Musings: Mom? Am I Princess Shelby?

Happy Chinese New Year!!

My Mom said I am the perfect dog to celebrate the Chinese New Year being a ShihTzu. I looked at her a little puzzled, because I was born in America, so why would I be a perfect dog for today’s Lunar New Year celebration. Every day Mom and Dad treat us like we are very special. But this made me think – why are ShihTzu puppies so special?

Here are a few things I learned:

• The Shih Tzu puppy is prized for his/her small size, sweet nature, flowing coat, and intelligent mind – this means I am very smart and of course, I am extra sweet!
• We are often called “chrysanthemum dogs” because of the way our hair grows up from our nose and around the face in all directions – this is especially true when we wake up in the morning before Dad combs our face hair!
• Shih Tzu puppies are believed to have originated in Tibet, bred by Tibetan lamas to be a tiny replica of a lion, (hence the nickname, “the lion dog”) which is associated with Buddhist mythology. But did you know that we were almost extinct?
• The name of our breed is a little hard to say, but it is pronounced SHEED-zoo. Although young boys always laugh when they say this – silly boys!

As a breed,  we lived among royalty and became refined during the reign of the Dowager Empress Cixi (T’zu Hsi, 1861–1908). After her death, the palace kennel was dispersed, and our breed became scarce for many years. As a breed we became virtually extinct in China after the Communist takeover of 1949. Luckily, a few individual pups survived, and seven dogs and seven bitches (this is what they call female dogs) became the foundation of all Shih Tzu puppies now existing.

We are not lazy dogs. We work hard and we are dedicated to our very special work. We don’t guard, hunt, or tunnel into the earth, although we love to retrieve balls (or in my case squeaky toys) that are thrown again and again. You should see Lincoln! He goes crazy playing “Bring It Back” with Mom and Dad. A game I am still learning.

As pups we are bred to do one thing, and do it well: We are considered the perfect companion dog, true sweethearts with only one purpose in life, we love to give love to the world and we love to soak it back in. We are an in-your-lap kind of dog – ask my Dad, I love being in his lap. We are generally quiet, but we will bark and alert you that someone is at the door, but as trusting creatures, if we know Mom and Dad like you, then we will like you too – although, I am still learning this and sometimes will continue to bark (but I am working on this). Playful and mischievous, be careful because we will steal your shoes or in my case, I prefer to steal Dad’s pen off his table. But most of all I love stealing my Mom and Dad’s hearts.

So you see, the ShihTzu is pretty special. We are an elegant and docile little “lion dog” highly prized by the Chinese court for centuries. As royalty in China, the ShihTzu male (this would be Lincoln and Tesla) considers himself a prince among dogs or for the female, a Princess. See Mom! I really am a Princess! (and I am a Lion Dog and I am Chrysanthemum Dog)! But mostly I am loved.

This is me, Princess Shelby with my current brothers, Lincoln and Tesla, and my past brother and sister, Beemer and Porsche. My family – or is that – Kingdom!