Harlequin Pinscher

History

Bred in Germany, the Miniature Pinscher is made up of the Dachshund, Italian Greyhound and German Pinscher bloodlines. This small breed originated hundreds of years ago and was used to hunt small animals and vermin out of farms for their owners. Today, this breed still carries those natural instincts with them, and are popular in the United States.

Appearance

The Miniature/Harlequin Pinscher is a small breed dog with males and females measuring 10-12 inches in height and generally weighing 8-10 pounds in weight. This breed is built lean and active in appearance. Their small, wedge shaped head is accompanied by two large triangular ears that are folded forward; though generally cropped to a small triangular point that stands firm on their head. Their two large, round eyes are available in a light hazel to black in color. Their tail is generally cropped to about two inches and stands firm upwards. Their single layer, short hair coat should always demonstrate a natural shine and for their variety is only available in Harlequin pattern.

Temperament

The Miniature/Harlequin Pinscher is known for their amazing ability to bond and understand their human owner. A wonderful choice to add to any home with other pets, children and with an owner who is interested in training their new dog and teaching him or her new things. This breed loves to learn and does so quickly, making it a wonderful dog for those interested in endless possibilities and perhaps competitive obedience or agility competitions. This breed requires a firm and confident owner who is consistent and able to set rules and boundaries from the beginning. If this breed feels he or she is above their humans, or not receiving enough physical and mental activity, it will result in destructive behaviors and consistent barking. Overall, the Harlequin Pinscher is a wonderful family dog, given proper socialization, and incredibly smart.

Grooming

This breed does shed. Daily brushing and bathing when needed.

Special Notes

Please fully research about the Miniature\Harlequin Pinscher prior to adding one to your household to ensure you are able to provide a life long commitment both physically and financially. A properly fenced in area or properly fitting harness and leash is required at all times outdoors, as this breed has a natural instinct to hunt small animals and vermin. All dogs originate from wolves (Canis Lupus). Each breed of dog was originally created by mixing different breeds together in an effort to bring forth certain characteristics. Once a breeder has created acceptable “breed characteristics” within their bloodline and these “breed characteristics” have shown to be reliably reproduced in the offspring for three (3) generations, the bloodline may be upgraded from the category of “foundation stock” to “pure-bred”. The same “pure-bred” breed standards vary from different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders. Dog DNA testing companies can have accurate results for a specific bloodline of a small colony of dogs. However, there are tens of thousands of different bloodlines in the world which have not yet been tested for marker baseline results by Dog DNA testing companies as of 2017. For this reason Dog DNA testing companies do not guarantee the 100% accuracy of their breed lineage results and will also show different marker results for the same pure-bred breed in different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders.