The origin of the breed name "Schnauzer" is not known, nor is it known when it came into use. The German word means '
snout', while both and mean 'walrus moustache'. The word appears in the
Bilder und Sagen aus der Schweiz of
Jeremias Gotthelf, published in 1842. 'Schnauz' was a common name for a dog – several dogs with this name were shown in
Elberfeld in 1880. At the third international
dog show of the
Verein zur Veredelung der Hunderassen in
Hanover in 1879, a dog named 'Schnautzer' took first place in the Rauche Pinscher or Wire-haired Pinscher class. Schnauzers originated in southern Germany and share a common history with the
German Pinscher. 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
ratters. 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 , and the first
breed standard 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, and the
Affenpinscher. Also in 1895, a
breed society, the Pinscherklub, was established for both types, both rough- and smooth-haired. Another society, the Schnauzerklub München, was formed in
Munich in 1907 by breeders of the Mittelschnauzer. In 1917, with the sixth edition of the
stud-book, 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. The Giant Schnauzer was originally bred as a multipurpose farm dog for guarding property and driving animals to market. By the turn of the 20th century it was being used as a
watchdog at factories,
breweries,
butcheries, and
stockyards throughout Bavaria. The breed was unknown outside Bavaria until it was used as a military dog in
World War I and
World War II. The first Giant Schnauzers were imported to America in the 1930s, but they remained rare until the 1960s, when the breed became popular. In 1962, there were 23 new Giant Schnauzers registered with the
American Kennel Club; in 1974 this number was 386; in 1984 it was over 800 and in 1987 it was around 1000 animals. In modern times, the Giant Schnauzer is used as a
police dog; is trained for
obedience,
dog agility,
herding,
search and rescue, and
Schutzhund; and is shown in
conformation shows. The focus in many European Schnauzer clubs is not so much on
conformation shows, but on the working ability of the breed. In several countries, including Germany, dogs must achieve a
Schutzhund Champion title before they can qualify to be a conformation champion. == Characteristics ==