Coat, Ears & Tail

AKC Terrier Group · No. 17 in 2025

How to identify a Miniature Schnauzer

The Miniature Schnauzer is a sturdy, nearly square terrier, ranked No. 17 by the AKC in 2025. The giveaways are the rectangular head, thick whiskers and bushy eyebrows over a hard, wiry coat. It comes in only three colors: salt and pepper, black and silver, or solid black.

Photo of a Miniature Schnauzer
Photo: Canarian · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Field marks

These four marks are the ones the game gives you as clues. They paraphrase or briefly quote the AKC Miniature Schnauzer standard.

  1. Rectangular head with “thick whiskers which accentuate the rectangular shape”
  2. “Hard, wiry” outer coat, plucked close on the head, neck and ears
  3. Salt and pepper, black and silver, or solid black only; the salt and pepper fades to silver on the eyebrows, whiskers and legs
  4. 12 to 14 inches and “nearly square”; tail set high, carried erect and docked just long enough to show over the back

Tell them apart

Miniature Schnauzer or Yorkshire Terrier?

Check the coat and the color. A Miniature Schnauzer has a hard, wiry coat, a rectangular head with thick whiskers, and comes in salt and pepper, black and silver, or black. A Yorkie has a straight, silky coat in dark steel blue and tan, with a smaller, flatter head.

Miniature Schnauzer

Miniature Schnauzer

  1. Rectangular head with “thick whiskers which accentuate the rectangular shape”
  2. “Hard, wiry” outer coat, plucked close on the head, neck and ears
  3. Salt and pepper, black and silver, or solid black only; the salt and pepper fades to silver on the eyebrows, whiskers and legs
  4. 12 to 14 inches and “nearly square”; tail set high, carried erect and docked just long enough to show over the back
Yorkshire Terrier

Yorkshire Terrier

  1. Straight, silky coat: floor-length and parted down the back in the show ring, often clipped short at home
  2. Dark steel-blue body with a rich golden-tan head and tan legs
  3. “Small, V-shaped” ears carried erect
  4. Weight “must not exceed seven pounds”; long head fall tied with one or two bows

Test your eye

One photo, four names, ten dogs a day. Free, no sign-up.

Play today’s Daily

More Companion & Toy breeds

Sources