Shih Tzu
History
The Shih Tzu has been around for a long time. The
Shih Tzu was bred to sit around the palace of the
Emperor of China and bark when people or animals approached:
this is allegedly to alert people to the presence
of unwanted visitors. It is believed that this ornamental
breed was created by breeding the Bei-jing gou (Pekingese)
with a Tibetan dog breed, the Lhasa Apso. Recent DNA
analysis confirms that this is one of the oldest breeds
of dog. The Shih Tzu is also known as the Chinese/Tibetan
Lion Dog or the Chrysanthemum Dog. It is called the
chrysanthemum dog because its face looks very much
like the flower. In 1994, the Shih Tzu became the
12th most popular breed of dog in the AKC's 139 breeds
with more than 37,000 new individuals. [1]
Standards
The Imperial Shih Tzu or Shih Tzu breed or lion dog
is characterized by its long, flowing double coat;
sturdy build; intelligence; and a friendly, lively
attitude. In breeding all coat colors are allowed.
The Shih Tzu's hair can be styled either in a short
summer cut, or kept long as is compulsory for conformation
shows. Although Shih Tzu owners do not generally find
fur on furniture or cloths, they do shed small amounts
of fur and are a hypoallergenic pet. The shedded hairs
are usually trapped in the Shih Tzu's dense undercoat
until the Shih Tzu starts to do activities that involve
a lot of movement (e.g. running around.)
The AKC Shih Tzu breed standard calls
for the dog to have a short snout, large eyes, and
a palm-like tail that waves above its torso. The ideal
Shih Tzu to some is height at withers is 9 to 10 1/2
inches. The dog should stand no less than 8 inches
and not more than 11 inches tall. The Shih Tzu should
never be so high stationed as to appear leggy, nor
so low stationed as to appear dumpy or squatty. Regardless
of size or gender, the Shih Tzu should always be solid
and compact, and carry good weight and substance for
its size range.
James E. Mumford described the breed
in an American Shih Tzu magazine, giving a picture
of the versatile character of the Shih Tzu: "Nobody
knows how the Ancient Eunuchs managed to mix together…And
now here comes the recipe: A dash of lion, several
teaspoons of rabbit, a couple of ounces of domestic
cat, one part court jester, a dash of ballerina, a
pinch of old man (Chinese), a bit of beggar, a tablespoon
of monkey, one part baby seal, a dash of teddy bear
and the rest dogs of Tibetan and Chinese origin."
Breed variations
When the Dowager Empress took over control of the
breeding of Imperials from the Temple Eunuchs she
changed the Eunuchs preferred size range of 3-7 pounds
dogs to 7-10 pound range. This change was not natural
to the breed due to the gene called insulinlike growth
factor 1 (IGF-1). The genetic quirk, called a haplotype,
is found in all small breeds and is the reason Imperials
were so small in size. Due to its popularity the Shih
Tzu has been a trend by many breeders of Shih Tzu
to go back to the original and parent sizes of the
breed. This practice is growing because of the demand
for smaller easier to carry dogs the cidclub.com prefers
the original variation of the breed Called "
Imperial Shih Tzu 'or the “Chinese Imperial
Dog. To this day The American Shih Tzu standard requires
them to weigh 9 to 16 pounds which is much larger
than the original the eunuchs preferred and larger
than the Dowager Empress preferred.
