Repitition Miniature Schnauzers has for the last forty years offered top quality show and companion animals. Over 260 Champion dogs carry the Repitition prefix. Many top breeders of today started with a Repiition dog Kurt has mentored many exhibitors of today, with breeding, handling, and grooming advice and assistance. Many of those mentored are successful today and still showing.
Founded by Kurt and Carol Garmaker (Kurt's late wife), Repitition dogs have changed the face of the breed, producing great dogs in all three colors, and in particular, contributed to the development of top quality black and silver dogs world-wide. Repitition dogs and dogs co-bred with others have won internationally, garnering BOB awards, WD, and WB at World shows, and have won at many National specialties in our own country.
Our dogs have been successful in England, South Africa, and Australia, Germany, Poland, Russia, China, Taiwan and Korea. Our initial concept over forty years ago was to use salt and peppers to improve the overall conformation and look of black and silver dogs. Repitition black and silver dogs in the seventies and eighties were winning specialties when no black and silvers had done that for 15-20 years. Ch. Rosean's Weekend Warrior was the first and only black and silver Best in Show winner in the lower 48 states. "Awol" was bred by Kurt and Carol Garmaker and Sean O'Connor.
Other accomplishments include the breeding of Ch. Repitition's Cornerstone (sire of 81 champions). He is the number three top producing dog of all time in the breed and the son of Ch. Rampage's Representative (sire of 88 champions). Our many other top producing dogs who have contributed more than 20 champions each in our breed, include Ch. Repitiiton's Busta Rhymes (30 champions), Ch. Repitition's Impression (22 champions and 2014 and 2105 top stud dog in the breed), Ch. Repitition's It's a Rap (20 champions and the 2014 number two stud dog), and Ch. Repitition's Valedictorian (2011's number one Miniature, and the sire of 13 champions and three national specialty winners thus far).
Closely associated with the late and very dear Janice Ramel of Rampage Kennels, Carol, Kurt and Janice and Sean bred numerous beautiful dogs. who won many national and regional specialties , Groups and Best in Shows. Since 1990, Repitition has piloted 9 number one dogs including the great Ch. Rampage's Representative (88 champions) winning number one twice with Carol handling, Ch. Ramage's Awesome Z (number one mini twice again with Carol handling and a Rep daughter), Ch. Awesome's Obenezer (1999 number one dog with Kurt handling), Ch. Chattelane's Firecracker (a Cornerstone son and 2001 number one mini and a four-time Best in Show and Montgomery County BOB winner with Kurt handling), Ch. Chattelane's Roubi Slippers (2005 number one Mini, setting all records for ANY mini in overall breed points for one year -- 2509 points -- and winning 30 group ones and two best in Shows with Kurt handling) and 2011 home-bred dog Ch. Repitition's Valedictorian, Kurt breeding and handling, who won one parent club specialty, and all four other specialites for the first time on our roving national weekend in 2011, accumulating many group ones and group placements finishing as the top Miniature Schnauzer in all systems for 2011.
Repitition Kennels, drawing its name for a commitment to producing quality each and every generation, strives to produce dogs of a distinct and recognizable type. Kurt sees the ideal specimen as a dog who is not a duplicate of a Standard Schnauzer but is, as the standard dictates, of Terrier type. This is a dog who has characteristics of a working dog and is sturdy, robust, with plenty of bone, but NOT heavy set. The dog easily fits in the terrier group, being a long legged terrier, who has sufficient leg to never look low slung or dumpy. It's head piece is lean and fairly long and the fore-face is at least as long as a lean clean back skull, not short , fat and
snipey. Overall, the dog has a down the nose look, and the plains of the skull and muzzle should be parallel. You will find Repitition dogs have beautiful heads and they produce them in the whelping box.
Kurt sees the Miniature Schnauzer as a square breed like its standard schnauzer cousin, not an equivocation of square. The correct dogs should be the equal distance from withers to ground as from point of shoulder to buttocks. No excuses should be made for a dog who was longer than tall, but moved well (BAD type) or a dog that is shorter than tall (kinetically all wrong) . Square is square, and anything off square should be penalized to the extent of the deviation. The body should be wide enough, so that the width of the dog is about 40 percent of its height. The Miniature Schnauzer should have excellent rib spring, and muscle development, the width of the body coming from correctly shaped ribs, and a short loin, not obesity as has become common place among some dogs of today.
The neck of the dog should be moderately long, and very well set on. Ewe necks, becoming more common all the time again in our breed, should be avoided. High set withers help to insure a beautiful neck and shoulder transition that is real, made of bones and muscles, not groomed in with piles of hair to disguise ewe necks. Ewe necks are characterized by dogs who have excessive high head carriage and carry their heads at times over their backs like poodles -- a trait that is very wrong for a Miniature Schnauzer. The upper arm should be long enough so that he elbow is directly below the withers Dogs with overly long upper arms should be avoided as they generally come with shoulders that are rotated forward , ewe necks, and dogs who lean over themselves when standing or moving. We breed for a dog that has forechest, but a moderate one. More is NOT always better in my opinion.
The dog should move as the standard dictates. It is a parallel tracking breed, not a single tracker (as is a working dog), and its croup should be flatter and tail set higher than the standard schnauzer who has a slight rise over the loin and drop off at the tail. This type of conformation allows for a longer stride from the rear, and more drive than is correct or typical for the average miniature. Our gait, while free, not restricted and coming to center, is not to be confused with a working or sporting dog's gait. Excessive reach and drive where dogs kick themselves in the rear or hit themselves in the chin with excessive lift and flexibility is not the gait that the miniature should have. Succinctly said, Kurt believes the dog should come and go in parallel planes and hold its outline and topline moving around the ring. The dog should have an easy gait and be light on its feet and have the length of stride commensurate with a square, moderately angulated, double tracking dog.
Tail should be ideally carried erect (not at one o'clock), meaning the tail should be at 12 oclock and no further than 11 oclock (slight fault). Croup should be flat, not rounded. Hocks should be short. Feet need to be compact and cat like. and have strong pasterns.
The temperament of the miniature is a very important component to its breed type. Descending from "guard dogs," the breed can be a bit noisy, like any good guard dog. They should not be shy, retiring, and act afraid. They should not be overly aggressive, and bitches or dogs should not be biting other bitches and dogs in the ring. That is very bad temperament and indicates the dog is overly aggressive. The ideal temperament is stable, happy, and accepting of strangers and other dogs. Dogs of bad temperament should not be bred.
If you choose to own a Repitition dog you will find they are wonderful companions and beautiful eye-catching dogs with great heads, faces and expression. They are also healthy, as many live to 15 yrs or longer with good care.
