grey and white shih-tzu
Shih Tzu Information

Does a Shih Tzu have hair or fur?

Jamie 

When discussing my pet Shih-Tzu’s new groomed cut with my partner some time ago, we could not decide on whether she had hair or fur? This amazed us because we both looked completely perplexed at each other. So I took the time to do some research to find out does a Shih-Tzu have hair or fur?

Here I will share my findings along with some other interesting things that caught my eye along the way, lets begin…

Does a Shih Tzu have hair of fur?

Shih-Tzu’s are one of around 36 breeds of dog that have hair rather than fur, meaning that if left without being groomed their hair coats would continue to grow longer over time. Fur coats would not get any longer over time. Fur will rarely exceed 2 inches in length, whereas hair can easily grow to much longer lengths.

Now that we know that Shih-Tzu’s have a hair coat rather than a fur coat, I wanted to deliver you some more interesting facts about Shih-Tzu’s coat.

Long Haired Shih-Tzu

Does a Shih-Tzu have a double coat?

Simply put, yes. Shih-Tzu’s have a long outer coat and a much shorter, thicker under coat. This not obvious to look at but they do. It is extremely important to not shave you Shih-Tzu as you can remove the bottom coat which is incredibly important to them. It keeps them warm in the winter and also cooler in the summer, so it’s imperative that you do not shave them (Or any other double coated dog).

It is important to remember to regularly brush your Shih-Tzu around 2-3 times a week to keep their hair coat from matting.

How much do Shih Tzu’s shed?

Shih-Tzu’s do shed but not very much and it’s very difficult to notice. This may seem strange for a dog breed that is known for its long draping coat. They are great dog’s for anybody that is particularly against dog hairs on the sofa or all over the carpet.

They have a thin and short undercoat that does most of the shedding. Due to the length and the fineness of the hair it is less obvious to see around the home than fur, which is much thicker. Most of the hair that sheds ends up trapped in the overcoat which means you are less likely to see it around the house as a result. To be honest you are very unlikely to notice a Shih-Tzu shed at all.

When you brush your Shih-Tzu you will see plenty of hair shed into the brush at this stage but that is much more manageable than a constant shed.

Are Shih Tzu’s Hypoallergenic?

Because Shih-Tzu’s are very light shedders people often mistake them for being hypoallergenic. This is not true. Shih-Tzu’s can cause allergies to flare up, but it must be said that they are by no means the worst culprits compared to other dogs. More often than not they will not cause major issues for anybody that suffers with allergies as they are such light shedders, though they are not 100 percent hypoallergenic.

Interestingly, it is not the dogs hair itself that causes the allergies, but the dander. Dander is the piece of dead skin that are attached to dogs hair or fur that is removed from the coat.

Summary and final thoughts

Does a Shih Tzu have hair or fur? They have a double hair coat and are light shedders. They make amazing pets for families, and are very clean animals that don’t require a lot of cleaning up after but will need you to groom them regularly.

Whilst not fulling hypoallergenic they are generally considered quite good dogs for people with dog allergies. Thank you so much for talking the time to read this article and I hope you can take something away from this that you did not know before.

Please consider reading how much exercise does a shih-tzu need

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