Hi all, sorry for not replying sooner...typing with one hand a bit tiring. Congrats on version 9, and it's good to see many more new owners of this beloved breed

Hi Gavin,

When the seller tells you that the pup is from a champion line, it means that the pup comes from parent(s) who are champions in confirmation shows (either one of the parents is a champion or both). Confirmation shows are like beauty pageants for dogs, where they have judges looking for dogs who best represent the ideal breed specifications of the dog (structure, poise, temperament, gait, etc). Which is why the price is often jacked up really high, especially from petshops. Although a pup may come from a champion line, the pup may or may not be a potential show dog in the future. It all boils down to genes and luck (for the owner I guess). But it all doesn't really matter much if you're planning to keep Sam as a pet...most of us keep our pups as pets too. Show dogs are really high maintenance

Sam's MKA cert is basically a paper showing his lineage. It's a family tree of him and where he comes from (father, mother, grandparents, etc etc). You usually won't get it so soon...it takes a few months before you will get it. I only got Scottie's when he was about 5-6 months old

Potty training needs a lot of consistence...it's not only one week of training. You have to constantly show your pup that he is doing good when he does his business at the right place, coz puppies tend to forget very easily I can't exactly remember how long I took to get Scottie to remember to do his business at the right place...probably 1-2 months, maybe more. Even then, I sometimes get accidents, so it's all consistence I guess

Puppies are very playful so it's very normal to see all those biting and playing. Growling and biting at you MIGHT be his way of playing, but nonetheless if you feel he's not behaving correctly, be firm and consistent with him and he should get the message. They should always know we're the pack leaders, but I'm not saying that we should punish them unnecessarily though. Correction must be at the right timing to get the message across effectively. Training is never ending....there'll always be something for them to learn

If you feel mouthing is not for you, don't encourage your pup by letting him bite your hand or even anything that belongs to you. There are many toys and chews in the market...find something that your pup likes. Observe what kind of stuff he likes to chew on, and get a suitable toy with that kind of texture. Scottie loves soft toys, so I give him some old bears to play with...

Hope that helps you a little...sorry for the long-winded 'answer'. I'm no expert, but these are some things I've been through before, so just sharing my experiences

This post has been edited by Rayne: Oct 2 2009, 01:57 AM

Well, if the seller is a reputable breeder, they would actually welcome questions as it will show that you are interested in learning more about the breed instead of just buying a dog No worries on asking many questions. If the seller gets irritated after answering questions, I don't think he is a reputable breeder.

Yes, the MKA cert will show that he's from a champion line...the father and /or mother will have the words like Mal. Ch. (or other countries' initials if they have won in other shows) in front of their names. If I'm not mistaken, the cert will show up to about 3-4 generations, maybe more...

I don't really know to what extent is Sam's mouthing coz I haven't seen him playing before, but if you don't want him to mouth at all, discourage the mouthing since puppyhood. Once it becomes a habit, it'll be very hard to correct when he's grown up. Scottie never does bite my hand to play, even when he was a pup. I guess I'm very lucky in that extent

Playing ways? Umm...I guess you can move the toy about to make him more interested in the toy. Or throw it a certain distance to get him to chase after it.

If you want to teach him those obedience commands, it's best to do it properly After Sam sits, tell him 'Stay' with your palm in front of his face (like a stop hand signal) and walk away. What you're doing nw (asking him to stay and calling him to you after that) is called a Recall exercise. It's good to hear that he's learning very fast, so practise a little with him everyday to get him to remember. But if he forgets, it's okay coz he's still small...just train with him for about 5 mins at a time, not too long or he'll get bored of training.

When I taught Scottie 'Down', I put him in a Sit position and with a treat on my hand, lower the treat down in front of his face and encourage him to go down. He follows the treat to a down position...the minute he goes down all the way, give the treat immediately and praise a lot 'Hand' (or 'Paw' when I teach Scottie) took me longer. I just hold his paw like I'm shaking his hand and tell him the command while praising him. Do it enough times over a period (I can't remember how long though ) and the next time I told him 'Paw', he lifts his hand to shake. When he does that, I praise him a lot and gave him a treat.

Of course, those might not be the only way to teach your pup those tricks...that's only how I taught Scottie I have a book called '101 Dog Tricks' by Kyra Sundance..I think it's very cool coz it teaches you how to teach the trick step by step with photos. I managed to teach Scottie a few tricks from that book (haven't got time to teach so much lately ) Try and get that one if you're interested in teaching tricks. Yes, I did send Scottie for obedience classes. I think everybody should at least send their dog for basic obedience classes...not only will you be learning how to train your pup, you'll get to socialise them too. Plus, you get more hands-on learning coz your trainer will let you know if you're doing things correctly or not. But, I have to say there is a difference between teaching tricks and obedience. Tricks are stuff like 'Hand', 'Beg', those stuff. Obedience is more to walking your dog the right way (Heeling), Sit, Down, Stays (Sit, Stand and Down), Recall, and the most important of all, how to control and manage your dog while they're outside.

If you're interested, there are many places in KL who hold these obedience classes. Places like Puppy.com.my, MKA, PetnYou, Pet Safari in Ikano Center. Be sure to have Sam get all his puppy vaccinations first before sending him to obedience classes though. Hope that helps!

This post has been edited by Rayne: Oct 4 2009, 01:25 AM

It depends on where are you sending your pup to. For me, it's worth it to send Scottie for classes as I can see quite an improvement in him after training. Plus, he gets to socialize and make friends with more dogs at the training grounds. It's also very interesting (for me at least) to be able to teach Scottie and observe how quickly or slowly he picks up a command and adjusting to make him understand the command..in short, I quite enjoy training

I have only inquired at a few of these places, but it was quite some time ago, so they might have revised their fee structure since. Call the centre up or visit their website to know more about their fees.

Puppy.com.my - website here. Last time I sent Scottie for Novice class, it's RM250 for 10 lessons, 1 hour each lesson. Training days are only on Sunday. They have 2 training grounds: 1 in Taman Desa and 1 in Ampang.

MKA - website here. They have their training grounds in Central Park near 1 Utama. Fees are RM100 for 10 lessons, but you have to register to be a member to join (RM80 registration fees). Training days are only on Sunday.

Pet Safari at Ikano Power Centre - website here. Their training place is at the petstore itself. Last I inquired, it was about RM300 plus for 10 lessons. They have many slots for training though, if I remember correctly almost 7 days a week, but they have different intake times so call them up to find more details.

PetnYou - website here. I have not inquired about this place, but I have a few friends who have enrolled their furkids for training there and are doing quite well. Contact them for more details on their classes and training grounds if you're interested.


I'm sure there are more obedience classes held in KL but these are the few that I know of that you could get a head start in inquiring about training your pup All these schools have very good trainers and the syllabus are about the same, so choose the one that you feel most comfortable with (people and financial-wise) Hope this helps!

I personally have not experienced that with Scottie...when he's still a pup, I would sometimes take him out for drives and he would sit at the passenger seat quietly. Funny thing was, he knows when we've reached home...he would jump on my lap once the car's parked

I have seen some dog harnesses that you can purchase to buckle (like seat belts) to the car seats, but I don't know if they're sold here in Malaysia. Or you can get a car seat cover for dogs...they go on the back seats so that your pup wouldn't dirty the car seats. Maybe it could minimize scratches too?

Hi yikhoe,

It's never too early to start training, although when we start them at such a young age we need to be very patient and never expect too much as they are still growing and learning

Before you feed your pup, don't give him excitable signals like asking him if he wants to eat, etc. Just go over and put the food in the bowl. Wait until he has stopped jumping before feeding. You can try to tell him to sit, but if he doesn't listen just wait until he gets tired. This will probably take a long time since he's excitable, but we have to be firm. Once he stops jumping, doesn't matter if he's standing or sitting, then you give him the food. Do this enough times during meal times and he will understand that he needs to be calm before he gets his food.

Once he gets the idea that he has to be calm (don't rush into this so fast though), get him to sit and wait before he gets his food.Slowly you can put the bowl at his feet and only allow him to eat when you give the release command (like 'OK' or 'Good Boy'). I did this with Scottie from when he's about 2 months old too He has learnt that he will only get food if he sits quietly and wait. Hope that helps you in getting your pup to be calm

EDIT: If he does the luring thing, ignore him. Only give treats or food on YOUR terms and time. When you do give him, let him earn the treat by asking him to do tricks (if so far he has learnt sit, get him to sit before you give him the treat. Later on, when he has mastered more commands, ask him to do one or two before giving). If you indulge him in this habit, he'll keep doing it whenever he wants to, and he would think that you are his follower instead of his pack leader.

This post has been edited by Rayne: Oct 5 2009, 04:54 PM

Champion line means it can be either father or mother is a champ, or both. So if Sam's mother is a Mal. Ch. then yes, he is considered from a champion line. I don't really know what is the market price for Min. Schnauzers these days, but champion line pups are usually sold at higher prices because of the father or mother's 'fame'. Yet, the puppy's potential to be a show dog in the future can never be guaranteed. But whether he's show potential or not, you've already bought Sam and he's part of your family now...I guess it's not a big issue on whether he is expensive or not, since you've already got him.

What you're doing with Sam now (giving him a release command before he can eat) is also a trick. Actually, whatever you can teach him to do, is considered trick training...there are no specific names or commands that you have to use. The names that we use only makes it easier to recognise. However, if you plan to do obedience training, there are some specific exercises to do, and stuff like Stay and Come are part of those. Your trainer will let you know about that when you attend those classes.

The '101 Dog Tricks' book I got from Kinokuniya. It costs about RM66, but there are lots of other trick books that you can get. This is just one that I got and liked, so have a look around to find which ones you like best Yes, Scottie knows how to fetch the ball for me, but I have not tried this outside. He only does it quite consistently at home. I can't say I've trained him to do that though...what I do is I would throw the ball and then he would go get it. Once he holds the ball, I call him to come back to me. When he comes back, I praise him like mad and sometimes give him a treat. After a while, he sort of does it most of the time When he doesn't, I go over to him and make him hold the toy to come to where I was sitting and tell him the command 'Bring' (or you can use 'Fetch').

I have not heard of Min. Schnauzer coats changing colour or its black pigmentation becoming less from being exposed to the sun. Sounds very far fetched to me. Scottie is already 2+ years old, and I can safely say that his markings have been the same through out. His colour has faded a little from the darker colours of his puppyhood because of grooming with electric clippers. When we groom with electric clippers (as most groomers do), it takes away the undercoat which is supposed to be harsher, and causing the dog's coat colour to lighten a little. The 'proper' way to groom the Min. Schnauzer is to hand strip it, but that procedure is very expensive and very time consuming. Plus, it's mostly done for confirmation shows. Since Scottie is only a pet dog, I just send him for clipper sessions with the groomers. From what I've read about the breed so far, I have not seen anything that says exposure to sun will cause change of color in the dog's coat, or that puppy coats will change color. Perhaps it's best to do some reading on our own to clarify what some people are saying. Get a book on the breed to know about it's specifications and characteristics. I'm not saying that we shouldn't listen to what other people are saying, but sometimes a little checking needs to be done to make sure what we are following is correct and not blindly following other's advice.

Aww...they look so cute posing from the sofa

Haha...thank you, thank you

Speaking of gatherings, yeah it has been quite some time ady since I've been to a gathering. After I broke my arm, it's like time suspended or something...

Well, training takes a lot of patience, so just keep on telling him to bring the ball. Just because he learnt the first few commands quite fast doesn't mean he will catch on so fast for other commands, as we might have confused him or he hasn't understood what he has to do just yet.

What the vet said about the coat's texture is quite true. If we hand strip the coat, it will be more wiry and harsh compared to a clippered coat. That's one of the characteristics of the breed. But because most of us clipper our dog's coats, they won't have that harsh and wiry texture compared to a hand stripped coat. I kind of agree with the vet. Colors are genetic, and they're mostly there from birth till the end of their lives, so...I'm not so sure if it will change color. Perhaps other black & silver pups' owners can share about it more.

I haven't heard of the Seaweed Extract before, but since you have already bought it and you feel it can help with Sam's development, it's worth a try. There are a lot of variations in the coat color of the Min. Schnauzer. Even though it was mentioned that it's black and silver, the color shades might differ from one dog to the other. Same goes with salt and pepper colors (I have seen so many salt and pepper shades that are totally different from Scottie's markings), so it's not necessary that black and silver has to mean an all black and some 'silver' colored markings. But to what extent the markings would constitute black and silver or otherwise, that I do not know. I guess you'd have to refer to more experienced breeders or books.

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Added on October 12, 2009, 8:39 pmI noticed that people asked about the gathering date. Perhaps we could have suggestions as to which date and place we should hold the gathering? When we have suggestions, then we could all vote to decide when and where to go

How about the end of October (31st) or 1st Nov? Same place, at Central Park?

This post has been edited by Rayne: Oct 12 2009, 08:39 PM

Okay, cool...shall we start a list for sign up?

I'll start the ball rolling then

MIN. SCHNAUZER GATHERING
Date: 1st November 2009 (Sunday)
Time: 9.00am (tentative)
Venue: Central Park, Bandar Utama (tentative)

ATTENDEES:
1) Audrey (Rayne) + Scottie



When Scottie was a pup, I fed him Nutri Edge Chicken & Rice (same as breeder). After a while, he developed some bad itchies so I switched him to lamb & rice of another brand (can't seem to recall what it was though ). He did quite good on it. When he was older, I changed him to Acana Salmon & Potato...he also adapted well to it. But the petstore that I bought Acana from seem to not be able to carry the products whenever I ran out, so I changed him again to Royal Canin for Schnauzers. Very pricey (RM70+ for only a month's worth of food - can't remember how heavy), but he did okay on it too....until the distributor decided to raise the retail price up 30% My groomer didn't want to carry it anymore so I changed Scottie to raw feeding. That's the best that I've seen for him so far I've been feeding him for more than 1 year already on raw, and I can say that his poops have been considerably less smelly compared to his kibble days, teeth condition is better and he doesn't have stinky breath anymore My two cents' worth...

I personally haven't been there yet as I keep missing the dates for the gatherings or what not...but from my friends that have been there, the general consensus is that it's a nice place. Hopefully it'll stay that way if we all clean up properly after our furkids. Otherwise, it'll be very sad to go there and see poop everywhere (not to mention the smell)

Ooh, that's cool! Yeah, sure...please do invite her over But, since the response so far is only 2 of us (myself and Eric) dunno if we will have enough people to get a gathering going... Will keep you updated though!

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Added on October 20, 2009, 1:25 pmSign up here please! Put your name + your furkid(s) name(s) so I can update the list!

MIN. SCHNAUZER GATHERING
Date: 1st November 2009 (Sunday)
Time: 9.00am (tentative)
Venue: Central Park, Bandar Utama (tentative)

ATTENDEES:
1) Audrey (Rayne) + Scottie
2) Eric + Fatty + Ally


This post has been edited by Rayne: Oct 20 2009, 01:25 PM

Haha, I thought of making it at Desa Park too, but previously it seemed that people were more familiar with Central Park. I made it tentative though...still only got three of us (plus you) can go.

Sure Diana...doesn't matter if you're late, as long as you're able to make it is already great

Central Park is just next to 1 Utama...it's the big park near the new wing parking areas

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Added on October 22, 2009, 11:15 amSign up here please! Put your name + your furkid(s) name(s) so I can update the list!

MIN. SCHNAUZER GATHERING
Date: 1st November 2009 (Sunday)
Time: 9.00am (tentative)
Venue: Central Park, Bandar Utama (tentative)

ATTENDEES:
1) Audrey (Rayne) + Scottie
2) Eric + Fatty + Ally
3) Crystal Sio + Toby



TENTATIVE:
1) Diana (Dcom)



Question: Would it be better to have it on Saturday (31st October) and in Desa Parkcity? Let me know which you prefer, since this is still tentative We will go when and where the majority votes.

This post has been edited by Rayne: Oct 22 2009, 11:15 AM

Thanks for the directions, rkkyong!

At the Facebook group for our MS thread, there are some voters too for Saturday (31st October). Would you prefer the gathering to be on Saturday or Sunday? I can do either day, but we'll hold the gathering on the day the majority of us can go I think. So, reply here quick! It's only 2 weeks away!

Link here: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=114869554112

Is it really a mole? It looked kind of like a big tick to me...some ticks can grow up to the size of raisins! So see if the thingy can be lifted. Then see if it has legs. If so, definitely a tick. Just pick it off and put some ointment on the wound...big ticks create big wounds.

If it's not a tick, best to bring it to the vet for a checkup...that mole thingy looks scary.