Miniature Shnauzer

Question
Do miniature shnauzers swim?

Answer
Some do, but most don't.... or won't. Many schnauzers detest water and only accept it if it is in their water bowl. Rain is a horrific event for many of them<G>

I will say that many years ago, my second schnauzer was at the lake with my family and she jumped out of the boat and into the lake, and my husband had to jump in to save her. After I arrived there, upon hearing this, I spent the rest of the weekend trying to teach that dog how to swim. It was an impossible task because, although she did sort of paddle with her front feet, she wouldn't with her back. She sort of evolved into bouncing through the water.... as her rear sank to the bottom and then pulled the rest of her down, she would push herself off to get back up to the top, get a breath, and then sink back down again. Thereafter, we kept her out of any boat, and she confined herself to just getting her toes wet as she walked along the beach.

One spring I was planting down by our pond which still had a small bit of ice on it. Peter, my then young and inexperienced hunting dog, was with me, and suddenly saw something on the far side of the pond he wanted to chase. He went sailing into that icy pond (undoubtedly thinking that the ice and surrounding water was solid) and went totally underwater. I stood there for an eternity of seconds, remembering Sass, and praying Peter wasn't like his great-great-great whatever grandmother as I contemplated having to dive into that icy pond to retrieve him. As Peter came up splashing and then slowly navigated to shore with my encouragement, I thanked God that at least that one had a bit of swimming instinct.

So to answer your question, each schnauzer must be taken on a case-by-case basis. If you go boating with yours, I would always make sure that it is always wearing a life vest, even if it does swim. They can get tired in the water, just as we do.

Karen