Tell me about sharpei's please

lovemygreys · 07-02-2009, 11:59 PM

I've only ever known one sharpei and she is as mean as the day is long (to strangers). With her humans she's fine. But she's bitten a LOT of people and we're pretty much the only boarding kennel that would take her b/c we have a set up that doesn't require us to handle a dog if it's aggressive. Over the years, we've gained her trust a bit but she'll still bite us if we push her at all.

I hope that's not typical of the breed, but I do believe they are supposed to be aloof with strangers.

hulkamaniac · 07-02-2009, 11:59 PM

I will say about the sharpei that I met that he seemed to have very little interest in me or the volunteer. I'm not sure that he gave me more than a second glance. He was far more interested in the surroundings, but even then not intensely interested in them.

Pai · 07-03-2009, 01:57 AM

I've heard Shar-Pei described as being more like 'aloof cats' than dogs.

FilleBelle · 07-03-2009, 02:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hulkamaniac

I will say about the sharpei that I met that he seemed to have very little interest in me or the volunteer. I'm not sure that he gave me more than a second glance. He was far more interested in the surroundings, but even then not intensely interested in them.

Alvin was just like this when I met him for the first time at the local dog park. Weirdest dog behavior I ever saw. I went ahead and took him home for what the rescue called a "trial weekend," though I had serious misgivings. At the end of the weekend he hadn't misbehaved or done anything I didn't like, so I went ahead and filled out the adoption paperwork...still with serious misgivings. I didn't particularly like him, if I'm being honest. But I felt like I'd gone that far...he was a older big, black dog with just one eye...if I didn't take him, no one was going to. So I did. And I love him. And he isn't that way with me or my parents anymore. He even greets my guests with polite interest, if not enthusiasm.

I'm not sure I'd recommend a Shar Pei to anyone. They wouldn't be the right dog for anyone of my acquaintance. I probably won't ever have another. But they certainly can be very good dogs.

sillylilykitty · 07-03-2009, 03:05 AM

Finally, 2 years on this forum and finally someone's interested in Shar Pei's!

Quote:

Originally Posted by hulkamaniac

I will say about the sharpei that I met that he seemed to have very little interest in me or the volunteer. I'm not sure that he gave me more than a second glance. He was far more interested in the surroundings, but even then not intensely interested in them.

If you were to take any Shar Pei that I know of and give it to a stranger and walk around this is how they would act. A lot of them, not all though. But once they see "their person" they will get excited. Shar Pei's love their people, they are not super affectionate dogs but they do wag their tails and get excited. I personally love them, but I wouldnt own one unless I really liked a particular adult. My reasons are 1) slobber, not like an English Mastiff but still and 2) dog aggression. Even my favorite Shar Pei's who got along with almost any other dog would not put up with a boisterous dog bouncing around them. But I'm sure there are exceptions (Like Bella, the Shar Pei RonE was talking about), and other then that I think Shar Pei's are great. They are very mellow and I really think they are mostly house trained by 8 weeks. I wouldnt say they are easy to train, but most of the Shar Pei's I took to Obedience class for 10 weeks came out knowing the basic's. Health issues, we get the occasional hot spot on the Shar Pei's I work with but other then that we dont have any skin problems at the kennel I work at.

I brought this dog to the dog park with me, I jogged around the perimeter and she jogged right behind me.

Dakota Spirit · 07-03-2009, 03:55 AM

Ok...that puppy is just adorable.

hulkamaniac · 07-03-2009, 10:47 AM

Yeah, I want that puppy if he agrees not to grow up. Drool I can deal with. I currently own a basset hound so I'm used to it. Used to it on my floor, walls, counter tops, etc.... Good thing I'm a bachelor I guess. The aloofness I can deal with too. Brutus tends to be somewhat aloof. He'll let strangers pet him, but unless the stranger has food he just usually doesn't care. Zero is on the other end of the spectrum and thinks the guy crawling through a window at 3 am is his best friend come to say hello.

I would definitely be concerned about dog aggression issues as Zero would be spending time with the guy in the backyard and would be a much, much smaller dog.

LoupGarouTFTs · 07-03-2009, 11:43 AM

Hulk, I know someone who owns two Shar-Pei, four TFTs, a JRT, and a chinchilla. The CSPs get along just fine with the smaller dogs, although they do not play much. I take my TFTs to visit sometimes, as well as the collie and the MinPin I was telling you about in another thread, and they all get along great--however--the CSPs in question were raised with other dogs and were on the show circuit and so therefore are pretty well socialized.

Personally, I am concerned whenever someone glorifies a breed. If someone tells me that they are interested in getting a TFT I talk to them about all the reasons that they *don't* want one. If they are foolish enough to take a powder keg that is a TFT home with them after that, then that's their problem.

Elana55 · 07-03-2009, 01:18 PM

First of all, Aren't Shar-Peis a guard breed? Weren't they bred to guard castles? I thought I read that?

But, Hulk is looking for a companion to Zero AND a chick magnet....

Certainly a CSP puppywould be a Chick Magnet. I don't know if an older one would be.. might decide to drive the chick off!

In reading all this, the only dog that keeps coming to mind is a miniature poodle. These are not a toy breed.. they are 13-15 inches at the shoulder.. and they are very very smart and trainable. You don't have to put a Saddle clip on them.. you can cut the face and feet short (easier to clean) and the rest of the dog can have medium length hair. They are small and, quite honestly, you can learn to do this clip yourself. Just got to wash the dog one day and clip the next 1X a month. Keep the hair pretty short and they are easy to take care of.

They DO want a bit of activity but they have a sense of fun and play unlike most dogs. They can play by the HOUR.

I dunno.. just an idea... based on what you have been saying here in your threads.

hulkamaniac · 07-03-2009, 02:03 PM

Anything with poodle in it's name belongs on a cushion with bows in it's hair. At least that's my perception. No thanks.

I think sharpeis were originally bred as palace guard dogs and later as fighting dogs. I may be mistaken though.

LoupGarouTFTs · 07-03-2009, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hulkamaniac

Anything with poodle in it's name belongs on a cushion with bows in it's hair. At least that's my perception. No thanks.

I think sharpeis were originally bred as palace guard dogs and later as fighting dogs. I may be mistaken though.

Shar Pei were indeed guard/fighting dogs, hence their loose skin and peculiar coat texture. However, poodles were originally retrievers, not froo-froo dogs. Just food for thought . . .

Elana55 · 07-03-2009, 02:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hulkamaniac

Anything with poodle in it's name belongs on a cushion with bows in it's hair. At least that's my perception. No thanks.

That is, sadly, many people's perceptions or preconceived idea.

Really too bad as they are truly wonderful dogs. They were bred to retrieve fowl in cold water. Had two when I was growing up and a better dog you could not ask for. I did the clipping (my chore to do). Neither poodle appeared to be Froo Froo.. I clipped them pretty close all over. Looked more like Water Spaniels or Portugese water dogs than what you describe.

Of course, people also perceive Pit Bulls as dangerous and Labradors as sweet and calm.. and Cocker Spaniels as snappy.. and German Shepherds as mean and Rotties as vcious..

Perceptions and pre conceived ideas have another name.. also begins with a P, but I won't go there. Good luck with your search.

FilleBelle · 07-03-2009, 02:51 PM

On the topic of Shar Pei's and DA, a poorly socialized Pei is going to be a problem. The average Pei is going to be perfectly polite with another quiet, well-behaved dog, but will probably not jump around and play or tolerate such behavior from the other animal. An unusual Pei would be the one RonE has pictures of.

If you want a companion for Zero, a CSP is probably okay. If you want a PLAYmate, you should probably look elsewhere.

hulkamaniac · 07-03-2009, 03:45 PM

Just got back from the Humane Society. I'd post in the other thread, but no one would see it since DF apparently doesn't let you top your own posts. Anyway, this pic is for corgikarma (apologies for the small size and poor quality, I forgot to reset the size resolution on my camera phone.)

This corgi is very, very overweight. They listed her weight on the cage at 30 lbs and I believe it. She's an owner surrender and is 6 years old. The owners adopted her from the Humane Society originally though I don't know how long ago that was. They gave her up again because she is free fed, roams freely in the house and is not housebroken. (Umm, yeah, that might be a problem.) Anyway, I noticed she had peed on her bed which seemed a bit strange. They claimed they walked her twice a day, but I really don't think that was the case from looking at her, but I digress. They also said she's high energy which I really don't want. I did feel sorry for her, but I can't fix the world and I can't adopt every dog I feel sympathy for unfortunately.

This is Nubert who a couple of people mentioned. He was also listed at about 30 lbs.

He was already on hold unfortunately until the end of the day. They're closed over the weekend so getting him wasn't really an option. I'm also not convinced that he's really a Shiba Inu mix. I can't really tell what he is though. He was brought in by animal control as a stray so it's impossible to know for sure. He wouldn't get up when I came by preferring just to stay on his bed and stare at me.

I looked at Betty the cocker spaniel, but I'm reluctant to adopt an 8 yr old spaniel who most likely did not come from any sort of quality breeder. She still had an intact tail. No pics though.

As I left empty handed I was viciously mugged by a puggle in the parking lot who had just been adopted. I should've taken pictures, but I didn't. He walked up to me and when I bent down to greet him he immediately jumped up and started licking my face. He is going to make an extremely fearsome guard dog you could tell. He would've come home with me in an instant if I could've snuck him away from his adopters.

And just as a bonus, here is my pair of hellions. Notice how Brutus appears to be calculating something. No doubt yet another attack on a defenseless trash can.

Dogstar · 07-03-2009, 04:51 PM

I wish you'd take another look at the corgi, just because frankly, most of them AREN'T terribly high energy - a good long walk and maybe a little bit of ball and most of them are all set. I'd also bet that the incontinence is because of how overweight she is- that dog probably needs to lose 1/3 her body weight. I HATE when people let corgis get that fat.

hulkamaniac · 07-03-2009, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dogstar

I wish you'd take another look at the corgi, just because frankly, most of them AREN'T terribly high energy - a good long walk and maybe a little bit of ball and most of them are all set. I'd also bet that the incontinence is because of how overweight she is- that dog probably needs to lose 1/3 her body weight. I HATE when people let corgis get that fat.

I don't know. Like I said, I had a horrible experience with a corgi/terrier mix that just turned me off to the entire breed. That dog would've been perfect for someone who ran 4-5 miles a day, but that's just not me. I also hate when people let their dogs get overweight like that. It drives me insane.

Willowy · 07-03-2009, 08:22 PM

I like Corgis----not too hyper, at least most of the Corgis I've met. Your experience with the hyper Corgi/terrier might have been from the terrier side......I'd take that poor girl in a heartbeat.

Shar-Peis and Chows are 2 breeds I won't consider. I can't read them at all, and that un-nerves me.

sillylilykitty · 07-03-2009, 09:17 PM

We have 11 Shar Pei's on our farm. Out of all of these there is only 1 I would be worried about going out of her way to get another dog when we're away from home. I wouldnt worry much about aggression toward your current dogs if you get a puppy, an adult I think you would want to introduce them before adopting/buying. The dog aggression I'm talking about is mainly to strange dogs especially ones that get in your face. The standard color dogs (Red fawn, fawn, cream, black) in general are nicer (to other dogs and people) compared to the dilutes (Blues and lilacs). I know of a few good breeders you could contact, in fact, PM me if you want a very informative breeders website (Her website has a lot of history and good information on it). I'm going to the Chinese Shar Pei specialty show this September/October, I cant wait!

FilleBelle · 07-04-2009, 02:52 AM

SLK, how would the color of a dog affect its disposition towards fellow canines?

Elana55 · 07-04-2009, 06:56 AM

I will conjecture something on dog color and behavior. I suspect there is a genetic predisposition in dogs of that color. Now the only way to prove this would be to raise a sample of dogs in a controlled environment and do a study. At this poing her experience, no matter who consistant, is anectdotal.

An aside on this. My Father in Law bought cows for his dairy farm. He bought a cow named Paula who would go absolutely NUTS kicking and trying to get away when you came along with the fork to scrape off manure by her back feet in the stanchion barn. We figured that the previous owner had abused her with a fork.

She had a Calf and we named the Calf Ann. Ann was separated from her mother at birth and hand raised (all dairy calves are.. you raise the calvesa nd harvest the milk from the mother cows and sell it.. that is the heart of dairying). Ann never spent any time with her Mom other than the first few hours in a box stall in a deep bedding of straw.

Ann grew up wioth her age group of calves and was never confined to a stanchion or abused in any wy. When she had her first calf, she was brought into the milking string. The first time we went through the barn to scrape manure off by the cow's back feet (something we did a few times a day when they were kept in in the winter), Ann went absolutely nuts.. the spitting image o her Mother.. Kicking and jumping around. She ahd NEVER been abused.

While there is no proof as this is one cow and her one calf (BTW ANn's Calf did the same thing) this is anecdotal. However, it seemed pretty fair game to me that the tendency to fear the fork and the process of scraping off the manure was genetically hard wired into this maternal line. I will also add that we ahd 72 cows and Paula and Annn were the only two cows that did this. The other cows just stood there and let you do this process with no fuss.

It is entrirely possible there is some genetic hard wiring that exhibits in the off Color Shar Pei that would have them be more naturally dog aggressive. <shrug>