The 60:ies

Riesengardens Xo was shown in sept -67, mostly because we thought it
would be nice go get a critique on him from a judge, and he did.
He won the youth class and went on to BOB.
Next show was a Speciality in Gothenburg in feb -68 where he got his first cc
and again BOB and went on to win the Working Group. Then it all happened very quickly,
3 cc´s in a row together with BOB and several group placings. The highlight of that year
was his BOB at the big International Stockholm show under world famous schnauzer judge and
authority Elina Lehtinen and ended up group 2:nd under the equal schnauzer specialist
Mr Hans Lehtinen. Xo continued in the same style for a couple of years which you can
read more about on his own page. The thougts automatically went on to getting a bitch
and have a Giant Schnauzer litter. At shows I had met Mrs Mona Bengtsson, Gråskäggs kennel,
who, apart from her Miniature Schnauzers, also had a Giant bitch from Finland, Ch Teri,
and she was eventually coming to my home and was the foundation bitch of the
Maximin Giant Schnauzers.

As mentioned Mona also had two Miniature Schnauzers imported from England,
Ch Eastwight Sea Frolic and Ch Lichstone Catrina.
And a small one just as pure company would be nice to have! Ch Gråskäggs Johanna arrived with train
on a cold winters day in the beginning of 1970 and when she, completely unbothered by a long jorney
and snow and cold, stepped out of her cage one already knew there were probably more of those small


The 70:ies

The first Giant Schnauzer litter was born in March -70, the prefix Maximin was registered about
a year later and the kennel was owned by myself and my mother, who had most of the hard work with it
as I was still in school. We co-owned it until she died in 1984.
We bred some show champions and also obedience champions.
(Maximin) Otte was exported to Miss Sylvia Hammarström, Skansens kennels in USA.
We imported a dog from Germany that was a complete mistake and, one of our top bitches
Ch Myrkarby Dorrit never got any puppies and so on! The success in Giants never really got there
even if we made something for the breed when looking back on it.
The breeding continued until 1978 when our last hope,
Xo:s last daughter, later word famous Eng, Norw Ch Guldmansbuktens Wenche of Nenevale,
got her first and only litter in Sweden. There were 8 dog puppies!
No bitch, nothing to continue with!
Jenny Harrison-Smith had wanted Wenche when she visited the year before and now she got her,
a decision I never regretted. She was exported to the Nenevale kennels in England
where she made her own place in the breed history, probably the biggest thing we did for the breed at the Maximin kennels.
The years with the Giants were hard work and lots of disappointments as well as good moments to remember,
and there will always be a special place in my heart for the breed.

The Miniature Schnauzer breeding started in 1972 with the bitches Ch Gråskäggs Johanna
and Ch Rownhams Eastwight Sea Melody, imported from Miss Morrison-Bell,
a contact that during the years established an unvaluable friendship and help.
Later also the dog Ch Eastwight Sea Magic was imported from her.
The Eastwight lines and type is still what I personally put as being the very best in the breed ever.
Also, from Mrs Marianne Fürst-Danielson we bought Jidjis Min Artemis.
Never shown she was to be a great corner stone in our breeding, combining Continental and English lines.
By the way our first two litters were sired by Mihan dogs from Finland as the owner of this world famous
Standard Schnauzer kennel also had Miniatures at that time.
Ch Maximin Ibert was our first home bred Champion and he was followed by many more.

In 1978 we imported Ch Barclay Square Maximin Midas and Ch Barclay Square Maximin Minx
from Dale Miller in USA. They were a perfect complement to our English and Continental lines
and got there own place in the kennel history and you can read more about them on their own page
which you find in the picture gallery.

Also, the Standard Schnauzer Ch Curbits Huckelberry lived here. He was bought as a puppy from word famous breeders Curt and Birgitta Cederskog and by Mihan Tahvo out of Int Scand Ch Minaco Inki. Hacke won a lot as a youngster, including BOS at a big Schnauzer speciality where his mother Inki was BOB from the veteran class, all under word famous Schnauzer specialist Marisa Brivio-Chellini. As Hacke did not feel well being a kennel dog he continued to live his life as a family dog in a private home for many years.


 

The 80:ies

The Miniature Schnauzer breeding continued and many top-winning dogs were bred here,
among them Scand Ch Maximin Smiling Yankee, the first Swedish bred Miniature
that went BIS at an all breed championship show. He also was runner up in Toy Dog of The Year in -81 and Schnauzer/Pinscher of The Year. Several dogs bred here got the title Schnauzer/Pinscher of the Year
which was very pleasing.

Quite a few bitches were sold as foundations for many different kennels, a thing I always appriciated highly
and our dogs were frequently used at stud.
The Maximin lines is represented in all Scandinavia and in England
where I bred a litter during my stay in 1978.
A dog from that litter was later exported to Norway as an English Champion.

I was also - together with among others Anne Wallin, kennel Fixus - involved in the foundation of the Swedish Miniature Schnauzer Club (Dvärgschnauzerringen) and we arranged the first ever speciality show for the breed in Sweden and were very please to have Miss Morrison-Bell (Eastwight) as our judge. That was a great event and success.

You will find more about the 80ies in the picture gallery.

In 1989 Sweden got the tail docking ban, and due to this and some other personal reasons
the breeding stopped. The remaining bitches and dogs were old and no litters were bred
or any new dogs was bought in to continue the work.


The 90:ies

In the beginning of the decade, just three old Miniature Schnauzers were kept until they passed away,
then 1992 and 1993 there were no dogs at all.
In 1994 the Smooth Fox Terrier Swed Norw Ch Rottrivers Look Sharp at Maximin arrived.
I was judging a Rottweiler show the year before and the famous Rottweiler breeder Krister Ohlander
had a 4 months old puppy with him, that was outstanding and later became the world famous
Multi Ch Rottrivers Snow Record.
Some nostalgic thought crossed my mind as I had a Smooth in 1960, and I decided to have a new one
and booked a puppy from Krister.
So that is how "Felix" came here. He was a successful show dog, won 18 cc´s
before his qualifying one in Open Class.


2000

Someone said "once Schnauzers - always Schnauzers" and I guess that is true.
With or without a tail, 8 years without a Schnauzer is 8 rahter empty years even if there always have been
contact with the breed and breeders. In the spring -99 i took over the Miniature bitch Visions Extra Deal
from my brothers breeding and the plan was to breed a litter carrying the old remaining Maximin lines
to get them started again.She was bred and missed, then bred again to the in my own opinion
best Miniature Schnauzer I have ever seen Multi Ch Ulf v d Havenstadt owned by the Fixus kennel.
We had great plans but it all ended up in bad luck and there were no litter.


2001-2003

In December 2001 Gråskäggs Moon Mist was born at Kennel Gråskäggs and Mona Bengtsson. She came here in February 2002 at 8 weeks of age. I was very happy to get a new Gråskägg puppy as Mona bred our foundation bitch in the breed just over 30 years ago. Märta - as Moon Mist is called - was mated at New Year 2003 and her first litter was born here in february 2004. So that was the history of Maximin, now lets hope for the future!