Why is my Rottweiler not protective?

If your Rottweiler is not protective you might be wondering why and what you can do about it. This post will help you to figure out why it has not been being protective.

So, why is my Rottweiler not protective? Possible reasons it is not protective are that it has not been trained to be protective, it doesn’t feel the need to be, illness, diet or mistreatment.

There are actually many reasons why it might not be being protective but there are a number of things you can consider when trying to figure out the exact reason.

Why your Rottweiler is not protective

Below, I will show you some reasons why it might not be being protective and what would make them more likely to be the main reason.

It hasn’t been trained to be

Most dogs that are very protective are protective because they have been trained to be protective. Without training, it is difficult to tell whether or not a dog would be protective and it would be likely that it would be unsure of what to do if it needed to be protective. If your Rottweiler has not been trained to be protective then it would be likely that it does not know that it is meant to be protective.

It doesn’t feel the need to be

It could also be the case that your Rottweiler does not feel the need to be protective. This would be more likely if it does not become protective when you are near other people when walking it. This would be a good thing since you do not want it being protective when it does not need to be. Whereas, it would be more normal for Rottweilers to be protective when someone it does not know is in its home.

I have written more about whether or not your Rottweiler would actually protect you in this post.

Illness

If it was normally protective but it has stopped being protective suddenly, it could be due to becoming ill or injured. This would be more likely if it has also been showing other signs of being ill or injured such as being fatigued suddenly or limping. In this case, the best option would be to take it to a vet.

It got to socialize a lot as a puppy

If your Rottweiler met a lot of people and other dogs as a puppy and it is still regularly around other people and dogs then it might have learned that they are not a threat. This is a good thing since it means that it will be better behaved when around other people that are not a threat to you.

You have not been treating it well enough

The cause might be that it does not want to be protective. This is unlikely if you have been treating it well but it would be more likely if it tends to avoid you or become aggressive towards you. In this case, it would help to consult with a dog behaviorist.

Things to consider

Below are some things to consider about it not being protective.

When it is not protective

It would help to consider when it becomes less protective or if it always is not protective.

If it becomes more protective when someone it doesn’t know is around the home but not when you are walking it then this would be normal behavior.

How old it is

It would also help to consider its age. If it is still a puppy then it would be more likely that it will become more protective as it gets older. Whereas, if it is an adult it would be more likely that it is not being protective due to one of the reasons mentioned above.

Not being protective is not necessarily a bad thing

Another thing to consider is that it is not such a bad thing that it is not always protective. Rottweilers are an intimidating breed for most people so it is likely that potentially harmful people wouldn’t even go near you when it is around. Also, by having a friendly Rottweiler, you will be able to introduce it to your friends without it being harmful.

If it stopped being protective suddenly

It would also help to consider the timing of when it stopped being protective if it did use to be protective in the past.

For example, if it usually would bark when there was someone at the front door, it might have stopped due to learning that it is not normally a threat or because you encouraged it to stop barking.