American Canine Association

Breeds

German Pinscher


History

It may come as a surprise to many to know that the German Pinscher is not a "miniature Doberman", despite the similar appearance. This breed was first recognized in the early 1800's, and with selective breeding, has become the gorgeous small breed that it is today. This breed is great at hunting small vermin, being a watchdog, family companion and even helping on the farm.

Appearance

The German Pinscher is a small breed dog, with males and females measuring 16-19 inches in height and weighing an average of 25-35 pounds. With a strikingly similar appearance to the Doberman, the German Pinscher has a very triangular shaped head, with two large, triangular shaped ears that stand tall and firm on top. Please note that the German Pinscher has natural ears that are triangular and fall gently, folded alongside of their face. Their two almond shaped eyes are available from a dark brown to black in color. Their muzzle forms into a scissor bite with a proportional nose at the end, generally liver in color or black. This breed has an overall athletic and lean body build. Their tails are typically docked. Their single layer, short haired coat should always demonstrate a natural shine and is available in black and tan, liver/red and tan.

Temperament

Please note that this small breed is known for barking often and may not be the perfect fit for every family due to this. The German Pinscher overall is an excellent small breed choice if you're looking for a very sturdy, strong, courageous, smart and lively breed. This breed is extremely loyal and listens very well if they are able to have stability within their home and a routine. It is very important that rules and boundaries are made for this breed as he or she is young, to show them who is in charge to prevent any behavioral issues stemming from "small dog syndrome". This breed does very well with training and as always we recommend early socialization and obedience class for both the new puppy and owner to learn. Positive reinforcement training methods are the only methods we ever recommend. This breed can do well with other dogs he or she is raised with. This breed would be best in households with older children. Suited for both apartment and country living environments.

Grooming

Daily brushing and bathing when needed. This breed does shed.

Special Notes

Please note that this breed is not for everyone. Fully educate yourself about the German Pinscher personality, needs and health prior to adding one to your family to ensure this is the correct breed for you. Do not add a new dog to your household unless you are able to make a life long physical and financial care commitment. This breed requires a properly fenced in yard or to be outdoors with proper harness and leash at all times. All dogs originate from wolves (Canis Lupus). Each breed of dog was originally created by mixing different breeds together in an effort to bring forth certain characteristics. Once a breeder has created acceptable “breed characteristics” within their bloodline and these “breed characteristics” have shown to be reliably reproduced in the offspring for three (3) generations, the bloodline may be upgraded from the category of “foundation stock” to “pure-bred”. The same “pure-bred” breed standards vary from different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders. Dog DNA testing companies can have accurate results for a specific bloodline of a small colony of dogs. However, there are tens of thousands of different bloodlines in the world which have not yet been tested for marker baseline results by Dog DNA testing companies as of 2017. For this reason Dog DNA testing companies do not guarantee the 100% accuracy of their breed lineage results and will also show different marker results for the same pure-bred breed in different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders.

© 2024 American Canine Association, Inc.