The Schnauzer or Mittelschnauzer is a German breed of dog in the Pinscher and Schnauzer group. It is characterised by an abundant bristly beard and whiskers, usually lighter than the coat. It is one of three Schnauzer breeds, the others being the Giant Schnauzer or Riesenschnauzer, and the Miniature Schnauzer or Zwergschnauzer. In Germany it is an endangered breed, and is listed in category III of the Rote Liste of the Gesellschaft zur Erhaltung alter und gefährdeter Haustierrassen. Its development as a breed dates from the 1880s, in southern Germany. It is a robust and squarely-built dog of medium size, of working or utility type; the coat may be salt-and-pepper or black. A dog of this type was exhibited in Hanover in 1879; another was "Best in Show" at the Westminster Kennel Club in the United States in 1997. Breed name The name of the breed derives from the German word , meaning 'snout', but how it came to be applied to the breed is unknown. The word appears in the Bilder und Sagen aus der Schweiz of Jeremias Gotthelf, published in 1842. 'Schnauz' was a common name for a dog – several dogs with this name were shown in Elberfeld in 1880. At the third international dog show of the Verein zur Veredelung der Hunderassen in Hanover in 1879, a dog named 'Schnautzer' took first place in the Rauche Pinscher or Wire-haired Pinscher class. The name of the breed was officially changed from Rauhaarige Pinscher to Schnauzer with the sixth edition of the stud-book in 1917. History The Schnauzer originated in southern Germany; it shares a common history with the German Pinscher. Dogs of this type, both rough-haired and smooth-haired, were traditionally kept as carriage dogs or as stable dogs, and so were sometimes known as ; they were capable ratters. Both types were known as Deutscher Pinscher, and came from the same lineage; rough-haired and smooth-haired puppies could occur in the same litter. The rough-haired type, which would later become the Schnauzer, was also known as the . In 1880 the Pinscher was recorded in the Deutschen Hundestammbuch of the Verein zur Veredelung der Hunderassen, and the first breed standard was drawn up. Various colours were described for the rough-haired type, including iron-grey, silver-grey, grey-yellow, corn-yellow and rust-yellow. In 1895 described five varieties of Pinscher – the rough- and smooth-haired Pinscher, the rough- and smooth-haired Miniature Pinscher, and