Is the shihtzu a good dog?

Answer 1

I've had a ShihChon female for nearly a year now, who in and of herself is the younger sister (by a litter) of my Mother's ShihChon; they're adorable little dogs, curious, occasionally naughty (but this really seems to be determined by the dog), and rather intelligent. My Mother's ShihChon really settled out of the hyper-active "puppy phase" by about 8 months, whereas my puppy, Morrison, has what my boyfriend and I have dubbed "crazy puppy night" every evening at roughly 8pm, where she does a repeated circuit of our living room furniture for roughly 10-15 minutes before collapsing in complete exhaustion.

My Mother's dog, Moose, is more of a lapdog than mine; Morrison likes to have her own way and is constantly exploring, causing mischief, or clowning around, so I don't mind much. Usually at about 9pm she settles for the night, at which point she becomes an 11lb stone on my abdomen until I declare that it's time for bed. Mom and I both have females, so I can't really speak for the personality of the boys, but I can't expect that they would be that much different.

These little dogs have HUGE personalities. Moose absolutely HATES squirrels and has to chase them whenever she sees them outside; Morrison, on the other hand, has what we call "mortal enemies" and only flips out when she happens to catch sight of our neighbor's two pugs. She's pretty easy to maintain, but she needs regular grooming (their 'fur' gets pretty tangled between the inner and outer coats) which usually costs about $100 a month (for two grooming sessions); she's obsessed with cheese, continually steals my food (if I leave it on the coffee table - my own fault, I should know better! LOL); but it's all worth it when I go to bed and she curls up on my pillow with me.

And nothing is better than your alarm clock waking you up by licking your nose.

Answer 2

The shihtzu is a great dog! They are cuddlers and they love to play! They are very energetic and sweet. They come in a variety of colors, and have both long and short fur.