Hi Everyone,

i have been using this forum for quite a while now and thought i would finally join today to ask you guys a question.

I recently lost my Pedigree STB to piritonitus, she was only 11 months old :( i have now decided i am ready to give a good home to another dog. My girlfriend persuaded my to goto manchester dogs home and have a look there, as soon as i walked in the first dog i saw was a 12 month old Rottweiler and i instantly fell in love,its from this that i have a couple of questions:

Firstly this dog is very nervous and whenever i walked towards him he cowered away, can this nervousness be cured with a goodhome and a new loving family, it looks like this has had a bit of a rough life to be such a large dog and be so nervous will this still make a good pet, or will it not trust anyone again?

sorry for the length of the post and i would be grateful for any replies :)

John

Hi John :-) Welcome to CD...it sounds like he was probley mis-treated by his previous owner :-( in time he will begin to trust you and become your loyal friend :-)

Hi John
welcome to the board :)
All dogs are different in how they cope, just like people. But I do beleive with love, perseverance and encouragement you can show mistreated dogs that not every human is a cruel so and so.
Good luck x

Hi,

Have you considered that perhaps a 12 month old nervous Rottweiler is not necessarily a very good idea for an inexperienced owner?

Without knowing a great deal more about him, his lines and the breed in general I would suggest that perhaps he might not be quite the right dog for you...........

Can you tell us a bit more about your dog owning experience?

Nervous dogs can be turned around - I own one!  But it takes careful management, and a Rottweiler in inexperienced hands could be very dangerous, a nervous one even more so :(

Hi John i'm sure i've seen your name somewhere else but i can't think where, do you use another forum?  especially a male rottwieler most breeders wouldn't recommend a male because they're quite dominant, they're more inclined to recommend a female as a first time owner of that breed.

Warm regards Susan

Hi John
a lot will depend on your dog owning experience and also your family position.I would not recommend having a nervous rottie if you have children or have children visit.
You could try looking at http://www.dogpages.org.uk
Archer

hi guys thanks for all the replies, my dog experience is quite limited as a adult (Well 23 year old) i have only had as stated earlier a Pedigree SBT, but when i was younger i lived with my grandad who worked as a security guard so i was always around rottweilers and GSD etc, it was just i had never seen a dog so nervous, it was quite big but yet so nervous, i would love to meet the person that as obviously mis-treated him, i would give him a right piece of my mind!!

susantwenty? i am a member of a VW and Audio forum if that helps?? i am from manchester if that sheds any light??

Sorry to hear about your loss.

Taking on a nervous rescue It will take alot of time, dedication and perserverance with the dog by the sounds of it.  You could be looking at a very hard time for yourself for many years trying to get the trust of a nervous dog.  Nervousness can cause aggression aswell, again this could be dangerous.

It took myself and my parents 18 months to turn round a ring shy dog into being able to go in and win her classes at shows.  And that was just because of one bad experiance somewhere.  A mis treated nervous dog I would think is going to take a lot more work to gain trust.

Even if you gain the trust of this dog would he gain trust of other people?  Would you have to be careful about letting people (friends etc) into your home with the dog there?

Now what if the nervousness is something medical?  or maybe you will need to get a behaviouist in to help with training etc.  This could prove expensive for you.  Are you willing and able to be able to pay out extra money on this dog?

It is possible you can make this dog into the almost perfect pet.  I will not tell you if you should take the dog or not, but consider everything everyone has said.

Or if you want to rescue a dog of a certain breed (rottie or staff etc) each breed club will have a rescue co-ordinator who will be looking for homes for dogs of that breed. :)

Good luck in your search.

Hi John
I had a rescue collie x GSD who was 4 years old when I got him and he was very nervouse and even tried to bite me when I first handled him but I fell in love with him and took him home anyway. He turned out to be aggressive with strangers and it took 3 years of a lot of love and affection and he was the best dog in the world.
I now have a 15 week old rottie who is so different in temperment but have been told that they make great dogs.  I am sure that in time you will have the nicest dog but you will have to start all the training again and socialisation.
All this boy needs to be shown is love and dicsipline and you are onto a winner.
Good luck
Sarah

hi guys,

i went seeing the rottweiler again today amazingly he has come round quite a bit, he was still nervous but no where near as bad as yesterday, i was aloud to take him out onto the field today he seemed a bit nervous at first, but then quite happily rolled onto his back for me to stroke his belly, he is quite nervous if you goto to stroke his face, but saying that when he is in hs cage he wont come near you at all, but when he is out ofit he is alot happier, which of course is to be expected.

the people at the digs home said his has made a drastic improvement from when he first came in 12 days ago, he has been microchipped today and having his final vaccination tomorrow, and then i can take him home and give him the love he needs and deserves :)

John

Many dogs can come across very poorly in kenenls as they are stressed and in a very alien environment.  He may not be nervous per se but under sosicalised and untrained.

Good luck :D

With this improvment it may, as brainless says, be due to the kennel conditions.  It sounds asif the dog was very trusting of you, to roll on his back is a very, very good sign.

Good luck, I hope it all works out well for you and the dog.

Thanks for all the replies again guys :)

just wondering what will be the most suitable way to train and socialise him now that he is already 12 months and doesnt seem to have any basic training or been socilaised well??

John

Treat him just as if he were an 8 week old puppy.  Assume he knows nothing. 

This will include housetraining.  Take him out every half hour and wait for him to perform and prais lavishly. 

Reward all good behaviour with quiet praise (or enthusiastic if he is very flat). 

Ignore or distract from anything he should not be doing so as to avoid confrontation or having to be negative and undermine the fragile trust he will have in you.

If as is bound to happen with any teenager he starts to test his boundaries a modified NILIF program may be of benefit.  This method will eman he will need to earn yoru attention and all the good things by performing an obedience excersise like sit or down before being allowed food, attention etc.

If you type NILIF into a search engine you shgoudl get some details of this method.  It is good for larger and older dogs as it avoids confrontaion but keeps you in control.

Take him to a good training class.

Depending on where you live, there are classes run by the Rottweiler Association and you can take them at any age. look at an association in your area, I am taking mine to Sandon, Hertfordshire every other Sunday, but I am also going to find a ringcraft and obedience class to take her every week.
Best of luck and email me a piccie of him when he comes home.
Sarah