The Chow Chow
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 Barbary Chow |
The Chow Chow is an ancient breed of northern Chinese origin. They are an all-purpose dog of China that was used for hunting, herding, pulling, and protection of the home. Today they are mainly used as companion dogs.
There is some debate over how the Chow Chow originated. Some say that they originated from a crossing of the Old Mastiff of Tibet and the Samoyed. The Chow shows similiarities of both breeds. Others say that the Chow is one of the basic breeds, and that he may have been one of the ancestors of the Samoyed, Norwegian Elkhound, Keeshond and Pomeranian- all of which are somewhat similar in type.
For centuries, the Chow was the principal sporting dog. In the 1700's, ships brought goods from China to the West. Captains had to keep lists of everything on board. Sometimes there were boxes filled with many little objects, and the Captains would list these with a slang word, "chow chow". It meant the same as doodads ar this-and thats. The dogs were shipped from China along with these crates of chow chows, so they became known as Chow Chow Dogs.
The importation of Chows into England did not being until about 1880, and they started toward its present popularity after Queen Victoria took an interest in it. The American Kennel Club officially recognized the breed in 1903.
Chows should be between 17-20 inches tall. There are two types of coat- rough and smooth. For the rough coated, the outer coat is abundant, dense, straight and offstanding- coars in texture, and the undercoat is soft, thick and wooly. For the smooth coated, the references to quantity and distribution are not applicable to the coat. There should be no obvious ruff or feathering on the legs or tail. Their colors should be solid or solid with lighter shaidings in the ruff, tail, and featherings. There are five colors of chows- red (light golden to deep mohogany), black, blue, cinnamon (light fawn to deep cinnamon) and cream.
Chows are intelligent, independent, and tend to be aloof. They are reserved with strangers.
The main problems in the breed include hip dysplasia, eye problems, elbow dysplasia, thyroid problems, luxating patella, as well as allergies/bad skin.
Some Chows are known to have nasty temperaments so it's best that you get your Chow from a reputable breeder who has sound temperaments in their lines and who also socializes the puppies starting at a very young age. Once the puppy is in your hands, it's your job to continue the socialization by exposing the puppy to new sights and sounds, and people. This will help assure that your puppy isn't going to be a fear biter, which is the most common form of aggression.
