Rottweiler

Temperament
According to the FCI Standard, the Rottweiler is good-natured, placid in basic disposition and fond of children, he is very devoted, obedient, biddable and eager to work. His appearance is natural and rustic, his behaviour self assured, steady and fearless. He reacts to his surroundings with great alertness.

The American Kennel Club says he is basically a calm, confident and courageous dog with a self-assured aloofness that does not lend itself to immediate and indiscriminate friendships. A Rottweiler is self-confident and responds quietly and with a wait-and-see attitude to influences in his environment. He has an inherent desire to protect home and family, and is an intelligent dog of extreme hardness and adaptability with a strong willingness to work, making him especially suited as a companion, guardian and general all-purpose dog.

Rottweilers are a powerful breed with well developed genetic herding and guarding instincts. As with any breed, potentially dangerous behaviour in Rottweilers usually results from irresponsible ownership, abuse, neglect, or lack of socialization and training. Inherent breed characteristics are not a factor.

The breed has received some negative publicity. In the US, in a report by the CDC, the Rottweiler was listed as the second most likely breed of dog named in fatal human attacks, following pitbulls. The report acknowledges that the broad popularity of the breed may contribute to high numbers of fatalities, but suggests Rottweilers are still disproportionately represented in attack figures. Breed-specific bite rates are not known, and less responsible owners being drawn to certain breeds may be a factor. American insurance company Allstate (depending on the state) may not insure homes with Rottweilers as well as Pit Bulls, Boxers, Akitas, Chow Chows, Dobermans, or wolf hybrids.

The portrayal of Rottweilers as evil dogs in several fictional films and TV series, most notably in The Omen, and negative press has added to their negative publicity. This has led to Rottweilers being banned in some municipalities and are sometimes targeted as dangerous dogs by legislation, such as in the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and the Republic of Ireland. However, the Dutch law has since been changed as of 2008. On the other hand, not all mainstream media has portrayed the breed in a negative light: for example, a gentler side of the Rottweiler's personality was observed in the movie Lethal Weapon 3 where a Rottweiler guarding a gun smuggling operation was placated by the main character, played by Mel Gibson, with dog treats. The dog was subsequently rescued and de facto adopted by the protagonist. Also, in the HBO series Entourage a rottweiler is a dear pet of the main characters.

Working style
The Rottweiler has a natural gathering style with a strong desire to control. He generally shows a loose-eye and has a great amount of force while working well off the stock. They make much use of their ability to intimidate.

The Rottweiler will often carry the head on an even plane with the back or carry the head up but have the neck and shoulders lowered. Some females will lower the entire front end slightly when using eye. Males will also do this when working far off the stock in an open field. This is rarely seen in males when working in confined spaces such as stock yards.

The Rottweiler has a reasonably good natural balance, force-barks when necessary and when working cattle uses a very intimidating charge. There is a natural change in forcefulness when herding sheep. When working cattle he may use his body and shoulders and for this reason should be used on horned stock with caution.

The Rottweiler, when working cattle, will search out the dominant animal and challenge it. Upon proving his control over that animal he will settle back and tend to his work.

Some growers have found that Rottweilers are especially suited to move stubborn stock that simply ignores Border Collies, Kelpies etc. A Rottweiler will use his body to physically force the stubborn animal to do his bidding if necessary.

When working sheep the Rottweiler shows a gathering/fetching style and reams directions easily. He drives sheep with ease.

If worked on the same stock for any length of time the Rottweiler tends to develop a bond with the stock and will become quite affectionate with them as long as they do as he says.