THE SCHNAUZER AND THE WORK WITH LIVESTOCK

Di Alessandro Avogadri

Alessandro Avoardri, Bergamo Villa d 'Alme, and well-known in Valcamonica, in the environments of the pastures and in those where they train the horses, as the leading expert in the use of dogs in working with livestock

For over forty years training dogs to work with livestock, and for ten years in youth I did as part of my work on the family farm, as all years training a dozen dogs to work with cows and pastures and plains with pigs that were brought year-round grazing in herds of about 200 animals at a time.

Since then I knew the average schnauzer and a veterinarian friend I described the exceptional character pair, having in holding a dozen dogs (from hunting, mutts for mice and dogs to work with cattle, typically bergamaschi (Bergamaso shepards) and derivatives and German shepherds), a schnauzer was too, also because, if he had a reputation for exceptional big hunter and guardian of mice, but no one knew he had ability to work with livestock. Below I changed in activity, but I always kept a couple of dogs during the summer routine to work with livestock to pasture

In 1989 I decided to purchase a puppy middle schnauzer taken to the pasture at the age of about 6 months, to see if he was confident and  attitude at work, as I had never found in any of the many other dogs that I trained. This baby then died in an accident per week months.

I thought his was an exceptional case, instead a year later I bought another puppy-Sissi-, daughter of the same parents, and also revealed the same attitude at work.  In 1995 I brought the ALP for the first time a daughter of Sissi, Sulla, who was then 8 months and that in and that within days the he has learned to work with cows that were all pastured for two months.  Wondering not just me and especially the herders who, while knowing the abilities of my trainer, marveled at the happiness of learning and speed of these dogs

Organized annually since 1989 to Croce Domini Pass in Valle Camonica a competition for working dogs with cattle to which each time from twenty to thirty dogs mostly derived bergamaschi. These are dogs who work at least five months per year with cattle pasture, and typically are, those who work with large herds of more than 200 leaders and know herding  even at a great distance from the herder, even some know how to retrieve the cattle to two or three kilometers  away.

My schnauzer will learn not to ever do this type of work with the large herd at pasture, with shifts that last about an hour a day, for 10 days a year. It is only summertime recreation  The hut, before leaving for the pasture, they do a job moving podiums calves, pigs, goats and sheep trying to enter the hut looking for some special food (or come to scratch against the car)

Of course, as an organizer of the competition , there do I involve my dogs; but last year, Dave was untied and tore the applause to the entire audience for how did you learn indent in an old cow herd by those who, sensing the young age of the dog, not the straight damage easily

I've never read nor heard tell of the attitude of the average working schnauzer with cattle; If anything in the tradition of the competition there and guard the load of Carters (Brewers, butchers).  

The medium schnauzer would be a great working dog with transhumant  (seasonal migration) of herds, because it has a great resistance for work and speed in execution of orders.  Lead herds of cattle, pig herds or flocks of sheep dogs require different ways of working and different attitudes: the average schnauzer, for what and my experience shows a versatility not common.

For the little that I know the use of civil protection dogs I think the medium-provided no schnauzer ligitioso possibly female, and sociable character-is a dog well-suited to finding people under the rubble and people scattered in the mountains and forests, due to its resistance to resistance to fatigue and pain, for physical structure that allows him to enter tunnel cracks would have been very useful, given its speed in attack and dodge the animal reactions, to bring out to pasture pigs, because swine, especially females with small, load the dogs like the wild boars; for this, while with cattle dogs are strong character, although slow in action, with the pigs need dogs more aggressive and snappy and pain for the physical structure that allows him to enter Burrows and embrasures. For his good sense and the speed in long-range research, might be among the dogs be used immediately as soon as it is reported the necessity of searching for missing persons, in order to find the person, perhaps injured, but still alive ahead of searching inch by inch across an area that involves the use of many dogs and many people and it is slow and expensive

When I decided to breed a litter of schnauzer for Sissi I tried a male very sociable because I wanted to choose a couple to give away puppies to Civil Protection.  For this selection I kept all the puppies until the age of three months, and since the age of 35 days wore the whole litter with her mother in places different always where puppies playing have learned to face different obstacles-tube tunnel cement, were with agility with more or less steep sand-to look for me and his mother in walks in woods , to try young males to go over in the irrigation canals of cement concrete in the fields.

My experience while short with schnauzer it demonstrated that these dogs have a lively intelligence so as to make them suitable for very different activities. So, as long as you start the training since the age of 40-50 days, every owner can direct their dog in different specialties; no they can try their hand in the conduct of ducks or geese as already make border collies at exhibitions canines.

Sissi and her sister died a year before I knew how to do very well. They were smaller and ducks were back in their enclosure and small ducks and  never killed one.  Others can participate in sheep-run competitions, which in Italy seem to have exclusives for border collies, while also a schnauzer Middle may participate with good results; still others will tend to agility competitions

Are however available for breeders/owners who are interested in more information about the above.

Traduzione dall’italiano

di Catherine Sanchez, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

proprietaria del meraviglioso Schnauzer GCh. Vikingus Caesar Eytukan.