OTish -- pet conversation that makes you worry

A lady I sometimes see in the halls at work mentioned a while back that she
was looking for a dachshund. I suggested petfinder.com. I had a weird
feeling that she didn't really know what she was getting into wrt pet
ownership ...

Anyway, I saw her again today and she mentioned that she now had ... a
rottweiler pup. Say wha? The explanation wasn't clear to me, but she has a
rottweiler pup. She says she's "gotten really big already" (gesturing to
about the height of a tiny beagle) and that she's "mean," which she attributes
to the breed.

Now, I know several people who are rottie aficianados. Rottweilers are not
inherently mean, but they are very intelligent attention-hogs who need to be
kept busy and need to know who's in charge. They can be great dogs, but you
need to have a ton of time for them and you need to be able to be the alpha
dog. In short, these are not good dogs for beginners.

I suggested talking to a coworker of ours who's recently gone through
rottie puppyhood; the suggestion was clearly dismissed as soon as it was
made. I mentioned how important it is to keep them busy and
well-trained; that I have a friend who takes her rottie herding to keep
him busy; that they are not, dammit, NOT inherently mean dogs. I said
that rottweilers are working dogs and, just like career people, don't do
well if they sit around the house all day with nothing to do. They can
be incredibly destructive if they're bored. Her eyes got kind of big
and she excused herself quickly.

I have a really bad feeling for this poor puppy. I have this feeling she'll
be branded "mean" and "poorly behaved" because her owner doesn't know how to
take care of her. I keep having flashbacks to animal planet a few days ago,
when some fight dogs were confiscated and they were euthanized as being too
risky to turn into pets. No, I don't think this rottie is going to be used as
a fight dog, but if her owner already thinks a several-month-old pup is mean
.... well, if she isn't now, I have no doubt she will be in another few years.

--
monique, who is sometimes allowed to pet Oscar, a grey^H^H^H^Hblue-cream DLH
with an attitude!

With a little luck you may have scared her into getting the pup into a
proper home while it is still a pup.

I adore Rotts. They are by nature the sweetest dogs around. But your
description of a career person going nuts at home was right on.

Jo
"Monique Y. Mudama" wrote in message
...
A lady I sometimes see in the halls at work mentioned a while back that she
was looking for a dachshund. I suggested petfinder.com. I had a weird
feeling that she didn't really know what she was getting into wrt pet
ownership ...

Anyway, I saw her again today and she mentioned that she now had ... a
rottweiler pup. Say wha? The explanation wasn't clear to me, but she has
a
rottweiler pup. She says she's "gotten really big already" (gesturing to
about the height of a tiny beagle) and that she's "mean," which she
attributes
to the breed.

Now, I know several people who are rottie aficianados. Rottweilers are
not
inherently mean, but they are very intelligent attention-hogs who need to
be
kept busy and need to know who's in charge. They can be great dogs, but
you
need to have a ton of time for them and you need to be able to be the
alpha
dog. In short, these are not good dogs for beginners.

I suggested talking to a coworker of ours who's recently gone through
rottie puppyhood; the suggestion was clearly dismissed as soon as it was
made. I mentioned how important it is to keep them busy and
well-trained; that I have a friend who takes her rottie herding to keep
him busy; that they are not, dammit, NOT inherently mean dogs. I said
that rottweilers are working dogs and, just like career people, don't do
well if they sit around the house all day with nothing to do. They can
be incredibly destructive if they're bored. Her eyes got kind of big
and she excused herself quickly.

I have a really bad feeling for this poor puppy. I have this feeling
she'll
be branded "mean" and "poorly behaved" because her owner doesn't know how
to
take care of her. I keep having flashbacks to animal planet a few days
ago,
when some fight dogs were confiscated and they were euthanized as being
too
risky to turn into pets. No, I don't think this rottie is going to be
used as
a fight dog, but if her owner already thinks a several-month-old pup is
mean
... well, if she isn't now, I have no doubt she will be in another few
years.

--
monique, who is sometimes allowed to pet Oscar, a grey^H^H^H^Hblue-cream
DLH
with an attitude!

Monique Y. Mudama wrote:
A lady I sometimes see in the halls at work mentioned a while back
that she was looking for a dachshund. I suggested petfinder.com. I
had a weird feeling that she didn't really know what she was getting
into wrt pet ownership ...

Anyway, I saw her again today and she mentioned that she now had ... a
rottweiler pup. Say wha? The explanation wasn't clear to me, but
she has a rottweiler pup. She says she's "gotten really big already"
(gesturing to about the height of a tiny beagle) and that she's
"mean," which she attributes to the breed.

(snippage)

First of all, it's really weird she wanted a daschund and wound up with a
rottie. Secondly, I've known some absolutely wonderful rotties But yeah,
they get BIG. You don't want a big dog, you don't get a big puppy. Anyone
with half a brain knows a Rot is going to be a large dog.

Big dogs as pups can be scary (kinda like CatNipped's kitten Sammy is
starting to scare the heck out of me!) if you aren't expecting them to be
all bouncy and puppy-like and BIG.

I agree, this woman probably didn't think the entire pet thing through. I
just hope the pup turns out okay and doesn't get abandoned or ignored.

Jill

On 2004-12-20, Jo Firey penned:
With a little luck you may have scared her into getting the pup into a
proper home while it is still a pup.

I hope so, but again, my gut tells me otherwise.

Also, I think she mentioned that her brother brought this dog home, so I'm
wondering if he purposely got it to be an aggressive dog ... *sigh*

I adore Rotts. They are by nature the sweetest dogs around. But your
description of a career person going nuts at home was right on.

All dogs need a lot of attention. I get the feeling that Rotties need even
more than most, though.

--
monique, who is sometimes allowed to pet Oscar, a grey^H^H^H^Hblue-cream DLH
with an attitude!

On 2004-12-20, jmcquown penned:

First of all, it's really weird she wanted a daschund and wound up with a
rottie. Secondly, I've known some absolutely wonderful rotties But yeah,
they get BIG. You don't want a big dog, you don't get a big puppy. Anyone
with half a brain knows a Rot is going to be a large dog.

I agree; I don't know what exactly happened here. As near as I can tell, she
was looking for a dachshund, then one day she came home and her brother had
brought her a rottie. Or something.

Big dogs as pups can be scary (kinda like CatNipped's kitten Sammy is
starting to scare the heck out of me!) if you aren't expecting them to be
all bouncy and puppy-like and BIG.

And rottweiler pups are *strong*! You need to get them trained ASAP, or they
will be dragging you anywhere they want you to be. Personally, I think big
dogs are awesome; there's nothing quite like pausing in your petting duties
and having an English Mastiff put his paw on you to inform you that you're not
going anywhere till he's ready for you to be done. But you need to be
prepared. If you're scared of a big dog, you won't be in a position to train
it, and if you don't train it, both you and the dog will be miserable.

I agree, this woman probably didn't think the entire pet thing through. I
just hope the pup turns out okay and doesn't get abandoned or ignored.

Me, too.

--
monique, who is sometimes allowed to pet Oscar, a grey^H^H^H^Hblue-cream DLH
with an attitude!

"Monique Y. Mudama" wrote in message
...
A lady I sometimes see in the halls at work mentioned a while back that
she
was looking for a dachshund. I suggested petfinder.com. I had a weird
feeling that she didn't really know what she was getting into wrt pet
ownership ...

Anyway, I saw her again today and she mentioned that she now had ... a
rottweiler pup. Say wha? The explanation wasn't clear to me, but she has
a
rottweiler pup. She says she's "gotten really big already" (gesturing to
about the height of a tiny beagle) and that she's "mean," which she
attributes
to the breed.

Now, I know several people who are rottie aficianados. Rottweilers are
not
inherently mean, but they are very intelligent attention-hogs who need to
be
kept busy and need to know who's in charge. They can be great dogs, but
you
need to have a ton of time for them and you need to be able to be the
alpha
dog. In short, these are not good dogs for beginners.

Oh, that is sad. The one one rottie I knew was a great big 60kg worth of
total soppiness. Oh, if a stranger messed with her, she'd have most likely
taken off their head, but for family, she just wanted to be a lap dog and
slobber on us all the time with kisses. Bowie was one of hte sweetest most
gentle dogs I have ever had the priveledge to know - the even was a gentle
giant around cats. I still miss her, even though she left for Rainbow Bridge
in 1999.

Any dog can be made mean, just as any dog can be brought up to be a great
big softy. It depends on how they're treated. Although I'd still prefer to
encounter a mean and vicious chihuahua than a mean and vicious rottie.

Yowie

Yowie

Monique Y. Mudama wrote:

I have a really bad feeling for this poor puppy. I have this feeling she'll
be branded "mean" and "poorly behaved" because her owner doesn't know how to
take care of her. I keep having flashbacks to animal planet a few days ago,
when some fight dogs were confiscated and they were euthanized as being too
risky to turn into pets. No, I don't think this rottie is going to be used as
a fight dog, but if her owner already thinks a several-month-old pup is mean
... well, if she isn't now, I have no doubt she will be in another few years.

What a shame! I've met three Rotties (including the two Mandy tried to
intimidate by hissing at them through the fence!). They were all lovely,
generally well-behaved animals, if inclined to bark loudly when provoked
by a cat. But their owners clearly knew how to care for them and train
them! Rotties are big, powerful animals, and although they make
excellent pets, I got the impression they required a *lot* of time for
exercise and training.

But that sort of think isn't limited to Rotties. Years ago, I knew
someone who got a Lab, never bothered to train it or give it more than
the occasional walk, and sort of fluttered ineffectually whent the
animal quite naturally made a nuisance of itself jumping up on people
and generally acting in a way which is kind of cute in a tiny puppy but
annoying and even frightening when indulged in by a full-sized Lab.

Cheryl

Monique Y. Mudama wrote:
A lady I sometimes see in the halls at work mentioned a while back that she
was looking for a dachshund. I suggested petfinder.com. I had a weird
feeling that she didn't really know what she was getting into wrt pet
ownership ...

Anyway, I saw her again today and she mentioned that she now had ... a
rottweiler pup. Say wha? The explanation wasn't clear to me, but she has a
rottweiler pup. She says she's "gotten really big already" (gesturing to
about the height of a tiny beagle) and that she's "mean," which she attributes
to the breed.

Now, I know several people who are rottie aficianados. Rottweilers are not
inherently mean, but they are very intelligent attention-hogs who need to be
kept busy and need to know who's in charge. They can be great dogs, but you
need to have a ton of time for them and you need to be able to be the alpha
dog. In short, these are not good dogs for beginners.

I suggested talking to a coworker of ours who's recently gone through
rottie puppyhood; the suggestion was clearly dismissed as soon as it was
made. I mentioned how important it is to keep them busy and
well-trained; that I have a friend who takes her rottie herding to keep
him busy; that they are not, dammit, NOT inherently mean dogs. I said
that rottweilers are working dogs and, just like career people, don't do
well if they sit around the house all day with nothing to do. They can
be incredibly destructive if they're bored. Her eyes got kind of big
and she excused herself quickly.

I have a really bad feeling for this poor puppy. I have this feeling she'll
be branded "mean" and "poorly behaved" because her owner doesn't know how to
take care of her. I keep having flashbacks to animal planet a few days ago,
when some fight dogs were confiscated and they were euthanized as being too
risky to turn into pets. No, I don't think this rottie is going to be used as
a fight dog, but if her owner already thinks a several-month-old pup is mean
... well, if she isn't now, I have no doubt she will be in another few years.


Sigh. I wonder if she is misunderstanding the play biting that all
puppys do. I don't no how many times I have heard about how "mean" some
dogs are when all it was was the owner misunderstanding play biting and
not knowing how to deal with it. Do you think she would balk if you
gave her the url for the association of pet dog trainers? Maybe she
could find a trainer. http://www.apdt.com/ I used to be a member
before I stopped working.



--
Margaret Fine

Monique Y. Mudama wrote:
snip
I have a really bad feeling for this poor puppy. I have this feeling
she'll be branded "mean" and "poorly behaved" because her owner
doesn't know how to take care of her. I keep having flashbacks to
animal planet a few days ago, when some fight dogs were confiscated
and they were euthanized as being too risky to turn into pets. No, I
don't think this rottie is going to be used as a fight dog, but if
her owner already thinks a several-month-old pup is mean ... well, if
she isn't now, I have no doubt she will be in another few years.

I think you're right to be worried, it's so sad when animals suffer due
to the ignorence of their owners.
--
Adrian (Owned by Snoopy & Bagheera)
A house is not a home, without a cat.

On 2004-12-21, Yowie penned:
I still miss her, even though she left for Rainbow Bridge in 1999.

I still dream about Puma, think about him, and occasionally "see" him out of
the corner of my eye and react to him before realizing he's not there. I'm
not sure you ever stop missing them.

Any dog can be made mean, just as any dog can be brought up to be a
great big softy. It depends on how they're treated. Although I'd still
prefer to encounter a mean and vicious chihuahua than a mean and
vicious rottie.

Yeah ... I adore big dogs, but I do see your point. My husband had two
experiences as a child with dogs who became biters (sorry, I wasn't there, so
I'm not going to engage in guessing games as to who was or wasn't at fault,
though I do believe they were purebred), and while he also likes big dogs, he
is much less excited about the idea of having one than I am. It's just as you
said; it's not that small dogs can't be mean, it's that if a small dog gets
mean, it's a lot less dangerous than a big dog. For the same reason, my
husband is against pit bull mixes, because (he says?) pit bulls have locking
jaws and are really dangerous if they get vicious. It's sad to me, because
there probably more pit bull mixes at the shelter than any other breed ...
And frankly, I've never personally experienced a dog who went from friendly to
vicious.

And then there's the "dumb kid" syndrome ... for example, a coworker of mine
has three dogs. One is aggressive/scared with strangers. He was a puppy mill
dog and wasn't socialized properly as a baby. Anyway, coworker was out in the
yard with dog on a leash when the neighbor's kid ran up and said, "Hey, can I
pet your dog?" and, without waiting for a response, reached out to the dog.
Coworker had to act quickly to keep that kid from getting bitten. Now, is
that the dog's fault? I'd say no. But it does happen, all the time. He
lectured the kid on approaching unfamiliar dogs; hopefully some of the
lecture stuck.

--
monique, who is sometimes allowed to pet Oscar, a grey^H^H^H^Hblue-cream DLH
with an attitude!