Temperament:
The Rottweiler is a very territorial, imposing dog breed and is ideal for protection. They are calm, trainable, courageous, and devoted to their owner family. They have a reliable temperament. This dog breed requires a strong leader and firm training. Otherwise you may end up with a very powerful and overly aggressive dog. The Rottweiler is a natural guard dog with a mellow temperament. They are highly intelligent and have proven their worth beyond question in police, military, and customs work over many centuries. This breed needs a lot of companionship and socialization to be truly happy. They can be aggressive with other dogs and should be kept on leashes in public places. When the Rottweiler is consistently brought up and trained, it will be a good playmate for the children. It will accept cats and other household pets as long as the dog has had a positive experience with them while it was young. Friends and relatives of the family are normally enthusiastically welcomed. Strangers can get no further than the sidewalk. The breed does well in competitive obedience, schutzhund, and tracking. Schutzhund lines tend to be more aggressive and thus should be avoided if the dog is purely intended as a family pet. There are two types of Rottweilers, German and American. The difference between two types is the German dogs are breed to work or have the drive to do so. The American dogs are not breed for these characteristics.

Behavior:
Children: Good only when raised with children from puppyhood.
Friendliness: Reserved with strangers.
Trainability: Easy to train.
Independence: Fairly independent.
Dominance: High.
Other Pets: Good with other pets if raised with them from puppyhood.
Combativeness: Tends to be fairly dog-aggressives.
Noise: Average barker.

Personality:
Calm, trainable, courageous and devoted. Protective; he will defend his family fiercely. Serious, steady and confident. Firm and careful training is essential for this breed, otherwise you may wind up with a very powerful and overly aggressive dog. Requires a dominant, experienced owner. A natural guard dog with a mellow temperament.

History:
The Rottweiler is descended from the ancient Roman Molossian dogs of war. After the Roman legions retreated from Europe, they left behind their large mastiff type dogs. These dogs were used to hunt wild boar. During the middle ages in Rottweil Germany, these dogs were crossed with local sheepdogs to produce the ‘Rottweil butcher’s dogs’ which were used to herd cattle and act as guard dogs. After the introduction of the railroads, cattle driving became illegal in Germany and the Rotties popularity declined and the breed almost became extinct. Fortunately some breeders recognized the potential of the Rottie as a police dog because of its intelligence, strength and courage. The Rottie came to the U.S. during the late 1920’s and the first dog was registered by the AKC in 1931. Today the breed is a popular family dog, watchdog, guard dog and obedience and schutzhund competitor. Rottweilers were ranked 16th out of 154 dog breeds in 2005 AKC registrations.

Origin:
Ancient Rome/Germany.

Living Conditions:
Rottweilers need frequent exercise and daily mental challenges. A home with a fenced yard is essential. He does well in a kennel, but should not be left alone all day long in the yard. Can be very territorial and suspicious of strangers, keep inside, do not tie up for long periods of time to avoid frustration of the dog due to lack of movement, fenced yard ok but do not leave outside unattended for long periods of time. The dog may become overly territorial or aggressive towards people entering the yard.

Grooming:
Medium length, dense coat. Relatively easy to maintain with some shedding, Rottweilers require brushing only once or twice a week.