Chinese Shar-Pei Breed History

The Chinese Shar-Pei, is an ancient and unique breed and has existed for centuries in the southern provinces of China, apparently since the Han Dynasty (c. 200 BC). Statues bearing a strong resemblance to the Shar-Pei have been discovered and dated to this period.



The name "Shar-Pei" literally means "sand-skin", translated more loosely as "rough, sandy coat" or "sand-paper-like coat" and refers to the two distinctive qualities of the coat - roughness and shortness - which make the breed unique in the dog world. Another distinctive characteristic with only one other breed, the Chow-Chow, is having a blue-black tongue.

Following the establishment of the People's Republic of China as a communist nation, the dog population of China was essentially eliminated.

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During this period a few Chinese Shar-Pei were bred in Hong Kong, BC and in the Republic of China (Taiwan). The breed was not recognized by the Hong Kong Kennel Club until about 1968. Subsequently the Hong Kong and Kowloon Kennel Association established a dog registry and registered the Shar-Pei. Today the breed is also registered in Taiwan, Japan, Korea and organizations in Europe, Canada and Great Britain. In the United States a few were imported in 1966 from stock registered with the Hong Kong Kennel Club.

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Interest increased and the Chinese Shar-Pei Club of America, Inc., held its first organizational meeting in 1974. On May 4, 1988, the breed was accepted in to the Miscellaneous Class. Acceptance into the Non-Sporting Group came on August 1, 1992.