The Rottweiler

    The Rottweiler is a powerful mastiff, type dog that is classed as a ‘working group’ dog.  Rottweilers have had their fair share of bad press and publicity, it has before been said, ‘Hitler bred them to kill people’.  It is these types of comments or suggestions that give Rottweilers a bad name.  Although the Rottweiler is not a dog for every man, meaning that not every one and their lifestyles are suited to owning a Rottweiler, they are not the ferocious beasts that many people believe they are. 

History and Origins of the Rottweiler

    The Rottweiler, as many breeds, has many rumoured and interesting theories of their origins and their past.  The most likely is that these dogs descend from the drover dogs of Rome.  They are said to have accompanied the Roman legions across the Alps herding their cattle and guarding their camps.  One of these camps, located on the Southern banks of the Neckar River in, now, South Germany was the origin of the town of Rottweil.  Here was where some Rottweilers settled after falling ill / sick, straying from the roman legions or being left behind due to there being no work for them. 

  During the mid 1800’s, the cattle trade in Rottweil expanded.  At the same time, the Rottweiler Mutzgerhund (Butchers Dog) also became more popular. These dogs were used to drive cattle to market and return with filled purses belonging to their masters around their necks.  These traditions soon deteriorated as rail travel became more and more popular. 

  By 1905, legend has it that there was only one Rottweiler left in the town of Rottweil.  This image was typical of most areas of the world.  Although, by the early 1900’s, the Rottweiler gained more popularity.  Mainly as police and military dogs used for guarding and training etc.  A few clubs were then formed, and then in 1931 the Rottweiler was admitted to the American Kennel Club (AKC) stud book. 

  The Rottweiler stayed a fairly uncommon dog throughout the 1970’s, by the early 1980’s the Rottweiler began a rise in popularity, and has become the second most popular American Kennel Club (AKC) breed since 1992.