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The first thing you are likely to notice when encountering a Chow Chow for the first time, is its distinctive blue tongue. The second thing would be, how much it looks like a bear. The Chow Chow dog has almost perfectly straight hind legs and a dense coat. The hair of a Chow Chow can be either rough or smooth. Chow Chow’s can be found in solid shades of, black, red, cinnamon, cream, and blue. It has small round ears and a fluffy ruff around its collar similar to a lion’s mane. It has a broad head that is almost flat in appearance. Chow Chow’s have a thick bushy tail that is held up high on its back.
The Chow Chow dog breed ranges in height from eighteen to twenty-two inches at the shoulders, and in weight from about fifty to eighty pounds. Their life expectancy is approximately twelve to fifteen years.
The Chow Chow dog breed only sheds once or twice a year but when it does it sheds quite heavily. Brushing the dog’s coat is required weekly to help prevent matting.
In spite of its large size the Chow Chow can live happily in an apartment or home with a small yard. They can be physically lazy and inactive and should be encouraged to exercise to help keep them healthy.
Most Chow Chow’s will prefer to follow one owner as opposed to readily taking orders from the entire family. The owner must assume the dominant position while the Chow Chow is still young. Chow Chow’s are an extremely dominant breed and can become willful and bossy if not trained correctly. Chow Chow’s are naturally stubborn and so you must be very consistent in your commands. They are also very protective and can be aggressive if they think they are being threatened. Chow’s are considered easy to housebreak but most of them are unwilling to perform tricks. They are almost feline in their attitudes as they can be very independent and aloof.
You must work with your Chow Chow on socialization while it is still a pup. Chow Chow’s tend to dominate other dogs in a household but are considered to be good with children. If introduced at a young age, Chow Chow’s can reside in the same home as a cat.
The Chow Chow dog breed has a very sad history of abuse. Chow Chow’s can be traced back nearly two thousand years to China and were first kept by vicious Mongolian tribes as working dogs. The Chow Chow breed because of its large size and strength was used mainly for guarding things, hunting, herding, and pulling heavy carts and sleds. They were also traded and slaughtered for their meat and fur.
The name Chow Chow probably originated from the sailors of England in the 1800's who brought them back home on their ships, and referred to all miscellaneous things coming from the far east as chow chow.
Only buy a Chow Chow from a reputable breeder, who is carefully choosing dogs of good temperament and disposition to reproduce.
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