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Origin: Tibet
Height: 8-11 inches at the
shoulder
Weight: 9-16 pounds
Exercise Needs: Low
Grooming Needs: High
Life Expectancy: 11-13
years
Good With Kids: Yes
Trainability: Easy
Common Misspellings: Shitzu, Shihtzu,
Shit-Zu, Shit-Zoo, Shih-Zoo
Alternate Names: Shih Tzu, Tibetan Lion Dog
One of the loveable dust mops of the canine
world, the Shih Tzu’s sweet face and gentle,
loving disposition has made him, not only a
favorite pampered pet, but a helpful therapy
dog. Additionally, this surprising little dog
does extremely well in both obedience and
agility courses, and loves an active lifestyle.
A top choice with the elderly, the Shih Tzu is
more than happy to travel with the retiree
throughout their golden years, soaking up the
sun and seeing the world with a happily wagging
tail.
While the exact origins of the Shih Tzu are
obscured by time, it is believed that this
sweet-faced toy dog originated in Asia, his
ancestors probably dating as far back as 1000
B.C. Although the exact facts are not known,
many claim that the Shih Tzu was the favored
holy dog of the Tibetan lamas. The lion played
an important part in Buddhism and, while there
were no lions in China, certain breeds of dogs
could be bred and groomed to resemble lions.
Considering that Shih Tzu actually means “lion,”
it is strongly believed that this little dust
mop was perhaps both the smallest and oldest of
all the different lion dogs.
We do know that a great portion of the
breed’s existence is thanks to the Dowager
Empress Cixi, who kept a kennel of Pekingese,
Pugs, and Shih Tzu that was famous throughout
the world. With a watchful eye, she carefully
supervised the three breeds, doing her best to
keep the strains pure and completely separate
from one another (although it is believed that
the eunuchs, in charge of breeding the dogs
according to her plans, often experimented and
crossed the breeds in an attempt to make the
dogs smaller and to find unusual colors and
markings).
The Communist revolution almost saw the
extinction of these unique little dogs.
Fortunately, however, there were 3 Shih Tzus
that had been imported to the Tashian kennel,
owned by Lady Brownrigg of England and, to
these, an additional 8 dogs were added when they
were imported to England from 1933-1959.
Meanwhile, in Norway, 3 other Shih Tzu had been
imported in 1932 - one of which was the only
Shih Tzu that had ever been bred in the Imperial
Palace to ever set foot on Western soil. From
these 14 dogs would stem the gene pool of all
modern-day Shih Tzu and he would make his way
into the United States by 1940, instantly
becoming an overnight sensation and favored pet
across the world.
The Shih Tzu is a very beautiful little dog -
possessing a very long and flowing double coat,
he is often jokingly referred to as a dust mop,
due to the way his hair drags along the floor as
he moves. There is nothing common about these
toy dogs however. In fact, the little lion dog
carries himself with a proud and regal bearing,
befitting his ancient and honorable lineage.
With his head held high and tail arched high
over his back, he is a very arrogant-looking
little canine, though sweet in disposition.
While there is a great size variation amongst
the Shih Tzu, it is generally said that they
should be between 8-11 inches at the shoulder,
and should ideally weigh no more than 16 pounds.
His coat, beautiful to gaze upon and silky-soft
to the touch, comes in a wide array of colors,
including gold-and-white, red-and-white, red,
black-masked gold, brindle-and-white,
blue-and-white, liver-and-white,
silver-and-white, black-and-white, solid black
and solid liver.
The Shih Tzu is a very docile and
well-mannered little dog, on the whole. Not
prone to some of the high-strung tendencies of
some of the other toy breeds, he is a very quiet
and even-tempered little individual. The Shih
Tzu is non-quarrelsome and tends to get along
very well with other animals and children
(though they may hide from those who are very
small and pull hair). Well-suited for either
country or apartment living, this unique little
dog’s main goal is to be close to his owner and
enjoy your company.
The Shih Tzu is very low-maintenance when it
comes to exercise needs. While he does enjoy
going for short walks, he is also very capable
of amusing himself and is not above tearing
around the living room with a favorite toy,
should he feel the need to stretch his legs.
Additionally, the Shih Tzu loves to travel and
is a very happy-go-lucky companion on any road
trip.
This is the one area where your beloved Shih
Tzu is bound to be a great deal of work. Those
who insist upon maintaining these unique little
dogs’ long flowing coat quickly discover that it
requires daily combing and regular trims to keep
them looking beautiful. This is often too much
of a headache for the average pet owner. Most
pet Shih Tzus travel to the grooming salon every
couple of weeks, getting their long locks cut to
a shorter, cooler, and more manageable style.
The Shih Tzu is a very loving and obedient
toy dog, who enjoys pleasing their human
companions. Because of this, coupled with the
dog’s high intelligence, they are well-suited
for obedience training, learning tricks, and can
even shine in agility and obstacle courses. Most
who have known Shih Tzus will be sure to tell
you that they love learning new things and seem
to really enjoy performing for the enjoyment of
their owners.
Fortunately, the Shih Tzu has very few major
health concerns, when compared to many other
purebred dogs. Nevertheless, considering the
small gene pool that the modern-day Shih Tzu
stems from, it’s not surprising that there are
still a few genetic problems. Some of these
health issues include:
- Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA)
- Ear infections
- Hip dysplasia
- Elbow dysplasia
- Renal dysplasia
- Abnormal thyroid functioning
- Hypersensitivity
The Shih Tzu is a very sweet and affectionate
little dog that makes an excellent companion,
especially to the elderly. Loving and patient,
he gets along with other animals, and tends to
avoid all manners of confrontation. Unlike many
breeds, he was bred not for hunting, retrieving,
fighting or work - from the beginning of his
days, the Shih Tzu was bred to be a loving
companion and he takes great pride in this task.
Shih Tzu are not fighters and not good at
defending themselves, so should always be
supervised and kept on a leash when outside. One
should also watch the Shih Tzu in the presence
of small children, not because they are biters,
but because they are small and delicate enough
that they can be easily injured if dropped or
played with too roughly. Aside from taking these
safety precautions, if you have a lot of love to
give and enjoy getting a lot of love in return,
these sweet little lion dogs are sure to win
your heart.
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There are a wealth of resources online that can help you learn
more about the Shih-Tzu dog breed. We've compiled a list of Cairn
Terrier information sites to assist you in quickly locating quality
information about the Shih-Tzu dog breed, while avoiding the
"garbage" sites that are nothing more than poor attempts to
capitalize on the popularity of dog breeds in general. If you know
of a Shih-Tzu information site that offers unique, quality
information and photos of the Shih-Tzu breed, please contact us with
the URL and a brief description so that our editors can consider it
for inclusion in our list below.
 Shih-Tzus
are a very photogenic dog breed. By looking at Cairn Terrier
pictures, you can usually gain more insight into what these dogs and
puppies are like as a breed, and this can help you decide if you
really want to become a Shih-Tzu owner. The following sites below
offer pictures of Shih-Tzu dogs, Shih-Tzu puppy photos, funny
Shih-Tzu photos and more. Enjoy!
Now that you have decided that the Shih-Tzu is the right breed
for you, it's time to start the process of finding a responsible
Cairn Terrier breeder from which to buy a healthy, well-socialized
puppy. Not all breeders are alike; there are good breeders - and bad
breeders. Don't be in a hurry to buy the first Shih-Tzu puppy you
find at the cheapest price available! To buy a puppy from a
responsible Shih-Tzu breeder, you may need to pay more and wait
longer. The additional money and waiting time will be well worth it.
Buy a puppy in haste from a newspaper ad, pet store or "backyard
breeder", and you'll likely also purchase a great deal of additional
expense and heartache, since you will likely end up falling in love
with a puppy with health and behavioral problems that will likely
need special care, plenty of veterinary visits, regular medication -
or even euthanasia. But do your homework and find a responsible,
caring Shih-Tzu breeder who home-raises their puppies with love,
screens their breeding dogs for health problems, offers a health
guarantee and post sale support, and who genuinely loves the Cairn
Terrier breed and is in it for the love of the breed, rather than
profit, and you can be fairly well assured of getting a healthy,
happy, long lived and affectionate family companion that will
provide you and your family with many years of joy, laughter and
companionship.
Further information about choosing a responsible breeder...
Here are a few breeder directory sites that we recommend. These
sites attempt to screen advertisers to ensure that the breeders
listed are responsible and sell healthy, home-raised Shih-Tzu
puppies to carefully screened buyers. There are many, many sites now
online that advertise dog breeders - many are a Mecca for puppy
mills and backyard breeders. We recommend that you steer clear of
these resources in favor of sites that are more selective in the
breeders whom they allow to advertise.
We Highly Recommend:
Shih-Tzu clubs and rescues web sites can help you learn even more
about the Shih-Tzu dog breed, help you locate a responsible Shih-Tzu
breeder, or help you find a Shih-Tzu dog or puppy in need of a
second chance for a loving, forever home. We've compiled the
following list of Shih-Tzu clubs and Shih-Tzu rescues web sites for
your convenience:
Choosing a name for your Shih-Tzu puppy can be a daunting task!
There are so many names to choose from that it can take a lot of
thought and research to find just the right name for your Cairn
Terrier. Usually, it's best to get to know your puppy for a few days
or weeks. Often your puppy's personality will help you decide on
just the right name to choose. Does he have a sense of humor? A
serious side? A goofy way of cocking his head to one side? A strange
love of cantaloupe? By observing your new Shih-Tzu puppy over the
first days or weeks, you should at least have a clue about what type
of name you want to give. There are a ton of dog names and pet names
web sites on the internet. Some are wonderful information resources,
while others, unfortunately, are just "garbage" sites set up with
the sole purpose of cashing in on visitor hits for this popular
subject.
We recommend the following sites to assist you in choosing a name
for your new Shih-Tzu puppy. These sites offer inventive, unique,
original and creative pet names suggestions that have helped
thousands of new puppy owners in selecting just the right name for
their new baby!
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