Shar Pei

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Shar Pei
Other names Chinese Shar Pei
Chinese Fighting Dog
Country of origin China
Traits

The Shar Pei is a breed of dog known for its distinctive features of deep wrinkles and a blue-black tongue. The breed derives from China. The name (沙皮, pinyin: shā pí; English name probably derived from British spelling of Cantonese equivalent sā pèih) translates to "sand skin," and refers to the texture of its short, rough coat. As puppies, Shar Pei have numerous wrinkles, but as they mature, these wrinkles disappear as they "grow into their skin". Shar Pei were once named as one of the world's rarest dog breeds by Time magazine and the Guinness Book of World Records, and the American Kennel Club did not recognize the breed until 1991.

Contents

[edit] Description

[edit] Appearance

Shar Pei have a thick, curled tail
Shar Pei have a thick, curled tail
Shar Pei physique
Weight: 40-65 pounds
Height: 18-20 inches
Coat: Three coat varieties: Horse-coat (unusual), rough to the touch, extremely prickly and off-standing; brush-coat, with longer hair and a smoother feel; and bear-coat (rare, and not recognized by the AKC)
Litter size: 4-6 puppies
Life span: 7-10 years

Small, triangular ears, a muzzle shaped like that of a hippopotamus, and a high-set tail also give the Shar Pei a unique look. For show standard, "the tail is thick and round at the base, tapering to a fine point" (AKC standard February 28, 1998).

[edit] Colors

Shar Pei come in many different colors such as fawn, red (rose), sand, cream, black, lilac and blue. They resemble the Chow Chow due to having the same blue-black tongue.

[edit] Coat

Shar Pei comes in three different coat types; horse, brush and bear coat. The unusual horse-coat is rough to the touch, extremely prickly and off-standing and is closer to the original Shar Pei breed in appearance and coat type than the Brush or Bear Coat. This coat is fairly prickly, and can be rough or irritating when petting in the opposite direction of the fur. The Horse Coat is generally thought to be more active and predisposed to dominant behaviour than the Brush Coat. The brush-coated variety have slightly longer hair and a smoother feel to them. The Brush Coat is generally considered to be more of a 'couch potato' than the Horse Coat.

Unlike the two coat types above, the Bear Coat does not meet breed standards and therefore cannot be shown. The coat is much longer than the Brush and Horse Coat, so much so, in most cases you can't see the famous wrinkles. A Bear Coat can occur in any litter.

[edit] Wrinkles

Shar Pei usually come in two varieties: one is covered in large folds of wrinkles, even into adulthood (the Western type). The other variation has skin that appears tighter on its body, with wrinkles just on the face and at the whithers (the original type).

[edit] Temperament

The Shar Pei is often suspicious of strangers, which pertains to their origin as a guard dog. In general the breed has proved itself to be a loving, devoted family dog. The Shar Pei are also very independent and reserved breeds. Nevertheless, the Shar Pei is extremely devoted, loyal and affectionate to its family, and is amenable to accepting strangers given time and proper introduction at a young age. If poorly socialized or trained, it can become especially territorial and aggressive. Even friendly and well-socialized individuals will retain the breed's watch dog proclivities (such as barking at strangers). It is a largely silent breed, barking only when playing or when worried. The Shar Pei was originally bred as palace guards in China and eventually as fighting dogs. While this breed is adorable it is also very protective of its home and family, a powerful dog that is willing to guard its family members at all costs.

The breed is amenable to training, but can get bored from repetition. Overall, the Shar Pei is a dog that is loyal and loving to its family while being very protective & independent.

[edit] Health

The Shar Pei is known to have many different health issues. Allergy-induced skin infections can be a problem in this breed caused by poorly selected breeding stock. Shar Pei fever also known as swollen hock syndrome is also a serious problem for the breed. The disease causes short fevers lasting up to 24 hours, after which there may be no recurrence or they may recur at more frequent intervals and become more serious. A possibly related disease is called amyloidosis, and is caused by unprocessed amyloid proteins depositing in the organs, most often in the kidneys or liver, leading to renal failure. At this time there is no test for these seemingly prevalent diseases. A common problem, caused by irresponsible breeding, is a painful eye condition, entropion, in which the eyelashes curl inward, irritating the eye. Untreated, it can cause blindness. This condition can be fixed by surgery ("tacking" the eyelids up so they will not roll onto the eyeball for puppies or surgically removing extra skin in adolescent and older Shar Pei).

A Shar pei which shows the breed's compact body, curled tail, and small ears.
A Shar pei which shows the breed's compact body, curled tail, and small ears.

Recently, dry foods have been formulated that are specifically made for breeds such as the Chinese Shar Pei that are prone to skin allergies or sores. Shar Pei whose food intake is restricted to these allergy-free dry foods and receive an antihistamine or two daily will enjoy much healthier lives with little or no skin irritation, itching, or sores common to the breed.[citation needed]In addition, feeding dry/wet foods that do not contain any wheat or wheat gluten products may help prevent allergies from developing.

[edit] History

Shar Pei puppies, showing the greater amount of wrinkles.
Shar Pei puppies, showing the greater amount of wrinkles.

The Shar Pei breed comes from the Guangdong province of China where it was well-known as a fighting and guard dog. The original Shar-pei from China looked very different from the breed now popular in the West. People in southern China, Hong Kong, and Macau differentiate the Western type and the original type by calling them respectively "meat-mouth" and "bone-mouth" Shar-pei.

Traditional Shar-Pei.
Traditional Shar-Pei.

Originally, the intense loyalty of the Shar Pei defined its work -- guarding the Chinese royal family[citation needed]. The dogs are ideally suited for defense; the small ears and deep-set eyes are tough to grab and if grabbed on the skin, the wrinkles enable the dog to turn around and bite back. At one point they were close to extinction, and were listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as "The rarest dog in the world". Since then, however, the Shar Pei has begun to thrive in many parts of the world as an excellent family dog, due to their loving and devoted nature, suggesting they may have originally been a utility and companion breed rather than a fighting breed. A nickname for the breed is "Golden Lion", referring to dogs who have a light brown coat.

DNA analysis has concluded that the Shar Pei is one of the most ancient dog breeds[1].

[edit] Famous Shar-Pei

  • Satchel, from the syndicated comic strip Get Fuzzy, is half yellow lab and half Shar Pei.
  • A Shar Pei appears in the television show Lost as character Sun Kwon's pet, Bpo Bpo.
  • In a British television advert for a Garnier anti-wrinkle cream, a Shar Pei puppy is featured.
  • New Kids on the Block member Jonathon Knight had a Shar Pei named Nikko that went on tour with him and appeared in many magazine articles and pictures focused on the group.
  • In Australia and New Zealand, a Shar Pei puppy named Roly has been used for many years in television commercials for Purex toilet paper.
  • Popeye, a Shar Pei dog that appeared in Hong Kong TVB comedy shows.
  • Zac Lichman from Big Brother had a Shar Pei named Molly, who undertook a task on Day 55, and was also reunited.
  • Mikey (bassist of My Chemical Romance) and Alicia Way have two Shar Pei named Piglet Tree and Puddles.
  • In a recent episode of BBC Three Reality series Dog Borstal a Shar Pei named Mia appeared, exhibiting virtually every negative aspect of the breed including Shar Pei fever. Trainer Robert Alleyne said of the Shar Pei breed that they are "a genetic disaster".

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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