Chinese Shar Pei Dog Breed Profile

Description: The Chinese Shar Pei is a medium sized dog most recognizable for its wrinkles. While some of the wrinkling the puppy exhibits disappears as the dog ages, the head, especially, retains a considerable amount of wrinkle in the adult dog.. At the shoulder, the Chinese SharPei will stand 18 to 20 inches. This dog weighs between 40 and 55 pounds. The Chinese Shar Pei's coat comes in three ways, the brush-coat, the horse-coat, and the seldom seen bear-coat. Acceptable colors for the coat are all sable colors and solids. The coat is rather bristly and the name translates to 'shark skin' or 'sand skin'. The Chinese SharPei has a life expectancy of about 10 years. It is also known as the Shar Pei.

History: The SharPei came into existence in China as a farm dog. It was useful in catching vermin and was also good for hunting. As the dog became known to the Chinese aristocracy, it began to be used in dog fighting. The loose, prickly skin was an aid to dealing with bites from an opposing dog. The breed was almost eradicated after the Communist Revolution in China, and it was only be the efforts of a Hong Kong businessman that the breed was smuggled into the United States and saved.

Temperament: Part of the Shar Pei's original work was as a guard dog for farm families. As such, it has retained a fairly strong guarding instinct and will be reserved and aloof with strangers. With the family itself, there is no problem - the Shar Pei is a loyal and devoted dog. The Shar Pei should be socialized with dogs and cats while young, it was a fighting dog and some of this is still part of its character. The Chinese SharPei is good with children, especially older ones.

Health Issues: Although it was undoubtedly a healthy dog, since importation to the United States, the Shar Pei has developed several health problems as a result of careless breeding. American breeders tended to concentrate on producing more heavy wrinkling and as a result, many of this breed can suffer kidney failure, extreme skin allergies, allergy to all grains, and hypothyroidism.

Grooming: The short hair of the Chinese SharPei makes grooming fairly easy. A good brushing once a week and daily during the yearly shed will keep the coat in condition. The owner of this dog should make sure to never get the dog's head wet. The ears of the Shar Pei have extremely tiny ear canals and if water gets into them, a severe ear infection can result. Use a dry shampoo on the dog's head.

Living Conditions: The Shar Pei is a dog that will exist happily in an apartment as long as it is given sufficient exercise. As with most dogs, the Shar Pei is happiest when interacting with its human family. When exercising the Shar Pei outside of your own yard, be sure to keep it on a leash, as it will try to fight strange dogs. Another thing to remember is that with the very heavy wrinkling on the dog's head, it can suffer if the weather is hot.