Breeding the drive, size, and muscle you see in a working Giant Schnauzer into a dog that will also excel in AKC conformation, and be of the upmost health and vigor. Yes, you can have it all! Our pups make wonderful family pets, working dogs, and excellent therapy/service dogs. Parents are WORKING DOGS on our FARM. We health test our parents for VWB, THYROID, HIPS and EYES. We also champion title many of our adults in conformation. Breeding for protective nature and drive to work.
General Breed Standard taken directly from akc.org:
Temperament: Loyal, Alert, Trainable ……………. AKC Breed Popularity: Ranks 78 of 196
Height: 25.5-27.5 inches (male), ………. 23.5-25.5 inches (female) ………. Weight: 60-85 pounds (male), ……… 55-75 pounds (female)
Life Expectancy: 12-15 years ………… Group: Working Group
General Breed Standard from AKC.ORG:
The Giant Schnauzer should resemble, as nearly as possible, in general appearance, a larger and more powerful version of the Standard Schnauzer, on the whole a bold and valiant figure of a dog. Robust, strongly built, nearly square in proportion of body length to height at withers, active, sturdy, and well muscled. Temperament which combines spirit and alertness with intelligence and reliability. Composed, watchful, courageous, easily trained, deeply loyal to family, playful, amiable in repose, and a commanding figure when aroused. The sound, reliable temperament, rugged build, and dense weather-resistant wiry coat make for one of the most useful, powerful, and enduring working breeds.
For the full Breed standard you can CLICK HERE but please note you will be leaving our site and going to AKC.ORG website:
HOW OUR BREEDING DOGS RANK TO THE BREED STANDARD:
If you have visited many Giant breeders here in the US and compare them to dog’s from other countries something tends to stick out… (SIZE)… In my experience there are more dogs here in the US that are well over the breed standard on height than when you compare to other countries… You might ask why this is… My guess: It’s because here in the US there just is not the competition that you see in other countries that are closer to where the dog was originally created… When you go to a conformation show here in the US there might be one or two Giants and sometimes no Giants at all. Handlers have to call around and coordinate with other handlers to have enough dogs at a show to make good points. So judges are choosing between less dogs that happen to be bigger than the breed standard. Breeders like to breed what sells better for them which here in the US is bigger dogs so you get a bigger dog that is over the breed standard that has championed out easily here in US because in the breed standard it states size does not take president over the overall other quality factors of the dog. BUT: In places such as Germany, Russia, Europe there are a lot more Giants at a given show so the dogs will be bred more within the breed standard for size, because that might be a factor that a dog wins by with so many other Giants competing. This is just my opinion from my limited experience with the breed. I imported 2 dogs from over seas I had to rehome because they were small for the breed standard, I do not breed dogs that are at the lower side of the breed standard on size. I purchased 4 others that were all on the higher end of the breed standard, but all of the US stock dogs I have seen have been very top or well over the breed standard. I’m sure there are (Over the breed standard Titled Giants) in other countries as well as (small for the breed) Giants here in the US. My opinion is based on what I personally have observed in my years of owning both US and over seas dogs and competing in AKC conformation. My personal dog’s I received from over seas that I kept for breeding are on the top end of the breed standard, My smallest girl I kept is 25″ from the Ukraine, and smallest male is around 27″ tall at withers from Spain which is still bigger end of the standard. My dog’s I have acquired from US stock are over the breed standard with biggest being 27″ female and 29″ tall male… I personally try to breed ALL my dogs to be on the top end of the breed standard, but of course with some of our dogs being over the breed standard that is also possible…. I do tell people though that even two dogs that are both over the standard can have a pup that ends up within the standard. An example is my Rowdy Ann. Her mother is 27″ and dad is 29″ and she is 25.5″, but her equal size at birth litter mate got to 27″. I tell everyone you should visit the parents if at all possible to see what your pup may end up as when an adult but don’t be surprised if you end up with a bigger or little smaller dog than the parents are. In general ALL puppies should be within or just over the standard on height when grown.
Weight is another matter all together: Giants do not fully mature until 3 or 4 yrs of age. So they may look skinny or not very muscly until this time… Many handlers try to bulk up a young dog they are showing in conformation with extra raw feedings and even some home made high calorie snacks such as “Satin Balls” … A male may only be 70 or 80 lbs when your showing him as a young adult in conformation but around 3 or 4 will gain extra 20-30 lbs. Here in the US when showing a younger dog in competition that has more dense of coat such as thicker hard/wire coat, mix coat, or soft coat is actually easier to finish because the handler can groom and sculpt the coat to give the appearance of the muscle that will come in later. A thinner hard/wire coat does not allow anything to the imagination and so is harder to title if competing with same age thicker coated dogs. If two dogs are equal quality at the show but one is older so more filled out with muscle that dog will take the ribbon almost every time. This also is dependent on the grooming skills and experience of the handler. The best dog will not always win if his handler makes mistakes on walking, stacking, showing teeth, etc… that frustrates the judge.
Personal Note: Side note on AKC titles: a few of the dogs I have received from over seas are jr champions or adult champions titled in the foreign country. If a dog is titled in a foreign country and then registered with AKC you will not see the title as CH(Champion) on the dogs AKC certificate. You can see the titles on the foreign pedigree or foreign certificates though. Showing in conformation isn’t for everyone. Although we did as a family go to many conformation shows for a few years to title some of our dogs ourselves, now I personally do not do it myself anymore, but have a handler that does it for me if I have a dog I want titled in AKC conformation. And I only get that done to show we have quality dogs that we breed. My dog’s are our family pets and working farm dogs so even though they can win an AKC conformation title, their heart is more in their farm work and not in standing on a grooming table for hours or caged for days to “Stay Looking Pretty” for conformation. AKC has so many other things you can get your dog into and even title in competitions and these other events are actually more fun for your dog and the whole family. Not to mention much easier for a new comer to win in, when it comes to conformation you have to be grooming perfectly for years before you will win next to another more experienced handler. You also need to know more people with Giants to get them to go to the shows so one of you may get points since there are usually very few if any giants at any given show because it is a rare breed. There is also a lot of “politics” and certain “personalities” in conformation that just clash with us more humble, laid back, country farmer types… I personally will not air my grievances online but if you would like to call and discuss my experiences, both good and bad, before you decide to get your children or family into conformation showing you are more than welcome to. I would also like to say I’m sure there are many people that LOVE conformation and maybe they have only had GREAT experiences with it. I say to each his own, do what you want and don’t judge others for doing what they want. Your pup can do many things. This is a smart loyal breed that can be trained to do just about anything, can even just be your loved family pet without any events or titles. Take a look at these “non conformation” AKC competitions, sports, and events below but keep in mind if you click on them they will take you to AKC website so you will be leaving our site.