Happily Ever After Schnauzer Stories

As a breeder, we have different types of moms, you have some that you expect to throw you curveballs, and then you have the ones that are textbook. Intellectually you know that there is always the possibility of complications. Statistically, if you have enough deliveries, there will be a loss, a c-section, and something going awry. Lolly is one of our moms that you expect a textbook delivery. This would be because that is what she has always done. Most litters of puppies make their entrance into this world at our home. Last week, this wasn’t the case with Lolly. Having a difficult delivery, she had to be taken to our vet for intervention. Lolly arrived in the vet office after several hours of labor without producing a puppy. Assessment by the vet with an x-ray found a stuck puppy that was awaiting delivery.

The vet successfully delivered the newborn via Cesarean section. Although we sought medical care at just the right time, other dog families may not know the signs of labor in a dog and when to seek emergency care. This is why we encourage new breeders to have a mentor. It’s hard to know when you need to see the vet and when you just need to let nature take its course. All the rules have exemptions. A cesarean section is a major surgery to remove puppies from the uterus. Most dogs recover quickly from this procedure; however, if your dog was in labor for several hours before surgery was performed, her recovery will be slower. She will need extra attention and help with her litter. Thankfully, our vet uses gas to help keep the amount of general anesthesia to a minimum, allowing the mom to wake quickly unless there are complications with the delivery, i.e., too much bleeding, or worst case scenario needing a ovariohysterectomy. Either way, the mother will have been given an anesthetic that is eliminated from her body relatively quickly. Most dogs are raising their heads about the time they arrive at home, with Lolly, this was the case when she was on the way home. Complete recovery from anesthetic may take 2-6 hours, depending on the mom’s condition at the time of surgery, and another factor is her age. In this case, Lolly just turned four years old.

During the recovery period, she must be restrained so that she does not fall and hurt herself or roll over and crush the puppies. The puppies should not be left alone with her until she is completely awake and coordinated. If you watched the Facebook Live that I did after her surgery last Saturday, I explained that I had to watch her for another hour for the puppy’s safety. The puppies should be ready to nurse as soon as they arrive home. Although the mother will not be awake enough to handle the nursing alone, it is still possible for you to assist the process by making her lie still so the puppies can nurse. This was what we did with Lolly and her puppies.If the mother does not have any milk at first, you may supplement the puppies for the first day or two. There are several good commercial canine milk replacers available. We choose to make our own high-calorie formula with all the nutrients needed for the puppies to thrive. Nursing bottles are available, made in the appropriate size for tiny mouths. We use tube feeding or the miracle nipple here at Happily Ever After. Although we prefer that puppies begin nursing immediately, a healthy newborn can survive nicely for up to 12 hours without nursing. However, if the newborn is weak, dehydrated, or chilled, nourishment must be given very soon. With Lolly, she did not have her milk in yet; it came in the following evening. Since Cleo had babies, we sat with her and allowed Lolly’s puppies to nurse from her. This worked wonderfully.

Unfortunately, before her c-section, Lolly had given birth to two stillborn puppies. Unfortunately, it is common for one or more puppies to be stillborn or die shortly after birth. Not in every litter, but it happens more than breeders would like to admit. This blog aims to share our journey and the good, bad, and ugly with our followers. Some of you are wanting to learn, so we use this blog as a way to teach. So this is what to do if your dog gave birth to a dead puppy; she has to know that her puppy is dead. This allows her to not have anxiety and be continually searching for her baby. Please also be aware that the process of decomposition begins immediately after death. Leaving a decaying body with the mother and the live puppies is very dangerous. Therefore, do not allow the other puppies to contact the dead body. While you need to make sure that the mother is aware that her puppy is gone, allow the mother to spend no longer than fifteen minutes with the body before removing it. Removing a dead puppy quickly from the mother, especially before she realizes it is dead, can cause distress to the dam. She may become agitated and try to bite you, or she may panic and try to find her puppy. To avoid despair and panic, allow her to see and smell the dead puppy before quietly removing it.Suppose it has been more than 15 minutes since the puppy has died, and the mom is not aware that the puppy is dead. In that case, it is advisable to remove the dead puppy quietly while she is busy caring for the live puppies. There are times that the mother should not have contact with her dead baby. Suppose the dog gave birth to a dead puppy whose body is ruptured or severely damaged. In that case, it may have harmful bacteria on the surface. It should be removed immediately to avoid contact with the mother or the other puppies. *Graphic alert* Some mother dogs, especially inexperienced ones, may have an instinctual drive to eat their dead puppy. Although this behavior is uncommon, here are the signs to watch for; the dam may show signs of agitation and start overzealous grooming and licking of the dead puppy if it is going to happen. Finally, she will begin biting it. If you see any of these signs, remove the dead puppy straight away as the consumption of it is unsafe for the mother. We also give extra calcium during and after delivery to help avoid this behavior. Other moms may attempt to bury the puppy in her bedding. Or she may try to remove her dead puppy by pushing it to the outside of her bedding area. If the mother dog is trying to clear the bedding area by burying the dead puppy or pushing it outside the area. In that case, It is advisable to let her do it. Once she is no longer paying attention to it, quietly removed the dead puppy with disposable gloves.I hope that information is helpful. The current status of Lolly now that it has been 8 days since her c-section, she is doing well and healing nicely. Her stitches come out in a few more days. We sadly lost all but the puppy that was born by cesarean section. As I mentioned above, when a puppy has died in utero, it immediately starts decaying. I believe that all the puppies she had after the two dead puppies got bacteria onto the others. They died very quickly after birth. Being a breeder is not for the faint of heart. You truly have to love it. There are good days and abysmal days. I love what I do, and I adore my dogs and all the families with beautiful pets that are now a part of our ever-growing HEA farms family. I will continue to update everyone on Lolly and her sweet little boy. Prayers, please, that he continues to thrive and grow!

I must say, I love summer! The days are slightly easier going, and I enjoy the heat of North Carolina. I know most people do not like humidity, but I’m different, and that’s good because I spend a lot of time outdoors. We have had baby chicks, a peacock, and six new guineas on the farm this summer. There will be three turkeys this month as well.

This summer hasn’t been too busy with litters of puppies being born, although, whoa, our fall will be so hectic. We are so thankful that Marvel has completely healed. We had her antibiotics and pain medication from our vet and could irrigate the wound with saline, and within ten days, it was just pink. That still amazes me. I am happy to report that there have been no significant injuries since Marvel, but let me knock on wood!

We have been very busy breeding the last few weeks—some of them our dogs and some from other breeders. We offer stud services and whelping services here. Stud service is where a person either pays a fee or trades a puppy in exchange. The female is brought to the male because it’s a much more successful mating when the male is comfortable in his home environment. They breed between four and five days, once per day. We will not know whether the mating results in pregnancy for several weeks. When we provide whelping services, sometimes, they are combined with stud service, and other times we are just getting the momma 10-14 days before her due date. (63 days after first mating) We take her to our vet for a prenatal visit and X-ray 5-7 days before her due date. This vet visit accomplishes several things; one is to make sure that we know how many puppies we are expecting. If she is pregnant with five pups and only three or four are born, we know that she needs medical intervention. The second is that we know if the due date is accurate. Is she ahead or behind of where we think. The third is the size of the puppies; we want them to be similar. If one is much larger, this may or may not be a problem. Also, you can have an issue with the puppy count and size if there are only one or two puppies. They get all the nutrients and can grow too big to be born naturally. The fourth thing the visit accomplishes is it allows the vet to get a good picture of mom and pregnancy. She gets a complete exam to make sure we know she is completely healthy, and there is nothing to address now or after she gives birth. Once the mom gives birth to her puppies, we raise them following all of our puppy protocols. We then, if our male was used as a stud, find the perfect home for them. If a stud from HEA was not used, we return the puppies at seven weeks to the mother’s owner, with the momma, of course! For them to find homes. The service is needed and used by some for several reasons. Sometimes it is a person who has breeding rights for their dog but isn’t a breeder and wants their pet to have a litter of puppies. Other times it may be a new breeder who wants to learn and needs us to help teach them, and they do not yet own a male. There are other reasons, but those are the most common. Please feel free to contact us with any questions. We enjoy teaching and sharing our journey.

We have some new males coming, and I cannot wait to share pictures. One of them is a non-fading black male. He is health tested and gorgeous. I am very much looking forward to seeing babies from him and our female Salem. She is a non-fading black as well! I am so excited for August and September! It’s funny because I celebrate my birthday in a few days and we are huge on birthdays here at the farm! I could skip it to see these upcoming babies. We have some beautiful litters of puppies due, and I enjoy sharing the cuteness. We will have minis, toys, and teacups. It will be a rainbow of schnauzer colors here at HEA, and I cannot wait.

Today is one of those days… Our very first experience with acute mastitis. It’s one thing you always hope doesn’t happen. Unfortunately, our poor Marvel did.

***WARNING GRAPHIC PHOTOS BELOW**** Yesterday we noticed that her teat was swollen and red, so we immediately began treatment. One of the first steps in at-home treatment is cabbage leaves, and since she was no longer nursing, we also started Benedryl. This is to help dry up her milk. This morning was no better at all; in fact, it was worse. We knew it was a vet emergency. We called our vet, and thankfully we have a great relationship, so they worked us in after lunch. We saw that not only was her teat swollen, but it was a bluish-black color which was an extreme change from the day before.

When we spoke to the vet, our worst fears were confirmed. It needed to be drained immediately. We also asked for fluids which they were happy to oblige since she was not eating or drinking. They wanted to do blood work to check how her body was doing, and we agreed. Her white blood cells were elevated as you would expect, but we were pleased that she was not anemic. Everything else looked good. After draining the infection, the vet said that it is the worse bacteria called gamma negative, and we would be doing pain killers and the heaviest hitting antibiotic they could do. They told us that her teat would rupture, and there were another three places that she suspected were affected, and those could also rupture. Our go-home instructions were a cone of shame, honey on sterile gauze, and her body wrapped in an ace bandage.We need to do heat compresses twice a day to help it drain and her meds. We will have to watch her very closely for the next several days. We aren’t out of the dark yet. We want to be sure that she doesn’t become septic or develop any other issues.

This is an example of why you need a mentor when you start breeding. So many things can go wrong or become dangerous very quickly if you do not know what you are doing. I knew what I was looking for and when it was dangerous. I have a great working relationship with my vet to get the care I need when I need it. If anyone has questions or ever needs help, please send us a message; we want to help other breeders and pet owners whenever we can. I will tell you if I don’t know the answer, but I will also help you find it.

No worries everyone; I still love being a breeder. And in all honesty it’s the rough times that make the good times so sweet. The saying that goes, “you can’t have a rainbow without rain”, rings very true when it comes to breeding. For those that aren’t aware of how things went with Cruella and her litter here’s the story.

Our Valentine’s Day started out with a bang! Cruella gave birth to 10 puppies. One sadly, was a stillborn and another we lost shortly after. And in this litter we had a sweet cute little girl, who we affectionately called tripod. She was born congenitally missing a leg. Although the leg was not very much of a concern. Dogs are able to live a wonderful life without a leg, they adapt very well. But she also had a bulge on her stomach that we weren’t sure what was going on and the fact that you could see her heartbeat in her chest was also disconcerting. We had suspicion of skeletal deformity but she was still doing well. She also wasn’t the smallest in the litter, so we were going to get to work. We started tube feeding her because she was unable to latch on her own. Tube feeding is easier than using a bottle and also less chance of complications, such as aspiration which is your biggest concern with newborn puppies because if they get any milk or formula in their lungs they will not survive. The other part of tube feeding that is also comforting to a breeder as you know exactly how much they each time. I did not have what I needed for tube feeding and I was very thankful to my friend Amanda at Nightingale Schnauzers who immediately told me he just go ahead head over to my house and I will get you set up. So Sunday night in the rain storm that we have had here in North Carolina, literally five days in a row of rain. I drove an hour to her house and got what I needed and brought tripod with me to get her opinion. We were both perplexed at what was going on and knew that we were going to need the vet involved. We did not go to an emergency vet because she was not an emergency. Due to us being able to tube feed her her continuing to hold her own at her weight. There was no reason to subject her immature immune system to all the sickness out an emergency vet.

First thing Monday morning I called the vet and got an appointment. Their earliest opening was in the afternoon unfortunately, but of course I took it and was very happy to be able to finally get some answers about what was going on, little did I know that I wasn’t going to like the answers. At this point I was feeling pretty confident considering she was doing well, her mother had not rejected her and tube feeding meant that she was gaining weight not losing as is pretty typical for all newborn puppies that are only eating from mom they will lose a little weight the first day or two and then start gaining. Not a lot, fractions of ounces. When I got to the vet she met me at my car and we discussed what was going on I could tell by the look on her face she didn’t think that this was going to end well, but always the optimist I prayed to God for a better answer. We were blessed already have a special-needs home lined up for her when she would be old enough to go home. So I felt that maybe this would be a happy ending.

We discussed what I had been doing with her and what my concerns were. She told me that after an exam she would call me. Covid means I cannot go inside. 

Shortly after going inside with the puppy she called me and let me know that there were serious deformities. To know more they would need to do an X-ray to see what was going on inside or we could euthanize. I could not make that decision without all the facts so I had them do the X-ray. I got another call after the X-ray that it was even bleaker than we originally thought. Her sternum was way to small it would be equivalent to us having only 2” of a sternum. She had infection started in the lungs and her organs were not where they were supposed to be. The kindest choice is euthanizing. I started bawling. But agreed that we needed to do the right and humane thing for this tiny girl. This was one of the hardest choices I’ve had to make. The video I posted gives my thoughts and feelings so I won’t repeat myself.

God was so gracious that a year prior we had already scheduled a visit to see my family in Florida. Naples has 80 degree weather and is beautiful. The prefect location to recharge! We flew out on Wednesday and fellowship with family and sunshine and a dose of vitamin “sea” was what we needed. At the same time though back in North Carolina there was an ice storm. Not to worry though. We had multiple plans in place to deal with any outcome. Murphy’s law prevailed and because of this we didn’t not lose power! Praise God!

We are still in Florida for a few more days and looking forward to more relaxing and charging our “batteries”!

I hope you enjoy the Friends pun! The older I get the less things surprise me, but owning a breed other than a schnauzer or a breed we mix with our schnauzers; such as poodles and havanese so this is a twist I never saw happening. But surprise, we now have Gizmo!

Why do you ask??? Well as usual there is a good story. Isn’t there always with us? If you follow us you know we have a large family. Michelle is our oldest and married, Monica is just behind Michelle and has also moved out. Next up is Mia, she is in a weird place in our line up. She was in the middle, a tweener as our family loving calls it, but with her older sisters grown and gone she finds herself now the oldest of the five left at home. Not only that but pair it with puberty, middle school and her being a tomboy. Well, you have awkward. Bless her heart.

Mia is my big animal lover, she adores the dogs and wants to be vet when she grows up. Here’s to hoping! 🙏🏻Lol, seriously though she really prefers animal companionship to the of humans most times. With that said. She wanted her “own” dog. She had claimed Sunkist but was frustrated when it was time for breeding and whelping. She wanted her dog to sleep with her every single night. She wanted a constant companion. She next attached to Captain but he also has to breed. As he is a male there is no whelping but still he can’t be her shadow. We discussed how to help her. She suffers from anxiety and having an animal is soothing and helps her, but she needed an emotional support animal. Service dogs, therapy dogs and emotional support dogs aren’t for breeding and all of our dogs are for breeding. So how to fix this.

God answers prayers in funny ways. We have partnered with Knightingale Schnauzers several times recently on breeding and some of our upcoming videos for our YouTube channel, currently in editing but coming soon. She had a Pekingese who was a few months old and I was confused. She told me a grooming client had him and it didn’t work out so he was just there. “LIGHTBULB MOMENT”

So we are clear, he will be neutered after he is 14months. Mia is so excited they are birthday buds, only 5 days apart. He is only a beloved pet and not a part of our breeding program. In case you were curious, look it up, they are hideous and should never happen. Lol

We knew he would be awesome for Mia, there personality and his sweet temperament and the fact he was raised around schnauzers and lots of people made him the perfect fit. Looks like everyone here gets their own, happily ever after!

Life comes in seasons. This is I know to be true. But this one sure is busy. Yet I have been so blessed and truly grateful for my tribe. I have great friends who help and support the vision I have for Happily Ever After.

We have had two litters this week and I have so excited. Each and every litter is so unique and I truly adore raising them and watching them grow. I know each puppy will help complete a family and that is exciting. We are also excited to get new babies here at Happily Ever After!

We have another new baby coming on Friday, Champagne. She is a beautiful Wheaton and we can’t wait to get to know her better and you can expect babies from her in 2022! We are also very excited to be expanding our guardian home program and if you would be interested in applying please send us an email and we will forward you the application. We want to continue to grow but we also want our dogs to continue to be pets and there is just a limit as to how much time everyone can have in a day, so in order to keep up with the demand we are hoping to have some of our newer puppies go into guardian homes. You will have to live within one hour of us in order to be considered.

It was a very busy holiday season at Happily Ever After. We are very family-oriented and LOVE Christmas. Traditions and making memories are such an important part of this season for our families. Taking excellent care of our fur babies is also a top priority.

This caused us to be slow to respond and very quiet on social media. I am thankful that our HEA family has extended us such grace and knew it was a temporary situation.
With that said, we are back; feeling recharged and ready to share and educate again. I hope our recent Facebook live videos and posts have been much more than what you were waiting for.
As we plan out our 2021 for videos, posts, goals and see what changes we should implement I feel so excited! I see where we started many years ago and where we will be going and I am so humbled and grateful.

We want Happily Ever After to bless families with wonderful pets as well as change the culture of how breeders are viewed, how people buy dogs, and raise the standards. We want to lift the veil and show what it all looks like behind the scenes. What is the good, bad and ugly. Share with all of you the joys, sorrows, trials, and huge wins. I feel that in sharing and teaching that we will see a change.
I want to see puppy mills put out of business, I want to see people expecting better from their breeders. We can help and empower each other! We only have schnauzers and poodles but there are so many other breeds of dogs.
Maybe all of this is just the excitement of looking at a new year, but I feel like this year is going to be great.

The last two weeks have been challenging with tiny Trooper. And all of the feeding issues with Dahlia. If you’re not familiar with either of these two, let me fill you in. Trooper is The runt of lollies litter that was born on 5 January. Very quickly it became clear that his very small size compared to his siblings and the fact that it was a large litter was beginning to take its toll. Our vet warned us that she did not feel that trooper was going to make it. But no matter how bleak the circumstances we can’t help but try. So armed with nutrical and hand and an alarm for every 2 to 3 hours around the clock. There are times it looks like he’s going to be fine and there are times that I worry the next time I check on him that he won’t be with us anymore. And even as of today that’s still the way it is. We are very hopeful that with Envy having her babies today and we will be able to put him with her and maybe he will finally be able to thrive.

He would be close to the same size as those puppies and she would be in her “new mom” super attentive state and that is exactly what he needs. He currently is with Prada but her puppies are already bigger than him and where their eyes are open and they are starting to walk around he is still in the newborn state. We will keep everyone posted.

As far as what happened with Dahlia, she decided to stop eating which meant that her milk production dropped. It wasn’t gone it just wasn’t as much as her puppies needed which made them not happy. So we decided that we need to make a trip to the vet. After her exam, they found that there was absolutely nothing physically wrong with her that they could find. With that said their advice was to give her, “junk food”, Which for dogs is cheap wet food. Because I am such a Nazi about nutrition I was horrified at this advice. And my stomach turned a little bit at the idea of having to put it in the microwave to warm it up to make the smell stronger. But, I’m a breeder and not a vet. Although I was horrified I went to Walmart and picked up some Cesar wet dog food and also some of the dog food out of the cooler. I wish I could remember the name right now but, Dahlia would not touch the Cesar food. I was a proud dog mom. But thankfully she did eat the other food and is now back to normal and doing so well. She’s eating like she supposed to and thankfully she is just able to eat her regular Royal Canin starter food.

I’m so thankful for this life. I have the most wonderful job! I get to play with puppies, be surrounded by dogs, and meet some pretty amazing people. They say that if you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life and I think that’s true!

Let me start by saying, I love being a breeder. With my entire being, it’s a calling that I have happily answered YES! Although it’s not the first thing I share when someone asks what I do for a living. I say I’m a Realtor. It’s true, I am, and I very much love that job.
The fact that I am a dog breeder is not something I am quick to share. I try to learn where a person stands in the adoption vs. buying-from-a-breeder debate before deciding whether to divulge my occupation. What began as a love of schnauzers and desire to have people get healthy, well-bred miniature schnauzers has grown into a business for my wife and me.
Early on, I learned that many in the adopt-only camp are ready to shut down all breeders and have feelings that go from being perturbed to complete hatred. Most believe that breeders are responsible for populating the world with unwanted dogs, and should be stopped.
I want to state for the record that I am pro-adoption. I truly believe all dogs deserve to have happy and loving homes. As a breeder, I have families fill out applications, do phone interviews for all potential owners, and make it my personal goal to get each puppy their forever home. I have never sold to pet shops, nor did we sell through brokers or at flea markets. It’s difficult to defend yourself to someone who has pre-judged you and is not willing to listen to your point of view; let me tell my story. Being a Villian in the minds of others is something I just learned to deal with.
I also struggled to understand why dog breeding is thought to be the same as a puppy mill. I am still an evil person for culling dogs from my program if they displayed temperament flaws or defects that would be passed down puppies. Somehow, it’s considered a bad thing to make a better schnauzer with fewer health problems and better personalities. Disposition is the goal of my program. To raise our schnauzers to be fantastic family pets that are beloved family members. The dogs we retire are placed in personally chosen homes matched to each dog’s temperament and personality. I have never euthanized dogs when they were no longer able to have puppies, as many assume all breeders do. I once spent over $1000 dollars for a C-section on a dog who had a puppy stuck in the birth canal.
Our dogs are part of our family, and we have always raised our pups in our home, and always will. Even though I know that the dogs were also a business and that I am always looking to better my breed, I get attached anyway. It was a to hard to keep a dog for a year or two, to then discover that she had had trouble getting pregnant or birthing puppies, or she didn’t the personality that worked for our goals. To be honest, finding these dogs new homes was heart-wrenching, and the heart-ache felt usually outweighs the money invested into the dog up to that point.
Responsible breeding is, sadly, not always profitable. In theory, one would think, being able to charge money for purebred puppies, multiplied by a large number of puppies in a litter. What gets you is the extras and those pesky hidden costs that nobody thinks about us about, and they often depleted the bank account. I’ve joked that I’m buying our vet a boat. I’m on a first-name basis with the entire vet staff. We seriously spend thousands every year. (Not an exaggeration!) The vet’s number is on speed dial. The money I spend on dog food nearly rivals our grocery bill in the months we have pups and nursing mommies. (We are a family of seven humans. Our grocery bill isn’t small.) Registration fees, genetic DNA screenings, advertising, Internet and phone bills, vet bills, supplies, vaccines and dewormers, heartworm prevention, training equipment, and grooming equipment and supplies all added up. Having a dog is expensive. Having a “kennel” full of dogs is even more so.
When choosing a dog for our breeding program is a lot of work, I have to research bloodlines for generations back, searching for things like genetic health issues, temperament flaws, and more. Purchasing a puppy for our program is more of a science than a fun experience. It is time-consuming, draining, and often not enjoyable for me. Also, the top candidate puppies were usually far more expensive than the pet-quality puppies.
Sometimes the puppies needed to be bottle-fed. While this sounds adorably cute, it’s a stressful and life-altering endeavor. To be honest, I lost more sleep feeding and caring puppies than I ever did with my own 5 children combined. Puppies need to eat every two to three hours or their blood sugar levels will drop low enough to cause hypoglycemic shock. Setting alarms every 90 minutes, night and day for two weeks, takes a toll. Even if your not bottle feeding, you still have to check on them every two hours.
It can be constant stress to keep puppies alive, especially if the litter was bottle fed or there are health complications, it’s exhausting for me — physically, mentally, and emotionally. The first 3 days of life are the hardest. The thank you for not dying on me.
Then there is also the fact that puppies also aren’t housebroken, surprise! Also theyaren’t aware of social manners, such as not barking in the house. It’s also not fun that weeks 4-8, your home can smell like a stable.
In other words, the sheer amount of time and energy involved in raising puppies is a full-time job for my wife and I. It is far more than just having pups in the house for eight weeks. It starts with comprehensive research to find quality dogs to breed. It included lifelong follow-up for every puppy I bred when the families will allow it. I offer support to their owners in diet, house training, and any other questions they have. It’s part of my contract, and I make it clear to every buyer that if a dog doesn’t work out in their home, for whatever reason, at any age, I am always willing to take them back. No matter what!
Support is an ongoing, lifelong friendship with and responsibility toward the owners of my puppies.
Of course as with anything there is paperwork, all the paperwork required by the American Kennel Club, and for my own records is staggering. I sometimes joke that I needed a secretary when I had a litter of puppies!
Despite all this, I love having puppies. It is a passion for me to nurture those newborns into healthy babies who found amazing forever homes. My happiest days are when families adopted my puppies. The joy I can give others is infectious. It is my “Why”.
I still struggle to understand what is so wrong with what I do, and why I am a terrible person for raising purebred puppies? There will always be those that bash me on my Facebook page. Still, honestly, if all breeders were stopped, as PETA and some extreme activists want, there would be no more purebred dogs left in 20 years. I can’t imagine a world without miniature schnauzers in it.

They say you can’t buy happiness or love…but you can buy a puppy, so I guess they are wrong…

When you start looking at adorable puppies, it’s just so easy to fall in love with them. It’s challenging to think clearly when you look into those eyes that simply say, “take me home!”

Since this is true, before falling into puppy love, please ask yourself some questions.

-do you really want a dog?

-what would be the best breed for you?

-pure breed or rescue?

First, there is money. The money part does not end when you purchase the dog, whether it is from a shelter or a breeder. Vet bills will start out the gate with checkups, vaccines, microchip, heartworm, intestinal worm medication, and flea & tick preventatives. Then, of course, one of the more obvious cost is food. It’s not just quantity, but the quality that is imperative. A nutritious and well-balanced diet is just as crucial for your dog as it is for you. How healthy would you be if you ate fast food every meal? It may be cheap, but it isn’t healthy. Then you also need healthy treats and chewing bones. Many other dog essential items, including collars, harnesses, leashes, identification tags, basic grooming tools as brush, comb, nail clippers, shampoo, and conditioner, are needed. Then there are dishes, toys, crate, dog bed, and all the other housebreaking essentials. As a miniature schnauzer breeder, I go over with people extensively about the importance of a good groomer and the fact that you are probably going to be at the groomer about six times a year. Of course, depending on where you live, it can be anywhere from $45-$80 a visit. And then if you take frequent business trips or your family enjoys multiple vacations, boarding costs can factor in, and you are looking at anywhere from $15-$20 a day. Of course, you also need to enroll in at least one puppy obedience course. So as you can see, there are many expenses that go into owning your own pet. 

Time and patience are also so imperative. Be honest with yourself and think about how much time you will spend. The everyday chores of feeding your dog, housebreaking your dog, cleaning up the yard after him, taking him for walks, taking him to the vet, playing with him, and spending time with him are essential. Please do not try to deceive yourself about the amount of time and patience that you will need. You must also remember that you are looking at a good 12 to 18 years when talking about owning a miniature schnauzer. It is not easy to stand out in the rain, snow, or just the nasty cold every two hours when trying to housebreak a puppy. It will make you crazy when you walk around outside for 15 to 30 minutes, and as soon as you come back in the puppy squats and urinates on the floor. It can be hard to resist screaming at the top of your lungs when your new puppy chewed up your favorite pair of shoes or ruins another phone charging cord. Not many think about the not so fun part of training him to sit, stay, and come; or how to walk correctly on a harness and leash. 

 Another thing commonly forgotten about is emergencies. Do you have the financial ability to rush the dog to the emergency vet? Accidents inevitably always happen when your regular vet is closed. I have found this to be almost a cold hard fact. Emergencies are going to happen. They occur in human life as well as animal life. So be prepared that it could happen to your beloved pet. This is also where I recommend pet insurance, which is around $40+ per month. A broken bone or emergency surgery can be thousands.

 Another important thing you must recognize is that one of the most critical instincts in a dog is the pack instinct. It is imperative to make your dog a part of your family. You should be fully aware that for your dog to live comfortably with you, they need to be part of your pack. Also, in understanding how a pack operates, there is always a hierarchy. At the top is the most dominant animal. It is the leader who establishes and enforces his rules and carries out discipline. This must be you. Dogs are not unhappy with this hierarchy; they know exactly where they stand with one another and exactly what the rules are, and this makes for feelings of security. The survival of the pack depends on every member being able to handle what their position is. Because the dog is a pack animal, it is one of the main reasons that they fit so well into our families. Rather than being on the outskirts and fringes of our lives like cats, dogs are pack animals that like to belong. This instinct makes it incredibly important that each dog should be raised and not just grow up. It makes a greater responsibility for you when you choose to get a puppy.

Now that we have talked about some of the primary responsibilities of dog ownership let us talk about what you get in return? The rewards cannot be measured tangibly, but isn’t that the case with most rewards of life and with most rewards of the highest value? Your dog will offer you the opportunity for accomplishment. The fact that you have raised and trained him well. Your dog will also provide you fun and play. He will offer you companionship and devotion in a unique, unconditional love that is neither greater nor lesser but merely different from its human counterpart. There was an epitaph on a beloved pet’s gravestone that read, “the reason I loved him is plain to see; with all my faults, he found beauty in me.” And only you can decide if the trade-off between what you give and what you get is worth it? There are plenty of life situations where owning a dog is not the best for people at that time in their life. Please do not let some well-meaning friend give that classic pressure of it being able to teach your children responsibility through owning a dog. If you are not committed to properly caring for a dog, what you would be teaching your children is responsibility. If while owning a dog the feeding, exercising and training is neglected, if a dog is unwanted and lives carelessly and is dropped off at the pound when he becomes too inconvenient, you will be teaching your children that the life of a dog it’s not worth much and can be used and tossed aside at a whim. This then causes many children to progress to a callous and uncaring attitude toward the life of an animal.

  There will be those of you who decide, yes, you should be willing and able to take on the pleasures and the responsibilities of owning a dog and are ready to make that commitment. Just know that it’s precisely what it is – A commitment to be fully responsible for the entire life of another living creature. If you have a child, you may already understand that this type of responsibility requires that you love, provide, teach, share, enjoy, discipline, worry, laugh, cry, and eventually let go. But there is a difference; a big one. With a child, your relationship changes as they grow; your child will ultimately become independent and gradually let go. Your dog, on the other hand, regards you his whole world throughout his short life, and the letting go is sometimes sudden and is always final. Someday you will find yourself standing in the veterinarian’s office for the last time, having reached the final and most desperately difficult stage of the commitment you made when you brought home that little puppy. So you think you want to own a dog? Do you know for sure now, if you have weighed all the advantages and disadvantages, the pluses and minuses, the responsibility and rewards, and come out on the yes side? That means it’s time to find the right dog for you. 

 Dogs are the love that money can buy. Even a puppy that is “given away free,” it will cost money, and sometimes, most of the time, it costs more money than the purebred dog from an ethical and responsible breeder. When you’ve considered all the things that go into owning a dog and honestly ask yourself all the questions and have decided that the time and expenses are worth the companionship and devotion, then you can let yourself go; And fall in love! 

If you’re reading this and not looking at one of my dogs, this next section will not be beneficial to you as it is written specifically for those interested in a miniature schnauzer, which is the breed that I raise.

 The questions I encourage people to ask themselves when choosing whether or not to get a miniature schnauzer to have to do with your needs, wants, personality, and lifestyle. Your answer to each of the questions will reveal the traits you were looking for in a dog. First would be experience required, a miniature schnauzer is fine for a novice owner if they are willing to sign up for puppy training classes and potentially work with a trainer one on one. How are they with children, do you have children or children that frequently visit, and do you have a lot of children in your neighborhood who would come in close contact? Are you planning to have a baby within your dog’s lifetime? Miniature schnauzers are lovely with children when they are raised around them. Miniature schnauzers are a suspicious breed; if you do not currently have children, please plan on socializing your mini with children often while they are a puppy and young adult. Make sure they are children who are well behaved and used to being around dogs so that it is always a positive experience. Miniature schnauzers come in a wide range of sizes considering the name miniature. 

 A miniature schnauzer can be anywhere from 6 pounds all the way up to 25 pounds. They have moderate energy levels, so they do enjoy a romping game of play in the backyard daily or a brisk walk. They absolutely love to be indoors and are not a breed that could ever be left outside. They have high grooming needs and, if left long, will need daily brushing. The trade after this is there is no shedding. As was mentioned earlier, schnauzers are a suspicious breed and need to be socialized often with strangers. Schnauzers will bark. They are a watchdog and will always let you know anytime there is anything out of the ordinary, and it might just be a leaf blowing through the yard. Schnauzers are definitely the more playful and pleasant and obedient of all of the terriers.

As I said earlier, he likes walks, but he’s fine in any home so long as he can participate in games and activities. Being with their family is the most important thing for a schnauzer. I tell everyone I talk to that you will never use the restroom alone once you own a schnauzer. Peeing is a spectator sport! Most are friendly with strangers, again this has to do with socialization while they are a puppy. They can never be trusted with the family rabbit, hamster, or gerbil. Although Schnauzer knows their own mind and often displays an obstinate resistance to walking on a leash, they are very bright and respond well to obedience training that is not too harsh. Schnauzers like to be spoiled, and they don’t take advantage of indulgence as some breeds. Schnauzers are very adaptable and make excellent traveling companions. A miniature schnauzer is nothing like a giant schnauzer; they are not a guard dog. They are a watchdog and are not as assertive as giants. Minis can, however, hold their own on alarm tactics, sounding more substantial than they are. Schnauzers are full of themselves and are busy, curious, and eager to be included in everything. They will happily play soccer with their family but will happily curl up on the couch and enjoy a TV show!

 I absolutely love this breed and do not think that there’s any better breed in the world than a miniature schnauzer. But they are definitely not for everyone. Please know that Schnauzers need their families every single day. Being with you is the most important thing to them.