The Small German Spitz is a breed very close to its family, cheerful and festive, so it likes to be touched and played with.

They tend to be quite barky dogs. Thus, it is important a good training from an early age to prevent them from barking too much.

With some moderate exercise a day and regular brushing, it will be enough to maintain it.healthy.

They have a long, fine coat. And they are well-proportioned dogs in terms of dimensions (equally tall as long).

There are five known types of German Spitz : Wolfsspitz ( Wolf Spitz / Keeshond ), Grossspitz (Great Spitz), Mittelspitz (Medium Spitz), Kleinspitz (Small Spitz) and Zwergspitz (Dwarf Spitz/Pomeranian).

A group of breeds is called the Spitz.canines that have as common characteristics to have two layers of hair, the first short and woolly, which protects them from inclement weather, the second layer consists of long hair, smooth and detached from the body, head with short hair reminiscent of the fox with small pointed ears and tail raised, curved and resting on the back. They are physically very similar to theNordic dogs.

Character - Coexistence - Behavior - Education:

The German Spitz is talented, lively and confident, with a spirit that has something of the bold and adventurous about it.This is a small breed that, because of its intelligence, needs many things to keep its mind well occupied.It is an attractive dog that adapts to most home environments but it is necessary to.keep in mind that, due to its copious coat, it needs regular grooming.

This breed has a fairly independent nature and, like many other members of the Spitz family, tends to be noisy, although this can be controlled with intelligent training.They can become rowdy because they are extremely alert guard dogs, with a natural instinct forbark whenever they are confronted with new or alarming situations.

The German Spitz, a cheerful and festive dog, professes great affection for his family; in fact, it is one of the breed's characteristics that points to the standard of perfection.His disposition is poised and self-assured - such an intelligent and adventurous personality as this, inserted in a canine body, cannot beeasily ignored-but should show no signs of either nervousness or aggression.

The German Spitz generally enjoys the company of other people as well as other dogs and pets but, as with most breeds, must be socialized in its youth during the process of personality development.

The fact that any dog will get along well with other dogs and pets is not a sign of a dog's aggression.or not with children depends a lot on the training the children have received and the intelligent control the parents exercise over that relationship. We are talking about a breed that enjoys the company of people, including children, so the German Spitz will always be willing to join in family games.

However, it is necessary to always supervise young children.When they are in the presence of dogs, for although this is not a breed large enough to knock a child to the ground, it is small enough that a child can cause him harm even without noticing it. He may pull his hair, for instance; it must not be forgotten that infants often play roughly, so that they must be taught to treat dogs withgentleness, gentleness and respect.

The German Spitz is an intelligent breed and, as such, has not only the ability to learn, but to learn quickly.

The German Spitz is a dog that will throw itself into any task with enthusiasm although traditional training methods do not usually work well with this breed.

The German Spitz needs to want to do things and expects a reward for doing them.The German Spitz does notis characterized by being particularly obedient although, of course, there are always exceptions! To ensure the success of training in the German Spitz it is necessary to use specific accessories for this purpose, in Petclic you can find everything you need for this and much more.

Care and Health:

The German Spitz is a breed that requires moderate daily exercise and agood regular brushing.

In general, the German Spitz is a fairly healthy breed that suffers from considerably fewer problems than many others but, as some can arise, it is best for the breed to be informed about what to expect.When the German Spitz standard was written, all exaggerated features that could bring health problems were cleverly avoided, whichundoubtedly contributes to producing, on the whole, an active and robust breed.

Some German Spitzes have problems with the knee joint, known as patellar luxation. It is prudent, when selecting a puppy, to choose one whose parents have been certified as free of this ailment. If the animal shows symptoms and it is confirmed that theAs with many other small breeds, German Spitzes lose their teeth at a relatively young age, but they can also lose their gums at a relatively young age, and this can lead to tooth decay, infection and subsequent loss.early.

Another dental problem to watch out for is retained deciduous teeth, meaning that a baby tooth may not fall out on its own and instead remain where the permanent tooth should begin to grow in, so it's best to take the puppy to the vet to find out if it needs an extraction.

Occasionally, dogs willcan suffer from heart problems, especially as they age.That's why it's smart to ask your vet to check your dog's heart at every routine visit or when you take him for vaccinations, although many good vets will do this automatically.

Kidney stones can occur in many breeds and appear in both sexes.

However,as the male's urethra is longer and narrower than the female's, blockages are more frequent in males.

History:

The German Spitz has a long history because, as a member of the European group of spitz dogs, its ancestors date back to the time of the Stone Age hunter-gatherers, some 6000 years ago.However, even without going that far back in theIn order to go back in time to an earlier stage, it is necessary to refer to the Spitz Turf (or Peat Bog Spitz), a type of dog that was accidentally buried and preserved in the peat bogs of the northern valleys of Germany and most of Denmark. As it was a marshy area, the houses were built on stilts and, over the course of time, they were built on stilts and, in the course of time, they were used as a shelter in the peat bogs.time, it has been possible to recover well-preserved corpses of both men and dogs that were buried in the peat bogs or swamps.

In a general sense, it is considered that the dogs found there were ancestors of the German Spitz; the local people would have deliberately eliminated in them the hunting instinct (by selective breeding) because they used more homemade dogs andIt was more important for the dogs to stay close to homes and warn of the approach of intruders.

Another theory holds that white coats were favored to distinguish them easily from marauding wolves and to avoid accidentally killing them. It should be noted, however, that these assumptions about the elimination of the hunting instinct and thewhite preference are only theories that have not been proven.

What we do know is that they were magnificent old-fashioned watchdogs, protecting not only farms but also vineyards, warehouses, barges, wagons, and the hucksters with their bales. This breed belongs to a group of dogs that are always ready to raise the alarm and was once giventhe name mistbeller, a term we can translate as "dunghill barker."

Spitz dogs developed in different ways in different countries, doing such things as running alongside cars or riding on horseback. They varied not only in size but also in color because they were always influenced by selective breeding, as they influenced all the otherpets.

During the 18th century the breed began to become popular in England following the accession of George I to the throne in 1714.His wife was German and the couple's offspring also married German aristocrats, which increased the presence of Germanic visitors to the English court in the company of their dogs, the true forerunners of today's German Spitz.They were then known as Pomeranians and were believed to have originated in the principality of Pomeranius, a former Baltic duchy between eastern Germany and western Poland.This class of dogs was considerably larger than those belonging to the breed known today as Pomeranian.

It is interesting to note how an animal that had been essentially a dog of the peasantry came to beQueen Charlotte, the German wife of King George III, brought two Pomeranians, Phoebe (or Phebe) and Mercury, to Britain in 1767. They lived at Kew, West London, as did the artist Gainsborough who, through his work, came into regular contact with the breed. These dogs featured prominently in the works of famous artists,It was fashionable then to have a painted portrait that included a favourite pet. Today, when we look at paintings from those days when dogs were painted with their owners, we can get an idea of their stature. Several paintings include white dogs but there is one in particular that portrays "Fino", a dogbicolor black and white.

Queen Victoria, Queen Charlotte's granddaughter, did much to bring public attention to pedigree dogs. She became deeply involved with the breed and imported dogs that ranged in weight from 3 to 7 pounds. In fact, one of Queen Victoria's Pomeranians, Gona, was among the first of the breed to win a prize at a British show.Her Majesty had first come into contact with the breed on the occasion of her trip to Italy in 1888, when she acquired several dogs in Florence. Among them was Marco, who weighed 12 pounds and with whom she had great success at shows, including the Crufts.

Queen Victoria, a great lover of many different breeds of dogs, had a kennel of Pomeranians and bred under theThere is a rather amusing anecdote that tells us how Her Majesty wanted to exhibit three Pomeranias of an unusual colour in England, for which a special class was instituted within the show, but, as if that wasn't enough, two of them were lucky enough to tie for first place! Queen Victoria was so fond of this breed that even if she did not have the courage to show it, she would not have been able to keep it.on her deathbed kept her Pomeranian Turi sharing all the time with her.

A prominent figure within the canine world, Charles Henry Lane, was invited to inspect Her Majesty's kennels. He spoke wonders of the conditions in which the dogs lived, all the care they received and the pains that were taken to provide them with a happy life.Althoughsome were extremely beautiful he first described spitz dogs as "faded."

Even though some were rather large, most were described by him as "boy-mediums."

Mr. Gladstone was another prominent person who took an interest in the breed and was said to have owned a black Pomeranian.

In the early 20th century there was that saying circulating that "Poms are gold" because then they weresold for over £250 and, if their weight is anything to go by, ounce for ounce, they were probably the most expensive breed of dog of all. But supply soon outstripped demand and the breed lost value.

At this time there was much inbreeding and signs of degeneration appeared, such as a tendency to apple heads in the smaller specimens, which was contrary to the foxheadsrequired by the breed.

Supported in part by Queen Victoria's protection and the consequent public interest in the breed, the English Kennel Club officially recognized the Pomeranian in 1870 and the Pomeranian Club drafted the first standard in 1891.

There was much variety in the size of different spitz dogs and, as with so many other breeds, miniaturization wasIn the latter, the dogs ended up being divided into five different breeds: the Wolfspitz, which had the color of the Keeshond but was larger; the Large Spitz, with the size of the Keeshond but of various colors; the Medium Spitz, which corresponds to our German Spitz Mittel; the Small Spitz, which is like our German Spitz Klein; and the Small Spitz, which is like our German Spitz Klein.eventually the Dwarf Spitz, which was the equivalent of the British Pomeranian.

In Britain the name Pomeranian was retained.Although there were no restrictions on size, there were differing opinions on weight and this varied over the years.In 1889 a division was established for dogs weighing 10 lb and by 1896 this had been reduced to 8 lb.Then, atIn the early 20th century, a new standard was made that set the dividing line at 7 pounds. Larger dogs were called Pomeranias, and smaller dogs were called Miniature Pomeranias. As time went on, interest in larger dogs waned, so by 1909 dogs were required to weigh between 3 and 4 pounds; bitches could be larger than males and weigh between 3 and 4 pounds; bitches could be larger than males and weigh between 3 and 4 pounds.5 and 6 lb. It was important for the bitches to be a little larger to encourage breeding.

However, the larger dogs had also been bred and did not disappear overnight; thus, larger dogs appeared from time to time. Although they were kept more as pets than as show dogs, larger bitches wereuseful breeders because they had no complications at the time of parturition.

In 1904 it was written, "There is no kind of ladies' pet dog which has attained such universal popularity in so short a space of time as the Pomeranian."

In the early years of the 20th century various personalities expressed their views on the breed.For Mrs. Hamilton, who almost alwaysThe ideal Pomeranian was "a bright little creature, resplendent with life and grace, devoted to his master or mistress, with whom he shares all his sorrows and joys, taking advantage of his doggy power. Mrs. Hamilton said that she had known many dogs of this breed that were almost human in their keenness of perception, dogs that had expressed to their masters the mostdeep sympathy in times of tragedy. She considered them as clever at tricks as Poodles, and although excitable by nature, they never allowed their anger to overcome their discretion.

In the early 1970s, an admirer of the Pomeranian, Averil Cawthera, made the decision to establish the white Pomeranian and to this end imported from Holland Tum Tum van het Vlinderhof ofLireva ("Tum Tum"), in 1975; it was a white dog which was followed by a black female, Venestein's Mauricia of Lireva ("Velvet"), in 1976.

Shortly after Averil Cawthera had imported these dogs from Holland, Rosemary Bridgeman bought a rather overgrown Pomeranian, April Folly at Tordown, and together with Janet Al-Haddad, made serious efforts to gain recognition for the Spitz fromActually, the larger Pomeranian and the Klein Spitz were practically the same, so these two ladies tried to have him recognized as a "Victorian Pomeranian," an attractive name that fully evoked Her Majesty's love of the breed.

Somewhat later, in 1977 and 1978, Rosemary Bridgeman acquired respectively Tum Tum and Velvet, the Dutch dogs ofThen, in 1979, Mrs. Al-Haddad and Mrs. Bridgeman, along with Julie Smith, imported a Dutch female, Tefanra-Leona's Lady Xabrina, affectionately known as "Minty."

This is when confusion arose as to the names under which the breed was registered. In Holland, Minty had been registered as "Keeshond Kleine", but her registration with the Kennel ClubThe English Kennel Club referred to her as belonging to the Keeshond breed, which she was not! It was believed that Tum Tum and Minty had been registered as Klein Keeshond but, as it was later discovered, this was not the case. The English Kennel Club then changed Minty's breed registration to "Pomeranian" but, by that time, the bitch had already been entered in a show as Kleine Keeshond.It really was all very confusing!

In 1981, Janet Al-Haddad imported a white Klein Spitz, which she bought from Frau Pinner, Vienna. It was Prinz Schneeflocke von Cottas, which was also included in the Pomeranian register. Not surprisingly, there was strong opposition from Pomeranian breeders, as it was considered that the larger spitz would haveIt was then decided to form a specialized club, dedicated to a separate breed, the German Spitz, with the intention that it would be included in the Utility Dog Group rather than the Toy Dog Group.

On February 3, 1982, the first meeting of the German Spitz Club was held at the Bantam Tavern.of Burghfield Common, home of Bob and Chris Trendle, who were closely associated with the breed in its early years. Rosemary Bridgeman was elected president, and Janet Al-Haddad (then Edmons), board chair, while Pat Mais was elected secretary.

Confusion over the breed records then began to rear its ugly head because there were only two dogs registered."correctly."

But the English Kennel Club understood that the larger spitz fanciers were not going to give up and so, with the help of Mike Stockman, it was agreed that Tum-Tum, Velvet and the progeny of both would also be included in the gene pool, provided their owners agreed.

In order to be transferred to the German Spitz registry, the offspring had tohad to have one of the original four imported dogs in their pedigree, and it was the owner and not the breeder who decided this, plus the application for registration had to be made at six months of age.

It is obvious that the pure offspring of the dogs that became known as the "First Four" went straight to the registry, but for the others there was a developmental registry.

Also.it was necessary to decide on the two sizes of German Spitz, and the Kennel Club ruled that they should be known as "Mittel" and "Klein", as these names would cause less confusion than the English words "standard" and "miniature". Owners had to decide which size to register their dogs as, but once registered, the two sizes could not be crossed.to each other.

To decide which dogs were registered as Klein and which as Mittel they had to be measured, and this resulted in littermates, especially if they belonged to different sexes, being registered as belonging to different sizes.

Early German Spitz breeders wanted any colour or marking to be allowed in the breed, which received the approval of theThis encourages variety and showmanship, but creates a slight problem in defining the color of puppies for registration purposes because the colors of German Spitz often change with maturity. This means that a young dog can be registered with a certain color and then that color can easily change to a very different one.

In 1995 the breedachieved the category that would allow it to qualify for Challenge Certificates, only ten years after its recognition by the English Kennel Club. The breed club was wise enough to clarify and modify certain details within the standard before establishing a permanent one.

Unfortunately, the German Spitz is not a popular breed in the United States, where thePomeranian, the Keeshond and the American Eskimo, related breeds, enjoy great favor.The American Eskimo, not well known in Britain, is a white, compactly built dog, popular in 20th century circuses.This breed, which was recognized in 1994 by the American Kennel Club, is divided into three sizes.

General Appearance

Although there are two sizes of.German Spitz, both are identical in physical appearance.

The German Spitz is a compact, almost square contoured breed whose profuse coat should not mask a lack of substance.

The ribcage is long and rounded; the breed's typical cat feet, with their arched toes, are small and also rounded.

The breed standard requires the head of the German Spitz to be "of mediumsize", with a broad, almost flat skull. This width of the head tapers towards the wedge-shaped truffle; the length of the muzzle is about half the total length of the head and has a moderate stop between the eyes.

The ears are small, triangular, erect and set high on the head, while the eyes are oval-shaped and set high on the head.

The ears are small, triangular, erect and set high on the head, while the eyes are oval-shaped and set high on the head.The ears are small, triangular, erect and set high on the head, while the eyes are oval-shaped and set high on the head.The breed has a scissor bite, meaning that the upper teeth closely overlap the lower teeth.

It is not permissible for the edges of the eyelids, nose or lips to be pink or have butterfly pigment (some parts pigmented and some not), regardless of coat colour; at the same time, the depth and shade of colour of thepigment may vary according to coat color.

An important characteristic of the spitz breeds is the tail carried over the back.

The German Spitz has a tail set well up that curls from birth and sits curved over the back, giving an attractive finishing touch to this already beautiful breed.

The Small German Spitz measures between 23 and 29 cm,although it should be noted that the two sizes of German Spitz have only recently been treated as two different varieties and, because of this, the sizes are not completely stabilized.

Although officially there is no difference between the size of bitches and males, in the section relating to size, the standard states that dogs should be male and bitches,female.

The German Spitz moves with a lively, effortless gait, keeping an even topline.The movement should be in a straight line, the same when viewed from the front as from the rear.The German Spitz should not have cow hocks nor should it be too wide in the rear.

The German Spitz's double coat consists of a soft, woolly undercoat, and.The hair covers the entire body of the dog but is particularly abundant around the neck and on the forelimbs, with an abundant fringing on the shoulders. The legs are fringed; this fringed area is clearly described in the breed standard.

The ears are covered with a short hair.The beautiful curled tail is covered with a long, unfurled and abundant hair that gives the dog a beautiful appearance.

It is very important to keep in mind that this is not a breed that carries clippings in the hair. The German Spitz should never be shaved, even if the owner believes that the pet will feel better this way in the monthsAnd the reason why the German Spitz's hair should never be cut is that it loses its insulating properties, so that peeling it can produce the opposite effect to the one intended.

Putting the hair in order is quite a different thing and that is done by matching and thinning a little hair on the feet, anal area and legs below the hock.

Anybreed that has a wide variety of colours makes a beautiful spectacle when it appears in the show ring, but the German Spitz is one of the most spectacular in that respect. All varieties of colour and all possible markings are accepted, although the most predominant colours are black and gold. Black and tan are only occasionally seen, but together withthey we can find dogs of color sand wolf, bicolors of black and white, blue, cream, etc.