Schipperkes
by Arlene Brenner (Kelbri Schipperkes)

While Schipperkes are my breed of choice, I recognize that there are positives and negatives about the breed, and sometimes it is hard to tell which is which. When I was originally looking for a breed, I wanted a dog that I would enjoy as a pet, but that I could also show in obedience. My initial list of requirements read like this;
1) Since I wanted to get involved in the world of dog sports, I wanted a breed that was AKC recognized.
2) While I grew up with large dogs, especially GSD's, I wanted a smaller breed, so that the dog and equipment would be easier to take to shows, but I wanted the "big dog" attitude.
3) I wanted a "natural" breed, one with few health problems common to the breed, and one that was not long haired.
4)Since I wanted to do obedience (agility was not yet an AKC sport) I also wanted a tough breed with an "up" temperament, one that was action oriented, that was mostly independent or self sufficient, and yet at least somewhat trainable and willing to work with people. And, because we had other dogs, could be trained to coexist peaceably with other animals.
5) I also wanted a dog I could owner handle in conformation.

Of the few breeds that met these requirements, after visiting several kennels to meet the dogs of the different breeds, I chose the Schipperke. I liked the physical characteristics of the breed (iow, I thought they were pretty), and I liked the independent temperament and fun filled attitude. I was aware that some other breeds would be easier to train and live with as pets, and more competitively successful. But, I was also willing to do the extra work involved in training and living with a Schipperke, since I felt I would be happiest with the Schipperke as a complete package. Since becoming involved in Schipperkes, I have put obedience and agility titles on more then 10 schips, as well as finishing champions, some out of the BBE class. And, I still think I made the right choice...for me. It's Not About My Favorite Breed

Following are some of my thoughts, touching upon a few of the points most people would consider inherent in the breed...

Activity Level; Schipperkes have a high activity level compared to many breeds. Schipperkes are a good choice if you are looking for an active dog to do things with, if you are looking for a couch potato, you will be very unhappy. Schipperkes love to travel, love adventure, and just love going places and doing things. Schipperkes are social dogs, they want something to do, somebody to play with, and something to keep them entertained. The high activity level of schips can lead to a dog that if not properly exercised and trained will become destructive if bored and unsupervised. If they are ignored and left to fend for themselves they will find ways to entertain themselves, often to the detriment of your house and your possessions. A house with a young Schipperke in it, is not always a peaceful house. Because of their small size and adaptability, Schipperkes do make very good apartment or boat dogs if properly exercised.

Trainability; Schipperkes are highly intelligent self confident dogs, most are convinced that the world revolves around them. This makes them very easy to teach things to, they are often the stars of their puppy obedience classes... but it can make them rather difficult to train to do something consistently, since they will enjoy coming up with variations of commands. Schipperkes are very food motivated and are usually quite easy to train using mainly positive reinforcement type training. In general, obedience training is a must for Schipperkes, an untrained Schipperke usually has an unhappy owner.

Puppy Training or Obedience Classes. Classes are highly recommended, they tend to be the easiest way for most owners to find enough other people and other dogs to easily socialize a puppy, an obedience class never hurt a Schipperke:)... If you are inexperienced with training dogs, training classes also are a good idea in that if a trainer is competent they can give you advice on solving problems quickly as they crop up, rather than waiting until the problem really is a problem.

Fenced Yards. While a fenced yard is not a must, it certainly does help use up some of that endless energy. Schipperkes should never be outside without a leash unless very very well trained, and then they should never be loose outside except under direct supervision. Schipperkes certainly are not stay-at-home- dogs if they get the chance .. they always want to see what is over the hill ... the grass is always greener. If a Schipperke gets out the back door when no one is watching, he will not be at the front door waiting to be let in, he will be five miles down the road seeing what is going on down there. That is one reason obedience training is so highly recommended for schips, it helps you get the little darlings back. This tendency to explore when they escape adds to what has been the number one cause of death for young Schipperkes in the SCA's health survey: HBC - Hit By Car. Again, this is one reason that obedience training is absolutely a must ... All Schipperkes should have a reliable Come. So .... If you want a dog that that requires minimal training and owner involvement in its day to day life ... you don't want a Schipperke.

Children, cats and other dogs; As with any breed, early socialization of the puppy is the key here. While Schipperkes make very good family dogs and generally are quite social dogs that get along with about any other dogs, Schipperkes are NOT inherently just somehow magically "Good" with children, cats, or other dogs. While some problems are due to an inherent bad temperament (which is why you should be getting your puppy from a reputable breeder, or a rescue that can evaluate temperaments) Many problems can be traced to the dogs lack of early socialization on the part of the owner. If Schipperke puppies are not socialized with children, especially toddlers, many schips will NOT be good with toddlers if they first meet them as adult dogs. This is something for childless dog owners to keep in mind, if you intend to add children to your family at a later date, it is very important that you socialize your puppy NOW with children and toddlers. The same need for socializing holds true if you want your Schipperke to be good with other dogs and cats.

Housebreaking; Two words; Crate Train ... Surprisingly enough, most Schips are very easy to crate train, IF the owner is consistent and realizes that the dog will take longer to be reliable outside the crate than most large breeds. Schipperkes are small dogs and small puppies and it will take them longer to be reliable than many of the herding or working breeds. In other words, some schips will be close to a year old before they are "reliably" housebroken. They are somewhat difficult to housebreak without the use of a crate. However, many of the rescues we get, we have crate trained within a couple of days, and then the adoptive owners have them reliable in the house within six months or so. If you expect a dog to be reliably housetrained in a couple of weeks...you don't want to get a Schipperke.

Barking; While usually not nuisance barkers, Schipperkes will bark, a lot if you let them. Indoors, this is usually a (lack of) training issue. Some do bark more than others, but if steps are taken to consistently correct for excessive barking, most barking can certainly be eliminated in a controlled setting, i.e. in the house or in a crate. Nuisance barking, by a schip that is outdoors alone and unsupervised and bored, is very difficult if not impossible to eliminate. So ... If you intend to leave your dog outside unsupervised for long periods of time, and you have neighbors who will be upset with a barking dog...you may not want a Schipperke, or any other dog for that matter.

Shedding and coat and grooming; In general Schipperkes are very clean dogs and usually require little grooming beyond a quick brush or occasional bath. However, Schipperkes do shed on a seasonal basis, most "blow" most of their coat once or twice a year, some seem to do more of the perpetual shed, always shedding small amounts of fur. When they are "shedding" a warm bath and a good raking will help get the old coat out quickly in a week or two. Altered dogs will shed less then intact ones, males usually shed less than females. Schips do not seem to have that typical "doggy" odor, and require little other care if they are not shedding. Still ... If you dislike hair in the house...you probably don't want a Schipperke.

Nail Trimming. Most Schipperkes, for no particular reason, seem to hate to have their nails trimmed. Be sure that the clippers are sharp and practice trimming often starting as a pup. I have found that trimming nails when you give a bath works well, besides the nails being softer, I think the schip will still be so incensed that you gave them a bath that they forget to throw a big fuss over having their nails trimmed. Other people like to use grinders or files.

In short, if you are looking for a small, very active breed, with an out-going temperament and a zest for life, AND you are willing to put the time and energy into training the dog to be a succesful member of the family, the Schipperke might be the dog for you.

Males vs Females
IMO, (speaking strictly of neutered males here) males tend to be more "everybody" dogs and bitches tend to pick "favorites" from the people around them... We usually recommend males as "family" pets. Males generally remain more puppy like and are more happy-go-lucky or "sillier", the girls tend to get more serious. While you can have dominance issues with both sexes, imo, girls are more open about it. If you talk to breeders, probably 75% will say they prefer their males as pets, that being said, I do like the bitches better personally :) ... but I like a harder dog that will stand up for itself ... I want a dog that will give me a piece of its own mind once in a while.

Are males more likely to try and be dominant over the people in the house?
Again, this seems to be more an individual temperament thing than sex-related. Pack status always needs to be decided, and dogs of course want to be as high as they can be, and if that is higher than a human, well at least the dog is happy about it :) A dominant dog of either sex is going to challenge whoever it thinks it can get away with challenging, a more submissive dog is not even going to bother to try. I think a lot of the "dominance" stuff is not so much inherent behavioral differences between the sexes, but is more dependant on the individual temperament of the dog (and human). I do think that bitches tend to be a little more "open" about what they are doing, while boys try to pull a snow job on you ... Also I am not sure if a lot of this "challenging" is actually based on the sex of the human vs dog so much as the inadvertent appearance and behavior of humans in general ... men tend to be more "dominant" appearing to dogs to start with ... they are larger, have louder deeper voices, tend to hover dominantingly over the dog more etc ... women have higher "happier" voices, are usually smaller, and do a lot more of the "oh how cute puppy puppy type" interactions. Women tend to "play" with pups a lot more like another "pup" (putting themselves at the pups level) than men do.

Are the male puppies more difficult to house train due to marking issues?
While schips in general are harder to housebreak than a lot of breeds (harder than most large breeds, but easier than most toy breeds), I have not found much difference in housebreaking, or have other people from what I can tell (Note, this is neutered animals again, intact males are another story) ... I think one thing is that people can easily see a male "marking" and not notice that the bitches are ... girls mark just as much as the boys do, they are just sneakier about it. Also the boys seem to be able to hold it sooner and longer than the girls. (One reason for this is that girls get uti's etc more than boys which can delay housebreaking)