The Rottweiler /ˈrɒtwaɪlər/ is a breed of domestic dog, regarded as medium-to-large or large.The dogs were known in German as Rottweiler Metzgerhund, meaning Rottweil butchers' dogs, because one of their uses was to herd livestock and pull carts laden with butchered meat to market. This continued until the mid-19th century when railways replaced droving for herding. Rottweilers are now used as search and rescue dogs, as guide dogs for the blind, as guard dogs and police dogs.