GENERAL CARE

The Common Misconception

We often times hear people say that Chows are mean and that they are not fit to be our companions. All those things are not true at all. Chows, like people, have feelings and are longing to be loved. They are the kind of dogs who would want to have your attention whenever you’re near them. They wag their tails whenever you call their names, and they will hardly refuse when you ask them to play with you. Chows deserve our love, and one thing so beautiful about them is that they’re willing to give back love.

Nevertheless, we should always spend time with them if we want them to be great companions. We should always talk to them whenever we’re taking them for a walk, play with them, and never ignore them when we know that they want us on their side. As what parents would do for their kids, we need to spend time building their confidence.

Proper Training

Chows are guard dogs and according to the breed standard, they are normally independent and aloof. So if there are times when they behave displeasingly, it’s not proper for us to blame them. We as Chow lovers however, could do something about the matter, i.e., socialization. Chows must be socialized when they’re still puppies, and such could be done by positive reinforcements and shaping. For instance, rewarding them with a treat or just merely saying “you’re a good boy” are simple ways of doing positive reinforcements. It is not advisable however, to reward a dog if they are not acting the way we want them to. Such is because they would think that they are being rewarded for their displeasing actions. Interestingly, once we notice that our Chows are learning how to be obedient, we can gradually increase the level of intensity of our commandments. Ultimately, becoming totally obedient will just be a matter of time.

BREED STANDARD

FCI-Standard N° 205 / 09. 06. 1999 / GB

CHOW CHOW

ORIGIN : China.

PATRONAGE : Great Britain.

DATE OF PUBLICATION OF THE ORIGINAL VALID STANDARD : 24.06.1987.

UTILIZATION : Guard dog, companion.

CLASSIFICATION F.C.I. :

Group   5     Spitz and primitive type.

Section 5     Asian Spitz and related breeds.

Without working trial.

GENERAL APPEARANCE : Active, compact, short-coupled and essentially well balanced, leonine in appearance, proud, dignified bearing; well knit frame; tail carried well over back.

BEHAVIOUR / TEMPERAMENT : Quiet dog, good guard, bluish-black tongue; unique in its stilted gait. Independent, loyal, yet aloof.

HEAD

CRANIAL REGION :

Skull : Flat, broad; well filled out under the eyes.

Stop : Not pronounced.

FACIAL REGION :

Nose : Large and wide in all cases black (with exception of cream and near white in which case a light-coloured nose is permissible, and in blues and fawns a self-coloured nose).

Muzzle : Moderate in length, broad from eyes to end (not pointed at end like a fox).

Flews : Flews and roof of mouth black (blue black), gums preferably black.  Tongue bluish black.

Jaws/Teeth : Teeth strong and level, jaws strong, with a perfect, regular and complete scissor bite, i.e. the upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaws.

Eyes : Dark, oval shaped, medium sized and clean.  A matching coloured eye permissible in blues and fawns.  Clean eye, free from entropion, never being penalised for sake of mere size.

Ears : Small, thick, slightly rounded at tip, carried stiffly and wide apart but tilting well forward over eyes and slightly towards each other, giving peculiar characteristic scowling expression of the breed.  Scowl never to be achieved by loose wrinkled skin of head.

NECK : Strong, full, not short, set well on shoulders and slightly arched.

BODY :

Back : Short, level and strong.

Loins : Powerful.

Chest : Broad and deep.  Ribs well sprung, but not barrelled.

TAIL : Set high, carried well over back.

LIMBS

FOREQUARTERS : Forelegs perfectly straight, of moderate length, with good bone.

Shoulders : Muscular and sloping.

HINDQUARTERS : Hindlegs muscular.

Hock joint : Well let down, with minimal angulation, essential to produce the characteristic stilted gait. Never flexing forward.

Hock : From hock joints downwards to appear straight.

FEET : Small, round, cat-like, standing well on toes.

GAIT / MOVEMENT : Short and stilted.  Forelegs and hindlegs moving parallel to each other and straight forward.

COAT

HAIR : Either rough or smooth.

·       Rough : Profuse, abundant, dense, straight and stand-off.  Outer coat rather coarse in texture, with soft woolly undercoat.  Especially thick round neck forming mane or ruff and with good culottes or breechings on back of thighs.

·       Smooth : Coat short, abundant, dense, straight, upstanding, not flat, plush-like in texture.

Any artificial shortening of the coat which alters the natural outline or expression should be penalised.

COLOUR : Whole coloured black, red, blue, fawn, cream or white, frequently shaded but not in patches or parti-coloured (underpart of tail and back of thighs frequently of a lighter colour).

SIZE :

Height at withers : Dogs         48-56 cm (19-22 ins) at shoulder.

Bitches      46-51 cm (18-20 ins) at shoulder.

FAULTS : Any departure from the foregoing points should be considered a fault and the seriousness with which the fault should be regarded should be in exact proportion to its degree and its effect upon the health and welfare of the dog.

Any dog clearly showing physical or behavioral abnormalities shall be disqualified.

N.B. : Male animals should have two apparently normal testicles fully descended into the scrotum.

ILLUSTRATIONS

Forequarters should be straight, sturdy, and not too long.  Cat-like feet should stand well on toes.

Hind legs should be muscular with the round cat-like feet stand well on toes.

In assessing the Chow’s overall appearance, they should have a balanced proportion if viewed from the side (square like appearance). Notice also the way how the tail should be carried well towards the back. It is wrong to conclude though that Chows who don’t have the said characteristics can’t become show winners as other good attributes may compensate for the lack of the said characteristics.

Chows should have a well-knit frame, i.e., their body parts should be firmly constructed and properly integrated to form a unified whole.

The Chow’s hock joint should show only a minimal angulation. This implies that it should have a perpendicular direction towards the ground and its angulation should be straighter than the stifle’s angulation.