Owning dogs, in particular taking care of the giant schnauzer, is nothing new for people across the globe. Historians theorize dogs were domesticated between twelve thousand and 25,000 years ago—and that all dogs evolved from wolves. Since those days, people have selectively bred more than four hundred breeds, which vary in size from 4-pound teacup poodles all the way up to Irish wolfhounds, whose 3-foot stature has earned them the distinction of tallest canine. However, the most preferred dogs are the non-pedigree dogs—the one-of-a-kind dogs known as mutts. The giant schnauzer is another favorite choice among dog owners. Many owners are misinformed, however, of some of the most important giant schnauzer care tips.
Typical health care cost for the giant schnauzer
The yearly cost of taking care of the giant schnauzer—to include everything from meals and treats, veterinary care, toys and license—could vary between four hundred twenty and seven hundred eighty dollars. This figure doesn’t include capital costs for spay/neuter operations, a collar and leash, dog carrier and a doggie crate. Note: Be sure you have procured all the necessary supplies before you get your giant schnauzer home.
Typical giant schnauzer Care
giant schnauzer Feeding Plan
- giant schnauzer puppies between eight and 12 weeks old need 4 meals in a day.
- Feed giant schnauzer pups 3 to 6 months old three meals in a day.
- Feed pups 6 months old to one year old two times in a 24 hour period.
- When your giant schnauzer hits his 1st birthday, 1 feeding every 24 hours is usually sufficient.
- Some adult giant schnauzers might do better with two smaller servings. It’s your job to adapt to your giant schnauzer’s eating schedule.
Premium-quality dry food ensures balanced nutrition for full-grown giant schnauzers and may be mixed with canned food, broth, or water. Your giant schnauzer may also love cottage cheese, cooked egg, fruits and vegetables, but these foods should not add up to more than 10 pct of his daily allowance. giant schnauzer pups should be fed premium-quality, name brand puppy food. You should try to limit “people food”, however, since it can result in mineral and vitamin imbalances, bone and teeth problems, and might result in some very finicky eating habits and obesity. Give clean, potable water always, and make sure to clean food and water dishes daily.
giant schnauzer Care Tips: Your giant schnauzer needs exercise daily
giant schnauzers need exercise so they can stay fit, stimulate their minds, and maintain their health. Exercise also seems to help giant schnauzers avoid boredom, which has the potential to lead to destructive behavior. Getting out and about will satisfy many of your giant schnauzer’s instinctual urges to retrieve, dig, chew, chase and herd. Individual exercise needs are dependent on your giant schnauzer’s age and her level of health—but 10 minutes in the backyard and a couple of walks down the street every day probably will not cut it. If your giant schnauzer is a 6 to eighteen month adolescent, his requirements will be more.
giant schnauzer Grooming Tips
You can help keep your giant schnauzer clean and reduce shedding with brushing. Check for fleas and ticks every day during warm weather. Many giant schnauzers don’t need to be bathed more than a few times a year. Before the bath, cut out or comb all mats from the giant schnauzer’s coat. Rinse all soap out of the coat, or dirt will stick to the soap.
Handling Your giant schnauzer
Puppies, as opposed to adults, are obviously easier to manage. To carry your giant schnauzer pup, put one of your hands beneath the dog’s chest, with either your forearm or your other hand supporting her back legs and rump. Don’t ever try to lift or grab your puppy by his forelegs, tail or back of the neck. When you must lift a larger, adult giant schnauzer, lift from underneath, bracing his or her chest with 1 of your arms and rump with your other.
giant schnauzer housing
Your giant schnauzer needs a warm quiet place to rest apart from all drafts and off the ground. You may want to buy a doggie bed, or prefer making one from a wooden box. Put a clean sheet, comforter, blanket, or pillow inside the bed for cushion. Wash your giant schnauzer’s bedding often. If the giant schnauzer will be outdoors much, make sure she has access to covering and plenty of cool water in hot weather, and a covered, warm, dry area during the winter.
giant schnauzer Licensing
Your town has licensing regulations to follow. Be sure you attach the license to your giant schnauzer’s collar. This, together with an identification tattoo, will most likely help you recover your giant schnauzer if she happens to go missing.
giant schnauzer Behavior Facts
Training giant schnauzers
A well-behaved, companion giant schnauzer is a joy to own. But left untrained, your giant schnauzer will most likely be trouble. Training your giant schnauzer on the standards—”Heel”, “Off”, “Sit”, “Stay”, “Come”, “Down”, and “Leave it”—will strengthen your relationship with both the dog as well as your house guests. If you have a pup, start teaching him or her the appropriate responses as fast as you can! Use treats as recognition and incentive. Puppies should be enrolled in obedience courses when they are adequately vaccinated. Call the community humane society or SPCA for details on obedience courses. You should always walk your giant schnauzer leashed in public, even as a puppy. Just be certain your doggie will come back to you at all times whenever you say the word. An aggressive or disobedient giant schnauzer should not play with kids.
About your giant schnauzer’s Health
giant schnauzers should see the vet for a thorough examination, immunizations and heartworm exam annualy, and promptly if he is ill or hurt.
Your giant schnauzer’s Dental Health
Although we may simply dislike our giant schnauzer’s bad breath, we should be aware of what it might be telling us. Foul breath usually means that your giant schnauzer needs a dental screening. Plaque due to unhealthy bacteria causes a terrible odor that can only be cured with the help of a professional. After you give your giant schnauzer a cleaning from a professional, his gums and teeth may be maintained by feeding a special diet focused on dental health, eliminating table food, and regular brushing. The veterinarian can show you additional data on reducing oral problems and halitosis. You should clean the giant schnauzer’s teeth using a dog paste or a paste made of baking soda and water twice weekly. Clean them with a nylon pantyhose stretched across the finger, a gauze pad, or a soft, child’s toothbrush. Periodontal disease, also known as gum disease, sometimes affects giant schnauzers. This dreadful condition can possibly initiate loss of teeth and also spread infection throughout her body. The doctor will sometimes clean your giant schnauzer’s teeth in the typical health screening.
Halitosis in giant schnauzers
Even though oral disease itself is not a serious threat if caught early enough, bad breath may indicate fairly serious, chronic issues. Liver or intestinal diseases can also cause halitosis, while a fruity, sweet smell can be a sign of diabetes. If your giant schnauzer’s breath smells like urine or ammonia, kidney disease might be the cause. Whenever you find your giant schnauzer has halitosis along with other symptoms of ill health, like loss of appetite, nausea, loss of weight, bad mood, increased drinking or urinating, set an appointment with the doctor.
giant schnauzer Flea and Tick Issues
Regular, daily inspections of your giant schnauzer for fleas and ticks in the warm seasons are vital. Find fleas using a flea comb. There are many new procedures of tick management. Talk with your giant schnauzer’s doctor about her or his options.
Heartworm problems in giant schnauzers
This parasite resides in the heart and is passed from a contaminated dog to your giant schnauzer by way of mosquitoes. Many giant schnauzers die yearly from heartworms. Your giant schnauzer should have a blood test for heartworms every spring—this is important for catching infestations from the earlier year. A monthly pill given throughout mosquito season will protect your giant schnauzer. Your giant schnauzer should be on heartworm medication throughout a winter trip to a warmer climate. In some milder climates, vets recommend preventive heartworm medication be taken continuously.
Medicines and Toxins
Remember to never give your giant schnauzer medication that has not been prescribed by his vet. For example, did you know that one regular-strength ibuprofen pill will cause ulcers in some dogs Make sure your giant schnauzer is never exposed to rat poison and other rodenticides. If you have reason to suspect your pooch has consumed a poisonous substance, call your vet or the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435 twenty-four hours per day for assistance.
Neutering and Spaying giant schnauzers
It is recommended that female giant schnauzers be spayed—which is the removal of the ovaries and uterus—and males neutered—extraction of the testes—by six months of age. You will usually greatly reduce your female giant schnauzer’s chance of breast cancer by spaying prior to maturity. Spaying also eradicates the risk of a diseased uterus, a traumatic problem in more mature females that demands surgery and intensive medical care. Prostate diseases, testicular cancer, certain aggressive behavior and some hernias are preventable by neutering male giant schnauzers.
giant schnauzer Shots
- The combo vaccine (also known as the “5-in-one shot”) needs to be given to your giant schnauzer at two, three, and 4 months old and again once annually. This innoculation immunizes your giant schnauzer puppy from hepatitis, leptospirosis, parvovirus, parainfluenza, and distemper. The giant schnauzer must be vaccinated for at least the first 4 months of his life.
- If you have the rare giant schnauzer who has not been immunized and is older than four or five months, she must have a set of two immunizations given 2 or 3 weeks apart, followed by a yearly innoculation.
- giant schnauzer pup socialization and innoculation should coincide. Many veterinarians advise that new owners bring their giant schnauzer pups to socialization classes, as early as 8 or 9 weeks of age. At this point, they should have received at least their first immunizations.
Because rules vary so much around the country, call your neighborhood vet to get information about rabies shots. In New York City, for example, the rule requires any pets older than 3 months of age to be vaccinated for rabies. The initial rabies immunization must be followed up by another vaccination the following year, and then every three years. There are several innoculations, many of which are effective for your giant schnauzer. Others, however, are not. Your vet can give you his recommendation. Another thing, if your giant schnauzer gets ill because she is not vaccinated, the immunization must be taken after your pet fully recovers.
Hookworms in giant schnauzers
giant schnauzers are often exposed to worms and possible infestation—in all areas, both rural and urban. Microscopic eggs produced by roundworms and hookworms are passed in an infected dog’s stool. Most pups, even from healthy mothers in good homes, carry hookworms or roundworms. The key to treatment is early diagnosis. Early, accurate diagnosis maximizes the possibility that prescribed medication will be effective against your dog’s worms. A dewormer that eliminates roundworms, for example, will not kill tapeworms. Your giant schnauzer’s doctor can best define the culprit—and assign the most effective treatment.
giant schnauzer Care Tips: Additional Information
Checklist of giant schnauzer Supplies
- Top-quality dog food and treats specifically for giant schnauzers and similarly-sized dogs
- Food bowl
- Water dish
- As many safe toys as you can provide, especially chewable
- Brush & comb for grooming, including flea comb
- Collar with identification tag and license
- Leash
- Dog carrier (for puppies)
- Crate for training
- Dog bed or box with quilt or towel
- Dog toothbrush
Warnings to be Heeded
Never, ever feed your giant schnauzer the following:
- Alcoholic beverages
- Chocolate
- Raisins or grapes
- Spoiled or moldy food of any kind
- Onions, garlic and chives
- Bones of chicken, turkey, or any other animal (choking hazard)
- Salt & salty foods
- Tomato leaves, unripe fruit and stems
- Dough
The scoop on poop
Keep your giant schnauzer on a leash whenever you are outdoors, unless you are in a fenced-in, secured spot. When your giant schnauzer goes #2 on your neighbor’s lawn, on the sidewalk or any other public space, please remove and dispose of it! Don’t forget to check out these other articles about giant schnauzers
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