Hello,
This is probably a common question, but using the search function I was unable to find an exactly similar question.
My 10 week old male rottweiler is doing very well so far. I've been following the "8wk to 8month" dvd closely. Here's my question.. He will be a pet, not a working dog. He's great with strangers and I try to introduce him to as many as possible. I took him to a friend's bbq yesterday where he could meet lots of people. I kept him on leash tethered to me the entire time, but he was able to meet lots of people and had a great time. On to my question.. When he gets wound up he starts to get mouthy.. some people react to this as if he just bit them. I've read that it's normal for a young puppy his age to do this, but I try to discourage it (or redirect to a toy).

How long does the mouthiness go on for? Is this something he'll grow out of naturally? People immediately want to 'play' with him by petting quickly and getting him wound up. I discourage this (the poeple) and ask them not to "wind him up". He never bites hard, but his teeth are so sharp that it can still sting.

What would your suggestions on this be? Am I expecting too much too early?

Depending on his tendencies....I figure a puppy is gonna be mouthy for anywhere around 8 to 18 months. Keep redirecting and or a calm assertive hold him up and say no, a gazillion times.

WOW 8-18 months!? We're only at 10 weeks haha. Hopefully we can get him out of this habit before then.

Or don’t allow puppy to be put in this situation. I know you said he is just a pet but… To me, pet or otherwise, people don’t have any business “playing” with my puppy and getting him all riled up, unless puppy is nervous around people. You wouldn’t let a bunch of people come up to your kid and let them start screwing with him\her, rubbing their head\face, scratching their belly, sticking fingers in the mouth or whatever, right? Dogs don’t need attention from everyone; they are just fine getting all the attention from you.

I think of it like this: all play\excitement comes from me, I don’t want my dogs to run up to everyone looking for attention. Some people don’t like it…especially if 80lbs of rotty wants to come “play”. You still are going to train the dog to some level and if puppy is so distracted by all those “fun people” your job will become much more difficult.

I personally don’t want my puppy biting anyone, unless we are doing protection, then knock yourself out.

It just could become more of a problem than it is worth.

At your BBQ, I would have had a pocket full of food and had puppy follow me around the backyard, maybe hiding slightly from him and when he finds me or focuses on me he gets a piece of food. That would go on for a couple minutes then put away for a while, then do it again a little later. He just learned people are OK, dad is more fun, dad always has something I want, I didn’t bite anyone or jump on anyone so I get in trouble, you get the idea…

Just my 2 cents, have fun with your pup!!!

The simple solution is don't let strange people pet your dog.

It's a rottie, it isn't supposed to be a social butterfly. It's supposed to be aloof with strangers, working dog or not it's a working breed that was originally bred for war and then guard, drover, and herding work. That means that strangers are a no-go and should be watched carefully, ideally. Also, consider that as a rottie, ill-informed people will automatically fear it as a vicious dog. Technically, if teeth touch skin it's a bite, so of course some people are going to react like they just got bit by a rottweiler.

Opinion:
You don't own a golden retriever, please don't treat it like one or someone may get injured someday.

 Quote: Scott Garrett

Opinion:
You don't own a golden retriever, please don't treat it like one or someone may get injured someday.

While there may be some truth to this, dogs are pretty adaptable. My Dobe LOVES a BBQ, and it's because he's been raised learning how to behave in a very social environment and is well-supervised at all times.

It's really normal for a ten week old to be mouthy, and I agree that I would not allow my friends to rile up the puppy. Puppies can also get wound up when they are overstimulated, so my recommendation would be to bring an x-pen or a portable crate to the BBQ so the pup can have a quiet zone to retreat to periodically, making sure everyone ignores the pup during this time especially. I still do this for my adult Doberman.

It's a good time to teach the young pup how to be good in a social situation. They are much more comfortable in these situations as adults when they have been raised knowing what it's all about and what's expected, ESPECIALLY since he's not a Golden Retriever. It can be done

In the summer my Dobe is running around off-leash at camp with his happy-go-lucky lab-mix friends, cousins, kids of cousins, friends, food, etc. and it's all good. Since he was very young he's been taught to pretty much ignore the people (kids included), leave the food alone and be nice to the other dogs, so that's what he does. The chaos isn't new to him, so he's relaxed too.

It's nice to have a dog you can take anywhere.

While I can appreciate the liability of a rottie puppy "biting" someone. I also know a lot of the folks on this forum have dogs that are not treated this way. I do not train any bite work and while I love to watch it and think it is very cool I doubt I would train for it ever.
I think (for myself) dogs should be taken everywhere. Well, ok, not dog parks etc. But places with the owner where it can encounter all sorts of stuff. To me this is building a knowledge and comfort experience pool so it can be calm in situations in the future. I would be there with a pile of treats and attention exercises.

No, I don't want or allow people to rile up or try to control my pup/dog I do let them learn about other people. I am the one to okay all interactions but I do allow them.

I found with my own dogs that they showed more wisdom when circumstances required it then under socialized dogs that had less experience to draw from.

Had a friend with a chow (lets all not go there or WHY she thought this was a good breed choice!) that she got to keep her ex from harrassing her. She took it nowhere and did no socializing because she wanted this dog to be mean. Yeah, she had it put down at a bit over a year old because it was a psycho dog at anything and eventually went after one of her own kids.


My bullmastiffs (and my BCs and my Ridgeback, and my little barks with hair on them)were/are taken everywhere, they were therapy dogs visiting a local skilled nursing facility (as are my mutts and Ridgeback...BCs have gotten too old to tolerate the work) and they were expected, on my say so, to tolerate petting (but they loved it so that was that). That all said.....they didn't show inappropriate guardiness or aggression but they showed enough in the necessary situations.

Prime example was my brother, who knew the bullys all through them growing up and was always over at our house..., came by the house when no humans were home. Basher (in my sig) was the dog on duty so to speak....meaning he was the one not crated. My brother got a step inside the door and thought he would leave us a note. Basher stopped him with a silent body block to keep him from coming in any further. My brother shoved a bit, thinking 90% of dogs are NOT gonna protect a thing (though they might bark) and Bash growled in a way that made my brother "want to wet myself" And my brother decided to step out and call and leave a message on the machine instead. THAT is what I want in my dog. Course that is also why I love Bullmastiffs.

To the OP...I have dogs that just love to have something in their mouths. Nipping and mouthing at 10 weeks is puppy stuff that needs time and training that's all. Like housetraining and child labor it is one of those phases people somehow forget how much work and time was involved after it is all over.

Thanks for the suggestions and opinions. It's strange that I hear a lot of you telling me to not allow people to play w/ my puppy, but most people on the Rottweiler forum tell me to get as much exposure to other people/kids/dogs as I can while he's young. It's difficult to know what to do!
I think you're definitely right about not letting friends get him riled up. I'll do better next time.
What is your reply when you have a puppy and someone asks to pet him out in public?

Yes it is good to socialize the puppy, but i don't take that to mean everyone gets to pet the puppy.

I take it to mean getting the puppy out into new Environments, new Situations, new sights, new sounds, new smells etc. Socializing does not mean you have to let everyone and anyone touch your puppy.

And exposure is just that, exposure. It's getting the puppy used to those things (kids, dogs, adults) but it doesn't mean they get to touch the puppy and get him riled up. It means the puppy gets to watch and see his surrounding's and get used to whats going on.

To me, if the pup is getting riled up, that's my cue to pull away from the situation. I would take it that the pup has had enough and just can't handle anymore.

What do i reply to someone in public?

Can i pet your puppy?

No, sorry.

If you don't want to be mean make something up.

Sorry, he's pretty wound up and im trying to calm him down.

You can over do certain things with puppies if you're not careful.

And i would ALWAYS be careful with my dog (any breed) around kids, no matter what type of socializing you did as a puppy.
No amount of socializing is going to guarantee a dog that will always play or deal well with others.

I think exposure is awesome and every breed needs as much of it as possible.

I would bring my pup to a bbq, but knowing that she is easily riled and she is very friendly, I hold the leash or tie her to me and ask that no one pet her or talk to her. I want her to learn to just "be". Exposure doesn't necessarily mean letting everyone pet her, just letting her experience things. With a shy pup, I would let people offer a treat and maybe touch her under her chin. When she was over it and started to approach on her own, I would start asking people to ignore her.

Eventually, what you want is a pup that is comfortable everywhere. So you bring her to a bbq, and she follows you around and maybe either sits or lays near you when you sit. I hate camping or bbq's with a dog in my face trying to steal my food.

When I am out in public and someone asks to pet my pup I nicely, but firmly, say "No, sorry, she is on a petting diet". If they persist and ask why they can't pet her, I just say she is in training and can't be petted. Then I walk on. Some people get offended, but you can't please everyone!

Edited by Niomi Smith (04/19/2010 01:59 PM)
Edit reason: Sorry posted at the same time as Wendy! But ditto!