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Affenpinscher breeders

The Affenpinscher is a small, rough-coated dog in the Royal Kennel Club (RKC) Toy group, easy to recognise by its whiskery, monkey-like face.

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Advertise your Affenpinscher puppies, litters and stud dogs

Do you breed Affenpinschers? Add your kennel to caninebreeder.co.uk so buyers searching for Affenpinscher breeders can find you by breed and location. You can advertise Affenpinscher puppies for sale when a litter is due, promote an Affenpinscher stud dog to other breeders, and show the patella and respiratory results you hold. Your profile carries your kennel name, website, social media, location and specialisms. Create your breeder profile or compare plans.

No breeders are listed here yet, so the first profiles get the page to themselves.

  • Free basic profile: your breeder or company name, website, social media, location, breeds and industries.
  • Litters and stud dogs advertised in their own sections, never mixed with puppies for sale.
  • Premium showcase for your services and prices, previous customers, awards, video, gallery and health certificates, with your phone and email shown to buyers.
  • Sponsored articles about your breed or industry, written and published by our team.
  • Featured placement at the top of this page, labelled as sponsored.

Create your free breeder profile Advertise a litter Advertise a stud dog

Is it free to advertise here?

Yes. A breeder profile and your litter and stud dog adverts are free. Premium profiles, featured placement and sponsored articles are optional paid extras; see pricing.

Do I need a licence to advertise puppies?

In England you need a dog breeding licence from your council if you breed three or more litters in 12 months or breed and sell dogs as a business, and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own schemes. Licensed breeders show their licence number and issuing council on every advert. Puppies must be at least eight weeks old before they go to new homes.

Is my listing already here?

We add licensed breeders from councils' public registers. Search for your kennel name; if it is listed you can claim it and edit everything.

About the Affenpinscher

The Affenpinscher is a small, rough-coated dog in the Royal Kennel Club (RKC) Toy group, easy to recognise by its whiskery, monkey-like face. The name comes from the German word for monkey.

Origin and purpose. The breed was developed in Germany to kill rats and other vermin. The RKC suggests the German Pinscher sits in its background, with some input from flat-faced breeds, and says Griffon Bruxellois were brought in after the Second World War, when numbers were very low. According to the Affenpinscher Club, dogs of this type have existed in Europe since the 16th century or earlier, and one was shown at a Kennel Club show in 1886.

Size. The breed standard gives a height of 24 to 28 cm (about 9.5 to 11 inches) and sets no weight. It asks for a sturdily built dog that is not delicate in any way, with a short, straight back and a height at the withers roughly equal to its body length. The RKC classes it as small, with a lifespan of over 12 years.

Coat and grooming. The coat is harsh and rough, short and dense in places and shaggier around the head, neck and shoulders, where it frames the eyes, nose and chin. The standard says a correct coat needs no trimming and discourages a sculpted, stylised finish. The RKC lists grooming as more than once a week and notes that the breed sheds. Black is the only colour in the UK standard, although grey shading occurs. Red and black and tan can be registered as non-breed-standard colours; the RKC places the breed in Colour Watch Category 2.

Exercise and home. The RKC suggests up to an hour of exercise a day and rates the breed as suitable for a flat or a home with a small to medium garden, in town or country.

Temperament. The standard describes a lively, self-confident dog with a comically serious air, affectionate and loyal to its family, watchful with strangers and fearless if confronted. The RKC also mentions a mischievous, curious streak.

Is it the right breed for you? Be ready for a flat-faced breed's particular needs (see the health section) and for a wait: the breed club estimates only about 100 puppies are born each year. Browse Affenpinscher breeders, compare other Toy group breeders, or read our buyer safety guide before you contact anyone.

Affenpinscher health tests

The RKC treats the Affenpinscher as a flat-faced (brachycephalic) breed and highlights two risks. Too much soft tissue around the nose and throat can obstruct the airway, causing heavy panting or noisy breathing, and a shortened skull and jaw can leave the teeth overcrowded, leading to dental and gum problems. The breed standard asks for a short muzzle that is not so flat it makes breathing difficult.

The Affenpinscher is one of the breeds covered by the RKC and University of Cambridge Respiratory Function Grading Scheme. A trained vet listens to the dog's breathing at rest and again after three minutes of brisk exercise, then gives a grade from 0 to 3: grades 0 and 1 are clinically unaffected, grade 3 severely affected. Dogs can be graded from 12 months, and the RKC advises repeating the assessment every two years for life or until the dog is no longer bred from.

The RKC breed page links to the Affenpinscher Club's health scheme. The club says patellar luxation (a slipping kneecap) was the condition most often reported in living dogs in the 2014 Kennel Club breed health survey, and recommends its Patella Testing Scheme before breeding: a vet grades the knees on the Putnam scoring system, without anaesthetic.

Check results for RKC-registered dogs on the Health Test Results Finder.

  • RKC Good Practice: prioritising genetic diversity (inbreeding coefficient at or below the breed average)
  • RKC Best Practice: no further schemes or tests listed on the breed page
  • RKC breed-specific DNA test package: none currently offered
  • RKC and University of Cambridge Respiratory Function Grading Scheme: breed eligible
  • Affenpinscher Club Patella Testing Scheme (Putnam scoring): recommended by the breed club before breeding
  • Breed Watch: Category 1
  • Colour Watch: Category 2

Choosing an Affenpinscher breeder

Because so few Affenpinscher litters are born, a careful breeder may keep a waiting list and will ask you as many questions as you ask them. Expect both parents to have had their knees examined by a vet under the club's patella scheme; the Affenpinscher Club's code of ethics asks members to give new owners copies of the patella certificates along with the RKC paperwork and pedigree.

A good breeder will talk openly about breathing and teeth in a flat-faced breed, will know whether the parents have been graded under the Respiratory Function Grading Scheme, and will have checked the mating on the RKC inbreeding coefficient calculator. They should let you see the puppy with its mother where it was raised and give you written feeding and care notes.

In England, a breeder needs a council licence to run a business breeding and advertising dogs, or to breed three or more litters in any 12 months and sell any of the puppies, and must show the licence number in adverts. Every dog must be microchipped and registered by eight weeks old.

  • Have both parents had a vet patella examination, and may I see the certificates?
  • Have the parents been graded under the Respiratory Function Grading Scheme, and what were the grades?
  • What is the inbreeding coefficient of this mating compared with the breed average?
  • Can I see the puppy with its mother, and will it be microchipped and registered before it leaves?
  • Will you take the dog back or help rehome it if my circumstances change?

Affenpinscher questions

How big does an Affenpinscher get?

The RKC breed standard gives a height of 24 to 28 cm (about 9.5 to 11 inches). It sets no weight, but asks for a sturdily built dog that is not delicate in any way.

Do Affenpinschers shed, and how much grooming do they need?

The RKC notes that the breed sheds and suggests grooming more than once a week. The coat is harsh and rough, shaggier around the head, neck and shoulders, and the standard says a correct coat needs no trimming.

Do Affenpinschers have breathing problems?

The RKC treats the Affenpinscher as a flat-faced breed and flags breathing difficulties and overcrowded teeth as risks. The breed is covered by the RKC and University of Cambridge Respiratory Function Grading Scheme, so ask a breeder whether the parents have been graded and what the grades were.

Why is it hard to find an Affenpinscher puppy?

The Affenpinscher Club estimates that only about 100 puppies are born each year, so waiting lists are normal. The club suggests going to a club show to meet breeders and ask about planned litters.

More for Affenpinscher owners and breeders

Official sources