Why does my Rottweiler bark at other dogs?

If your Rottweiler keeps barking at other dogs, you might be wondering what you can do about it and why it does it.

In this post, I will show you a number of reasons why your Rottweiler might be doing it and what you can do to stop it.

So, why does my Rottweiler bark at other dogs? Possible reasons are that it is being protective, it didn’t socialize with other dogs much as a puppy, it’s being dominating or that it does it as overly enthusiastic play.

Your Rottweiler could actually be doing it for many reasons and it might be due to a combination of reasons. However, there are a number of things you can consider when trying to figure out the exact reason. There are also a number of things you can do about it.

Why your Rottweiler barks at other dogs

Below, I will show you a number of reasons why your Rottweiler might be doing it and what would make them more likely to be the main reason.

Protection

The cause could be that it is being protective. This would be more likely if it also tends to be overly protective in other situations as well such as when other people are approaching you.

In this case, it would help to train it to associate other people and dogs with rewards as mentioned below.

Fear/anxiety

The cause could be that something has been causing it to be fearful around other dogs. It could be the case that it is because other dogs mistreated it in the past. This would be more likely if it shows signs of being submissive such as by hiding its tail.

A lack of exposure to other dogs

The reason might also be that it did not get much exposure to other dogs as a puppy. This would be more likely if you adopted it from a shelter.

Rottweilers will, naturally, explore their environment a lot as puppies and it is when they will learn about the world. Not getting a lot of exposure to other dogs when young could mean that your Rottweiler sees other dogs as a threat.

Dominance

It could also be the case that it has been doing it because it has been being dominating. This would be more likely if it is unresponsive to your command and it tries to position itself to be in higher positions than you.

In this case, it would help to give your Rottweiler lots of training so that it sees you as the leader and to train it to associate being well behaved around other dogs with rewards.

Overly enthusiastic play

It might also be the case that it becomes overly excited around other dogs. This would be more likely if it shows signs of excitement and it doesn’t show signs of aggression.

Encouraging the behavior

It could also be the case that you have inadvertently encouraged the behavior by giving it things that it wants when it behaves that way. If you tend to give it things it wants in order to get it to stop then it will likely do it more in order to get more rewards.

Instead of giving it things like treats when it barks at other dogs, try to recognize when it is about to start barking and to redirect its focus.

How to get your Rottweiler to stop barking at other dogs

Below are some things you can do in order to get your Rottweiler to stop barking at other dogs.

Teach it to associate other dogs with rewards

One option would be to give it positive association training. This is where you teach it to associate other dogs with rewards.

To do this you would start giving your Rottweiler special treats when you are approaching other dogs with it and stop when your Rottweiler starts barking. By doing this it will learn that barking around other dogs results in it not getting rewards.

Desensitize it to other dogs

Another option would be to desensitize it to other dogs by getting it used to being around them. When doing so, you would reward it when it is not barking and stop rewarding it when it starts to bark. If it starts being well behaved again then you would reward it. This will teach it that being well-behaved results in it getting rewards.

Train it to listen to your command

In order to get it to be easier to control when it starts misbehaving, it would help to give it lots of training in general. It would help to start by training it to do basic tasks and then to build up to training it to do more challenging things such as to come to you on command in more distracting environments.

Try a growl class

If there is a growl class in your area, it might be an option to take your Rottweiler to one of them. Growl classes are special classes for dogs that have a habit of barking that are designed to get them to learn not to bark around other people and dogs.

Take it to a dog behaviorist

If you can’t get your Rottweiler to start being better behaved around other dogs, you could also try getting help from a dog behaviorist. By doing so, you should be able to see why it has been doing it and how to get it to stop.

Things to consider

Be consistent

It is important to be consistent when you are training your Rottweiler. It is not likely that you will be able to get it to drastically change its behavior with just one training session but, you can get much better results by being consistent with the training over weeks and months.

When it started

If it has not always barked at other dogs, it would help to consider what else happened when it first started doing it.

If it started doing it suddenly it would be more likely to be due to things such as being mistreated by another dog or because you inadvertently rewarded the behavior one time.

Whereas, if it has always barked at other dogs then it would be more likely that it didn’t get much exposure to other dogs as a puppy, it sees them as a threat or that it is being overly dominating.