Austrian Pinscher

The Austrian Pinscher is an old working breed developed from German Pinschers and various hounds and sheepdogs of Austria and the Balkans, such as the Taurunum Dogge, Jamar and Alopekis. Believed to had remained unchanged since the Middle Ages, this hardy and resilient dog has traditionaly been used to drive and protect livestock, but it also makes an excellent hunter, vermin killer and all-around farm dog. The Austrian Pinscher is extremely powerful for its size, capable of great speeds and famous for its strong bite. Being primarily working dogs, there are some appearance inconsistencies within the Austrian Terrier population, like different ear shapes, coat types and height variations.

Sturdy, rugged and muscular, this is a very strong and healthy little working dog. Quite rare outside its native country, the Austrian Short-Haired Pinscher makes an agreable companion pet, but it can be overly suspicious of strangers and aggressive towards other dogs, needing early socialization and obedience training.

The coat is dense, hard and short, most commonly seen in shades of fawn with white markings, but other colourings exist. Average height is around 18 inches. This profile gives a very accurate description of the origin, purpose and current status of the breed. You may find some of the information published here to be different from what you will read in breed books, published encyclopedias and on other websites. Unlike the articles usually found in most of those sources, the MD breed Profiles are a result of many years of actual research and travelling around the world. However, since most of the Profiles have been written over the course of the past 15 years, some of them might need to be updated. We do not distort the information, but rather state our perspective on the breeds based on our extensive research and contributed information. If you have any additional info that you believe we might find interesting, feel free to let us know about it. Constructive feedback is welcome - disparaging remarks are not. Enjoy!