The Giant Schnauzer was created to be an all around dog specializing in drover work, its early ancestor likely the “bear Schnauzer” of Munich which had long shaggy hair, and may have been crossed with the Wire-haired Pinscher and black Great Danes to acquire power, size, black coloring and shorter hair. These early Schnauzers were known as Oberlanders, Muncheners, Munich Schnauzers, or Russian Bear Schnauzers, but in the end, the name, “Giant Schnauzer” stuck.

The Standard Giant is the oldest of the three Schnauzer breeds, but some believe it was the last to be standardized, probably because in the late 1800’s, there was a drive across Germany to standardize all dog breeds. The dogs were practically unknown outside of Bavaria until the early 1900s, and it wasn’t until the 1930s that the breed made it to the US. Indeed, there wasn’t even an official breed club in America until 1962 when the Giant Schnauzer Club of America was founded. 

The Giant Schnauzer was originally classified by the AKC as a terrier, but in 1945, it was switched to the Working Group because of the breed’s history as a working farm dog.  Giants were considered to be a rare breed until the 1960s with fewer than 50 Giant Schnauzers being registered with the AKC every year to that point. Happily, that changed with the growth of its popularity. The Giant Schnauzer now is considerably more common than it was in the 1960’s, and in 2017, it ranked 80th out of 190 breeds in registrations that year.

As an aside, Schnauzer means “whiskered snout!”

Image: Giant Schnauzer by Judith Stein/
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