The Schnauzer or Mittelschnauzer is a German

breed A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...

of dog in the Pinscher and Schnauzer group. It is characterised by an abundant bristly beard and moustache, usually lighter than the coat. It is one of three Schnauzer breeds, the others being the

Giant Schnauzer The Giant Schnauzer is a breed of dog developed in the 17th century in Germany. It is the largest of the three breeds of Schnauzerthe other two breeds being the Standard Schnauzer and the Miniature Schnauzer. Numerous breeds were used in its ...

or Riesenschnauzer, and the

Miniature Schnauzer The Miniature Schnauzer is a breed of small dog of the Schnauzer type that originated in Germany in the mid-to-late 19th century. Miniature Schnauzers may have been developed from the smallest specimens of the Standard Schnauzer, or crosses betw ...

or Zwergschnauzer. In Germany it is an

endangered breed In modern agriculture, a rare breed is a breed of poultry or livestock that has a very small breeding population, usually from a few hundred to a few thousand. Because of their small numbers, rare breeds may have a threatened conservation status ...

, and is listed in category III of the

Rote Liste The , full name , is a red list of threatened breeds of domestic animal published annually by the Gesellschaft zur Erhaltung alter und gefährdeter Haustierrassen, the German national association for the conservation of historic and endangere ...

of the

Gesellschaft zur Erhaltung alter und gefährdeter Haustierrassen The or GEH is a German national association for the conservation of historic and endangered domestic animal breeds. History The GEH was founded on 5 December 1981 in the Rottal, in Lower Bavaria in southern Germany. It has about 2100 memb ...

. Its development as a breed dates from the 1880s, in southern Germany. It is a robust and squarely-built dog of medium size, of

working Working may refer to: * Work (human activity), intentional activity people perform to support themselves, others, or the community Arts and media * Working (musical), ''Working'' (musical), a 1978 musical * Working (TV series), ''Working'' (TV s ...

utility As a topic of economics, utility is used to model worth or value. Its usage has evolved significantly over time. The term was introduced initially as a measure of pleasure or happiness as part of the theory of utilitarianism by moral philosopher ...

type; the coat may be salt-and-pepper or black. A dog of this type was exhibited in

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

in 1879; another was " Best in Show" at the

Westminster Kennel Club The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is an all-breed conformation show, traditionally held annually at New York City's Madison Square Garden. The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is one of a handful of benched shows in the United States. Dogs ...

in the United States in 1997.

Breed name

The name of the breed derives from the German word , meaning '

snout A snout is the protruding portion of an animal's face, consisting of its nose, mouth, and jaw. In many animals, the structure is called a muzzle, rostrum, or proboscis. The wet furless surface around the nostrils of the nose of many mammals is c ...

', but how it came to be applied to the breed is unknown. The word appears in the ''Bilder und Sagen aus der Schweiz'' of

Jeremias Gotthelf Albert Bitzius (4 October 179722 October 1854) was a Swiss novelist; best known by his pen name of Jeremias Gotthelf. Biography Bitzius was born at Murten, where his father was pastor. The Bitzius family had once belonged to the Bernese patrici ...

, published in 1842. 'Schnauz' was a common name for a dog – several dogs with this name were shown in

Elberfeld Elberfeld is a municipal subdivision of the German city of Wuppertal; it was an independent town until 1929. History The first official mentioning of the geographic area on the banks of today's Wupper River as "''elverfelde''" was in a docu ...

in 1880. At the third international

dog show A dog show is an event where dogs are exhibited. A conformation show, also referred to as a ''breed show'', is a kind of dog show in which a judge, familiar with a specific dog breed, evaluates individual purebred dogs for how well the dogs ''c ...

of the Verein zur Veredelung der Hunderassen in

in 1879, a dog named 'Schnautzer' took first place in the Rauche Pinscher or Wire-haired Pinscher class. The name of the breed was officially changed from Rauhaarige Pinscher to Schnauzer with the sixth edition of the

stud-book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders ...

in 1917.

History

Rauhhaariger Pinscher, illustration from Beckmann, Geschichte und Beschreibung der Rassen des Hundes

The Schnauzer originated in southern Germany; it shares a common history with the

German Pinscher The German Pinscher or is a German breed of terrier in the Pinscher and Schnauzer group. It shares common origins with the Schnauzer, of which it is essentially a short-haired equivalent. It is seen in two colours, either black-and-tan or self ...

. Dogs of this type, both rough-haired and smooth-haired, were traditionally kept as carriage dogs or as stable dogs, and so were sometimes known as ; they were capable

ratter A rat-catcher is a person who kills or captures rats as a professional form of pest control. Keeping the rat population under control was practiced in Europe to prevent the spread of diseases, most notoriously the Black Death, and to prevent d ...

s. Both types were known as Deutscher Pinscher, and came from the same lineage; rough-haired and smooth-haired puppies could occur in the same litter. The rough-haired type, which would later become the Schnauzer, was also known as the . In 1880 the Pinscher was recorded in the ''Deutschen Hundestammbuch'' of the Verein zur Veredelung der Hunderassen, and the first

breed standard In animal husbandry or animal fancy, a breed standard is a description of the characteristics of a hypothetical or ideal example of a breed. The description may include physical or morphological detail, genetic criteria, or criteria of athletic ...

was drawn up. Various colours were described for the rough-haired type, including iron-grey, silver-grey, grey-yellow, corn-yellow and rust-yellow. In 1895 described five varieties of Pinscher – the rough- and smooth-haired Pinscher, the rough- and smooth-haired

Miniature Pinscher The Miniature Pinscher, also known as the Zwergpinscher and Mini Pin, is a small breed of dog of the pinscher type originating in Germany. The breed's earliest ancestors may have included the German Pinscher mixed with Italian greyhounds and dachs ...

, and the

Affenpinscher The Affenpinscher, also known as the Monkey Terrier, is a terrier-like toy Pinscher breed of dog. History The breed is German in origin and dates back to the seventeenth century. The name "affenpinscher" is derived from the German ''Affe'' (a ...

. Also in 1895, a

breed society Breed clubs are associations or clubs with activities centered on a single, specific breed of a particular species of domesticated animal. The purpose of the association will vary with the species of animal and the goals and needs of the members o ...

, the Pinscherklub, was established for both types, both rough- and smooth-haired. Another society, the Schnauzerklub München, was formed in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

in 1907 by breeders of the Mittelschnauzer. In 1917, with the sixth edition of the

, the name of the rough-haired breed was officially changed from Rauhaarige Pinscher to Schnauzer. In 1918 the Pinscherklub and the Schnauzerklub München merged to form the Pinscher-Schnauzer-Verband, which in 1921 changed its name to the present Pinscher-Schnauzer-Klub 1895 e.V. In the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...

the pepper-and-salt Schnauzer flourished, while the black was less often seen; after the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the reverse was true. The Schnauzer was definitively accepted by the

Fédération Cynologique Internationale The Fédération cynologique internationale (FCI) (English: International Canine Federation) is the largest international federation of national kennel clubs. It is based in Thuin, Belgium. History The FCI was founded in 1911 under the auspices ...

in 1955. In the fifteen-year period from 2007 to 2021, annual registrations in Germany varied between and , with an annual average of . Since 2014 the pepper-and-salt Schnauzer has been on the

of the

. In 2022 its

conservation status The conservation status of a group of organisms (for instance, a species) indicates whether the group still exists and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future. Many factors are taken into account when assessing conservation ...

was listed as , 'endangered', the third-highest category of endangerment of the organisation. In 2018 a total of 201 pepper-and-salt puppies were whelped in 26 litters. Although it is claimed that the first Standard Schnauzer in the United States was shown in the Miscellaneous Class at the

Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is an all-breed conformation show, traditionally held annually at New York City's Madison Square Garden. The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is one of a handful of benched shows in the United States. Dogs ...

in New York City in 1899, and European immigrants could have brought it with them, the first official import was recorded in 1905, named Fingal. However, it became more popular only after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, where the German army used it to carry small packages while the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

for guard duty and other aides. The Wire-Haired Pinscher Club of America was founded in 1925. The club was for both Standard and

s, but since 1933 the club was divided for separate promotion, one of them being Standard Schnauzer Club of America. Initially,

American Kennel Club The American Kennel Club (AKC) is a registry of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. In addition to maintaining its pedigree registry, this kennel club also promotes and sanctions events for purebred dogs, including the Westminster Kenn ...

(AKC) classified it in the

Working Group A working group, or working party, is a group of experts working together to achieve specified goals. The groups are domain-specific and focus on discussion or activity around a specific subject area. The term can sometimes refer to an interdis ...

, but in 1926 were moved to

Terrier Group Terrier (from Latin ''terra'', 'earth') is a type of dog originally bred to hunt vermin. A terrier is a dog of any one of many breeds or landraces of the terrier type, which are typically small, wiry, game, and fearless. Terrier breeds vary gr ...

, which was reverted in 1945 or 1946. CKC also includes it in the Working Group, UKC includes it in Guardian Group, the KC, ANKC and NZKC include it in the

Utility Group The Kennel Club ("KC") is the official kennel club of the United Kingdom. It is the oldest recognised kennel club in the world. Its role is to oversee various canine activities including dog shows, dog agility and working trials. It also opera ...

, while by the VDH and FCI Schnauzer is placed in "Group 2, Section 1: Pinschers and Schnauzers", with "Nr. 182" in "Section 1.2" dedicated to the Standard Schnauzer breed.

Characteristics

The Schnauzer is a robust and squarely-built dog of medium size, of

type. The coat is hard, wiry and dense, with a thick soft under-coat. It may be salt-and-pepper or black; in the salt-and-pepper, the grey may vary from pale silver-grey to dark iron-grey. Salt-and-pepper dogs have a black mask. The ears are set high and drooping; the eyes are dark. One author has ranked the Standard Schnauzer 18th out of 140 breeds within 79 ranks on the ability to learn and obey known commands.

Health

Overall, the Standard Schnauzer is a very healthy

. The 2008 health survey done by the Standard Schnauzer Club of America revealed that roughly only 1% of dogs surveyed had serious health issues.Standard Schnauzer Club of America - FAQs - Retrieved March 11, 2010
/ref>

References

{{Pinschers and Schnauzers FCI breeds Dog breeds originating in Germany Animal breeds on the GEH Red List de:Schnauzer#Mittelschnauzer