Why does my Rottweiler sniff everything?

If your Rottweiler always sniffs things you might be wondering why and what to do about it.

This post will show you a number of possible reasons why it does it and what you can do about it.

So, why does my Rottweiler sniff everything? The most likely reason is that it has a much stronger sense of smell than we do and that it does it to naturally get information about the things it is smelling.

There are actually many different possible reasons why it might be sniffing things and it could be due to a combination of reasons.

Why your Rottweiler sniffs everything

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

It smells to get information

The most likely reason why it sniffs things a lot is that it has a strong sense of smell and sniffing things allows it to gather information about the thing it’s sniffing.

For example, the urine of other dogs will tell it where it has been, its health status and what it has been eating. This is the case for humans too. They can even pick up on the ovulation of humans which is why they will sniff females more during certain parts of the month (source).

They want to know what other animals have been around

Another possible reason why it might do it is to find out what other animals have been around. Knowing this would have helped their ancestors out a lot since it would have helped them figure out if prey or predators were nearby.

It’s curious

The cause could also be that it is curious about the thing that it is sniffing. For example, if it sniffs you a lot, it might be trying to find out if you’re ok and where you have been.

It is hungry

One reason why it might do it sometimes is that it is hungry. This would be more likely if it starts sniffing things that might be edible and if it does it more when it has not eaten in a while.

Their eyesight is not as good as ours

The cause could also be that it makes up for areas where it lacks in its vision. Rottweilers and other dogs cannot focus well on things that are close to them and are partially color blind. In addition to this, Rottweilers have large muzzles that can get in the way of their vision especially when they are looking down. By sniffing things, they will be able to make up for areas where they lack in vision.

How to stop your dog sniffing everything when it is on a walk

If your Rottweiler sniffs things a lot, when you are walking it, one way to get it to stop would be with the use of positive reinforcement training. This is where you reward it for doing things you want it to do and avoid rewarding it when it does not.

To get it to stop sniffing things on a walk, you would reward it when it walks with you the way you want it to and stop rewarding it when it does not. You can watch the video below to see how it is done in order to get it to stop pulling on the leash which makes use of the same techniques.