Every Rottweiler I’ve ever met has been friendly, affectionate and playful. They were more likely to hurt a person through over-exuberant displays of affection and play, than from aggression.
So, is that friendly affectionate nature a general trait of the breed, or have I just been lucky?
I find it rather ironic that I’m less intimidated by a Rottweiler (or a boxer) than medium-size dogs.
I’ve had Rottweilers in my life since 1985 and love them. 
Any of the breed descriptions you read - ADRK, AKC, UKC, FCI, etc, affirms that the proper Rottweiler temperament is friendly, biddable and calm.
Some aloofness or reserve towards strangers is normal (and mentioned in most breed standards) but aggression or sharpness towards people is an undesireable trait, although some dog-aggression is fairly normal for the breed. Many of them are exuberant, social, silly lunkheads and they are very people-oriented.
They were originally bred as an all-purpose working farm dog - herding, pulling carts, protection and livestock guardians.
Straying into opinion territory from my own observations: I’ve had a couple who were aloof and reserved (especially with adults) and didn’t appreciate being handled or petted by complete strangers. Both of those dogs were unfailingly gentlemanly about it though. And once they got to know the individual, they were absolutely wonderful.
All of mine (eight since 1985) have been absolutely rock solid with children…from the ADRK:
They can have a gleeful tendency to be bullies, though. If they pick up that someone is nervous about them, even if hiding it well, they enjoy being assholes and messing with that person’s head by staring or posturing. You must put out non-scary vibes. My current Rottweiler, like all I’ve owned, will put up a huge scary roaring display at the fence…but come into the house and he’s 115 lbs of lap-dog affection.
All of mine but one, even the ones who were a bit aloof, were extremely friendly and social although they can be discriminating about how much they like and respect a person. The one who could be a bit hinky initially was an adult female with a sad past that I got from the shelter. Her initial aggression was anxiety and fear-based though, and after a couple of years she relaxed considerably.
They do need a lot of socialization and training with a fairly firm hand because they are by nature highly confident and dominant. All but one (the bitch mentioned above) that I have owned seem to have a natural tendency to be “doorway dogs.” As in, choosing to sleep across the bedroom door, or blocking the front door. They are naturally fairly guardy and while (in my experience) will let absolutely anyone in the house if a: their owners are there and/or b: they know the person, perhaps not so much with strangers or people they don’t know.
A friend of mine had a key to my house and would go over and let my dogs out if I was working a long day or whatever. One day she brought another friend with her - my dogs had not met this woman before and were polite but quite emphatic that she was not to come in the house. She stayed outside. I have several anecdotes like this.
I was a stranger in a friend’s back yard. Her neighbor had the first Rott I was ever close too and it was barking at my kids and me through the fence. I was at first nervous because I knew their reputation, but after a couple seconds I said, “I know that bark,” and went and introduced myself. It was the sweetest damn thing ever. Another used to come visit my wife, kids, and dogs. I think those “Good Dog, Carl” books are truer to life than their reputation for viciousness.
Yes…as stated in the recent pit bull thread, really most of it is owner-controlled. Train, socialize and contain a dog properly - especially if it is a drivey-type, strong dog.
The answer to the OP as to “proper” temperament can really be answered by checking the temperament standards of reputable registries. Deviations from the standard is undesireable; that too many owners are ignorant of the standard and fail to exercise due diligence is a fault of the owners, not the dogs.
Those stupid [Omen movies](They were Rottweilers. A photo of a Rottweiler can be seen here. It is said that the sale of Rottweilers increased tremendously after The Omen was released.) all but ruined the breed.
Popularity/ notoriety/becoming a trendy breed tends to ruin dogs because people start owning them for the wrong reasons and crappy breeders step up to supply demand. Rottweiler people did the happy dance when the breed dropped out of the top ten. We don’t WANT the breed to be popular.
And like Pit Bulls, Rot owners and all dog owners get emotionally attached to their dog and when they aren’t the gentle loving dog they think they are they won’t believe it’s a bad dog. Kind of like parents of gobblin children :dubious:
We had a Rot in the area a few years back and the owners were sited and had to have the dog Chipped, but the owners still claimed their mutt was a gentle pooch, but one day I got to respond with the ambulance to that house when that gentle pooch tore into their 2 year old daughter. 
And of course they still were enraged when the dog was put down.
So what I am claiming here is I would take what an owner said about their beloved breed under a Ton of caution.
And I had to put down a family dog that bit a neighbor and then the cop who cam to wright the ticket. and he was a gentle dog when off the leash or in the house.
Thank you for a well-written, thoughtful and erudite post.
I had a rotty that I didn’t trust around children. She was a very sweet dog but showed jealous tendencies. She never hurt anyone but I never let her out when children came over.
Most rottys I have met have been the sweetest babies ever, but there are exceptions to every rule. I would judge by the reaction I got when entering the home, and go from there. The dog will let you know if they are interested in being friendly or not.
My veterinarian niece says she won’t examine a Rotty unless it is wearing a muzzle. She says this is necessary due to their being unpredictable in unfamiliar places and with unfamiliar people.
Ah yes, the old “anyone experienced with the breed must be biased – only believe people who are ignorant or inexperienced” argument. How’s that work out when you apply it to other aspects of your life?
I’ve never run into an ignorant, scared vet yet (and I guarantee your niece wouldn’t get much business.) but I have heard of vets who are afraid of animals…don’t know whether to laugh or cry at that stupidity. Seriously?
Every vet I know is completely relaxed around dogs and cats regardless of breed. Some sub-standard vets don’t understand animal behaviour but in my extensive experience the vast majority of vets are immune to Breed-Specific-Hyteria.
LouisB - I do not believe you and think you are flat out lying, lying about your fictional; veterinarian niece. It simply does not ring true and even if it did, it does not speak highly of your fictional veterinarian :rolleyes: niece.
MODERATOR WARNING.
chiroptera.
This is General Questions and you can’t call another poster a liar. Take it to the Pit if you feel the need to do this again.
samclem, moderator
My experiences with Rottweilers has been generally positive and the ones I’ve known have been great with children. But dogs are still dogs and strange ones can still bite, even if the owners are responsible people.
Very true. One notorious example is cocker spaniels, which exploded in popularity after being featured in the movies in the 1930s, and morphed from being solid family and hunting dogs into long-haired pin-headed, neurotic messes.
More than 10 posts in, so anecdotes from me!
My aunt has two rotties, brother and sister, and they are the hugest lapdogs you’ll ever see. If you’re sitting, they want to be ON you. Sweet sweet dogs. Outside, however, if I were smaller than they were? I’d be a little nervous. They like to chase cats and birds and deer and rats and etc a little more than makes me entirely comfy. Likewise I’d be a little careful with a baby or child - just because they’re little, and I’d be worried that the dogs would start off by “playing” and then get excited. No harm intended, but when the dog’s mouth is bigger than my niece’s torso, it doesn’t have to be intentional to still cause damage.
Stupid/irrational vets. I am in the slow process of leaving our current vet because he hates cats. He INSISTS that we put them to sleep every time he does a checkup on them, because they were rescues (they were all rescued as kittens, and aren’t any worse than any other cats I’ve had ever) and therefore unpredictable, probably rabid (they all have their shots, thank you) and might hurt him. He’s cold and unfeeling towards them at best, and other clients have complained that he’s mean to their cats also. Dogs? He’s all over dogs. Loves them to pieces and even does housecalls. Cats? Not a smidge of care or attention. Asshole. If he wants a dog practice, he should have one, and not go pissing all over people’s other pets. So I can totally believe that someone’s vet niece is an idiot or a dog-hater and still in practice.
My wife’s aunt had a doberman like that. You’d sit down and suddenly there’d be spindly legs everywhere. Another breed with an unjustified bad reputation.
I know someone with two absolutely gigantic Rottweilers – biggest ones I’ve ever seen. And she used to have three before one got cancer. Those dogs are leaners and nudgers who love everyone.
Everyone their human approves to enter the house, that is. Although I was not present, I’ve heard this story a few times now, so I think I have the details correct. She found out the hard way that the guarding instinct is still there when she had lots of people over for a party. Almost everyone came to the front door and was let in, and the dogs greeted each arrival with approval. But one friend slipped in through the back gate with the essentially innocent intention of surprising the homeowner. When the friend suddenly burst in the back door yelling “Surprise!” one of the huge dogs immediately knocked her to the ground and bit her before anybody else could react.
The dogs immediately stopped when their human took control of the situation, and everybody (dogs and foolish houseguest included) felt bad afterwards, and sensibly no “vicious dog” designation was applied. The lesson, however, is don’t burst in screaming at someone protected by three huge Rottweilers…even in jest!
Cold attitude toward a pet can be very offputting. We left a practice after one (older) vet looked at my scared puppy and peremptorily ordered me to “put the bitch on the table.” None of our other vets have been like that, but I can believe someone knew one.
At the risk of a hijack, speaking of a vet’s attitude, our current vet of choice has a good take on the human/pet relationship.
The first time we tried this clinic, Simone had a recurring UTI, and they wanted to take a sterile urine sample – which is done by inserting a big needle through the abdominal wall into the bladder (to keep the urine from getting contaminated on the [normal] way out). I let them do it – but I would NOT let them take her out of sight into the back room. I know they don’t want emotional clients making difficulties, but I also know what my responsibility is to my dogs. So I consented on condition they allow me to accompany her through the procedure, which went fine, although she rolled her eyes in terror when they put her on her back and brought out the needle.
The next time we were there, our debit card was declined. I looked into it and we didn’t have enough money in the account, but would in a few days. I asked if they could hold off charging the account until then, and the office manager said, “We would do it in a heartbeat for an established client, but you’re brand new – forgive me for checking with my boss (the vet herself) before I do this?” She returned from the back area and told me the vet had said “Oh, he’s the client who wouldn’t let his dog out of sight at a new vet, even for a procedure? Sure, anybody that committed to his dog will pay up.”
I had a male rottie who was head over heels with kids. Once I hired two guys to repair our roof, he barked at them for the whole morning. In the afternoon on of the guys brought along his daughter of 9 years old. My rottie was all quiet and sweet the whole afternoon lol!
Rotties are almost always near the top of most dangerous dogs. Doesn’t mean they can’t be socialized well but it does mean as a breed there are a lot of incidents of biting humans.
like most breeds with a “tough” image, that’s not inherent to the dog. every Rottweiler and Pit Bull/“pit-type” dog I’ve met has been an absolute sweetheart.
but, since they’re big, strong dogs they attract the kind of owner who wants to use them to enhance their “tough guy” image and if they ruin one of these dogs they can do a lot of damage. It’s all trends.
when I was a kid, the Doberman Pinscher was the “dangerous dog” of the day.