Giant Schnauzer  

The Giant Schnauzer is a separate breed from the Minia-ture and Standard. Their country of origin is Germany. Breeds were developed for specific work in the 1600's; this breed was developed to be used as drovers of sheep and cattle and as a guard dog. Its coat was also influenced by weather and living conditions. Some of the breeds which were used in the development were the Standard Schnauzer, Great Dane, rough-haired sheep dogs and pos-sibly the Bouvier des Flandres. The breed was not that well known until World War I when it was used for police training.  The Giant Schnauzer was recognized by the United Ken-nel Club in 1948.

General Appearance **The Giant Schnauzer is a larger more powerful version of, but should resemble, the smaller, Standard Schnauzer. Nearly a square built dog in proportion of body length to height at withers. Ruggedly built, with a dense, weather-resistant coat. Usually salt and pepper in color or black.

 Head and Skull ** Elongated, strong and rectangular in appearance, narrow-ing slightly from the ears to the eyes and again from the eyes to the tip of the nose. The length of the skull should be about half the length of the back (from withers to tail set). Lips are tight, black and not overlapping.

TEETH  ** A full complement of strong, white teeth meet in a scissors bite. The upper and lower jaws are powerful and well formed.

EYES ** - Deep set, dark brown and medium size, oval in appearance and with a keen expression; with lids fitting tightly. Vision not impaired or eyes hidden by too long eyebrows.

NOSE **- The nose is large, full and black.

EARS **- When uncropped, the ears are V-shaped, button ears of medium length and thickness. Set high and carried rather high and close to head. When cropped, they are identical in shape and length to uncropped ears, but with pointed tips. They are in balance with the head and not exaggerated in length.

Neck *** Well arched and strong, of moderate length; blending cleanly into the shoulders and with skin fitting tight at the throat; in harmony with the dog's build and weight.

ForeQuarters *** The strongly-muscled forequarters have flat, somewhat sloping shoulders and high withers. Both shoulder blades and upper arm are long, permitting depth of chest at the brisket.

FORELEGS *** - Forelegs are straight and vertical when viewed from all sides with strong pasterns and good bone. The elbows are set close to the body and point directly backwards. They are separated by a fairly deep brisket which precludes a pinched front.

 Body ***  Strong, short coupled, compact, substantial, with great power and agility. The height at the withers equals the body length from the breastbone to point of rump. Chest medium in width. Ribs well sprung. The breastbone is plainly discernible, with strong forechest; the brisket descends at least to the elbows. Back; short, strong, straight and firm.

HindQuarters ***  In balance with the forequarters and strongly muscled. Croup slightly rounded.

HIND LEGS *** - Upper thighs are slanting. Well bent at the stifles, with the second thighs approximately parallel to an extension of the upper neckline. The rear pasterns are short, perpendicular to the ground while the dog is standing naturally, and from the rear, parallel to each other.

Feet ***  Well arched, compact and catlike; turning neither in nor out; with thick, tough pads and dark nails. Dewclaws, if any, on hind legs should be removed; on the front legs, may be removed.

Tail *** The tail is set moderately high and carried high in excitement. The tail should be docked to the second or not more than the third joint; (will be approximately 1½ to 3 inches at maturity).

Coat ***  Hard, wiry, very dense; composed of a soft undercoat and a harsh outer coat which, when seen against the grain, stands slightly up off the back, lying neither smooth nor flat. Coarse hair on top of head; harsh beard and eyebrows; the Schnauzer hallmark.

Colour *** Salt and pepper or solid black. On the black dog a small white spot on the breast is permitted. Ideally the Salt and Pepper is an intensely pigmented medium gray shade with peppering evenly distributed throughout the coat

Height ***  At the withers: Males, 25½ to 27½ inches; Females, 23½ to 25½ inches. Size alone should not take precedence over type, balance, soundness and temperament.

Gait ***  The trot is the gait at which movement is judged. Free, balanced and vigorous, with good reach in the forequarters and good driving power in the hindquarters. Back remains strong and firm. Rear and front legs are not thrown either in nor out.

 Faults *** Unilateral or bilateral cryptorchid. Viciousness or extreme shyness. Overshot or undershot bites. Albinism.

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