Give me your opinion...

I changed my dog's name to Baxter from Snookers.  So... it can be done, but I do like Shotzi.  Of the ones you listed, I think I like Strudel.

I think Schotzi is a fitting name for him.  We had a schnauzer 11 years ago, whose name was Schultz.  We called him Schultzie though...and my second daughter couldn't say it, so it always sounded like Schotzi!

ORIGINAL: SquishyB

If I change his name to Topsy, would they end up calling him "Tops"? 

They probably would because "top" is a common word, so it's easy to shorten to that. I like some of the other names you mentioned better than Schotzi- like Friedrick and Schnitzel. I was born in Germany and half of my family is from Germany, so I feel a special connection to the country and language. Here are some German boy names that I like:

Bingham
Fremont
Lancelot
Clove
Hamlet
Jaeger
Kesler
Miles

I think Schotzi is a really cute name, but if you want to change it I'm sure he won't have any trouble adjusting.  Dogs that are adopted as adults from shelters may have had quite a few names over the years. []
 
Joyce

Okay, in my narrow little mind, old = not on the air anymore.  []
 
So I'm going through the 2000 names, and here's what I like so far:
 
Ansel (as in Ansel Adams, the photographer)
Filbert (I wouldn't actually name him this, I just think it's funny)
Fritz
Kaspar
Rudi or Rudolf
Sikke (I'm guessing this is pronounced "seek-ah")
Yvo (I'm guessing "ee-vo", and it says it means "yew tree".  What's a yew tree??)
 
Any more opinions?
 
 

You've never heard of a yew tree?  Yew is a very hard wood that is very desireable for a variety of uses.  In some cultures the yew tree is considered sacred and immortal because of how long lived alot of yew trees are and how useful the wood is.  [linkhttp://www.geocities.com/ancientyew2003/]http://www.geocities.com/ancientyew2003/[/link]

why bother?  the other thing to remember, this name has been in place for a long time, getting people (yourself included) to remember to use the new name will be alot harder. 
 
Dogs learn new names very rapidly.  Nora was Nora in 48 hours.

I think Spiritdogs is right. It is all in the tone. My understanding is also that it is best to keep the same number of syllabals. So if you change the name just try to choose a name with the same number of syllabals he already has and the transition will be easier.

I think his name suits him ok.  But it wont do any harm if you want to change it.  And if you dont like it that much, then go ahead and change it if you want.  I love suggestions for name threads, and this one especially as I have some German heritage.  Sorry if any of these have been mentioned already!
 
Schnitzel the Schnauzer???  BRILLIANT!  []
Otto von Bismarck is good too... could shorten to either Otto or Bizzy ???  (btw, Otto means "rich")
Oskar?  Sounds a bit german and its a good doggy name.
Boris (as in Boris Becker)
Franz
or Ferdinand (Ferdi) which means brave traveller or something.
Fritz (means peace or peaceful I think)
Hansel (as in Hansel and Gretel, also it sounds like Handsome! which he is, most definately)
Hugo (means SSophisticated/suave??)
Kuschel (means Cuddles)
Klaus (My favourite.... I just think its a great name for a dog!)
Manfred/Mannie (most kids will identify with this cos of Ice Age! very german, means man of peace)
Norbert (and this one might appeal to Potter fans, but it means "blond something" ??? and he is certainly not blond!)
 
[]

Okay, I've been playing with my german dictionary this afternoon, and found some more good names.  Here are the front runners right now (including names that others have mentioned!):
 
Hugo
Oskar
Sikke
Marmelade (it means Squishy, I think)
Buckel (boss, which Schotzi thinks he is!)
Ritz (means Scratch, which he does alot too!)
 
If I had to choose this very second, I think I would pick Buckel, but I think I'll mull it over for a while.  Tell me what you think.

How do you pronounce Sikke?
Marmelade sounds like a cat name to me, sorry!  I had a ginger kitten called Marmalade when I was little []
I'm not sure about Buckel, but I love Ritz... downside being it is only one syllable.... also, try saying over and over..... would you feel OK shouting this in the park for example?  Does it sound too similar to Sit?
Ever so slightly gutted Klaus isn't on your shortlist, but you can't have everything!

ORIGINAL: Chuffy

How do you pronounce Sikke?

 
I think it's Seek-ah.
 
The only way I can think to change Ritz would be Ritzy.  But I don't like that either.  Hm....

ORIGINAL: SquishyB

Okay, in my narrow little mind, old = not on the air anymore.  []

So I'm going through the 2000 names, and here's what I like so far:

Ansel (as in Ansel Adams, the photographer)
Filbert (I wouldn't actually name him this, I just think it's funny)
Fritz
Kaspar
Rudi or Rudolf
Sikke (I'm guessing this is pronounced "seek-ah")
Yvo (I'm guessing "ee-vo", and it says it means "yew tree".  What's a yew tree??)

Any more opinions?

We picked some of the same names! I didn't want to make my list too long, but I almost said Ansel, Kaspar, and Rudolf. To me he really looks like an Ansel.

I really like Ansel too.  I just have to keep thinking simple.  I work with disabled kids, most of which have speech problems too.  So even something simple like Ansel would be hard to pronounce.  Maybe a more familiar word like Buckel or Oskar would be best.  If I could make Ritz a 2-syllable name, I would TOTALLY use it!  I really like the silly sound of Filbert too, but what would I call him?  Fill?  Bertie?  Nah, I don't like either of those.

ORIGINAL: SquishyB

I really like Ansel too.  I just have to keep thinking simple.  I work with disabled kids, most of which have speech problems too.  So even something simple like Ansel would be hard to pronounce.  Maybe a more familiar word like Buckel or Oskar would be best.  If I could make Ritz a 2-syllable name, I would TOTALLY use it!  I really like the silly sound of Filbert too, but what would I call him?  Fill?  Bertie?  Nah, I don't like either of those.

Would Hansel be easier for them? It seems like it would since it's a familiar name from Hansel and Gretel. Buckel reminds me of a belt buckle.