Who can forget those immortal words uttered by the inimitable Peter Sellers in his role as Inspector Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies? Luckily for Peter Sellers, the dog lying curled up on the floor in the hotel lobby was not a Rottweiler.
If you are a Rottweiler owner, you need to be very sure that when somebody asks you if your Rott bites, you can say “No” very confidently. To get to this stage however, takes a lot of persistence, patience and unswerving commitment.
Always keep in mind these golden rules:
1- The right time to start is the very first time that your cute little tyke takes a playful nip at your ankles or at your fingers. Do not wait for the next time.
2- Deal with the biting every single time it happens, even if you know it was an accident.
How To Stop Your Rottweiler From Biting
Here are some suggestions that are very effective for getting your Rottweiler to snap out of the biting habit.
Every time you feel your pup’s teeth on your skin, no matter how lightly it may be, move his mouth off gently, look him straight in the eye and say firmly, “no biting”. If he continues nipping playfully, go through the routine again.
If he does not stop or if he actually does bite you, whether accidentally or not, repeat the routine and this time follow it by immediately turning around and ignoring him. Refuse to have anything to do with him; do not touch him, speak to him or even look at him. Just busy yourself with doing something that does not involve him at all- read a book, clean the dishes. If need be, leave the room.
Do this every time your Rottweiler puppy so much as nips you and he will soon get the message that biting is a complete no-no. Remember consistency is key to success.
Equally important; never, ever hit or punish your Rottweiler puppy. Aggressive behavior on your part will only evoke more aggression from your dog. Positive reinforcement will make for a more loving and stable dog who will happily give up biting in exchange for lots of hugs and praises and an occasional treat.
We did all of the following but he still continues and things are getting worse to the point we are ready to get rid of him. He is only 7 months old. What now?
It may sound a bit cruel to some, but I was raised old school. If you mess up, you get a whoopin. I am not by any means saying to do this to your dog, but you have to be very firm , clear, and demanding in your tone when you tell him to stop. Along with this give him a bit of a pop on the nose. He will eventually learn sooner or later.
I have a one year old Rottweiler who suddenly as I was petting him turned around and bit me hard on my wrist. How do you explain that? I love him dearly but am afraid it will happen again. Please help me.
Michele,
Next time he expresses aggressive behaviour firmly say “NO !”. You need to show him you are in charge. This does not mean you have to hit him but you must be very quick and firm to discourage the biting.
When my rott was younger, he tried biting me only one time. He never did it again. I am an old schooler as well. Dogs have a pack mentality and need to know you are in charge, especially rotts. A rolled up newspaper swatted on his nose is what I used, but it will not do the trick unless you are extremely firm about the fact that this is totally and completely unacceptable and that you are the boss. I actually lectured him too. He does not like my voice when I get upset with him. I never had to use the newspaper much at all and I don’t advocate using it unless you are truley not afraid of the dog.
At the time he went to bite me, he had a bone in his mouth and for me it was my hand or him when I took it from him after he went to bite me. There was no in between and he knew it. He is not a skiddish dog and not abused by any means, and to this day needs to be put in his place. I remind him sometimes with a stern voice. He doesn’t want to get physical with me again. He doesn’t want to go there. I wouldn’t let him move for about 20 to 30 minutes the time he really got in trouble.
I did start feeding him with my hand for sometime. To this day I can be around him eating and take food from his bowl and he won’t do anything. I did teach him “no bite, and be nice” So he will take meat out of my hand very gently even when he feels like just chomping the meat and my hand both just to get the meat. He is very careful not to hurt me. He is a huge German rott and pretty much the size of a bear. He would have been very aggressive had I not stopped this in the tracks I feel.
Just to clarify, when my rott was younger, he had a bone in his mouth in our living room, I came near, he growled and went to bite me. I knew it was now or never and I then disciplined him. He is a good good dog, but a more aggressive breed than I had known before. He loves to do things for me and with me though. Very very intelligent and I can teach him just about anything.
He has never bitten my daughters (they are almost grown now) but has growled at them when I wasn’t around and I tried spending more time with them and him to teach them how to handle him, but if it really comes down to it, they are afraid of him, which I feel bad about. No one should have to be afraid of their own dog or worry about their children around their dog. Our pitbull, on the other hand, is their baby and there is no fear there at all. She is a girlie girl dog and very much wants to please all of us. She has not taken much more than a stern voice in her discipline. My kids aren’t afraid of her at all. She can’t stand even the thought that she would be in trouble, but our rott is more stubborn.
Hello!
I need some advice! Im really worried about my rottie puppy. Actually Im scared of him 5 times now he has snapped at me, and been aggressive towards me. I dont hit my puppy but for punishment firmly tell him no and tell him off. If I can, i will tie him up for 5 minutes but most of the time im to afraid to go near him when hes been like that with me. Im really worried becuase i know they can smell fear, but if im scared of him how can I show him no fear. the times he has gone for me iv thought about my behavoir and what is it im doing? maybe iv scared him or perhaps he was protecting food but no. One minute hes lieing on his back enjoying having his belly rubbed and the next (whooa where did that come from) I dont want to be scared of my dog and i really dont know why he is like this with me? Anyone have any ideas or can offer advice on how to patch our relationship up?