Giant Schnauzer

So once again, breeders can be strange and they can have some odd requirements and we can help you sort through that.

But one of the things I want to talk to you about today with breeders If you're looking for a dog that is a working dog, Doberman, for example, a German Shepherd, a Boxer, a Giant Schnauzer, an Airedale, any of these working breeds, one of the things I would think would be really salient to you is to find a breeder that actually trains dogs okay i know that sounds really weird a breeder that trains dogs or at least on the level of a strong hobbyist in other words let's say you were looking for a beagle and the breeder didn't know anything about barn hunts didn't know anything about the things that you know beagles are good at and didn't have any experience training a dog so how would you know this is the question that i ask how would you know as a breeder that you're producing a good specimen of that breed if you didn't know what the temperament was supposed to be like and how would you know what the temperament is supposed to be like if you didn't actually train them okay so that's one of the first things i think you should look for in a breeder is a breeder that is enthusiastic they love this breed they're engaged with this breed they go to activities where the breed can shine so if you bought a golden retriever and they didn't know anything about training a dog to retrieve wow what are they breeding for and so sometimes that's the first question you want to ask is what is it that you're breeding for what is the purpose of your breeding program so if the answer is oh i just wanted to make some money selling puppies Move on.

The answer is I want to improve the breed.

I love golden retrievers.

I want golden retrievers to be better.

So I'm selecting a dam and a sire that have proven through work that they are better, okay? So it doesn't mean they have to be titled in competition.

It doesn't mean they have to have done everything that some trainers do with their dogs, but it certainly would behoove you to find a breeder that understands what it takes for a dog to get through these competitions, okay? So here at Protection Dog Sales, we breed giant Schnauzers, Dobermans, and German Shepherds and we title in competition all of our breeding stock we think it's important to go to a third person in other words someone who doesn't have a vested interest so you can say are your you know you can ask a breeder are your dogs good at this or that and they go oh yeah he's the best hunting dog ever he's the best working dog he's the best family dog but they don't have any proof they don't have a third party documentation saying yes this dog did this work okay so we think it's important and we hold ourselves to that high standard of proving that the dog can do these competitions where they're being judged by someone who's not on our payroll okay so you know that's a question to ask your breeder what why do you breed dogs what what is your goal and if it's just to make money yeah i'm a capitalist i i don't have a problem with people making money but i think it's important that breeders understand their breed so if it's a working line dog the breeder really, really should have some knowledge of the ability to train.

Because trainability is hereditary.

In this, the first episode of season two of The Better Breeder Chronicles, we have a very special guest.

Today we visit with Sylvia Hammarstrom of Skansen Giant Schnauzers.

Located in Northern California, Sylvia is indisputably the most prolific giant schnauzer breeder in the world.

Starting as a young girl in Sweden over 70 years ago, Sylvia has bred over 1,000 champions.

They don't get sick from raw or anything.

But then most people don't get sick from eating raw either.

Thinking back over your journey in Giant Schnauzers, what are you most proud of?

I am most proud of their health and their beauty, uh, and that I can make so many people so happy.