The Working Miniature Pinscher

Robin Nuttall

For some, the phrase of “working” along with “Miniature Pinscher,” is an oxymoron. Min Pins, I have been told, are stubborn, wild, uncontrollable. Won’t stand still for the judge, don’t even judge them on the table, you’re lucky if one stacks at all, much less the right direction. Housebreaking is impossible, just settle for the fact that you’re going to be using belly bands and litter pans and cleaning up accidents. Never, ever let them off a leash or they’ll be gone. Obedience? Agility? You’re joking, right? I mean, sure a few trainers have managed to do those sports but not many. And those trainers who do manage to actually do something with the dogs must either be uber-trainers, or too stubborn to know when to quit.

Before I go any further, let me be right up front and say I own one Min Pin. I do not have decades in the breed. My first breed was Dobermans, and those I’ve been training since the early 1980s in obedience and, more recently, agility and Rally. I currently teach agility classes. At the center where I teach, we train any dog that comes our way, from Chihuahuas to Chows, from mixed breeds to Champions. So I get to see a lot of dogs of varying abilities. Some are structurally ill-suited to any sort of jumping. Some are very low drive, approaching every new task with apprehension or disinterest. Some don’t care at all for either food or toys. Some are noise sensitive, others touch sensitive. Even with these deficits, many of these dogs do go on to have good, sometimes outstanding agility and/or obedience careers. Part of my job as a trainer is to assess each dog that comes my way and help the owner learn how to bring out the best that individual dog can do.

The best working dogs have specific traits that make working with them easy.

Energetic. A good working dog has a lot of energy and likes to do things fast. These dogs never walk if they can run. They can be complete horrors as puppies because they can wear their owners out.
Curious. These dogs are often into mischief and are inventive in play.
Persistent. A good working dog keeps at a task until they get the result they want
High food drive. A dog that loves food is one that I can motivate easily to do a desired task
High prey/toy drive. A dog who wants to follow, grip, and hold toys, another primary training motivator. My perfect dog has an even higher prey/toy drive than food drive.
Resilient. The ability to bounce back from physical and/or mental stress. Stuff will happen, whether it’s knocking over a jump or dealing with an owner’s nervous reactions in the ring. A great working dog has so much desire to complete the task that they hardly notice those setbacks and bounce back immediately.
Biddable. Biddability is handler compliance; the desire and willingness to please the human half of the training team. Too much biddability and the dog is unwilling to try anything new without getting express permission. Too little and the dog doesn’t even know you’re part of the team, they’re out there to please themselves.
Physically insensitive. The perfect working dog is not touch (touching inanimate objects), surface, or noise sensitive. They also don’t mind surfaces that slip or slide under them.
Good structure. Regardless of whether the dog is a Champion or a mix, there’s a certain physical structure that holds up over time. It’s square or somewhat longer than square, not overly heavy weight in relation to height, good length of neck, arched feet, neither cow or sickle hocked, firm pasterns, good reach and drive when moving, efficient. OFA hips, elbows, patellar luxation. CERF eyes.

Obviously it’s pretty much impossible to find a dog who is perfect in all these areas. Just as there’s no such thing as a dog who absolutely perfectly meets the breed standard, there are no dogs that are perfect in temperament and structure for work. Many Border Collies are very noise and touch sensitive, yet they are the pre-eminent agility breed because their plusses far outweigh their minuses and they can be trained through their issues. Some dogs who have hip dysplasia are able to be very successful competitors, as are some of the heavier, more massive breeds, especially in obedience. It’s harder for the mastiff-type dogs to be successful in agility, but it has been done. While there will never be a Mastiff on World Team, they can certainly achieve titles.

When I look at the Min Pin, I see a dog who, when bred according to the breed standard, has a lot of the traits I look for in a working dog. They have very high energy, generally love food and toys and don’t seem to care much about what surface their feet are on, nor do they mind the teeter. They are curious and love to stick their noses into everything and figure out what’s going on. They want to be the center of the action. They can be very single-minded as well. Many have good structure, though for working I would watch for good movers. The hackney gait isn’t so much a problem, but avoid the spidery gait with no forward drive and a lot of flipping of feet and elbows. The dog who has slightly less hackney, stable and solid front movement and good smooth drive from the rear would be a good choice. I’d also look for good feet; many Min Pins have very flat feet and that’s a detriment to a long working career.

Min Pins have what I call “happy drive.” When engaged positively with food and toys and when things are going well, they can be spectacular. But they are not as mentally resilient as some breeds, though they actually tend to be pretty darn tough physically. They don’t like to be wrong. If over corrected, some Min Pins may shut down and associate either the training or an object associated with that training with suspicion and avoidance. Other Min Pins may simply go off and do their own thing. It may seem like they are “blowing you off” or being “stubborn” or “spiteful.” What they are really doing is telling you that you have not made training them fun or rewarding enough for them to want to participate, or you have pushed them too hard or trained too long. Dog stress behaviors come in a wide range. Some dogs shut down when stressed, and that’s fairly easy to read. Other dogs react to stress by zooming madly around the room or otherwise getting out of control. Instead of shutting down they are blowing off stress through physical action.

Min Pins have the ability to work at a very high level of intensity, but it’s more difficult to get them to sustain that high level over a period of time. They tend to be visually alert to their environment and are easily distracted by things moving or by that tiny white crumb you never saw on your floor. They miss nothing! As a trainer, my job is to help my Min Pin attain and keep focus, and to make what he is doing exciting and rewarding enough that he is less tempted to let his mind, eyes, ears, and feet wander.

Because of their temperament, I feel that Min Pins are especially well suited to positive and clicker training. Frequent, short sessions of training at a high level of intensity develop the desire to work with you. You can then slowly increase the amount of time you wish your dog to work. Most Min Pins simply do not respond well to force, and they aren’t stupid, you don’t have to train them for hours and hours every day.

Overall, I find Min Pins to be one of the most naturally gifted breeds when it comes to training and work. They have many plusses and just a few minuses. I was shocked when coming into the breed to find so few who actually work in agility or obedience. Min Pin breeders who breed to the standard, that “fearless animation, complete self-possession, and his spirited presence,” that I often see in the show ring, are producing dogs who are very well suited to agility, obedience, Rally, or earthdog. It’s time for the Min Pin to come out from under the bushel and for trainers to see them with a clear and unprejudiced eye. This breed may be small, but it is mighty in ability.