Standard Schnauzer Breed Information

General Appearance: The Standard Schnauzer is a robust, heavy-set dog, sturdily built with good muscle and plenty of bone; square-built in proportion of body-length to height. His nature combines high spirited temperament with extreme reliability. His rugged build and dense harsh coat are accentuated by the hallmark of the breed, the arched eyebrows, bristly mustache, and luxuriant whiskers.

Head: Strong, rectangular, and elongated; narrowing slightly from the ears to the eyes and again to the tip of the nose. The total length of the head is about one-half the length of the back measured from the withers to the set-on of the tail. The head matches the sex and substance of the dog. The top line of the muzzle is parallel with the top line of the skull. There is a slight stop which is accentuated by the wiry brows.

Skull (Occiput to stop): Moderately broad between the ears with the width of the skull not exceeding two-thirds the length of the skull. The skull must to flat; neither domed nor bumpy; skin unwrinkled

Cheeks: Well-developed chewing muscles, but not so much that cheekiness disturbs the rectangular head form

Muzzle: Strong, and both parallel and equal in length to the top skull; it ends in a moderately blunt wedge with wiry whiskers accenting the rectangular shape of the head. Nose is large, black and full. The lips should be black, tight, and not overlapping.

Eyes: Medium size, dark brown, oval in shape and turned forward; neither round nor protruding. The brow is arched and wiry, but vision is not impaired, nor are eyes hidden by too long an eyebrow.

Bite: A full complement of white teeth, with a strong scissor bite. The canine teeth are strong and well developed with the upper incisors slightly overlapping and engaging the lower. The upper and lower jaws are powerful and neither overshot nor undershot. FAULTS- A level bite is considered undesirable but a lesser fault than an overshot or undershot.

Ears: Evenly shaped, set high and carried erect when cropped. If un-cropped, they are small, V-shaped button ears of moderate thickness and carried rather high and close to the head.

Neck: Strong, of moderate thickness and length, elegantly arched and blending cleanly into the shoulders. The skin is tight, fitting closely to the dry throat with no wrinkles or dewlaps.

Shoulders: The sloping shoulder blades are strongly muscled, yet flat and well laid back so that the rounded upper ends are in a nearly vertical line about the elbows. They slope well forward to the point where they join the upper arm, forming as nearly as possible a right angle when seen from the side. Such angulations permits the maximum forward extension of the forelegs without binding or effort

Chest: Of medium width with well-spring ribs, and if it could be seen in cross-section, would be oval. The breastbone is plainly discernible. The brisket must descend at least to the elbows and ascend gradually to the rear of the belly moderately drawn up.

Body: Compact, strong, short-coupled and substantial so as to permit great flexibility and agility. The height at the highest point of the withers equals the length from the breastbone to the point of rump. FAULTS-Too slender or shelly; too bulky or coarse; excessive tuck-up.

Back: Strong, stiff, straight and short with a well developed loin section; the distance from the last rib to the hips as short as possible. The top line of the back shot not be absolutely horizontal, but should have a slightly descending slop from the first vertebra of the withers to the faintly curved croup and set-on of the tail.

Forelegs: Straight, vertical and without any curvature when seen from all sides; set moderately far apart, with heavy bone; elbows set close to the body and pointing directly to the rear.

Hindquarters: Strongly muscled, in balance with the forequarters, never appearing higher than the shoulders. Croup full and slightly rounded. Thighs are broad with well-bent stifles. The second thigh, from knee to hock, is approximately parallel with an extension of the upper-neck line.

Feet: Small and compact, rounded with thick pads and strong black nails. The toes are well closed and arched (cat's paws) and pointing straight ahead. Dewclaws on the forelegs may be removed.

Tail: Set moderately high and carried erect. It is docked to not less than One inch or more than Two inches. FAULTS: Squirrel tail.

Height: Ideal height at the highest point of the shoulder blades is 18.5 to 19.5 inches for males and 17.5 to 18 .5 inches for females. Dogs measuring over or under these limits must be faulted in proportion to the extent of the deviation. Dogs measuring more than one-half inch over or under these limits must be disqualified.

Coat: Tight, hard, wiry and as thick as possible, composed of soft, close undercoat and a harsh outer coat which, when seen against the grain, s ands up off the back, lying neither smooth or flat. The outer coat (body coat) is trimmed (by plucking) only to accent the body outline. When in show condition, the outer coat's proper length is approximately 1 .5 inches, except on the ears, head, neck, chest, belly, and under the tail where it may be closely trimmed to give the desired typical appearance of the breed. On the muzzle and over the eyes, the coat lengthens to form luxuriant beard and eyebrows; the hair on the legs is longer then that on the body. These furnishings should be harsh texture and should not be so profuse as to detract from the neat appearance or working capabilities of the dog. FAULTS - Soft, smooth, curly, wavy or shaggy; too long or too short; too sparse or lacking undercoat; excessive furnishings; lack of furnishings.

Color: Pepper and salt or pure black

Pepper and Salt: The typical pepper and salt color of the topcoat results from the combination of black and white hairs, and white hairs banded with black. Acceptable are all shades of pepper and salt from dark iron-gray to silver gray. Ideally, pepper and salt Standard Schnauzers have a gray undercoat, but a tan or fawn undercoat is not to be penalized. It is desirable to have a darker facial mash that harmonizes with the particular shade of coat color. Also, in pepper and salt dogs, the pepper and salt mixture may fade out to light gray or silver white in the eyebrows, whiskers, cheeks, under the throat, across chest, under tail, leg furnishings, under body and inside legs.

Black: Ideally the black Standard Schnauzer should be a true rich color, free from any fading or discoloration or any mixture of gray or tan hairs. The undercoat should also be solid black. However, increased age or continued exposure to the sun may cause a certain amount of fading and burning. A small white smudge on the chest is not a fault. Loss of color as a result of scars from cuts and bits is not a fault.

Color faults: Any colors other than specified, and any shadings or mixtures thereof in the topcoat such as rust, brown, red, yellow or tan; absences of peppering; spotting or striping; a black streak down the back; or a black saddle without typical salt and pepper coloring-and gray hairs in the coat of a black; in blacks, any undercoat color other than black.

Gait: Sound, strong, quick, free, true, and level gait with powerful, well-angulated hindquarters that reach out and cover ground. The forelegs reach out in a stride balancing that of the hindquarters. At a trot, the back remains firm and level, without swaying, rolling or roaching. When viewed from the rear, the feet, though they may appear to travel close when trotting, must not cross or strike. Increased speed causes feet to converge toward the center line of gravity. FAULTS - crabbing or weaving, padding, rolling, swaying, short, choppy, stiff, stilted, rear action; front legs that throw out or in (East and West movers), hackney gait, crossing over, striking in front or rear.

FAULTS: Any deviation from the specifications in the Standard is to be considered a fault and should be penalized in proportion to the extent of the deviation. In weighing the seriousness of a fault, greatest consideration should be given to deviation from the desired alert, highly intelligent, spirited, reliable character of the Standard Schnauzer, and Secondly, to any deviation that detracts from the Standard Schnauzer's desired general appearance of a robust, active, square-built, wire coated dog. Dogs that are shy or appear to be highly nervous should be seriously faulted and dismissed from the ring. Vicious dogs shall be disqualified.

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