My Rottweiler Sleeps all night long

hi this is john, i have a 4yrs old Rottweiler.

my purpose for buying a Rottweiler was that i needed a guard dog that will guard the home all night. but instead my Rottweiler goes into deep sleep during night and doesn't wake up even if there is suspicious sound or noise inside or outside the house.

how can i keep him awake during the night so he can guard our home?





Hi John
You can't 'keep a dog awake' I'm afraid, adult dogs tend to sleep for a lot of the time... day and night.

However, if there is an intrusion, a loud noise, etc. they generally wake up! Unless your dog is sick in some way, he won't sleep through a break-in or a threat to your home or safety.

Rottweilers are very intuitive and discerning guard dogs and aren't prone to 'false alarms', indiscriminate barking or over-reaction. He should be able to recognize a real threat (not just a neighbor, a cat, or a 'trial run' that his owner has set up) and I would be very surprised if he didn't step up should the need arise. I've never known that to happen, and hopefully you will never need his services or be in real danger.

However, I would recommend having your vet check him out to make sure that he's totally healthy and strong, it's always better to be safe than sorry. Other than that, just make sure he's well fed, has enough exercise and gets lots of love and attention plus daily training (only positive, rewards-based methods though). A dog should feel like part of the family and know he is loved, he deserves that just for being there. But this will also help to ensure that he will do whatever it takes to protect the people he loves, and who love him, should the need arise.