When I was an adolescent I vowed I would never get a small breed of dog. The non stop yapping from these breeds really threw me for a loop. Some things I do, like reading, demands enough concentration that I don’t think I could do it with many of the ordinary small breeds of dog around.
Big dogs usually don’t bark for little or no reason. And it is because of this that I’ve long preferred big dogs. I think it has to do with big dogs not being scared of every little thing. They think they can generally handle things and are thus not so nervous.
Before 20 years ago, I had never even heard of the breed Shih Tzu. I’ve met a handful of these dogs since and even though I think they are rather ugly, their quiet, calm nature makes me think I could one day own this breed.
So why are Shih Tzus not nearly as yappy as their small breed cousins? I have a few theories.
1.Everyone knows at least one person who calls this breed $#!+ Zus. Thus they had to be tough on the playground before weaning. They have the confidence of a dog that knows how to fight and thus aren’t yappy.
2.Shih Tzus really are big dogs. The big side of them is just in another dimension. That’s why they are calm and not yappy – like a big dog.
3.Breeders of Shih Tzus figured out that quiet dogs were more salable. Thus they took the yappiest pup in each Shih Tzu litter and cut out its vocal cords. This left one totally quiet puppy and the rest of the litter being cowed into being quiet, too.
4.It’s also possible that Shih Tzus are the stupidest of all the small dogs and believe they are actually big dogs. After all, if dogs are really descended from wolves, look at all the brain you had to get rid of to fit inside a Shih Tzu’s skull.
I have two Boxers myself and really loved your post.
This is interesting! Nice read! More power to your site! 🙂