Schnauzer Byte: Choosing a Breeder

When choosing a miniature schnauzer breeder, be sure to take your time.

Do your research. Remember no puppy mills, no backyard breeders.

Two things (out of about 50) to look for in a mini schnauzer breeder:

1. A five year health guarantee against serious genetic defects.

(I'd run away from one-year guarantees, it can take three to five years for some mini schnauzer genetic disorders to present themselves.)

2. The breeder will take back the dog for any reason during its lifetime.

(A sign that the breeder cares about their dogs and not just the money they get for them)

Here are some good breeder criteria, though, they are not mini schnauzer specific.

For your viewing pleasure:

Flickr Pool of Mini Schnauzers

Schnauzer Byte: House Breaking with Bells On

If you are housetraining your Mini Schnauzer and don't have a pet door, check out these Dog Doorbells. Your Mini Schnauzer would ring the bells when they need to go potty, and you would simply let them out (or, if you don't have a fenced-in yard, grab the leash.)

Or the very crafty could probably make their own, since they seem to consist of sleigh bells and ribbon.

Food for a Miniature Schnauzer

A miniature schnauzer's diet is very important in maintaining their health. Mini schnauzers can have endocrine and skin problems, they gain weight easily, and their bodies sometimes have problems digesting fats and certain grains. Although mini schnauzers love table scraps, these really need to be limited. Here is a list of great, really good, and good foods for your mini schnauzer. I compiled this list based on my own experience, vet suggestions, and research online, I'm sure there are more excellent brands out there that I am not familiar with. Choose one that both works for your pet's health and that they enjoy eating:
Continue Reading at our new site: minischnauzerhaus.com

Schnauzer Byte: Barking

Miniature schnauzers are great watchdogs because they inherently bark at anything that moves!!

Be sure to teach your schnauzer to "be quiet" after acknowledging their alert. They learn any command fairly quickly, so this shouldn't be a problem if consistently enforced. A mini schnauzer that is not taught the "quiet" command will never shut up!

The Miniature Schnauzer's Temperament

A mini schnauzer's disposition is not dependent upon its color. Whether black, salt & pepper or black & silver, the mini schnauzer is intelligent, loving and mischievous.

To have a mini schnauzer with the idea temperament, one must be sure to train and socialize the dog. Socialization of a mini schnauzer puppy cannot be emphasized enough, without it the pup can be downright mean to children, strangers and other animals. Also, train your mini schnauzer and stick with the training. Since these little dogs are so intelligent, they are constantly looking for ways to become the alpha of the family. If you let up, and they become alpha, it's a hard road to get back into control of the situation.

When trained and socialized properly, mini schnauzers are the best family companion ever. They are sensitive to your feelings, love to play, love to snuggle, are great with kids, and keep an ear/nose/eye out for who's at the door. Be sure to play with and exercise your mini schnauzer frequently. (A bored mini schnauzer is a destructive mini schnauzer.)

Genetics also have a say in the mini schnauzer's disposition. Be sure to get your pup from a breeder that raised the puppies in their house, and breeds dogs that have good temperaments to start with.

Friday Link Rally

Karen Brittan's "Thinking of Buying a MS Puppy?"
Karen Brittan's "A Few Words about Breeding and Breeders"
Volhard Puppy Aptitude Test
Dogplay.com: Responsible Breeding
Dogplay.com: Guide to a Responsible Breeder
OMG! Who clipped this poor baby's ears??: So bad, they're cute.

Proliferation of NuVet Vitamins

If you start researching for a puppy, you are going to find a lot of breeders are promoting Nuvet vitamins.

After seeing the 40th breeder mentioning these miracle vitamins, I became suspicious. Then, I noticed every breeder has a special, exclusive "code" for the consumer to use to purchase the vitamins. (I smell kickbacks)

It gets worse—some breeders make this brand of vitamin mandatory for the life of their dog, or the health guarantee is void. (Some even stated that this is the only brand formulated for their specific breed.) This seems a bit unscrupulous to me. While I think breeders can, and should, recommend things like veterinarians, vitamins, toys and food brands, why would they demand that only a certain brand be used? Or make a contract contingent upon it? Especially a contract that concerns genetic health!?

(Notes: I can understand a breeder requiring you to give your pup a monthly supplement, but the brand should be your choice. I can understand a breeder requiring you to take your dog for a yearly exam and vaccinations, but the vet should be your choice. I even understand requiring that you feed your dog a premium food, again, the brand should be your choice.)

These vitamins likely are excellent, but that isn't an argument for making them exclusive. Nope—this could be a possible warning flag. Be sure to ask the breeder why they want you to exclusively use those vitamins, how many years their own dogs have been using them, how long is the health guarantee if you give your dog another brand of vitamin, and could they direct you to some articles or clinical studies to support the claims that the vitamins are essential to the dog's good health.

By the way, is anyone out there a fan of NuVet vitamins that isn't some kind of affiliate?