--- title: "Shih Tzus – What Do You Know about the Revered “Lion Dog”?" id: "199590" type: "post" slug: "shih-tzus-what-do-you-know-about-the-revered-lion-dog" published_at: "2018-03-01T21:26:11+00:00" modified_at: "2023-07-21T12:20:28+00:00" url: "https://www.petlanddayton.com/shih-tzus-what-do-you-know-about-the-revered-lion-dog/" markdown_url: "https://www.petlanddayton.com/shih-tzus-what-do-you-know-about-the-revered-lion-dog.md" excerpt: "Many people know about Shih Tzus, but what of their storied past? Read on for more! Hello lovelies and welcome to our newest blog! We hope you’re ready and raring to go about our latest subject, the mysterious, yet lovable,..." taxonomy_category: - "Dogs" --- [Home](https://www.petlanddayton.com/) / [Blog](https://www.petlanddayton.com/blog/) / [Dogs](https://www.petlanddayton.com/category/uncategorized/) / **Shih Tzus – What Do You Know about the Revered “Lion Dog”?** [Dogs](https://www.petlanddayton.com/category/uncategorized/) # Shih Tzus – What Do You Know about the Revered “Lion Dog”? March 1, 2018 · 3 min read · [COSMICK MEDIA](https://www.petlanddayton.com/author/cosmick-media/) [Stay connected via Google News Follow us for the latest pet updates and guides.](https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=petlanddayton.com) ## **Many people know about Shih Tzus, but what of their storied past? Read on for more!** Hello lovelies and welcome to our newest blog! We hope you’re ready and raring to go about our latest subject, the mysterious, yet lovable, Shih Tzu! We’ve done several breeds already, but this one really tugs at our heart strings! This breed has been around for a *very*long time and once you take a look at this blog, you’ll know why! #### **The Shih Tzu is formally the Tibetan Shih Tzu Kou.** Contrary to popular belief, the Shih Tzu does not originate in China, but in Tibet. The Tibetan monks considered the Shih Tzu holy and kept them in their temples. The Shih Tzu worked alongside the monks, functioning as alarm or guard dogs and even turning prayer wheels in daily Buddhist rituals. They were then sent to Chinese emperors as gifts, thus giving them their Chinese name. In the Chinese language, Shih Tzu means “Lion Dog”, as much for its features as its strength of character. They also earned the moniker of “chrysanthemum-faced dog”, which refers to the way the hair grows outwards from the center of the dog’s face. Enjoying this read? You'll love our puppies. Adorable, vet-checked pups looking for their forever homes — available now. [Meet our puppies](https://www.petlanddayton.com/puppies-for-sale/) #### **Shih Tzus have been around the block, a couple times.** As one of the oldest breeds in existence, the Shih Tzu’s origins are shrouded in mystery and it’s hard to pin down exactly when they came about. The earliest definitive traces of the breed are Chinese paintings circa 500 AD and also documents describing these dogs being gifted for the second time from China to the Byzantine Empire. Much later, they became the official breed of the illustrious Ming dynasty, who kept them as pets for the royal family for centuries. However, the Shih Tzu very nearly went extinct in China after the Communist Revolution. #### **Sooooo, how did they get here, in America?** Because the breed was declining in China, a few citizens of the U.K. wanted to preserve the breed by importing them into the country in the 1930s. This importation essentially saved the breed, as all modern day Shih Tzus can be traced to the original 14 dogs brought from China to England. It was actually American soldiers who brought the Shih Tzu back to America after World War II, where they quickly gained popularity amongst the people. The Shih Tzu breed was then recognized by the AKC in 1969 and currently holds 20th place for most popular breed in America. #### **Interesting in finding out more about the Shih Tzu puppies for sale in our store? Check out our available puppies page to see all of our precious Shih Tzu puppies for sale!** The post [Shih Tzus – What Do You Know about the Revered “Lion Dog”?](http://petlandblog.lehighvalleywebdesigns.com/blog/shih-tzus-what-do-you-know-about-the-revered-lion-dog/) appeared first on [Petland Blog](http://petlandblog.lehighvalleywebdesigns.com/) . 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My man and I came by Monday, just looking around and ended up leaving with ALL three ferrets they had. We planned to get just two but the other one jumped up to us like she wanted to come too. Petland threw in a free ferret kit if we got the third one. I liked their financing plans they had as well it’s an easy way to bump my credit. So far Matcha, Mocha, and Lottie are loving their home. They love playing with the dogs and I love their silly personalities. I only wish they came potty trained, they didn’t have a specific area for them to pee or poop In so potty training has been a little difficult for the two older girls, only reason why I’m doing 4 stars instead of 5. But we are very happy with our girls and the free ferret kit ended up helping us a lot more than we expected 🫶🏻 thank you to whoever said it was okay to throw it in. It’s also a very specious pet land compared to the one next to my job, we will probably be back. Posted on Google Daniel a Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. I got some tiger barbs from there, and they looked great. Good color, good shape. Morgan helped me out with them and she was fantastic! Excellent customer service. I'll be back! Posted on Google Kim P Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Very nice and helpful Posted on Google Mike z Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. They have the dog food we use. We moved from another state and had to find a store that had our dog food we've been using. Posted on Google ONE C Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Nice layout very cute puppies customer service is spectacular they go above and beyond Posted on Google Edward L Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. Place was kept very clean but the person who took care of me didn't have knowledge of the Birds that I bought Posted on Google Margaret B Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. I loved spending time with the puppies, and the staff was extremely friendly and helpful. ```