I have always owned labs in the past and just recently lost my choc of 13 years. My husband is very interested in a rott and I am very curious about how they are with children. We have an 8, 7, and 2 year old and I know that rotts have taken it from the news and would love to know the truth.

id wait a while until your 2year old is up a touch, -my sister has 3 rotts living in with kids, -the eldest daughter competes with the male against adults and has won strong classes at champshows, and i think its 4 rcc's now, she won junior handler round at richmond with their champion bitch and best in show with the male at the working breeds-but!!! they where brought up around dogs, if you do go ahead id strongly advise a bitch as theyre much easier for a first timer :D
good luck and dont forget to meet the mother of any pups you veiw, they should be kc registered-parents should be hipscored, other than that you dont know for sure what youre buying,

Except for the fact they are a lot more powerful and can therefore do a lot more damage with a single bite than say a small terrier (sorry terrier folks but at least I did not pick a breed), if treated sensibly and consistently then there is no reason they should be different with children than any other breed.

One thing I would mention is that small children don't like puppies. They generally love the idea of a small cuddly pet but then that pet starts jumping up and mouthing or biting them then they soon go off them and may well retaliate inappropriately.

If you decide to go ahead then make sure you can keep your youngest child and a puppy separate when necessary (the tall dog/child gates are ideal for this). I should mention that I don't have Rottweilers but Dobermanns who have a similar reputation :((

Christine

christine, i agree with most youve said, but do find the male rotts are very pushy in the dominance stakes, over the years ive judged rotts and a few classes of dobes-ive yet to hve a dobe growl at me, cant say the same for the rotts, -they are different

christine!

you are a mind reader !! I was going to query this....when we got our OES a few months back my youngest at 4 loved him, rolled about on the floor with him and cuddled him.....2 months on Monty is a LOT bigger and nips a bit and my youngest no longer wants to play as roughly as he did and when puppy tries to do the things they used to my youngest hits him on the head for no real reason. ( He has been reprimanded and hopefully stopped this now!) BUT your explanation fits my circumstances to a T ! and I was beginning to think it was just my child!

jude

I have 2 rotts and have never had a problem with children and the dogs, my kids are 9 and 12. We have kids in the house and garden at all times, i have found that small kids can be knocked over by the dogs as bud only wants to play with the kids but they can very easy be knocked down.

Good luck with your decision Debbie

Rotts are fine with kids as long as they have been bought up to respect the family and not dominate them the same as any breed really , just the fact that they are strong in body and in mind is made them an ideal guard dog which is even more reason to find out as much about this breed as you can before taking the final step of getting the dog.
Good luck

Leona

Thank you for all your input. I have always trained my dogs myself and do a good job at it, i beleive, I love to do it. Even though it is a long process I love to watch the dog pick up things. It is almost like watching a child learn new words. So if I am understanding all of you correctly, as long as you take time, patience, and love with your puppy, you should not expect anything different from what you are used to in any dog? Other than realizing the sheer strength of a rott and realizing more "clumsiness" accidents like pushing and falling down can occur? I myself love the look of the breed and love the feeling of security I believe you can feel when they are "watching" over your family. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to train a dog to stay in your yard and not wander away? We have 2 acres for "her" to enjoy but live where ALOT of people run and walk by the house and I KNOW that any dog, running out to greet runners is not one of the runners favorite visitors. I know that makes me nervous when I walk. And I would worry about her getting hit by a car. Any advise on so called "socialization" would be of great help too. Everyone says you should take a dog with you to teach them how to behave in other surroundings and makes them not so protective of their "domain". Please keep advising, I love any help or hints I can get.

Hi

Can you tell me where abouts you are
i think it would be good for you to meet a few rotties and owners and hopefully chat.
If you click on my name you will get my email address and i will try to put you in touch with owners of rotties.