Our vision of the Rottweiller
From the reading of the Rottweiler standard we retain two qualities that we have chosen as our slogan for the Vallée des Glaciers breeding :
The “Beautiful“: The Rottweiler is a robust dog of medium to large size, neither heavy nor light, neither high-legged nor stilted. Of harmonious proportions, its stocky and vigorous appearance suggests strength, suppleness and endurance. Rottweilers are medium to large in size. The accepted measurements range from 61 to 68 cm for males and 56 to 63 cm for females. The average weight is 42 kg for females and 50 kg for males.
and the “Good“: Of a kindly and peaceful disposition, he loves children, is very attached, obedient, docile and works with pleasure. His appearance betrays a natural robustness. He is self-confident, has a perfect nervous balance and is difficult to impress. He reacts with great vigilance to his surroundings. He is very attached to his master and watches over him attentively. This excellent guard dog has a good nervous balance. He is a rather peaceful dog and a pleasant companion for the whole family if he has been well trained.
The breeding is based on the respect of the standard as well as on the aptitudes for sport work.
We only breed a limited number of puppies with the main motto “the beautiful and the good”!
User, above all, all our dogs work or have worked in the main sporting disciplines that are Ring, Mondioring and Pistage. They regularly take part in the biggest national and international shows (conformity to the standard, beauty).
If we develop this motto which seems to disturb some users for whom beauty cannot be compatible with goodness, it seems necessary to me to specify what we mean by beauty, knowing that goodness characterizes mainly the aptitudes for use and the behavioral balance.
The notion of “beauty” being very subjective, to help me clarify my vision of “beauty”, I will take two quotations. The first one is from Plato who says: “What is useful is beautiful” and the second one is from Honoré de Balzac: “Beauty is the real thing well dressed”!
For me, beauty represents the conformation, the construction of the dog and is measurable by the respect of the standard. It must be in adequacy with the destination for which one selected the race but also harmonious in order to preserve its aestheticism. A Rott must look like a Rott, otherwise there is no point in choosing this breed!
Indeed, the standard of a working breed is and must be designed according to its intended use, as is the case for the Rottweiler. The construction of the Rott must therefore allow it to work, to perform as required! The selection must be made in order to produce “resistant” dogs, whose mental, health, musculature, bone structure and ligaments are “solid” or rather do not present any particular weaknesses! Any tendency towards “hyper type” must be ruthlessly eliminated from this selection.
The shows must contribute to remove from the breeding any dog whose construction, gait, movements, and even character, suggest any weakness. Similarly, the breed club, through its selection policy, must follow and direct the evolution of the livestock under its care by fixing, in particular, the defects or faults to be eliminated.
In Germany, a country with a dog-owning tradition where use is very important, and the cradle of our breed, a dog cannot reproduce if it has not obtained its ZTP… thus demonstrating certain aptitudes for use and this in respect of the standard.
To summarize: The Good: Aptitudes for use, balance, sociability – the Beautiful: construction, health, physical in relation to the performances which one asks to the dog and in harmony with the standard of the race.
