Why Do Rottweilers Have a Bad Reputation? Vet-Reviewed History & Behavior

Rottweilers are a very divisive breed of dog. Despite the Rottweiler’s immense popularity, the breed has a bad reputation. Some think Rottweilers are naturally very aggressive and disloyal. But why is this the case?

What led to the Rottweiler’s bad reputation, and do they deserve it? We’ll take you through the most likely reasons the Rottweiler has a bad reputation.

The History of the Rottweiler

The Rottweiler has a long and storied history, and this history is essential to understanding why they have a lousy reputation. The Rottweiler traces their origins back to the Roman Empire, and the breed was further developed in modern-day southern Germany. The Roman military used the ancestors of the Rottweiler to herd their cattle and as war dogs due to their loyalty, power, intelligence, and intimidating appearance.

After the collapse of the Roman Empire, the former Roman town of Rottweil was home to many ranchers and butchers who used Drover Dogs to move their cattle. The Drover would herd the cattle to the market, and butchers would use dogs to move the carts filled with beef to be sold; this earned the dog the nickname of The Butcher’s Dog. These dogs eventually became Rottweilers.

With the rise of industry, the Rottweiler became obsolete as a working dog. The breed reached near extinction before its revival in the early 20th century. The Rottweiler then began working as a police dog in Germany, as a military dog, guard dog, and seeing-eye dog in many other countries.

Black Dog Syndrome

The most prevalent reason the Rottweiler dog is viewed in a negative light is Black Dog Syndrome. Black Dog Syndrome is how some people view black dogs differently than other colorations. Despite how the dog may act, their color leads some to believe they’re more aggressive, vicious, or mean simply because of their color.

Shelters have noticed that this syndrome is quite prevalent. A black dog at a shelter is far less likely to be adopted than any other color.

Size and Power

The Rottweiler is a large and incredibly powerful dog; they typically weigh more than 100 pounds and have prominent facial features, including massive jaws. The Rottweiler is clearly a strong dog based on their appearance alone, and that makes them naturally scary.

Loyalty and Instincts

The Rottweiler is an incredibly loyal dog, and that may lead to aggression in some instances when they think their owners are being threatened. Couple that with the fact that the breed was bred as a guard dog, and you get dogs that can be easily made aggressive.

A Rottweiler that isn’t properly trained and socialized when they’re young can grow up to be very suspicious of strangers and can be aggressive toward them if they believe their owner is in danger. However, an individual dog’s aggression is based on many factors, from genetic predisposition, prenatal environment, early socialization, environmental circumstances, health, fear, and stress. So considering every Rottweiler as aggressive does the breed an injustice and has unfortunately led to this unjustified breed reputation.

Final Thoughts

The Rottweiler is in no way an evil dog, but their unjustly gained reputation would lead you to believe they are. The generalized approach to Rottweiler’s reputation stems from various misconceptions and cases of poorly socialized dogs or those with health or behavioral problems, often put in inappropriate and stressful situations, leading to unpredictable and aggressive outbursts. When they’re trained and socialized properly, they are confident in interacting with unfamiliar people and other animals and have no greater chance of becoming aggressive in comparison to other dogs.

They are very powerful and intimidating dogs, but they are kind and loyal when properly socialized, trained, and cared for by loving owners.

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• Pet Daycare & Dog Boarding Industry Statistics

Featured Image Credit: nicolas.fontana, Shutterstock