say that whatever breed ur dog was though even a lab!

"The dog breed most likely to bite was not the Pit Bull, Rottweiler, or German Shepherd, but …wait for it…the Dachshund. And second was the Chihuahua, followed by the Jack Russell Terrier" THEPOODLEANDDOGBLOG

 

[yazzy]

Hi, just wanted to add a small bit here. I have owned GSD's and Rottweilers for over 15 years, I am currently ttc and in my household I have an Akita, 2 Rottweilers and a Staffordshire Bull Terrier - the youngest is my Rottie bitch who is currently 12 months old. All my dogs will be staying firmly put, they were here first and mean the world to me.

Along with owning these breeds I run my own Dog Training School, I also show and work my dogs. I have a real pet hate of people who suddenly decide that because they are having a baby they must rehome their dog - what a throwaway society! Do not worry about what your Dad says - Rottweilers are loving, faithful companions.

Any dog not bought up correctly could cause harm but a well bought up dog will be a great companion for your family.

I have run training classes for many years and had my own school for 5 years and the breeds that have been most nippy have been collies!

 

[Sammylou]

We have 10 dogs between myself and hubby - he is a gamekeeper and his dogs are working gundogs (springer spaniels and a lab) I compete in agility and obedience and have 2 collies, 2 springers and a lab. I have a degree in canine behaviour and training and years of experiance training and studying dogs. When my son was born we had had a litter in March and my son was born in July - not ideal but the stud dog was being exported so it was then or never. We kept back two out of that litter and they both have been fine with my son. I then got a collie when my son was a year old and was on his feet, again we have never had any problems between them. We do have it slightly easier perhaps as we do have kennels and although my dogs are in and out of the house all day I can leave them out in a kennel if I need some peace from them.

I love rotties, wonderful breed but they do need training, and preferably training without all the dominance based, MAKE the dog do what you want cr*p that you get. There is research that shows that if you train a dog using force, fear and punishment that the dog is more likely to react with aggression than if you train a dog using reinforcement. Thats not to say you never correct a dog when it does something that is wrong but that you then counteract that correction with 100 time more praise when the dog does the right thing (a bit like teaching a child).

I would say that now you need to get the dog used to baby stuff around, stop getting on the furniture (if you think that it will cause problems when the baby is here). Prevent access to the babys room, have baby gates about the place and baby toys. I would try to get the dog to understand the difference between babys toys and the dogs toys (they can learn - baby toys smell of baby and dog toys smell of dog ), maybe stop the child having toys that resemble any of the dogs toys for a while (or keep the toys in babys room). You can buy CD's with sound effects of babys crying which will help get your dog used to the strange sounds.

I would crate train your dog now, make it a wonderful place to be so that when you need your dog out of the way you can pop her in the crate and she'll be happy. When your baby comes try not to shut your dog out, remember to still spend time playing with the dog, when your baby sleeps instead of catching up on the ironing play with your dog like you used to befoe baby was there. Dont be afraid to spoil the dog a little when you first get baby home, alot of problems are caused because the dog is pushed out so buy the dog some new toys, give it some extra tasty treats and don't forget to give her your time and attention.

Please remember to NEVER, EVER leave your baby along with your dog - not even for one second!

If you want any more advice or need pointing in the direction of some good books just give me a shout

 

[chelsea1978]

it is not just these breeds which are unpredictable, ALL breeds are they are just animals at the end of the day. In fact it is the smaller breeds which are most likely to bite probably through feeling intimidated. I have a large strong dog which I got from a rescue home and he came with many problems but he is now the perfect gentleman! He has never been aggressive to my child and I trust him with him and dont intend to rehome him just because im expecting another child. But always be cautious, I would say that whatever breed ur dog was though even a lab!

"The dog breed most likely to bite was not the Pit Bull, Rottweiler, or German Shepherd, but …wait for it…the Dachshund. And second was the Chihuahua, followed by the Jack Russell Terrier" THEPOODLEANDDOGBLOG

i did say in my post that all breeds can be unpredictable, but a bite or attack from a rottweiler is going to do far more damage and possibly even be fatal compared to a bite from a chihuahua lets be honest!!!! why do you think rotties are used as guard dogs and not dachshunds??!!

i have owned both rottie and german shepherd as i previously stated so i am not being ignorant or judgemental, i am giving an honest opinion as a dog owner of this breed. you hear far too often of attacks on young children and they are always extremely bad and sometimes even fatal.

for anyone to say "oh a rottweiler (or any dog for that matter) is fine to have around a child as long as they are correctly trained" is naive and foolish

 

[donna-c-86]

it is not just these breeds which are unpredictable, ALL breeds are they are just animals at the end of the day. In fact it is the smaller breeds which are most likely to bite probably through feeling intimidated. I have a large strong dog which I got from a rescue home and he came with many problems but he is now the perfect gentleman! He has never been aggressive to my child and I trust him with him and dont intend to rehome him just because im expecting another child. But always be cautious, I would say that whatever breed ur dog was though even a lab!

"The dog breed most likely to bite was not the Pit Bull, Rottweiler, or German Shepherd, but …wait for it…the Dachshund. And second was the Chihuahua, followed by the Jack Russell Terrier" THEPOODLEANDDOGBLOG

i did say in my post that all breeds can be unpredictable, but a bite or attack from a rottweiler is going to do far more damage and possibly even be fatal compared to a bite from a chihuahua lets be honest!!!! why do you think rotties are used as guard dogs and not dachshunds??!!

i have owned both rottie and german shepherd as i previously stated so i am not being ignorant or judgemental, i am giving an honest opinion as a dog owner of this breed. you hear far too often of attacks on young children and they are always extremely bad and sometimes even fatal.

for anyone to say "oh a rottweiler (or any dog for that matter) is fine to have around a child as long as they are correctly trained" is naive and foolish

and like i said in an earlier post these are powerful dogs which is why they get the publicity if they attack people, a dauchshund could quite easily kill a baby and a jackrussell or even yorkie could cause very serious injuries. Also i said i personally wouldnt trust any dog alone with a child so i dont get ur arguement?!

 

[donna-c-86]

i didnt even say a rotty or any dog is fine to have around a child as long as it is trained..... I did however say it is unfair on the dog to be rehomed as it hasnt shown any viscious tendencies, how terrible of me

 

[chelsea1978]

donna- i wasnt arguing with u atall its u who mentioned an argument!

yes of course any dog could bite a baby and cause serious damage or death, which is why as another poster said here no dog should be left alone with a baby even for a second, which u also agreed with in your post.

I wasnt suggesting anyone rehome their dogs either, just saying that people should not be naive where strong and dangerous breeds, or indeed any breed is concerned.

as ive owned a rottweiler before i get fed up of hearing people say, "oh they are lovely dogs if they are trained properly" as the training has nothing to do with the unpredictability of the breed and people need to be aware that they could still turn, as could any dog. that was the point i was making with my quoted sentence, it was NOT aimed at anything u said.

please theres no need for attitude or sarcasm on a friendly forum, we are all entitled to our opinions and i was simply putting my point across, as were you

 

[Mark&Annie]

I will always be cautious where my, and any other dogs are concerned around my baby, it's just common sence IMO. Always supervised, no toys etc.
I have 4 dogs, Pointers and a Beagle. My Pointer bitch had a litter when I was 2 months pregnant and I kept a pup. My dogs are very gentle but they can get over excited! They have their own room and come into the main house when they are chilled in the evening. Joshua walks everday with them (on my back) They have limited contact, but gradually more as he gets older. I am aiming to teach mutual respet
IMO there' no reason you couldn't have any dog and have a family, so long as you are in control. If you had an unpredictable dog, keep it away from your child. I too can't stand peope who get rid of their dog/s when they get pregnant (other than medical reasons, and even then they better be pretty severe!)

Good luck with your pup ad baby!

 

[donna-c-86]

i apoligise for being abrupt, my hormones have a lot to answer for lately! it does upset me when people judge a dog because of the breed, its a shame and it is down to the media

 

[chelsea1978]

no need to apologise, i think our hormones all have alot to answer for at the moment!

and i do agree with u about dogs being judged, i adore rottweilers myself but just feel we all need to be aware

i can understand this is a sensitive subject as we all love our pets!

 

[Nosy_Cow]

We have a Jack Russell Cross and have had her since she was 12 weeks old. She has been trained well and will be turning 2 next month. When we first got her I fell pregnant with my first shortly afterwards. There were worries back then about how she would react but unfortunatly we lost our baby girl and therefore we never found out. However she has been brought up around young babies and children as my OH has 2 nephews & 1 niece under 5 as well as a niece and daughter over 5 - giving her a wide range of children she's been around. She loves them to pieces and follows them round like a sheep! She's always supervised with them.

I don't see a problem with rotties - my mum has a staff and I've had people cross the street to avoid him. He's now 15 and hobbling along (he hasn't got long left ) and people still cross the street because he's a staff. We ignore them - he's a big baby and never shown any aggression. My mum's friend has a rottie and she's adorable! Although she very excitable when you go round and will smoother you in kisses!

You do what you feel is best. We trust Bailey enough to have her around our little one - obviously never unattended! I would never ever leave any dog unattended with a child/baby. We've already started her training for when baby arrives. It would probably be wise to start now!

 

[aob1013]

Personally there would be no chance in hell of that breed near my child, or any other dog. However that's only down to my bad experiences. As long as you train it well, i guess there shouldn't be a problem.

 

[donna-c-86]

obviously not a dog person lol

 

[aob1013]

obviously not a dog person lol

Definately not x

 

[Hannaaisha]

I'm the opposite my dogs r like my babies too. I love them sooo much!

 

[eclipse_xo]

That's how I feel about my boy Hannaaisha!!!

A lot of people hold valid points. I'm not a dog expert or anything, oh's sister is a dog trainer though so any serious questions I have I always go to her. But like a lot of people said never leav your infant alone with the dog. If you haven't already, crate train!! I do with my boy, all I have to do is tell him to get in his cage (sometimes bribe him with a treat) and off he goes. So if you need a break or you need to leav the baby unattended you just put the dog in his crate. (Not sure if you crate train or not but if not please do some research about it as it can be tough at first especially because they will wine but you can't let them out when they do) ... I know any dog can turn on you, a big dog obv will harm your child a thousand times worse than a small dog. Know your dog and what it does and doesn't like and when your child gets older teach your child how to behave around the dog. Remember, your not training just the dog but everyone else aswell. I can trust my 11 month old around oh's 2 year old son briefly for 5-10min if needed. Oh's son doesn't bother with the dog at all really. The only time my dog would accidentally hurt his son is if he got too hyper and started running around and knocked him over. So if we are expecting company dog = on the leash in the house so that an accident does not happen, plus is helps with training the dog he needs to relax before he gets a privalidge. (Sorry bad spelling ) .. Get to know your dog and its quirks/personality so that by the time baby comes you will know what to do to prevent an accident. Like having boundaries like one person said, not allowing the dog on the couch, putting up baby gates, baby toys, get your dog socialized to small children etc. My boy trys to steal oh's sons toys sometimes, he knows better but sometimes at that age they like to test their boundaries to see if they can get away with it.

 

[CaptainMummy]

our rottie is currently 8 months old. He is a male. And what a sook he is!! Since we got him at 8 weeks old, we have not once heard him growl or snarl, or seen him nip or bite. We can put our hands in his mouth and he doesnt even try to bite! He hasnt got a bad bone in his body.

He is so used to being around kids, as OH has 14 nieces and nephews that all live within walking distance, and they climb all over him, and he loves playing with them!

We need to get rid of him though *cry* as our flat has a policy of no dogs, which we did not know about, and so OHs mum and dad are taking him, and we can walk to theirs in 5 minutes, so we will still be introducing our LO to him. And I cant wait for him to meet her

 

[donna-c-86]

least u still get to c him and know he's going to a good home!

 

[bexbexbex]

wow thanks all for the response. We are keeping her, she is crate trained and house trained as well. She loves children, OH has a 2yr old niece-and she adores her, she just lies there while the baby jumps all over her. Thanks all for response. I love having a dog, and i wouldn't change my gorgeous rottweiler puppy for the world! If you have trust in a dog and believe that you can train them properly then its a great relationship, between dog and owner!! x