My young Rottweiler attacked the vet and the animal hospital staff when I took him in to be neutered, is he going to turn on me one day?

My 80 year old aunt adopted a baby Rottweiler. When he got to be about five months she couldn’t handle him anymore (Da). I thought I was doing her a favor and I took him in but he had already developed bad habits and I think he is dominant. I’ve taken him to two trainers and finished basic obedience. Things are going pretty well. The other day I took him to the vet to get neutered and he attacked the vet and all the staff. I’m sure he was just scared and they were trying to tell them what to do without any reward but it is scary. He is now 15 months old and weighs 90 pounds. This makes me wonder if he is going to turn on me one day? Or was this a one off?The vet said he’s concerned for my safety and that I should consider turning him into a Rottweiler rescue. But I believe he has started to see me as pack leader with the work we have done. What are your thoughts? I know I couldn’t get the whole story here but that’s the gist. Thx!

Leerburg's Answer

I don't judge young dogs on their behavior at the vet because many vet employees don't understand how to handle a strong working dog that is nervous or scared. For a vet to recommend you turn a dog into rescue based on a fearful reaction to handling by strangers in a clinic setting is unreasonable in my experience. Honestly, I'd be looking for a new vet.

I would teach him how to wear a muzzle comfortably so you have a way to reassure staff or anyone that would need to treat him in the future. I teach all my dogs this skill anyway, you never know when it will come in handy.

All dogs react to stress differently so it may be that he just felt cornered or trapped, I worked in a vet clinic for many years and saw a lot of dogs react in this way when they were scared. That's not to say this isn't a dangerous situation but for a vet to suggest that you surrender him to rescue because of his behavior at the clinic is a problem for me.

There's no way to predict what a dog will do in the future but smart training and setting boundaries for all dogs is the way to go, especially strong and powerful dogs like Rottweilers. My mom bred Rottweilers so I'm familiar with them, they can definitely be a challenge, especially during adolescence.. I'll link some training resources for you below. If you need help choosing a muzzle our staff can help with that. In the meantime, if you can find someone local with experience training powerful working breeds to help you I would suggest that as well.