What to do if your 7 month old Rotty almost bit someone today

by natasha
(Canada)

Hi I have a 7 month old Rottweiler named Roxy she is our baby, but today a friend came at the house and i just heard a growl and bark – she had almost bit her in the face it freak me OUT…

She is such a sweet dog but today was a whole different story what should i do to fix this problem before it gets outta hand …..

Hi Natasha
If your pup is normally confident and friendly and is well socialized with other people, then this sort of behavior is out of character and I would be looking to see what happened to ‘trigger’ it so that you can make sure it never happens again.

It’s not clear from what you say whether you were actually with your pup, and whether this friend was coming into your house (perhaps unannounced), was approaching your house, or was already inside having been welcomed in. If they were approaching or coming inside and you weren’t there to greet them or give them permission, then Roxy may have felt that they were a threat and so she was protecting her territory.

At this age she’s an adolescent and her guarding instincts are just starting to surface, many pups are not sure what to do with these strange feelings and tend to over-react rather than under-react! You will need to make sure you are always with her when people come into your home so that you can show her that they are friends and allowed in, and correct any attempts she makes to ‘guard’.

If she’s not familiar with people visiting, or well socialized with other people or pets then I’d recommend starting work on that right away. Also enroll her in a basic obedience class so that you can get some hands-on help with training and become more comfortable correcting her and get a better understanding of her behavior.

Rottweilers rarely get second chances if they make a mistake (whereas a chihuahua who growls and nips a visitors ankles will likely get no more than a chuckle!), so you MUST take action here to ensure that Roxy learns what is acceptable behavior.

In my opinion Rottie owners have an extra responsibility in that they have to protect not just their own dog, but the breed as a whole – and to do that we need to ensure our dogs behave in a way that is admirable, not nerve-wracking.

I hope this helps, and wish you the best of luck with your pup.

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