NAME OF THE BREED

It is hard to say how the breed got its name. One of the many names was Chao (a large, primitive dog with extraordinary strength). In the records of the 17th century B.C, there are mentions of the name Ao. In the same century, it was also called barbaric or tartaric dog, i.e. Man Kout. There were a few more names later, such as Mang (a dog with a lot of hair) or Ti (the red dog). Later, it was named Foreign dog in the West or the Chinese tasteful dog. In the end, the unified name Chow Chow, was adopted.

ORIGINS OF THE BREED

Chow Chow is one of the oldest breeds. There are records dating back from 11th century B.C. which described a tartaric dog. They were described as having a powerful and heavy build, with straight hind legs and a blue tongue. In the Miocena period (8-12 million years ago) a distant relative of theirs appeared; a cross between a bear and a dog.
With small bears of Tibet and Manchuria it shares the specific blue tongue, a broad skull, short snout and a square body. The final, and conclusive proof for this historical theory, is the fact that dogs have 42 teeth, while the Chow Chow has 44, and sometimes they lose all of them during the change from their baby teeth. It is fascinating that the Chow's ancestors lived in the cold steppes of Mongolia, long before the ape-man evolved into the Homo sapiens. Tartars and Mongols often ravaged North China with their war dogs. These dogs were described as dogs with lion looks, big, strong and characteristic for their black tongues. Therefore, it is clear they were the ancestors of today's Chow Chow dogs. Kings and noblemen kept them as house pets, and they lived at courts in great luxury. They were fed only with the best rise and top meat, and their task was to guard the palace and be the perfect, divine decoration. The Tang Dynasty had 25,000 pairs of these dogs. That figure alone speaks volumes about the status they enjoyed. Later (7th century B.C.) those dogs served as hound dogs for hunting wolves and leopards being that they had excellent olfactory sense, wise tactics and great strength. The magnificent Chow strength can be concluded from the fact that numerous graves from the Han period contain ceramic statues that depict Chow Chow.
Those statues were buried along with their owners, and their purpose was to scare away the evil ghosts.
In one emperor court a painting 2 thousand years old was found, depicting a Chow Chow lying beneath the table, with a perfectly combed red coat, and with the same snout as it looks today. In those days, the majority of Chow Chow dogs were red or black, only in some isolated, rocky mountains of the north China, in Manchuria and Mongolia, monks in Buddhist monasteries raised blue Chow Chows. Those dogs protected and guarded monasteries, and guarded the livestock. After the reign of the Tang Dynasty came to an end, the whole country was thrown off into poverty, and the breeding was cut-off drastically, except in Buddhist monasteries. Purebred dogs lived only with wealthy merchants, noblemen, and monasteries. After that, they started creating dog farms where dogs were bred for food and fur. In Manchuria, village girls would receive six Chow Chow dogs as endowment, which served as a foundation for starting their own dog farms. The Chow Chow meat was a delicacy, as a substitute for veal, and black dogs were considered especially delicious. The tongue was a special delicacy, because they believed it had healing powers, and it was served with rice and soy sauce. Consumption of dog meat was forbidden as late as 1928, and even today some elderly Chinese people eat it, buying it on the “black” market. Dogs are still being eaten in South Korea also. An interesting fact, the first European to mention and describe them in his travel journals was Marco Polo, during his visit to China, as a guest of the great Mogul in 13th Century. It remained completely unknown in Europe until the late 15th Century when it was brought in by merchant sailors.
In 1865, Queen Victoria received a few dogs. Interest in breeding and exhibitions started in 1879 when a black female dog named Chinese Puzzle arrived in England, 40,6 centimeters tall and weighing in at 14,5 kilograms, which is interesting when taking into account the today's standards of the breed. The first official breeder was Lady Granville Gordon, who also owned Peridot II. Later her daughter started a famous breed-club Amwell, and she was the leading breeder and exhibitioner until the end of the century.
One of the most important years in the history of this dog breed is 1895 because three important events took place that year: dog Chow VIII, became the first ever champion of the entire breed and the standard of the breed is based off of him, Peridot II received the BIS title on an exhibition, and a club of fans and breeders was formed.
As far as the other European countries go, in France, the first club was formed in 1924 which was renewed after the World War II, while in Germany; the first registered Chow Chow was recorded fairly late, in 1974.
On the new continent, in America, the first Chow Chow was on display in 1890 in the ownership of Mrs. A.C. Derby. The first American breeding-club was started by Mrs. Jarret from Philadelphia and she also helped get the breed officially recognized. One of the originators of the American cultivation was an imported dog, Chinese Chum which won the American champion title and gave excellent offspring which became the basis of the Blue Dragon breeding-club. The breeders club was formed in 1906.
Many famous people were owners of these dogs, we shall name just a few: Queen Victoria and Alexandra, Queen Elizabeth II, Sigmund Freud, Herbert von Karajan, etc.
During the 30ties and 80ties, these dogs made a huge “splash” in the world which resulted in uncontrolled breeding.

LEGEND ABOUT THE UNIQUE BLUE-BLACK COLOR OF THE TONGUE

One story tells how God, while creating the world, chopped off small pieces of the sky so as to put stars in those places. Those pieces fell to the ground, and only Chow was allowed to lick them, and according to this story, this is how he got his blue-black tongue. Also, there is a story about a monk who was accompanied by Chow, and a third story comes from Japan. All three stories are very imaginative and fascinating. There is no true scientific evidence about the color of the tongue except the fact that it shares this specific color with small bears of Tibet and Manchuria, but also a broad skull, a short snout and a square body. The conclusive proof of this historical fact is that dogs have 42 teeth, and Chow Chow has 44, and sometimes they lose them during the change of their baby teeth. According to this historical fact, 28 – 12 million years ago, there was interbreeding with a bear and so this breed came to be, and with it, the color of the tongue.

THE BREED STANDARD

CLASSIFICATION: Chow Chow belongs to the V.F.C.I group, Spitzers and primitive dogs

GENERAL APPEARANCE: Active dog, compact, proportional, lion look, dignified and proud posture, well built.

CHARACTERISTICS: Quiet dog, very cautious, not friendly to strangers, good guard dog, blue-black tongue, unique for its stiff walk.

TEMPER: Independent, proud, loyal but reserved.

HEAD: Skull flat and big, snout medium size, big black nose, except for cream colored dogs which usually have bright noses, and blue dogs which usually have the nose the same color as the coat.

EYES: Dark, ocher, small, blue dogs are allowed to have the same color as the color of the fur, and clear eyes, without entropy should not be punished regardless of the dimensions.

EARS: Small, rounded, pointed upwards, well spaced and facing forward.

MOUTH: Teeth strong and well arranged, powerful jaw, deep bite, jaws straight and complete. Lips, palate and tongue are blue-black.

NECK: Strong, not too short, well connected with the shoulders.

LEGS: Front legs: Straight, not too long, with strong bones.
Hind legs: Muscular, straight and barely movable at the knee and the ankle, lower leg never bent forward.
Paws: Small, rounded, cat-like.

BODY: Thorax broad and well developed, round ribs, short back, flat and strong.

TAIL: Highly mounted, bent forward and carried on the back

WALK: Scanty, stiff and somewhat unnatural.

COLOR: Exclusively single color (black, blue, red, cream and fawn), occasional shading, but not spotty or multicolor. Lower part of the tail and hind legs is usually of a lighter shade.

COAT: Short or long. Long hair is thick, straight and very abundant. Covering coat is harsher, with soft and woolly under-coating. It is a lot thicker in the neck area where it forms a mane. Short, thick, straight, and fluffy.

SIZE: Males range in height from 48 to 56 centimeters, and females from 46 to 51. Weight ranges from 20 to 30 kilograms.


TYPES OF FUR, COLOR, CARE AND USEFUL ADVICE:

We differentiate between short-haired and long-haired Chow Chow dogs.

Their fur consists of the longer and stronger upper hair, and soft and woolly under-hair, and this is the hair that gets shed off during molting. The color of the under-hair is usually dark blue and black dogs, and cream colored dogs have somewhat lighter shade then the fur. With red and fawn colored dogs, the color varies from white to dark-gray. While puppies, they should be accustomed to regular brushing, and especially in the age from 5 to 8 months when they lose their baby hair, which is replaced by a stronger type of hair. With some dogs, this period can last a little longer. It is recommend to brush more often adult dogs, once or twice a week, and especially during the molt period. They molt once or twice a year, and this applies both to long-haired as well as short-haired Chow Chows. Brushing is extremely important for proper changing of the hair. During rest of the year they do not molt, except in the case of frequent changes of temperature or living in acclimatized environments. The coat is fully developed by the time dogs are two years old. Males have a more rich hair then females, especially the mane. They're most often seen in black, red or cream color variants. Blue and fawn colors are the rarest. Only the black specimens have explicitly black color, all other colors can vary from lighter to darker shades. Even some black specimens have silver tails or spots on legs. The red color covers a wide span of shades, ranging from the intensive mahogany red all the way to the light golden-red color with a white tail, mane and spots on legs. Red pups are born brown, and some have a black “mask” on their face, which gradually fades away.
Blue color (diluted black): it can vary from dark blue to purple. Blue colored dogs usually have a gray nose; it can also be black, but never brown.

Cream color ranges from almost pure white to ivory color, with darker patches on ears, snout and tail.
Fawn color (diluted red): the pups are born with hair that has a silver glare; they also have a gray mask on their face that slowly fades away with time. The color varies in range from extremely light shade with a touch of gray or pink glare all the way to much darker shades.

Newly spawned pups have pink tongues, which later turn to their characteristic blue-black color.

This breed doesn't particularly like heat, and thus, during summer months it will always seek patches of shade. They're extremely pedantic and like to be clean, of course, except when they're pups because they're very playful and like playing with other dogs and people. Later, when they grow up, they become calmer and can be thought a lot of stuff so as to make life much more pleasant for us and for them. In order to achieve the mutual respect and understanding, socialization and regular walks are very important from the earliest age.

Chow Chow is not like some breeds that love to please the humans, it's more cat-like in nature, and people should be told what this breed is like, considering that many are surprised by their aloofness. They are pretty stubborn, but highly intelligent, they understand everything they're told, but because of their self will and highness, they do not always comply with your requests, so a lot of patience is needed. Sometimes, because of their character, they come off as uninterested which surprises most people. It does not require a lot of walking, but it is advisable to take a dog for a walk every day, because they grow very fond of it and brighten up as soon as they notice the leash. The owner must impose his or hers dominance, but must never beat him. Instead, he or she should develop a relationship full of appreciation, respect and love, because that is the only way to truly develop a harmonious relationship with them. As with humans, there are major differences between individual dogs, but certainly Chow Chow is a unique breed that will amaze everyone.

SHORT-HAIRED CHOW CHOW (SMOOTH CHOWS)

The short-haired Chow Chow is considered to be the basis of this breed. It cannot be said with great certainty from which Chinese province they originate, but apart from long-haired Chow Chow dogs, short-haired dogs also arrived in England. In 1899., the first Challenge Certificate was issued to a short-haired dog. It was a black bitch named Yumsie, born in 1892. in a litter from parents imported directly from China. Mrs. Casella was one of the most important breeders of short-haired dogs. She lived a long time in Asia, and when she returned to England in 1910. she brought with her a few short-haired Chow Chows. A revival of the breed accompanied the end of the World War II in 1945., although the short-haired specimen were still not as highly valued as their long-haired counterparts. During the 60ties some already famous breeders shifted their attention to short-haired dogs and their controlled and quality breeding. The first short-haired champion was from an English breed of Penhow and he became the champion of the Netherlands. The American standard from 1925. also extended to short-haired dogs, and in 1941., short-haired dogs were expelled from the very same standard. In 1986. the new American standard was once again rewritten and short-haired dogs were once again officially recognized. The standard is identical as for long-haired dogs except for the part that applies to the length of the hair and the general appearance.