9781422279397

tlers. One route the army traveled was through Württemberg and on to the small market town of Rottweil. This town was populated by the Romans between the years 81 and 96, during which time they rebuilt it—erecting stone buildings with red tile roofs on the most important ones. The town got the name Rote Wil (meaning Red Vil- la), which eventually became Rottweil. Over time, this region became an important area for raising and selling cattle, and the descendants of the Roman cattle dogs mixed with local dogs, and other large breeds the Romans met on their travels. These included Molosser dogs from Britain and the Nether- lands, which proved their worth in both driving and protecting the cattle from robbers and wild animals. The butchers and cattle dealers found this big herding dog ideal, and from this grew a trade, based in Rottweil, in purposely bred working dogs. The dogs who came from Rottweil were, of course, called Rottweilers. The Swiss connection Roman droving dogs also settled in Switzerland, and their char-

acteristics were altered to suit the particular area they populat- ed. These dogs are known as Sennenhunds, four of which include the Appenzeller, the Entlebucher, the Ber- nese Mountain Dog (pictured here), and the Greater Swiss Mountain Dog. It is believed that the Rottweiler is distantly related to the Sennenhunds and, indeed, when you study the breed standards for these dogs, you can see similarities to the Rottweiler of today.

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