Do you think you could still teach a Rottweiler to herd cattle?

The majority of Rottweilers nowadays barely have enough drive to walk across the room for dinner. There ARE those "COUPLE" of exceptions in the world....nobody here knows either of them. I think you'd have better luck training a giant sloth to herd.…

    Do you think you could still teach a Rottweiler to herd cattle?

    The majority of Rottweilers nowadays barely have enough drive to walk across the room for dinner. There ARE those "COUPLE" of exceptions in the world....nobody here knows either of them. I think you'd have better luck training a giant sloth to herd.…...
    Dog Breed Discussions : Do you think you could still teach a Rottweiler to herd cattle?...

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    • Do you think you could still teach a Rottweiler to herd cattle?

      Do you think you could still teach a Rottweiler to herd cattle? Dog Breed Discussions
      The majority of Rottweilers nowadays barely have enough drive to walk across the room for dinner. There ARE those "COUPLE" of exceptions in the world....nobody here knows either of them. I think you'd have better luck training a giant sloth to herd.

      Do you think you could still teach a Rottweiler to herd cattle?

      Do you think you could still teach a Rottweiler to herd cattle? Dog Breed Discussions
    • I seen a fair number of Rottweilers try to pass their herding instinct test. The ones that have any drive are too aggressive with the sheep. I don't mean grip. I mean want to eat them! And the rest just have no drive at all. Run around the round pen 3 times & they're done, lay down & pant. I haven't seen them tried on cattle. A lot of people say to try a dog that is too aggressive on sheep on cattle, they either get it or they get dead. Cattle don't play. And a dog has to be agile enough & quick enough not to get kicked by a cow. Most Rottweilers aren't.If you are interested in Herding with your Rottie, have a Herding trainer evaluate the dog for Herding Instinct.

    • If the Rottweiler has the instincts to herd than yes. My Rott has it but hasn't been trained to and I have met some others that do and some that don't.http://www.amrottclub.org/herding.htm

    • Absolutely. And they still do. There is a herding competition at the Rottweiler specialty every year.Obviously, you need a good dog from a good breeder who still is what a Rottie should be, but it's most definitely possible.Here's a link from the herding part of the Specialty last year. These would be good people to talk to. http://www.abbadogs.com/documents/2009RottHerding.pdf

    • The dog MUST have a herding instinct before you can show it the finer points of anything. Just like you need the genetic basis for ANY and ALL training, otherwise you beat your head against a wall.It is true that you do not "train" a dog to hunt, herd, fight, etc, you simply allow it.As far as a Rottie having ANY instinct for work today, good luck with that...panty waisted, bunny hugging breeders have destroyed another once magnificent breed/ Hope I helped.

    • I'm sure you could, they are very smart dogs. the reason people prefer kelpies, border collies, etc is because they have innate herding instincts. it's amazing that from birth these dogs will herd things. i had a border collie x kelpie, i got her at 10 weeks and even then she would try to herd my family and i and the dogs at the park, anything that moved she would try to herd!but any smart dog could be trained to do it, it's just easier to train a dog who is born wanting to do it.

    • Rottweilers were used by the Roman armies to herd cattle. However, my Rottweiler couldn't herd cattle if her life depended on it (she's tried many times). Then again, she's never been trained to herd cattle. Do think it's still possible to train Rottweilers to herd cattle?