Rottweilers In Thailand

[skybluestu]

Hi,

We've recently been joined by x2 Rottweiler puppies, just wondered if anyone else who has them as pets here in Thailand has any advice re training, diet, hot climate etc or any other suitable advice?

Thanks in advance

[Nienke]

Start with the socialization now, especially with children (I understand from other posts that you are a teacher), but also with other dogs, cats, chicken, other environments, car, traffic, etc etc. All experiences should be positive.

Also set rules straight away, that is the do's and don'ts. And have your whole family stick to those rules. Consistency is the keyword.

They are not allowed inside, start teaching them now. You don't want them to jump up, never re-inforce it when they do, but always reward when they are with 4 feet or the butt on the ground.

Concentrate on desired behavior and totally ignore unwanted behavior, such as jumping up. And again, have everybody do the same thing.

My rottie (RIP) and many of the guest rotties love to take a dip in the pond when it was very hot.

Provide your pups with high quality dog food. Cheap and high quality don't go together. Personally I prefer to give dogs a species appropriate diet, which is a raw diet. Lots of info on this subject to be found on this forum.

The learning and life stages of children and dogs are quite similar. What you won't accept of a child (demanding attention, grabbing food out of your hand, jumping all over you, jumping on tables, not listening etc) don't accept from your dog as well.

You've got not one but two pups. That's a hel_l of a job. One pup tends to focus more on the family members, but two pups tend to focus more on each other, making that you need to put more time and effort in the education process. Wish you good luck.

[Tywais]

Nienke, a pearl of wisdom as always. Just a thought and that if you don't have a lot of time or experience in training, then consider an obedience/training school.

[brianinbangkok]

" Start with the socialization " like Nienke said.

The Rottweiler is a very dominant type of dog so pay a lot of attention to this.

My regret is that I should have let my dogs roam the soi in front of the house more so the older dogs there could have helped socialization them this is important if your dog ever slips out so he will know how to behave. (it puts some common sense in them).

Keeping dogs behind a fence makes them very territorial and dangerous when they do get out of the yard.

Dogs in Thailand are usually very well socialized compared to dogs in Europe because the Thai let their dogs out on their own and strangers and other dogs will show them how to behave or else !

Besides the Rottweiler I have a Boxer and a Basset Hound. These last 2 are much easier types to control.

Edited April 18, 2009 by brianinbangkok

[skybluestu]

Thanks for the advice guys, much appreciated. I've had dogs before but never in Thailand and never Rottweilers, I'm aware they can be a handful but also very rewarding pets if treated, socialized, trained correctly etc which I plan to do. They actually both have diarrhea today, they have only had puppy food and water so I'm hoping it's just part of the settling in period but will take them to the vets tomorrow if still a problem. Even though we have two they are paying us a lot of attention, often more so than each other and already sit when told to, only been here 24hrs so I hope they continue to learn as quickly as they are!

[pluto_manibo]

You might want to be careful with what you feed them. Not too much and not too much calcium. Rotties have a tendency to have hip dysplasia and arthritic problems, overfeeding and an unbalanced diet increases the chances for bone problems. You are going to have your hands full with 2 pups, the main thing would be to teach 3-4 basic commands(basic obedience) for starters. 1/ sit 2/stay 3/down 4/come. Also teach them to walk on a lead and have a designated area for their toilet training(newspapers) if you want to save your garden and/or house. I just lost my 9yr old Rottie, two weeks ago, all I can tell you is, its' a very rewarding experience and they are amazing dogs!

[bina]

what?!! no pics of cute pups???

also, doesnt thaigerd have a set or three of rotties?? i remember he said he provides a small swimming pool for kids for his dogs to lay in... among other things

bina

israel

[Nienke]

They actually both have diarrhea today, they have only had puppy food and water so I'm hoping it's just part of the settling in period but will take them to the vets tomorrow if still a problem. Even though we have two they are paying us a lot of attention, often more so than each other and already sit when told to, only been here 24hrs so I hope they continue to learn as quickly as they are!

Oh-oh, only 24 hours at your place and already diarrea? I suggest to be extremely alert. Rottie pups are very sensitive for parvo and corona virus. Either they have picked up the virus at the petshop or breeder or the develop it form the vaccine (yes that's very possible and more common than one thinks and are told by vets)

Best is to feed them 5 times a day a little bit instead of 3 times (or as many petshops advice 2 times). Also not a good idea to leave the food out for them to eat when ever they want. By feeding them at set times you control their food intake, know exactly if and when there appetite goes down, and you can train them at the same time (sit, stay, ok/eat. Food guarding is not allowed)

[Cynical]

Start with the socialization now, especially with children (I understand from other posts that you are a teacher), but also with other dogs, cats, chicken, other environments, car, traffic, etc etc. All experiences should be positive.

Also set rules straight away, that is the do's and don'ts. And have your whole family stick to those rules. Consistency is the keyword.

They are not allowed inside, start teaching them now. You don't want them to jump up, never re-inforce it when they do, but always reward when they are with 4 feet or the butt on the ground.

Concentrate on desired behavior and totally ignore unwanted behavior, such as jumping up. And again, have everybody do the same thing.

My rottie (RIP) and many of the guest rotties love to take a dip in the pond when it was very hot.

Provide your pups with high quality dog food. Cheap and high quality don't go together. Personally I prefer to give dogs a species appropriate diet, which is a raw diet. Lots of info on this subject to be found on this forum.

The learning and life stages of children and dogs are quite similar. What you won't accept of a child (demanding attention, grabbing food out of your hand, jumping all over you, jumping on tables, not listening etc) don't accept from your dog as well.

You've got not one but two pups. That's a hel_l of a job. One pup tends to focus more on the family members, but two pups tend to focus more on each other, making that you need to put more time and effort in the education process. Wish you good luck.

You sound like a knowledgable guy when it comes to dogs. My university aged daughter was taking care of an American Pitbull until it grew to big for her. NOw we are lumberd with it and although it's a friendly dog, we already have a great Bankaew and don't have enough space. We're looking for a good home for it (It's about 18 months old). We obviously don't want it to go to a b*stard who will use it for fighting. If you know of anyone or anywhere that would take him, I'd appreciate it. Cheers.

[Nienke]

I just lost my 9yr old Rottie, two weeks ago, all I can tell you is, its' a very rewarding experience and they are amazing dogs!

I'm very sorry for your loss. Yes, rotties can be amazing dogs. My experience with my rott was also amazing. What a wonderful teddybear he was.

[brianinbangkok]

@pluto_manibo

Sorry to hear ur dog died.

As a matter of fact my 8 year old Rottweiler is also ill.

Bleeding from the nose all the time and sneezing this all over the place.

I am taking it to a good hospital (Kasetsart) and they said we need a CT scan as the xray showed no issues.

Seem they overbreed Rottweilers here and cancer in the nose is a regular cause of death.

One thing that I like about Rottweilers is they are pretty intelligent dogs.

@OP

Not waste time and get them to a VET quickly , I lost pup here because the cheap B*stard at who sold him to me did not have it vaccinated to save a 150 bath.

Edited April 19, 2009 by brianinbangkok

[romania]

Where did you buy them and was this recommended to you. Can anyone recommend a Rotti breeder in the Pattaya area. I have had Rottweilers in the past and love them and now moving to a new house and wanting to buy a puppy.

[brianinbangkok]

Buy a Thai language dog magazine and look at the adds , try and buy from a small breeder.

The dogs on the markets are usually from puppy mills especially at JJ market in BKK.

[skybluestu]

Sorry but I'm right up north near the border with Burma so miles away from Pattaya. He was recommended by someone who bought one off him a couple of years ago and his dog is doing very well and has a good temperament. I also met the pups parents who were both very friendly and healthy. The female has no diarrhea any more but the male still has it but no vomiting The guy I bought them off has actually said he will take the male back and care for it while it's sick and even offered to buy it back off us as he has a buyer waiting, we're seriously considering it as we think looking after two may be too much hard work, I think I'd rather do that than realise in 6months-1yr when it's too late, not being able to decide between the male and female wasn't a good reason to buy both, pretty daft!

Where did you buy them and was this recommended to you. Can anyone recommend a Rotti breeder in the Pattaya area. I have had Rottweilers in the past and love them and now moving to a new house and wanting to buy a puppy.

[chiang mai]

Try a PM to TV member Thaigerd, he knows volumes about these things.

[Nienke]

Where did you buy them and was this recommended to you. Can anyone recommend a Rotti breeder in the Pattaya area. I have had Rottweilers in the past and love them and now moving to a new house and wanting to buy a puppy.

Hi,

For Rottweiler breeders you can contact Khun Nattiwat. He is in the Board (President ???) of the Rottweiler Club of Thailand and is a breeder himself and has organized many of the Rottweilers Specialty Shows in Thailand. He certainly will be able advice you.

He can speak good English.

http://www.thailandrottweilerclub.com/contactus.asp

Tel.: 081 - 809 9094

Email: nattiwat (at) hotmail.com

[skybluestu]

Quick update re the original two puppies. The male went back to the guy we got them off as he had a buyer ready and waiting and the diarrhea that he had for 2 days had gone. We soon realised that two would be far too difficult for us to train/socialize and that we will (hopefully) be able to do a better job with just the one. It was actually harder than I expected to return him even though we only had him for 2 days, lots of tissues needed on the drive home! So we now just have Hollie, a beautiful 6 week old female, and she's doing really well, the 1st night she cried quite a lot during the night but the 2nd & 3rd night she was much better and we slept really well. She's not toilet trained yet but shes far too young to expect that but she understands 'sit, come one, and No' already and is quickly learning what 'stay' and 'sawadee' (paw) means. I'd read/heard they were intelligent but am surprised by how quickly she is learning.

Anyway, thanks for all the helpful advice, I'll post some pics when I have time between cleaning up poop and trying to stop her biting my toes!

[skybluestu]

Hollie

[patklang]

Think the posters have just about said everything that needs to be said except.

2 rotties are a huge responsibility so good luck and make sure you teach them how to be docile.

good luck

[skybluestu]

As I mentioned in my previous post we only have the one now, Hollie, and she's already being socialized and trained each day although she's only seven weeks old. We walk her on a lead twice a day and she meets new people inc kids every day. She also meets other dogs and has also experienced cars & motorbikes and was carried round a busy market yesterday. She's hopefully going to be docile and friendly and a good family pet like most Rotties are! We're not playing games wich are thought to make dogs aggressive later in life and give her a lot of love and attention, this should help her to become a Rottweiler who can change some peoples opinions on these beautiful dogs.

Think the posters have just about said everything that needs to be said except.

2 rotties are a huge responsibility so good luck and make sure you teach them how to be docile.

good luck

[Cuban]

She's hopefully going to be docile and friendly and a good family pet like most Rotties are! We're not playing games wich are thought to make dogs aggressive later in life and give her a lot of love and attention, this should help her to become a Rottweiler who can change some peoples opinions on these beautiful dogs.

You sound like you are a responsible owner and doing the right things. One point to consider is that dogs even when friendly and happy to meet new people (when you are around) are still dogs with (none of us can tell what's going on inside their mind) their own perceptions of what's happening around them.

My Rottie crosses (30kg) are happy and friendly with the 'family' kids, I've watched them (keeping an eye on dogs and kids alike) around the land and both (dogs and kids) appear to be worthy of trust. The kids don't play rough and the dogs mostly get strokes and the occasional titbit while they lay in the shadow of a tree and doze. Two of the older kids have shown that they are responsible with caring for the dogs although I don't allow them out unsupervised. It's good to see one set of children repeating and correcting their peers as to how to approach my dogs, offer a hand to sniff under the muzzle rather than attempt to pat the dog on the head - the dog naturally raises the head to sniff the new hand and it becomes a race to see if the dog can get his head up before the kid can follow through with the pat - so the dog stands up and the kid thinks it's going to be eaten by the dog.

In most stress situations before they arise I get my dogs to sit down - it achives two things - the dog is listening to you and the other person can see that the dog is controlled and doing what you say. If I'm close enough I'll ask for a paw, certainly with most Thai people they understand that the dogs sane, controlled and not likely to eat them or their children at that point.

However, when my dogs see a dog that is not known to them approach a family member they switch to 'defend the family mode' this is their nature - they have not been trained to do this. When they have acted agressively in the wrong situation they are reminded to behave. Example meeting new puppies within the family.

I was particularly proud of my two while returning from a long walk across the fields the other morning, they are off leash in the coutryside (unless there is cattle nearby) but are on leash in the village. Two snarly loose dogs appeared out of a walled house's gate that we had just passed, my dogs took up position between me and the two dogs - typical Rottie trait they are silent and don't bark - then while the two other dogs barked at mine, one of my dogs walked around behind me - chicken I thought untill I turned round - he had noticed two more dogs that had wondered over to see what the barking was about and he was guarding the rear.

I don't forget that a dog is a dog - it's their nature to defend the pack from outsiders - A rottie is a great family pet as you say, but part of the great bit is defending the family - to do that they will show the capacity to be aggressive.

Edited April 28, 2009 by Cuban

[thaigerd]

what?!! no pics of cute pups???

also, doesnt thaigerd have a set or three of rotties?? i remember he said he provides a small swimming pool for kids for his dogs to lay in... among other things

bina

israel

No bina, we have only 2 rottis and 1 boxer. Our "Big Boss" is imported from Europe and does not like the heat at all. Our female one is from a Bangkok breeder, she can lay in the sun half day, no probs.

Gerd

[katabeachbum]

I was so happy to read OP now has only one rottweilerpuppy. This is a fantastic rewarding breed, highly intellegent, unafraid. Stubborn and headstrong, which means you can teache them anything and they will do. But if you dont train them they do what they want.

If you are not very experinced with training working/guard dogs, you have more than enough work in training one puppy. If you absolutely want more than one rottweiler, wait until the first one is 1,5 year and behaves good.

Let the puppy mingle with other dogs (any age and breed) and people at least a few hours a day. Call the puppy back every now and then to see if you are in control. Never punish a rottie, just ignore bad behavior. And give loads of positive response on good behavior.

My 3rd rottie in thailand is now 2 years old. He is on the beach or loose out on the road most of the day from 0630 to 2100. I always bring a leash, but havent used in weeks.

Breeder

between Pranbury and Petchbury there is a large kennel breeding on german imports. Disadvantage is that they dont allow you to cut the tail (long tail=euro style).

[Nienke]

Nice post, katabeachbum but how I disagree with <Disadvantage is that they dont allow you to cut the tail>

A correct (according standards) rottie tail is gorgeous!

well .... ok... those teddybear bumps are cute as well. But I prefer with tail. It's there for several reasons. For one, it makes it a bit easier to read a rottie.

[bina]

ive gotten used to seeing tailed boxers also.... in the beginning it was wierd, but if u see it everyday, then it seems the normal way after a while....

bina

israel

[katabeachbum]

I am new to this forum, so thank you Nienke for positive feedback on my post. I grew up with doberman with chopped tails, later had Briard with tails but difficult to read because of all the hair.

During practising avalanche rescue I got to know Rottweilers with chopped tails and found them very easy to read even without tails. And the tail is really not practical when the dog has to be in a car trunk.

Or I gues I m just old fashioned............at 46.

[Nienke]

Isn't it that it is so important for pups to socialize and habituate with all sorts of other dogs, BECAUSE of the huge differences between all those breeds.

How often is it that a non-aggressive and non-challenging terrier that has by nature the tail straight up is misunderstood by another dog? Or dogs that can't see the looking away of a Briar or Old English sheepdog because of all the hair in front of the eyes, and therefore misunderstand what that dog is trying to say? Same same with the tail. The tail is very important in the dog language.

Isn't it also that for practising avalanche rescue you need to be able to know about dog language pretty well. Therefore, I assume you can read the body language of any dog, with or without tail, way much better than the average dog owner, because you look at many more signals than only the whether or not showing teeth, body posture and how the dog keeps its ears and tail?

And a tail not being practical in a car trunk ... ? Well, how about all those other dogs that do still have their tails? And how about dogs NEEDING their tails for keeping their balance in the snow or, when they are used after earthquakes, on the rubbish?

Oh and yes ... probably you are VEEEEEERRRRRY old-fashioned compared with my 35 ++++++++++

[elfe]

we are talking about living beings. you want to customtailor them to your personal use and needs? (also behaviour wise)

if you can't accept the natural built or behaviour patterns/put up with training, then don't keep a rotti (or any kind) or get a bigger car/trunk.

[Jose]

And the tail is really not practical when the dog has to be in a car trunk.

Errr.. Sorry, but I must have missed something here. Growing up watching gangster movies, I had always thought car trunks were only for dead bodies.

My guess is that if you put a live anything in the trunk of a car, it would be very much dead after a couple of hours thanks to asphyxiation, or even quicker due to dehydration/hyperthermia if in a hot climate.

[bina]

maybe she means crate? the trunk back of a stationwagon type car? or in a van type vehicle for transporting working dogs? i dont think she puts her rotties in a real trunk (boot) of a car... but then again, i know people who transport their goats that way so one never knows...

bina

israel

i agree that stubbed tail seems sleek on a dog but after having my baby boxers de tailed 15 yrs ago, i wouldnt never do it again, and have never liked the ears cut or standing up; nothing nicer than a flap of a boxer ear.