To all Shih Tzu owners & aspiring owners..

Here's where all the shih tzu owners gather and share information as well as photos of your cute lil'shih tzu..

Have fun & enjoy...

=)


****Update**** 04/06

//taken from nextdaypets.com

Breed Group: Toy

Weight: 9 - 16 lbs

Height: 8 - 11 inches

Color(s): Any

Coat: The Shih Tzu has a long, dense, and abundant double-coat. The luxurious and profuse outer-coat often sweeps the ground, and may be slightly wavy. The under-coat is wooly and soft in texture. The long hair on top of the head is typically placed into a topknot to prevent eye irritation. The Shih Tzu coat varies widely in color. They are minimal shedders and are considered hypoallergenic.

Overview: The Shih Tzu is often referred to as a "small lion". They originated in Tibet, but are most associated with China where they were highly revered as a palace pet and prized companion. The Shih Tzu is an active, happy, and affectionate breed.

Character: The Shih Tzu is small, sturdy, and intelligent. They carry themselves with a noble and proud posture befitting their aristocratic ancestry. One of their most valued characteristics is the eye, which exude warmth and a human-like quality. The Shih Tzu is the least delicate of the toy breeds.

Temperament: The Shih Tzu is first and foremost a companion. They love nothing more than being indoors with their family. This breed gets along very well with older children and other pets. They are outgoing and self-assured, keen and alert. They make excellent watchdogs. They do not do well being separated from their owners and may become destructive if left alone for extended periods of time. They are docile and quiet, but they also love to play. The Shih Tzu is spunky and can be obstinate at times. They expect to be treated as royalty and are easily spoiled.

Care: The Shih Tzu requires extensive grooming. They need brushed daily to prevent knots, tangles, and mats. They need to be bathed monthly. They are not suited for humid climates. It is important to keep their eyes and ears cleaned. Their eyes are particularly sensitive. They are prone to kidney disease and slipping kneecaps. The Shih Tzu's short muzzle makes it exceptionally prone to snoring and wheezing problems. Dental hygiene is crucial to prevent tooth loss. They tend to gain weight easily and must not be overfed.

Training: The Shih Tzu may be difficult to housetrain. The crate method works best. Although they are eager to please, and quick to learn, this breed's stubborn streak requires persistence and consistency. They do not respond to harshness or punishment. The Shih Tzu does very well in obedience training provided it is low-key and motivational.

Activity: The Shih Tzu enjoys short daily walks or vigorous indoor play sessions and games. They are very well suited for apartment or condominium dwelling. However, they love to play outside, so a small fenced yard is ideal.

Ownership: If you are looking for Shih Tzu puppies for sale from reputable Shih Tzu breeders or to adopt a Shih Tzu from a Shih Tzu rescue then make sure you understand as much about the dog breeds you are interested in as you can. Every puppy breed is different. Begin your research by reading the breed information about the Shih Tzu puppy above. Search our dog breeds section to find Shih Tzu puppies, dogs and puppies that make great pets.

This post has been edited by jasonnn: May 2 2007, 05:34 PM

Ok..
I'll start with my little Shih Tzu..

Here's some photos of him..


When he was only 3~4 months old..


And now a little devil..



So let's share information on Shih Tzus.. The proper way to take care of them, grooming tips, health tips, house breaking, etc etc..

kawaii neh.. can ask something?

The ShihTzu hair look nicer when it is young, when it grow old liao .. can still keep the short hair ar?

worf worf! my pix <------------

Here is my FAT Shih Tzu boy

yeah. sure you can. Ya can groom whatever way you want but there are standards to how the fur should look like when ya wanna join your shih tzu into showring

yea.. Shih Tzu can keep short "fur" style also..
but they look nicer with long coat..

That's Shih Tzu's trade after all..having long coat...and flows gracefully when it walks..

how cute... throw away the clips more cute

wah liao.......face damn cute and i like the eyes

beautiful coat !! wat u feeding her?

the eyes like a marbles

yes......round and sparkles

the only grudge i had with long furs on dogs mouth, like shih tzu, schnauzers, etc, is that they can easily get stain unless you wipe for them after every meal

yes....after a while those hair turn brown or dark colors.....very unpleasant

yea...i do wipe them occassionaly.. to keep the mouth clean..
but i give my furkid kibbles..dry food only..

btw, for the fur coat of my furkid..and its a HE..hehe I give him Primrose Oil for his fur everyday 3ml

hahaha this is sooo cute~~ lolol

Not really my boy havent change color since he born.....still the same white/gold color, with 2 identical brown color ear.

hmm i also prefer shih tzu wif short hair..long hair like not cute anymore..haha

agree agree..

somemore it's easy to maintant.. n oso shin tzu r easy to b infected by skin problem so i think keep the fur short r better..

too long not cute.. how to cut their hair? go barber arr??

hahahah
go to Pet Groomers...

well..when the shih tzu's fur is long..its elegant..
when it's short..its cute like puppies..

My Shih Tzu after mandi

My shih tzu I used to cut their hair.
The reason is that though shih tzu in advertisement are traditionally kept with longer fur but because they are in cooler countries, while in Malaysia, it's a different climate altogether.

So keeping them short makes them much more comfortable. Unless you keep them in your house with the air-cond on 24 hours

How u cut it?? Mind to share??

Me too.. always keep my shin tzu hair short.. look more cute n manja..

All I used are just scissors. Trimming them.
Maybe becoz of the area I stay with garden, so keeping their fur short, makes movement easier and let's them enjoy playing outside.

But when trimming using scissors, make sure you know how to trim. Do not ever trim the front where his/her whiskers are. And also the legs are bothersome. Tail especially....do not cut the skin.

hehehe..
Yea, their fur coat is thick and once its long it gets really hot..
but generally Shih Tzus are indoor pet doggies..

Yaya, indoor "terrorist" as well.

This morning saw it at other website, got 2 shin tzus open for adoption.. the reason of giving away is the owner no have time to take care them.. very upset when seeing such post/thread.. mayb bcoz i know the shin tzu's attitute n behavior which need a lot of love from the owner n oso they very manja type..

Juz like my QQ, very manja 1, when last 2 weeks i went back to hometown for 3 days n come back here on Sunday.. when she saw me she like crazy adi.. keeping on wan me to carry her.. n at nite she slept on the bed on my side which she didnt do so last time.. let me feel like she afraid i wil leave her again..

Toy dog's attitude are so adorable too..

this is normal ....my naughty Fat boy even scold/bite me if I away more than 1 day.

this is my "Nono" all white shihtzu...


Attached thumbnail(s)

y he/she look so fierce in the pic??

but she/he is very cute..

it is totally white?? seldom see totally white shin tzu.. n hear from 1 of the petshop they said seldom hv shin tzu's face is white 1..

Hi , I'm new to be a gal gail shitzu..
can't upload the picture over here..

Now learning to teach her trick n not to piss around .heheh...3 week old already.

You got her 3 weeks ago or the pup is 3 weeks old hehehe

Ya lo.. 3 weeks old pup is stil very young n small...

--read wrongly--

This post has been edited by nairud: Nov 23 2005, 03:31 PM

I used to have a shih tzu.... died of Heart Failure at the age of 12.... he past away on August 8th.... To all owners, once your shih tzu turn senior, do go for more check ups to monitor the heart..... my vet says it happens to shih tzus.....

Really??

Then it hv any others thing we need to take attention bside hving check up usually?

Yah... I was so so sad to learn that my dog had heart failure..... When reach senior age, vet said anything could happen, liver failure, kidney failure.......

Actually, you can monitor by yourself.... once awhile, put your ear on your dog's ribage and listen.... If it goes "thump thump" then the heart is normal... but when getting near to heart failure, the thump sound is replaced by "swich swich" and is very irregular.

Eyes loh important, always check to make sure no ulcers...

So sad to heard abt ur shin tzu... n thanks for sharing tis info to us..

Seem like shin tzu is very weak dog.. anyway i stil love them especially my baby QQ..

I think all purebreed dogs will have some sort of old age sickness.... like boxers, they will develop tumours and cancers.... many dogs also prone to heart disease and liver problems.... dalmations can go deaf or blind when old... dachshunds can have back problems, bulldogs can get strokes... sigh... list goes on and on....

I grew up with my shih tzu.. was so heart broken when he left... total shock! I cried right after the vet told me he has heart failure and just 2 days after the check up, he died without me at home....

Get a JRT...one of the toughest dogs around *buat promo sikit.*

This post has been edited by ^cash^: Dec 28 2005, 07:19 AM

All is urs??

yup...

Dog year is coming.. so our shih tzu family should come out n greeting every1 Happy Dog Year...

My QQ say "Where is my ang pau???"



This post has been edited by @lice~~: Jan 24 2006, 05:23 PM

Is shih tzu easy to teach and train ? I heard that they are very naughty monster. Hahaha ! Plan to buy a shih tzu for my gf few years later after own a house.. And how much does they cost normally ? And the lifespan of the shih tzu ?

P/S: Share more informations of shih tzu buddy here. Would like to learn more.

I have dogs too and one of them is Shih Tzu

My family name him as Wiwi, i like him the most among all my dogs

He's around 9 months old now, like to bite people when he gets angry


Took pic when he's sleepy



This post has been edited by bearbear: Jan 24 2006, 07:50 PM

Shih tzuz are stubborn dogs sometimes.... actually, it is true with all dogs. If you got luck, then maybe can get one that is a natural learner. Not all shih tzus behave the same. Some bite, some don't. Some bark, some don't. Some are brave, some are not. So when getting a dog, just study the puppy's character and personality before buying it.

A shih tzu, without cert can easily get for rm500 and with cert, rm800 to RM1200. Depends on what you are looking for also. Not all shih tzus are a good buy, even if the price is cheap, sometimes a breeder can cheat and sell you a mix shih tzu.

Lifespan for a shih tzu is 15 years or more.... Becareful, they need grooming(comb hair) at least 3 times a week. You got to cut the fur at least once in 2 months. Shih tzus are also prone to eye ulcers and heart disease.

Thanks for the details, I will note it down for my future referrencing.
Hope to see more shih tzu photos here. They are cute !
Well, I think you guys/girls can leave more informations here, would love to know more about the cute friend(LoL, I love animals ). jasonnn, I think you can edit your first post when our friends here provide informations.

Regards,
Sheng

So cute n lovely... i like the fur color of ur shih tzu.. very nice..

My QQ oso like to bite ppl when she get angry too n oso when she is too excited.. juz like our human kid.. n she like to chasing too... so everytime my bf, housemate n other wil play chasing wif her.. but when she cant get u then she wil bite u..

My gf likes Shih Tzus as well. Gotta get her one soon.

wait ....when if I got chance I'll snap my shih tzu grabbing a papaya skin ..cant seems to get one....digicam always no battey when wanna snap T_T

This post has been edited by billytong: Jan 29 2006, 01:36 PM

I'll update the post once I've get back to my "2nd home"... This few months on slow internet connection..

Anyway..happy hunting for ya shih tzu..if u do have any queries please feel free to ask all the shih tzu owners here..

Cheers,
Jason

Hai to all the Shih Tzu sifu;

I just own 1 Shih Tzu say for abt 3 weeks.
My question is how do u guys teach Shih Tzu not to piss around ?

Nice sweet question
My dog do the same too lolz.....esp on my tyre's sidewall

This post has been edited by Chriss: Feb 17 2006, 11:19 PM

U can buy a liquid called Housebreaking aid in any petshop.. n spray it on the newspaper then bring ur pup to there n let it smell on the newspaper.. n see whether it know to go there directly to do it business... if it dunno then everytime when u see wan to piss then then act fast carry it to the newspaper there n let it do the business.. after tat praise it by saying "Good gal/boy" n sayang his/her head... different pup hv different character.. so some pup is easy to teach n learn but some might need more time n patient...

if u dun wan to use newspaper method then u can every 3 o 4 hours bring it out to piss on the place u wan like eg in the garden o grasses... anothe alternative to newspaper is buying the housebreaking pad for it.. then it wont mess out all the thing..

Hope tis help...

P/S: Dun simply scold o beat ur pup when it did something wrong... it may dunno why u marah it.. the effective way is on the spot correct it lo..

this is Nicky.. last time when he's small, we train him by locking him in the cage & wait until he pee in the cage(underneath the cage got newspaper).. so now got his smell, he will automatically go into the cage to do his business(big & small)

This post has been edited by ryant3: Feb 18 2006, 12:11 PM


Attached thumbnail(s)

@lice~~ & ryant3 Thank for ur tips

Is Shih Tzu hard to take care ?

Not really hard to take care for me.

My shih tsu like to piss on cloth so we have a cloth on the floor for him to piss. Have to watch him out cos when he is out of sight he will often piss on the carpet

Actually a good trainer dog wont hv much problem o trouble de... but shih tzu is kinda weak breed some much more care hv to give to them lo... especially their eyes part.. hv to clean it everyday.. Bside that, their skin oso... easy to get infected lo..

Bearbear, hv u tried the housebreaking liquid for ur shih tzu? My QQ is working to it so now i no need to worry so much... but sometime some accident wil happen lo especially when she is too excited o at other ppl's house...

What's the market price for shih tzu then ?
What else accessories should we get ?

Ya i tried it but it doesn't work. I put some on the newspaper and he went there and lick the liquid

haha! my shih tzu oso like to pick up dirty things & eat like insects..

i have a friend who also had a shih tzu(still puppy) died coz got poisoned by some medicine left in the bathroom so u guys better beware not to leave any hazardous stuff on the floor coz they will go check it out..

cool..i'll be getting 1 soon after my exam..

So sad hearing this incident.... hope ur fren wil b more aware in the future when he/she getting a puppy again..

My QQ oso the same lo... very very 'kepo'.. everything on the floor sure she wil go n smell then bite it

Bearbear, then the housebreaking pad hv u tried?? but very costly n it quite expensive lo...

yeah, so pityful.. so sad when heard that.. what to do, he dono how to take care of puppy ma.. Maybe all shih tzus oso extra kepo haha

Yea... shih tzu's are quite kepo..
they're curious in anything they see...
and that makes them so lovable as well..

I saw 880 without cert in one pet shop i ss2.
Better to get from breeder,cheaper and healthier.

OWNAGE
hahaha
this is nice one
i hope my new shih tzu puppy will like tis leh

so when u get your shih tzu puppy already remember to post its pic here revive the house of shih tzu

I post another pic...

This picture below attachment is when he was only 6 weeks old.

The last one u saw in fist page was 1year+ old already.

This post has been edited by billytong: Apr 8 2006, 02:33 PM


Attached thumbnail(s)

Wow so many cute doggy!.

It look like very much difference btw puppy n adult.. anyway it is stil very cute...

My brother's 2 little shih tzu


Chanel


Phoebe

This post has been edited by Joshua_0718: Apr 29 2006, 08:44 PM

my shih zhu also had this toliet train prob.we put the liquid on the news paper so she can pee there but she did next to it and not on it..very notti fella too...anything on the floor take..and when i noticed and call her name she cabut...we also teach cookie to do tricks but she paid no attention until when showed her the stick..her eyes perk up and suddenly everything we taught her she can do!the most gulible dog i ever known!

My boy (refer to pic I post) will come to me when I call him..

and he will receive my finger signal when I swing my finger (which indicate the meaning "come" )

Mine also. And, he will only follows me where I go, while he doesnt cares about the others. When my friends surrounded him right, he just keep looking at me. When I walked away, he will rushed to me.

But mine isnt Shih Tzu.

This post has been edited by jdreamer: Apr 30 2006, 11:53 AM

my shih tzu will follow everyone

Same like mine.. she wil follow everyone.. specially tat one hv food..

yah yah exactly.. mine oso the same.. when anyone holding food, he will naik miang..

Same here....he will do anything for food.

haha at least now i know that my shih tzu is not different for others..

Lololol really ? My maltese wont. But yea, when he sees someone holding the food, wah, he wont even recognise me.

haha betray owner for food

Lolz, yea loh..

today I gave my boy some fresh vege to eat

haha yours actually eats vege? mine ate once but vomitted coz couldn't digest..

yup in fact he love it soo much.... carots, cucumber...

btw, he also eat dragon fruit, mango, coconut meat, milk, watermelon, honeydew, orange, chinese orange...pretty much any kind of fruits that taste nice.

Beware ah.... fruit seeds are toxic to dogs... Dogs also cannot makan grapes and raisin... toxic to their body and in long term can be dangerous.

vegetarian shih tzu..

yea certain fruits doggy shouldn't eat..

Nice vege dog

This post has been edited by Tenchu: May 2 2006, 10:31 AM

Thanks for reminding. I already knew he cant eat grapes and raisin through pet books.

Just gave a vege trunk to him just now...he enjoy it.

haha i think if i give my dog vege he will stare at me