Standard Schnauzer is originated from Germany but St. John's Water Dog is originated from Canada. Both Standard Schnauzer and St. John's Water Dog are having almost same height. Standard Schnauzer may weigh 15 kg / 33 pounds lesser than St. John's Water Dog. Standard Schnauzer may live 4 years more than St. John's Water Dog. Standard Schnauzer may have more litter size than St. John's Water Dog. Standard Schnauzer requires High Maintenance. But St. John's Water Dog requires Low Maintenance
Coming out of Germany in the 14th and 15th century is the Standard Schnauzer or Mittelschnauzer. Both the Giant Schnauzer and Miniature Schnauzer are descendants of the Standard Schnauzer. The first name for this breed was the Wire-haired Pinscher until 1879. The breed is a working breed that is popular in Europe and was first in a dog show in 1879 in Hanover, Germany. In 1997 they won Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club in New York.
These medium size Schnauzers were bred in the Middle Ages to be versatile in working and herding in Germany. There seems to be artwork from the 14th through the 16th centuries featuring this breed of dog as a hunter. It is believed that the common ancestors of the Standard Schnauzer is the German Pinscher and the gray Wolf Spitz, along with the black German Poodle and the Bolognese.
It was 1850 when the breed gained recognition as a purebred with distinct and recognizable features. Those are not all the same features that the dogs of today show. These dogs had thick hair on their face, a double coat that is wiry, and their tails were cropped. These dogs were initially Wire-haired German Pinscher then in 1879, a dog named Schnauzer won Best in Show in Hanover. By 1900, the breed was being called Schnauzer everywhere.
The first breed standard was written under the Wire-haired German Pinscher name in the early 1880’s. This standard allowed for a lot of different colors, but the salt and pepper of today was not introduced until the late 1800’s. Then the standard was rewritten in 1907 for the Standard Schnauzer with this as the dominant color.
The first official Standard Schnauzer imported to the United States came in 1905 even though there is a claim that one competed in the 1899 Westminster Kennel Club in the Miscellaneous Class. Following the first World War, the breed became increasingly popular in the States. At that time the US club was called the Wire-haired Pinscher Club of America in 1925. Both standard and miniature sized schnauzer are included in this club.
The breeds were separated in 1933 and became the Standard Schnauzer Club of America and classified by the American Kennel Club as part of the Working Group. In 1926 they moved the Standard Schnauzer to the Terrier Group. By 1926 the Schnauzer Club of Great Britain was formed.
The breed known as the St. John’s water dog is an extinct landrace breed. They were domestic dogs found in Newfoundland and at times were called the lesser Newfoundland. There is not much information available about the other breeds that went into its development. Hypothetically it is believed they are a mix of the Irish, Old English and Portuguese dogs bred to work.
It is also thought that other breeds in their family tree, descending from them, include the Golden Retriever, the Flat-Coated Retriever, the Chesapeake Bay Retriever, the Labrador and the Curly-Coated Retriever. The Newfoundland is also related to the St. Johns Water Dog through the line of Rafeirio do Alenteios that Portuguese fisherman brought to the island.
The breed was exported to England in the 19th century and early 20th. There the breeds of retrievers were developed. In Canada during this time frame restrictions were placed on dog ownership in order to encourage people to raise sheep. At the same time England imposed a long quarantine on all animals coming into the country in order to get rid of rabies. These two factors contributed greatly to the extinction of the breed. It seems the last two dogs were seen in a remote area in the 1980’s. All attempts to save the breed failed.
Today’s Standard Schnauzer is a square, robust, medium sized dog. The breed boasts heavy eyebrows and thick beards. They are salt and pepper or black and their coat is wiry and stiff. The breed have excellent muscle tone and a body in proportion height to length. Their build is rugged, and coat is dense.
St. John’s Water Dog is strong, medium sized and stocky. They looked more like English Labs than American Labs. They had a thick, short coat, loved swimming, had a lot of endurance and rudder tail. It was also described as a thin, black dog with short hair. They had white patches on their chest and feet. His nose was thin and tapered, his legs powerful, his chest muscular. The breed is quick, swims, runs quickly and is a fighter as well.
Never accepted by any major kennel club except as a foundation breed. They became extinct.
There are a couple of major hereditary health issues faced by the Standard Schnauzer.
There is no documented history of any genetic or hereditary illnesses in the breed. However, it seems rational to believe they suffered from ailments similar to Labradors and newfoundland though they are smaller dogs.
1Feeding the puppy: At 8-12 weeks feed four times a day. At 3 to 6 months feed three times a day. At 6 to 12 months feed twice a day.
4. Games and Exercises – The breed is extremely athletic and needs daily exercise. They are playful with dogs and people and they are family dogs. They want to go wherever you go. Hiking, running, jogging and organized activities.
They are great at obedience, agility, flyball, disc dog, herding and tracking. They have also been involved in search and rescue, bomb detection, and cancer detection.
1Feeding the puppy – Don’t overfeed – they have a propensity toward obesity. Feed high quality, high protein 3 x a day.
2.Feeding the adult – Don’t overfeed. Feed a high quality, high protein 1-2 x a day.
4. Games and Exercises – They need space to run and they love to explore. They would also love to be near water where they could swim. Good at dock diving, field trials, flyball and frisbee.