owners of 'big' dogs, can you talk to me please

[bunnyfears]

I have an 18 month old rottweiler. she is a big smooch. she loves all other dogs and most people. her recall is 98% great.

she does 3 things that are undesirable...

1. she will bark at some passersby if she is sat in the car (waiting to leave). I can live with this

2. if a man takes her by suprise, she will bark. so for example, appearing out of the bushes, in the woods etc. I'm pretty ok with this also, because we got her for safety having encountered too many weird men out walking/intruder (me and 3 daughters)

3. she will chase after male runners and bark 😬...this is the one that is getting us into trouble. it's not aggressive but it definitely sounds aggressive if you don't really know dogs. many people are great, stop running, give her a fuss and it diffuses into nothing. but as you can imagine, some people are furious. I don't really want to keep her on a lead because 1) it happens maybe once a fortnight (haven't worked out what it is about some men that brings this response as opposed to others that she ignores or can be distracted from and 2) it's ot actually aggressive

because it's not consistent I'm at a bit of a loss

interested in other people's experiences and how they have dealt with inconsistent/occasional unwanted behaviours

Could be anything, their smell, the way they run, that they took the dog by surprise, anything at all. But your dog can’t tell you and even if she could, it wouldn’t make any difference. You need to keep her on a lead.

I love dogs but if a Rottweiler I didn’t know started chasing me, I wouldn’t be hanging around to find out whether it was a “smooch” or not.

You chose to get a dog that a high proportion of people will be wary of so you need to take responsibility and keep her on a lead.

you can't report a dog for barking. and if we had a visit from the dog warden, they would assess her as not being a dangerous dog, because she isn't

I am very ok with her barking at men that appear suddenly due to previous experiences

Please, please keep her on a lead. This would really terrify me and put me off running.

We should be able to go out safely on the streets without this sort of shit, tbh.

Actually, the fact that you're talking about being afraid of weird men out and about is ironic, when you are walking around with a dog like that.

I'm sure your dog is lovely, and if I knew you and your dog would be more than happy to say hello and have a cuddle, but as a runner, a rottweiler barking at you and chasing you? You must see how that would look?

I don't bother to tell anyone she is friendly anymore because as you say people don't believe it is true/don't care

@hehehesorry excellent post

Absolutely agree, my rottie used to be good with other dogs, strangers etc until he reached 18 months. He's had extensive training and unfortunately now does not really like unknown males and is not keen on other dogs. For this reason he's kept on lead with halti and muzzle and only ever off in the secure field. Rotties are wonder and loving and i could do anything with him... but they are hard work and definitely fulfil what they are bred for!

I wouldn’t consider once a fortnight ‘occasional’, I’d consider it a regular occurrence.

You dog is regularly chasing runners. It’s really not okay. I would report you immediately if I witnessed this.

Yes and the more she gets to practice the behaviour the harder it will be to train her out of it. She has go be kept on a lead from now on.

@ForestFox44 gave some good advice about desensitisation above and ppl have mentioned secure fields where she can be off lead. Keep her on lead the rest of the time as it's very scary to have a strange rottweiler barking at you or chasing you.

Intimidating people with your dog makes you the sort of person who 100% shouldn't have a dog. Previous bad experiences are no excuse to have an out of control dog.

Why have you even posted? You clearly don't care - because you want the dog to intimidate people - you can't have some undesirable behaviours without the others, I'm afraid.

There is a reason why CPDs go through extensive training from properly vetted, educated, and knowledgable professionals and not from Peggy and Dave from Essex.

Agree, great post

yes, I do know it isn't acceptable which is why I am in the process of training her out of it. and hence here, asking for other people's experiences of training out occasional behaviours

we definitely SHOULD be able to go out on the street without being terrified or being attacked. which is why we have an intimidating dog. to keep the men away.

You can report a dog that makes you feel threatened. It doesn’t have to attack. So actually yes they can report for barking & chasing a runner

I'd be absolutely terrified if a Rottie barked and chased after me. I love dogs including other people's dogs but this would scare the bejesus out of me and I'd be furious with you.

You’re intimidating others, don’t you understand that? Runners need to go out without being terrified too.
How bloody dare you in fact?

of course you can have an intimidating dog that is well trained and rid of unwanted behaviours. she is intimidating just because of her breed. I don't care what you think of me for having her, she keeps us safe. I am asking for very specific training advice about occasional behaviours. do you have any experience of that?

You in fact WANT a dangerous dog to scare off weird men. You are the problem. You need a breed specific behaviourist to help you work through this.

you need to keep her on a lead

If your dog ran at me i would take a photo, report it being dangerously out of control and you would risk losing her.

Don't take the chance, get a trainer and sort it properly- in the meantime, keep her on a lead even if it is a small chance of her recall failure!

Except you can't, can you?

You've got an out of control dog chasing people and barking at them. It's not occasional behaviours, it's at least every other week - that you're admitting to. So let's be honest, it's probably far more than that.

She's not intimidating because of her breed. She's intimidating because she has a novice, incompetent, deluded, nitwit for an owner who is treating her like a weapon.

Having her does not keep you safe - a knife can kill stab a dog. A gun can still kill a dog. A sharp choke with a lead can still kill a dog. She's easily dispensable to a properly motivated person - particularly as she has no formal training to make her a guard dog.

Actually, you can. If a person feels threatened and fears they might be injured by your dog they can report. A large, barking Rottweiler can be terrifying to many people, especially if the dog isn't on a lead.

"It’s against the law to let a dog be dangerously out of control anywhere, such as:

• in a public place
• in a private place, for example a neighbour’s house or garden
• in the owner’s home

The law applies to all dogs. You can report a dog that’s out of control. Some types of dogs are banned. XL Bully dogs are now banned in England and Wales. Check what to do if you own an XL Bully dog. Out of control Your dog is considered dangerously out of control if it:

• injures someone
• makes someone worried that it might injure them

A court could also decide that your dog is dangerously out of control if either of the following apply:

• it attacks someone’s animal
• the owner of an animal thinks they could be injured if they tried to stop your dog attacking their animal" From gov.uk

well maybe men that flash and proposition women and girls and break into people's houses shouldn't be allowed, then we wouldn't need a bloody big dog would we. they do it regardless of our small dog

she is not aggressive. I am asking for specific training advice about addressing occasional behaviours

she isn't dangerously out of control.

If your dog is chasing people then she's out of control, and no matter how friendly she is nobody wants a rottie they don't know legging it after them.
I love big dogs it would still unsettle me no matter what breed because you just don't know.
Just thinking of you and the dog, put a lead on her until she's 100%.

As it says above your dog can be deemed out of control if the dog

• makes someone worried that it might injure them

You're letting your dog scare people!

I would report a Rottweiler that was chasing after me.
I grew up with Rottweilers as a family dog. I know they are wonderful. I also know how potentially dangerous they can be in the wrong hands and as a runner I don't know your dog/you.

Yes she is. When she's chasing after someone and barking at them she is dangerously out of control.