GISA SCHICKER

Dogs are a family affair for us. At the age of four I became the proud owner of a miniature dachshund, which accompanied me for 12 years. In 1973, I started breeding schnauzers under the affix "vom Bartenwetzer". From 1982 to 1998  I successfully bred back giant schnauzers  to gether with my husband. National and international champion dogs have emerged from our kennel: world veteran champions, European and national champions.

Many "Bartenwetzers" were used in working dog sports and successfully trained by the Swiss military to become disaster and avalanche search dogs. Only giant schnauzers with working tests were used for breeding and our motto has always been to combine beauty and performance. For this, our breed was awarded the Honorary Medal of the Federal Secretary for Food, Agriculture and Forestry.

I started training as a breed specialty judge in the Pinscher and Schnauzer Club and was appointed VDH & FCI Allrounder on November 26, 2014. I had the honor of being able to work internationally as a FCI judge, judging in Europe, New Zealand, Russia, Indonesia, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Taiwan, at many VDH National and European winner exhibitions, the world exhibitions in Italy 2000 and in Germany 2003.

For several years I held various positions in the Pinscher and Schnauzer Club (PSK) and was appointed to the Judges Committee of the German kennel club (VDH) as coordinator of FCI Group 2. Today I have the privilege of conducting breeding permit inspections for the VDH national breeds and I am responsible for the training of breed specialty judges in numerous breed clubs.

I wrote a monograph on Giant Schnauzers with my husband, Walter Schicker. I was also the author of articles and lectures on breeding Schnauzers, Rhodesia Ridgebacks, Dalmatians, White Swiss Shepherds. A highlight was the judges conference in Argentina, giving the presentation on Schnauzers, Newfoundland dogs and Rhodesian Ridgebacks. My vision as a judge is to maintain dogs according to their FCI standard and to avoid exaggerations, to weigh the dog's advantages against its weaknesses. I always have and will put the welfare and health of the breeds first.

GISA SCHICKER