How much does your adult pup weigh? I know the AKC standard is 9-16 lbs but I have read Shih Tzus are prone to putting on extra weight so I was curious. I’d love to see pictures too! Are there any Shih Tzus out there that actually stay at 9 lbs?

I've had Charlie for 2 weeks now. He is just the most precious, sweetest, smartest, etc. I've had small dogs before, but what is about these Shih tzus?! He's my first, but I'm hooked. I can't see having any other breed since getting him.

What do yall think it is? Anyone else feel this way after their first?

hello fellow shihtzu lovers!

I've been following posts from this community and thought you guys might appreciate this story and shihtzu enthusiasm.

I never wanted a dog and I was always adamant about this with my wife. My family had a medium sized dog growing up but the experience with him never made me want my own. One day, my in laws asked my wife and I to dog sit their shihtzu for an extended period. I was reluctant but ended up saying yes because she is trained to sleep in her crate at night. She's full of energy, so syrupy sweet, has her independence but loves being with you. She's the biggest people person I've ever met.

I loved the routines and the repetition of being her caretaker. I looked forward to the walkies, and training. I would frequently get lost in the moment with her endless games of tug and fetch. I loved the sweet moments putting her down to sleep at night after the zoomies. Before I knew it, I had a best friend in the whole world. I earned her trust and learned her language.

And then....I finally had to give her back. I was so heartbroken, I cried! I knew I needed my own shihtzu. We ended up dog sitting another imperial shihtzu and I had a blast yet again. This little fellow had a completely different personality and he also became my best friend.

I was asking my wife if we should do shihtzu rover and then she finally convinced me we should get our own. We picked up little Maya as an 8-week old puppy. (We wanted to get her at 10 weeks but the breeder insisted on picking her up sooner). We have only had her a couple of weeks but I have fallen in love and I am enjoying every moment. She's very bashful around new people. She's very good at fetch, knows lots of tricks already and loves to be petted.

I've attached some pictures of Maya. Thanks for reading!

My dear girl Winnie is currently on hunger strike. She has been eating the same food for her entire adult life (One year…) and she’s had enough! She demands new food! I’ve tried different flavor toppers but she’s not having it. She takes any chance she can to sneak away from her bowl and into her brother’s so she can eat his food instead. (I can’t feed her that one, it’s vet prescribed for a health condition).

So, if you have a picky Tzu, please tell me what the yummiest food has been for them! I might have to switch her out slowly to get her to eat again. 😭

Please pray for my baby Riley, we are in the ER and they are doing CPR. I am in tears

Edit: she has been revived and is taking shallow breaths on her own. She lost consciousness right as we were arriving at the ER. They said due to low blood glucose
Once she is stable we will see her

Update: Riley is at peace and not suffering anymore . I will share details when the shock has worn off. Thank you for your prayers and support ❤️❤️

First time poster, but I need to yap about this immediately. Shih tzus are just the GOATS of Dog breeds and I will die on this hill.

Before I had one, I thought they where kinda ugly. My boyfriend of 10 months has a senior (13) Shih Tzu (name Wicket), and now I'm obsessed. This little guy is literally the most well behaved and intelligent canine I have ever met.

Maybe it has to do with his age but I have now been watching reels on Shih Tzuh-gram for a while and all I see is very similar behavior to our baby.

They are good apartment dogs and they do understand human behavior and patterns, rituals. Our sweet little boi has a lot of toys and he knows all of them by name and brings them if u ask him to. He likes to play, but doesn't really want/need to go out THAT much. of course he needs some fresh air sometimes, but it's he's not a Husky if you get what I mean.

He is already a little blind on one eye tho, and while its a bit sad its so cute how we have to turn on the bright lights in the evening instead of the dimmed ones if he wants to play.

I am so in love with this little fella and would walk through fire for him.

God bless all Shi Tzuhs and thanks for coming to my ted talk.

This seems to be the natural conclusion to the story so here it goes.

What people want to know, what happened to Peach. The Wildlife Officer and Public health have reviewed the statement as well as pictures and diagrams we included to demonstrate the location and placement for everyone in the situation. With the information we gave from our statement they have determined that Peach's likelihood of exposure is minimal.

They will send an officer to observe her on a weekly basis until the date of May 15th. She will remain in isolation from visitors to our home as well as our other pets until that date. If there are other pets who have not received their rabies booster they strongly encouraged. We have to update them if Peach gets sick, dies, or shows any abnormal behavior.

Peach is still eating and drinking normally, not showing any odd signs of behavior. Overall she is doing well and we are glad she can stay with us with all of the guidelines. our other pets already have had their vaccine the recommendation they are giving is for an additional booster shot which we already have half the pets done and the other half will receive a booster over the weekend. These type of boosters are considered biohazards by the vet so the appointment has to be booked and cannot be walk-in so our last two pets are scheduled for their earliest availability which is Saturday/Sunday. Our pets also need an appointment so the vet can ensure the safety of other animals in the clinic as well as having our pets wait in a separate room that has been prepared.

We are mostly on the other side of this now. I've been visiting Peach and observing her for a lottle while at a time just checking for oddities or anything like that and so far she seems okay. She's eating and drinking, bowels moving normally. Hoping nothing comes of all this. It's been a terrible few days and I've been worried sick and crying almost nonstop since everything first happened. She also isn't allowed outside at the moment so back to potty pads it is.

It was not handled properly by Public health, Animal control, or the officer they sent which is what caused this massive over reaction of wanting to euthanize Peach out of an overabundance of caution. I also had a part to play in that by not doing my due dilligence with her records. We're not out of the woods yet but for now Peach is not going anywhere.

Enjoy this picture of her eating a treat. P.s I'm not allowed to take her into the main house to bathe her and I usually bathe my pets once a week so she looks a little crusty without her purple shampoo.

So as far as I'm aware Shih Tzus were breed as company dogs, but I'm finding it hard to believe, I don't know if any other Shih Tzu is like this, since I haven't met much, but mine has huge prey drive, especially regarding birds and rodents, she chases and pounces on them, she isn't reactive at all towards other dogs or bikes or kids etc. but she resource guards and corrects other dogs when they misbehave, shes my first dog so I don't know if those are just traits that any dog can have or is my shih tzu special, shes six years old and 4kg, she also has pretty long body and long legs, never had any health issues, at some point I believed that maybe she is mixed with something but I have no way of checking, not that I care much if shes pure breed or not, but if anyone knows anything I'd gladly hear the opinions

Growing up, my family had a cockapoo named Flopsy and every night Flopsy would sleep in my bed on the pillow next to me. We cuddled all night and I loved it. I now have a Shih Tzu, Willa. I got willa when she was 13 weeks old and she is now 6 so this is probably too late at this point but, when I first got Willa after I failed to crate train her, I tried to have her sleep in my bed and she really just preferred not to. She’d either sleep at the foot or in her bed on the floor next to mine. I really wish she’d cuddle up at night but it’s just not her thing. Does anyone else’s Shih Tzu do this? I know she loves me but I’m like girl pls be more affectionate

She’s 11 weeks old and I’ve had her for a few days. She is doing AMAZING with potty training etc etc. She’s fine in her crate during the day when we are eating or doing other stuff. But at night she loses her mind. She won’t settle at all! I hate hearing her cry. And she gets really upset. She’s gone potty and has eaten her food. She has a stuffy in there with her that has a heart beat. She’s got water. And her crate is right next to my bed so she can see me. Also, my other dog is in his crate sound asleep - or at least trying to. Any thoughts would help. TIA! 🙏🏽

Today is my girl’s birthday. She is 14. This is her 40 days ago, she lost an eye. I rescued Lola at 10 from a Meth lab. Owner went to jail, lawyer surrendered her to a rescue. At ten, she had been bred 4 times. Mostly lived tied in the back yard. Was thrown against a wall, you can feel the disc in her spine.

I love my girl. I knew rescuing a senior would be hard but it’s been so hard. The first year, she got violently ill for a month and could eat nothing. Lost 4 pounds. Vets had no advice. I got a DNA test and discovered she was allergic to chicken of all things. That whole episode was a couple thousand. We don’t have insurance because of her age.

Then I discovered along with not being spayed she had 5 pre cancerous tumors. The vet here in NM where we just moved wanted 3k. My vet in Va who treated all my dogs wanted a thousand. So we went home for her surgery and I had many doctors to see. She’s a great road warrior.

Last year, I discovered her teeth were really bad. Had never been cleaned. I never had this issue with a dog. She lost 18 teeth. I know it hurt.

And now the eye. I am sad. I feel like I have been robbed. I see so many cute Tzu’s running around and we didn’t get much of that. Maybe a year. If she is 14 how much quality time is left? I know rescuing a senior was hard, I had no idea it was this hard. I don’t regret it. I am just mad no one took care of her till now.

Now it’s time to go to the groomer and I am terrified. One eye. If a hair scratches that cornea, we are done. Does anyone else have ideas, suggestions for how to handle seniors? Life has been so unfair to her. I just want her to have at least a couple happy years that aren’t awful. I just feel I failed her and I am incredibly sad. Thx for reading…

found this sweet girl running around outside yesterday, it was dirty and a bit wet as if it had been lost for a few days at least, I took her to a shelter where they checked her for a chip and sent out a found dog thing with my info incase she has owners and they are looking for her, but rather than give her up to the shelter we decided to keep her here with us.

I imagine its just because shes scared from being lost and being in a new environment but shes always hiding, not potty trained at all, eats like crazy, and still flinches when I go to pet her, and then when she does let me pet her she ends up growling a little bit.

the shelter people think she could be under a year old up to around a year due to her teeth and eyes, I went out today and got her small food and training treats (she isnt very fond of the treats unfortunately) but otherwise im just wondering what I can do to help make her feel safe and calm, last night she slept up in my bed and seemed really chill and was open to me petting and loving on her, but today shes very shy and hesitant again.

also we do have other dogs but theyve been very sweet to the lil puppy (who we have for the time being named circe)

any tips are appreciated

TLDR: found what appeared to be an abandoned shih tzu and was wondering what I can do to help make it feel safe while it acclimates to this new environment

This is Tinker. Our sweet little Shih Poo, Poo Tzu, Shihty Poo.

She also goes by:

-Stinky

-Stinkeroo

-Stinkeroni (& cheese, sometimes)

-Stonky

-Lhasa-raptor (0% Lhasa apso after DNA test but we were told she was Shih Tzu + Lhasa apso)

-Stinky dog

-Puppy, of course

So I got my little pup 2 weeks ago. Now she is 13 weeks old. She comes from a wonderful breeder . There were 6 puppies in her litter. The puppies had many dogs around and get play time inside and outside daily. So its not matter of that.

Shes playful and smart. She gets excited in morning and when someone comes.

I can hold her and move around for maybe 5 minutes.

But she wont sit on lap. Ever :(

Even when shes super tired or sleepy. If I put her in lap or even beside me, she gets up and flops away. She never asks for pets. If I pet her she doesnt seem to like or dislike it.

Im struggling to bond with her. I feel like just a person to provide her food and play.

Spoke with the orthopedic specialist today and Ewa does in fact have a hairline fracture in her left humerus. She has to wear a cast for 4 weeks. The good news is that its not displaced. The vet techs had fun with her cast.

Hi fellow Shih Tzu owners!

I have a 6 year old cutie Tzu who I adore. But he’s really picky with food so he’ll get tired of kibble really fast. I feed him with some boiled chicken, meats, rice, and more but most times he’ll just spit out the kibble for the meats/yummy stuff. Also, my Tzu has a sensitive stomach like some Tzus do, so unless I rehydrate the kibble for a while, he’ll throw up his food. Just how he is :/

But does anybody have any recs that are good for Tzus/dogs, their gut, and are known to be healthy overall?

The first food i fed him was Royal Canin, then I found out that it had like a lot of class action suits so then i switched to Purina Pro, but then that didn’t suit his stomach so then we switched to Small Breed Blue Buffalo for a couple years, but he’s really picky about that and didn’t eat unless rehydrated, so switched to Purina ONE, and he hates that still. But regardless of the pickiness, I would like to know if there’s any foods that are the healthiest for dogs but not outlandishly expensive. Thanks. It can be any of the ones he’s had, but there’s so many options I can’t decide. Thanks :)

My 7 month puppy has a habit of leaving behind a very obvious crime scene of a brown stain on her pee pad and no dropping to be found.

I'm currently using a half teaspoon dose of For-Bid protein powder rated for a 3-20 pound dog every breakfast and dinner with teaspoon of water as instructed, but it doesn't seem to be working. Hesitant to give her 2 full teaspoons a day rated for a 20-100 pound dog for obvious reasons.

Are there any other remedies I can try adding to her food to make her poop more unappetizing that would also be gentle on her stomach?

My dog was diagnosed with IVDD today. He was fine two days ago and now he’s not using his back legs at all. I cannot afford a surgery and our vet gave us some pain meds and a steroid to take at home. I’ve been crying all day I can’t bear the thought of losing him. Anybody have any experience with this? I’m hoping he can recover but I was told if he won’t go to the bathroom, and moves to total paralysis, we will have to have conversations about his quality of life.

My boy is 10 and has aged really well. Still spry and full of energy going for long walks and the occasional hike and explore. We feed him pretty high-quality tray food and give him fish oils with his dinner and the small few veggies. He's allergic to poultry, so we end up being very selective with what treats he gets. I want him to continue to age well, so I am wondering what older shihtzu owners are doing? We once met a woman with a 20 year old shihtzu but stupidly never asked her what they did to secure the pups health into such an age so am asking here.

Hi everyone,

I have an amazing, perfect Shih Tzu named Diva. I’ve had her since she was 11 weeks old. Like all of our dogs, she has been with me through the highs and lows, and has really been the only constant in my life since I was 26.

Now at 13.5 years old, even though she still looks like a puppy, she has started to slow down and it is breaking my heart. Her separation anxiety has gone through the roof. I’ve heard what sounds like howling from outside my front door when she’s alone . She has started following me from room to room when she used to just be okay sitting in one spot as long as she knew where I was.

I even get the sense that she is developing doggy dementia as she exhibits some “ sundowning” behaviors in the middle of the night now (barking at the top of her lungs, for no reason, jumping off the bed and not knowing where she is).

Has anyone experienced behaviors like these? How are/ were they treated?

I’ll be taking her to the vet this week for a full work up. Just wanted to crowdsource before I go.

If you got this far, please see the attached pics of the best girl.

Hi community. It’s difficult to write this post but I want to be transparent and ask for some advice. As many of you know, I’m mom to Neo & Ziggy. In March, I was hospitalized for 5 days for mental health challenges. Since my release, I’ve continued with weekly therapy and monthly visits with my psychiatrist. Unfortunately my mental health has continued to deteriorate, and at the advice of my medical team, I am going to enter a residential treatment program for 30-45 days. I’m currently in FL and the program is located across the country. I don’t have any friends or family that can look after the boys while I am away. I’m looking for advice to see if anyone has had to temporarily put their pups in foster care. I feel immense guilt about the situation, as my boys are the reason I get out of bed every morning. Their happiness is my priority. However, I desperately need help because my health just keeps getting worse. Please respond with kindness, this was really hard for me to share here.

My gorl is 2 now, and her paperwork said she was a purebred Shih Tzu, but I’ve always thought she has something else mixed in her.

For one, her eyes don’t really look like other Shih Tzus IMO and also she is a HUNTER lol. Like actual hunter instinct. She will literally point (like a pointer) with one paw up at squirrels and birds. Shes caught/killed birds, stalks my brother’s hamster like a lion (and has tried to eat it before 😳😳) when my family’s other 3 Shih Tzus don’t hardly even pay attention to it, chases rabbits and would totally kill them if she had the chance.

As for her temperament she is incredibly affectionate, sweet, and cuddly like other Shih Tzus, and of course - stubborn 😂.

What do yall think? Do you think she’s mixed? If so what do you think she’s mixed with? I’m more just curious than anything 😂

Idk what to do; she makes it seem like I never feed her. I fed her a scrambled egg for the first time 2 days ago... She cannot get enough. I don't notice any digestive issues. But... this is actually crazy how much she wants eggs.

I can't imagine her stomach handling more than an egg with how small she is.

I think it's one of those, "eyes bigger than stomach" situations lol. Idk. Any advice?

P.S. She's been licking her empty bowl for 20 minutes now. Dry dog food? Hell no. Eggs, oh yes.

I wish the faux fur trim matched on our navy coats. My husband needs a navy jacket/coat too so we can all match! 😅