Geneticly a min. schnauzers are prone to having a "tic" as you put it .there are medications that you can get from the vet that you take your pup to, that will help the tic to lesson.my pup started his tic when he was only 4 1/2 years old, but because of the meds. he lived until he was almost 15.the best thing to do to find out about this condition is to talk to your vet. . if they don't have the answers that you are looking for you can go to a.k.c. of America and look under your breed(min. schna.) there you'll find alot of different cat. that you can look into. the answer is there. good luck with the pup, and may he live a long and happy life