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thank you all for the replies - i hadn't realised this was such an issue (or percieved issue) with rottweilers and the temperments they need to work.

funnily enough though, i refuse to call anyone who just slaps two dogs together to breed a breeder. in my mind, a breeder has a goal for their line. with my labs, they were all from the same lineage, and she'd been trying to breed down in size some. (the last bitch i had she refused to breed, because she had grown beyond the maximum height for labs.) the attitude, and willingness to work were there in all 4 animals (3 bitches, 1 dog) but of the 4, she only ever had one be bred. conformation perfect, attitude right, and she (the breeder) learned about the right stud to complement this at the right time.

guess it just means i've got to search more, and harder, when it comes time for me to add another dog to the household.

spidey, i do agree with you that there can be over-emphasis on any one aspect of the dog. but working a dog in their proper field is generally a measure of the temperment. i've always held that form will follow function. it's how the breeds developed in the first place.

take labs for an example. person A had a dog that wasn't gun shy, and liked swimming. person b had a dog that wasn't gun shy, and had a bit of a retrieval instinct. they bred them together hoping for dogs that were both tough (not gun/noise shy) good swimmings, and had a retrieval drive. enough generations of this pass, with more working traits looked for (waterproof coat, tall enough not to get swamped up in pondscum, longer muzzle for gripping birds, etc) and suddenly you have the conformation ideal for a dog.

oh, and i talked to marg with regards to the contracts that she used with me. turns out i was a "special case" :). she'd known me for years, and known that i had an interest in working my dogs, which made me perfect for her in terms of a "guardian of good breeding stock". i'm not sure if i'm flattered or not, but at least i understand a bit more now. not sure it's something i'd volunteer for again anyway. having two intact bitches in the house got to be interesting, sometimes.....

again, thanks all, for the replies. think i'll spend the next while seeing if there's not a Carting or Schutzhund organisation around me where i can talk to working dog owners, in addition to the gunning facility. (are there any other rottweiler oriented working groups beyond carting and the schutzhund? i know there are rotties at the gundog facility i used, but i also know that they weren't bred for that.)

peace!

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