Breed of the Week: Schnauzer

From Wikipedia: A Schnauzer (German pronunciation: [ˈʃnaʊʦɐ̯], English: /ˈʃnaʊʦə/; plural Schnauzers) is a German dog type that originated in Germany in the 15th and 16th centuries.^[1] The term comes from Schnauze , the German word for "snout",^[2] because of the dog's distinctively bearded snout. The word Schnauzer also means moustache in German;

Schnauzers come in three sizes: miniature, standard and giant.

Very rarely do I ever see the giant version, though they are very nice dogs. 

The smaller versions are also generally nice however, in 13 years of clinical practice I've been bitten by dogs only a handful of times (none seriously thank God) but two of them were schnauzers who gave me NO warning and just clamped on to my hand. One of these dogs was flat out and nearly dying with severe anemia - did NOT expect it from him as I went to check on him in his cage. 

They are prone to some specific health issues:

1. Obesity - yep, another breed to add to this

2. Hyperlipidemia - they tend to have "fatty" blood even when

    they are at a good weight. This can interfere with some

    blood tests but what is NOT known is if this predisposes

    them to or indicates they are more likely to get 3  & 4 :

3. Diabetes - very common in this breed as they get older

    (>7 yrs) - of course, more so in the overweight dogs

4. Pancreatitis - when a schnauzer comes with GI signs (or 

    ANY "not feeling right" complaints), I

    ALWAYS have this on my list. This breed can get

    pancreatitis if you look at them the wrong way. Ok, maybe

    not THAT easy. The ones that do get it often have relapses

    of it and the owners are usually aware and bring them

    right in.

5. Schnauzer Comedo Syndrome -basically like little

    blackheads all over the dog's skin - nothing serious

    sometimes treated with shampoos/antibiotics or what we

    call "benign neglect" - in other words doing nothing. 

6. The Giant version is prone to what many large breed dogs are: bloat (GDV) and hip dysplasia

They are generally cute and lively dogs that do require regular grooming. In my experience, most clients that get one, stay loyal to the breed.