History of occurrence
The origins of the Chinese Crested are difficult to trace. Hairless dogs seem to arise by mutation all over the world, but they have been principally found in Central and South America. The Chinese Crested is the exception, apparently existing in China as early as the 13th century. Chinese seafarers are said to have kept the dogs on ship as ratters and curios and to have traded them with local merchants wherever they called. Thus, the breed was distributed throughout Turkey, Egypt, South Africa and possibly Central and South America. Only in the 1800's were they recorded in Europe, with paintings and later, photographs, including dogs of Chinese Crested type.
General form
A small, active and graceful dog; medium to fine boned, smooth hairless body, with hair on feet, head and tail only; or covered with a soft veil of hair.
Отличительная особенность породы Chinese Crested
Head and Skull: slightly rounded and elongated skull. Cheeks cleanly chiselled, lean and flat, tapering into muzzle. Stop slightly pronounced but not extreme. Head smooth, without excess wrinkles. Distance from base of skull to stop equal to distance from stop to tip of nose. Muzzle tapering slightly but never pointed, lean without flews. Nose a prominent feature, narrow in keeping with muzzle. Any colour nose acceptable. Head presenting graceful appearance, with alert expression. Lips tight and thin; An ideal crest begins at the stop and tapers off down neck. Long and flowing crest preferred, but sparse acceptable.
Eyes: so dark as to appear black. Little or no white showing. Medium size, almond in shape. Set wide apart.
Ears: set low: highest point of base of ear level with outside corner of eye. Large and erect, with or without fringe, except in Powder Puffs where drop ears are permissible.
Mouth: jaws strong, with perfect, regular scissor bite, i.e. the upper teeth closely overlapping the lower teeth and set square to the jaws.
Neck: lean, free from throatiness, long and sloping gracefully into strong shoulders. When moving, carried high and slightly arched.
Body: medium to long. Supple. Chest rather broad and deep, not barrel-ribbed. Breast bone not prominent. Brisket extending to elbows; moderate tuck-up.
Forequarters: shoulders clean, narrow and well laid back. Legs long and slender, set well under body. Elbows held close to body. Pasterns fine, strong, nearly vertical. Toes turned neither in nor out.
Hindquarters: rump well - rounded and muscular, loins taut, stifles firm and long, sweeping smoothly into the well let-down hock. Angulation of the rear limb must be such as to produce a level back. Hind-legs set wide apart.
Feet: extreme hare foot, narrow and very long, with unique elongation of small bones between joints, especially in forefeet, which almost appear to possess an extra joint. Nails any colour, moderately long. Socks ideally confined to toes, but not extending above top of pastern. Feet turning neither in nor out.
Set high, carried up or out when in motion. Long and tapering, fairly straight, not curled or twisted to either side, falling naturally when at rest. Plume long and flowing, confined to lower two-thirds of tail. Sparse plume acceptable.
Coat: no large patches of hair anywhere on body. Skin fine-grained, smooth, warm to the touch. In Powder Puffs coat consists of an undercoat with soft veil of long hair, veil coat a feature.
Colour: any colour or combination of colours.
Long, flowing and elegant with good reach and plenty of drive.
Height — 29-30 cm.
Weight — 4-5 kg.
Character
Chinese Crested dogs are exceptionally friendly. They love hugs and constantly crave human companionship. Chinese Cresteds are intelligent and can perform tricks. This breed should not be babied in order to ensure it grows up to be well adjusted. Chinese Crested dogs love to play with children, they do not bark, but they like to dig and climb.
Maintenance care
The Crested enjoys a romp outside, but it hates the cold. It is small enough that it can get sufficient exercise with vigorous inside games. Hairless varieties will need a sweater for cold-weather outings. This is not a breed for outdoor living. Chinese Cresteds are gifted jumpers and some climb. Coat care for the powder-puff variety entails brushing every day or two. The muzzle is usually shaved every two weeks in puffs. The hairless need regular skin care, such as the application of moisturiser or sunblock, and bathing to combat blackheads. Most hairless need some stray hairs removed prior to showing.
Lifespan — 13-15 years.
Dignity
Doesn't shed much.
Makes a keen watchdog, but is not aggressive with strangers.
Usually good with other pets.
Difficulty keeping
The fragility of toy breeds.
High activity level.
"Separation anxiety" (destructiveness and barking) when left alone too much.
Timidity or fearfulness in some lines, or when not socialized enough.
Stubborness (a mind of his own).
Notorious housebreaking difficulties.
Tendencies to climb or dig to escape from confinement.
Barking.
With the hairless variety, a commitment to skin care.
With the powderpuff variety, a commitment to brushing and combing.
Diseases
The Crested Dog is prone to minor problems like deafness, patellar luxation, and seizures and major health issues like progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), lens luxation, and glaucoma. Occasionally Legg-Perthes is noticed in the breed. To identify some of these issues, a veterinarian may recommend eye, hearing and knee exams for the dog.
