What is a Rottweiler?? (need help for article)

[sheena]

Well, we were asked to write an article to a magazine following 2 rottweiler attacks to kids. The article would be about;
What is a Rottweiler
How do people in several countries treat Rottweilers (not the owners) (Which will be then compared to those in Turkey)
What is the must have relationship between the dog and the owner
What does a working rottweiler do (in several countries)

What we are thinking is we should write it in an easy way so that most people would enjoy reading.
We would like to change a few view points like they're not monsters and they are not huge black dogs who can protect you no matter what.

Any help would be appreciated..

[glowworm3980]

I ran across a German on my walk and when he saw my pup he asked me if I knew where Rottweilers came from. I replied no, and he went on to tell me that they derived from a city here in Germany called Rottweiler and that the dogs were used to bring down male bulls due their great strength. I was shocked to hear that.

[AlphaLeader]

I read somewhere that they got their name from the village of rottweil and that they were known as the butchers dog and would carry the purse for the butcher... lol... who knows... I've also heard that they were used for herding and carting in same village.

[Lola B Marie]

You may want to some how incorporate this into your article while dealing with the intelligence of a Rottweiler.
A rottweiler trainer was telling a friend about her own Rottweiler.She mentioned that she had taught her dog how to pull clothes out of the dryer. Not only did the dog learn to pull the clothes out ,but he shook each piece before bringing it to the basket. Wow the friend said in amazement, how long did it take to teach him that. The trainer replied,"two years and ten minutes" she went on to explain that rotties absorb info for the first two years of their lives. At age two, it takes aprox. 10 minutes to teach them something new.
I do think this rings true about rotties. Both my girls were pretty wild and some what rude until age two. Then suddenly as if by magic, they became sweet and seemed to really understand what was expected of them. I think their brains kick in at age two. I guess you could sum this up in one sentence.
At around two years of age, Rottweilers grow into the majestic beings they were born to become.
The must have relationship between dog and owner, involves leadership patience and training. Rottweilers need consistency in their training and the approach must be fair and with kindness. Rottweilers do not respond to physical punishment that is harsh. Be firm yet loving . Give lots of praise even for the smallest accomplishment. Rottweilers have much intelligence and strong memory capacity. They seem to be able to evaluate a situation before acting on it. They are very cautious dogs. I remember when we were having work done in our kitchen while my last rottie girl was alive. She sniffed and inspected each worker as they entered the house in the morning. On day four of the repairs, she just watched from her spot on the landing at the bottom of the hall steps. She didn't feel the need for any further inspections. There was just a gentle wag of her little stump as each worker passed. On day five, a new worker entered the mix. He did not like dogs, especially rottweilers. He asked if that monster could be locked outside while he did his work. I said she wouldn't bother him. He kept saying that he was afraid of her and had been bitten before. She began to do a very low growl, something she had not done since the work began. She continued this low growl for almost half an hour, watching this guy the entire time. I finally put her outside and played ball with her for a while. When the guy in question passed by the open window, the dog stopped playing and began growling all over again. I finally asked him to leave. Long story short, turned out he had robbed a house in the neighborhood that he had worked in and had a police record . The guys working in the house said he was a day worker. They picked him up some mornings at the coffee stop when they were short handed. They said he did decent work so they never looked into his past. Well my rottie knew, they should have asked her. LOL.
If any of this helps in your article, feel free to take it apart and use what you want. If you can be more specific, perhaps I can better lend a hand.
Jane

[damp]

Originally Posted by sheena

We would like to change a few view points like they're not monsters and they are not huge black dogs who can protect you no matter what.

Any help would be appreciated..

I appreciate you are taking the time to educate

However, YES there are monsters out there! It’s ridiculous to deny that!
Bad breeding makes monsters!
People owning Rottweilers for ALL the wrong reasons make monsters.
e.g Owning a Rottweiler as “potency extender” and thinking a barking dog is so tough or the opposite, thinking that a mental sound Rottweiler is a pet belonging on the couch.
The more you mix all this up… bad or good breeding/ uneducated/ irresponsible owners ... (unintended or not) but monsters are created.

First, the owner should be educated about what a true Rottweiler is and how to handle and train it.

[bleh60]

What is the must have relationship between the dog and the owner

Respect. Training, socializing, patience and love. But its all about respect, and that goes both ways.

[sheena]

Thank you all for your replies..

Jane i would really like to use your story if you don't mind.

@damp;
yes you are right i should have put it differently like " they're not ALL monsters "
i know some people make their rotties monsters form hell depending on the reasons you've mentioned, what i wanted to mean that they are not natural monsters, they are man made. And from my earlier experience about articles in magasines ,if i say they are man made monsters i would be seeing a banner like "My rottie is a monster and i am proud of her". Thats why i really donot know what to do with that subject.
I will more likely to go why rottweiler is not a dog for everybody, from potential owners part of the story, not the dogs.

We have translated FCI's rottweiler breed standard and short history and der-rottweiler's long history, we are planning to blend them together.
And in our turkish forum we have a diary, which we write like our dogs talk, and have some funny stories that deep down show these dogs are really smart, we will most probably use some of them as well..

If one person changes her idea as a result of this article and sees the problem is the other end of the leash, i will see my self very very successful. This time i set my goal real low :(

[Lola B Marie]

Sheena, MY pleasure to help you.

[aranea]

Many people believe the Rottweiler to be descended from a mastiff type dog which the Romans used when they conquered Europe. The Romans used these dogs primarily for herding the cattle and sheep needed as food for their armies. The modern breed of Rottweiler is believed to have been developed in Germany in a district known as Rottweil, hence the name Rottweiler. The Germans used these dogs as herd dogs for their farming animals. The early Rottweilers also were worked as beasts of burden, carrying wood and other products to market. In addition, they were used as draft animals to pull carts filled with various products for their owners. During the first and second World Wars, Rottweilers were put into service as war time guard animals. Currently they are frequently used as guard and police animals. Some people have trained these fine animals to be hostile and many sad stories have resulted from these situations. However, a Rottweiler which has been properly trained, will be as gentle as any other breed of dog. (this was taken from Rottweiler History )

For the question how do people treat Rotties, I'm from Croatia (Europe), I can tell you that they treat them the same everywhere... badly!
My dog was maltreated from kids for several months before I found out! Not to mention that everyone is taking right to say that he is ugly, agressive, bad etc.
Yes, thay can be bad if they get into wrong hands, but Ingo went to all kind of bad events he is still great rottie...I believe it's because i put him with strangers from time to time, I put him with kids, I let everyone to pet him...he has to have contact with other animals and humans...and offcourse, we have personal trainer, so I'm not only training his body, but his mind too all the time!
They are not called working dogs for nothing!

[Obelix]

Originally Posted by damp

I appreciate you are taking the time to educate

However, YES there are monsters out there! It’s ridiculous to deny that!

!
People owning Rottweilers for ALL the wrong reasons make monsters.
e.g Owning a Rottweiler as “potency extender” and thinking a barking dog is so tough or the opposite, thinking that a mental sound Rottweiler is a pet belonging on the couch.
The more you mix all this up… bad or good breeding/ uneducated/ irresponsible owners ... (unintended or not) but monsters are created.

First, the owner should be educated about what a true Rottweiler is and how to handle and train it.

So do bad owners too

[goforit]

Arenea, You are right on the mark regarding the origin of the breed. I just read a few articals on this topic and the first reference to this breed was 74 AD. I think it would catch people's attention if the artical started off with this history.

[damp]

Originally Posted by aranea

Rottweiler History )

Well reading FAST the Rottweiler History site/link, I do agree with most but why do you refer to JUST a SITE (you Googled so to speak on the internet!) What caught my eye in particular ( besides a few other thing) …and I quote:

A dog’s mental attitude is a result of training

That is not true! The dog is what it is… and the genes and only the genes determine that. Training (to some degree) covers the bad and unwanted genes!!!

Here is STANDARD of the Rottweiler

[damp]

Originally Posted by goforit

Arenea, You are right on the mark regarding the origin of the breed. I just read a few articals on this topic and the first reference to this breed was 74 AD. I think it would catch people's attention if the artical started off with this history.

74 AD ????? what does that mean?

[Gunsey'sMom]

A D Is abbreviation for Anno Domini (not sure how to spell it)- or Latin (I think) which means "In the Year Of Our Lord", referring to the arrival of Christ in Bible times. They marked time BC (before Christ) and AD- Anno Domini.

[aranea]

damp, I belive what I read is true, problem is my english is not that good, so it was easier for me to google that to write everything in my words, but I would write the same thing, because I was searching for this kind of tekst because I know their history but not on English! ;)