I have an 11 month old Rott. The trainer tried to make him down and the dog tried to bite him. He said he was a FEAR BITER and recommended putting the dog to sleep. Should we?

Hi Ed,

First, I want to thank you for having such a wonderful site. I have read it frequently and learned a great deal. It is the first place I go when I have a question.

I just read your section on Q&A on Fear Biters, and either I missed it or it did not address the situation I have. I have an 11-month old AKC male Rottweiler named Roark. We got Roark from my brother 2.5 months ago, just before my brother committed suicide. While I know that Roark was never mistreated, he did have an unstable beginning. My brother bought him at 4 months old from the kennel. After being with my brother a couple of weeks, every other week he was circulated among being with my brother, the vet for boarding, or the trainer. There was really no great rhyme or reason to this. He has been with me for 2.5 months, which I believe is the longest be has been with anyone.

Roark is a friendly and loving animal. I have him neutered at 10 months old. We have never had an real issue with him. I have 2 children, one is 10 years old autistic and non-verbal and the other is 8 years old ADHD. We also have a very soft 16 month old GSD. While Roark barks at strangers, he is very affectionate when they come in the house or when I bring him over to meet people. He has growled at my 8 year old twice, but nothing came of it. I just took him to my trainer yesterday, who went over basic training with him to see what he knew. He was very good with everything until it came to " Down," a command I believe he was taught. When the trainer did the classic hand signal that went along with the verbal command, Roark lunged at him.

My trainer feels that he is a fear-biter and unsafe (especially in my situation) and that I should put him down. I called a Rottweiler rescue society and was told the same thing. When I called my vet to discuss putting him down, my vet said that was crazy and recommended another trainer evaluate him. I also called a friend who has a great deal of experience with all kinds of dogs, who recommended a second trainer (one that deals with aggressive dogs) to evaluate him. I am trying to set up evaluation appointments for Roark.

My problem is that I want to do the right thing, but I do not know what that is. Roark is a very loving dog - he is generally not aggressive at all. I think that makes it harder. Had he been an aggressive dog, I would not have kept him. Had my vet agreed to put him down, I would have. I certainly don't want anyone to get hurt, but I don't want to put down a good dog because it is convenient. The opinions are completely opposite and each person is adamant that they are right. And I am just scared about doing the wrong thing.

Your input into this situation would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much,
Eileen