Questions from a potential owner...

[MisterComplete]

Hi guys, I'm thinking of adding a chow pup to my family and I have a couple of questions for experienced owners:

Will a male chow accept another male dog if he's been raised around him from puppyhood?

Can chows be trained to tolerate cats?

Is it safe for a chow to live in Arizona? He'd be an inside dog and I'd walk/exercise him at night when it's cooler, but I'm concerned because I've heard chows do not tolerate heat well.

Is it true that male chows have a low libido/are "hard" breeders? I don't plan on breeding, I'm just curious about that one.

Any help is appreciated!

[Victory]

Two males can live together quiet fine especially if one is introduced as a puppy or if both are puppies. It really depends on YOUR leadership, and your experience. What breed is the other dog? That will be a big determinor on how they get along.

And oh yes, if your chow puppy is raised around cats he will accept them as part of the family. Watch the cats when the pup is small though to make sure they don't bully or hurt him. When he is closer to their size, then you have to train him to be good with them, but it's the same as training him to be good with another dog, nothing special.

I had a chow that lived in Arizona for most of his life, he did fine. You just have to observe the rules, keep him well watered, make sure there is a cool place for him to hang out, keep him well brushed out. Arizona is hot but dry and chows tolerate that far better than say a Florida swamp where it is very humid and hot too.

I'm not sure about your last question. Low libido, I never noticed that in my intact males, however, chows respect a good leader and many of us don't allow some behaviors, like humping and running off to mate, or fighting with other males. So it may seem to those who don't have chows, (or well trained males of other breeds) that our chow males have low libidos, but believe me when you see to strange well mannered male chows meet each other and they both stick their noses in the air and look at each other with supperior expressions, like too English Lords of old meeting during an outing, you'll have no doubts about their libidos or the egos either. Also properly bred males are submissive to the female, this is as it should be, so sometimes when a female doesn't want to be bothered she makes it pretty clear in no uncertain terms. If the male is very young he may decide at that point that the whole thing of mating is just too much of a hassle and not attempt it again, unless introduced to a female who is very receptive and inticing. Again this is when a good leader is needed and a good breeder is also a good leader.

[MisterComplete]

Two males can live together quiet fine especially if one is introduced as a puppy or if both are puppies. It really depends on YOUR leadership, and your experience. What breed is the other dog? That will be a big determinor on how they get along.

And oh yes, if your chow puppy is raised around cats he will accept them as part of the family. Watch the cats when the pup is small though to make sure they don't bully or hurt him. When he is closer to their size, then you have to train him to be good with them, but it's the same as training him to be good with another dog, nothing special.

I had a chow that lived in Arizona for most of his life, he did fine. You just have to observe the rules, keep him well watered, make sure there is a cool place for him to hang out, keep him well brushed out. Arizona is hot but dry and chows tolerate that far better than say a Florida swamp where it is very humid and hot too.

I'm not sure about your last question. Low libido, I never noticed that in my intact males, however, chows respect a good leader and many of us don't allow some behaviors, like humping and running off to mate, or fighting with other males. So it may seem to those who don't have chows, (or well trained males of other breeds) that our chow males have low libidos, but believe me when you see to strange well mannered male chows meet each other and they both stick their noses in the air and look at each other with supperior expressions, like too English Lords of old meeting during an outing, you'll have no doubts about their libidos or the egos either. Also properly bred males are submissive to the female, this is as it should be, so sometimes when a female doesn't want to be bothered she makes it pretty clear in no uncertain terms. If the male is very young he may decide at that point that the whole thing of mating is just too much of a hassle and not attempt it again, unless introduced to a female who is very receptive and inticing. Again this is when a good leader is needed and a good breeder is also a good leader.

Thanks so much for your advice Victory! I'm very glad to hear that they can do well in AZ, I was most worried about that.

My other dog is an English Bull Terrier. He's very dog-friendly so far and since he's only 9 1/2 weeks old I think introducing them together should work out fine.

My kitty is declawed so he shouldn't be able to hurt my pups too badly, he mostly just runs from my bully and hides when Zeb tries to play with him.

Thanks again for your help! *hugs*

[Fozzbear]

I agree with Victory, apart from the cat bit. It may have more to do with the fact that my cats and my family members cats were a bit too old when I got my first dog, and have therefore always run away and kicked up a fuss, but both of my chows are CRAZY for cats. They dont hurt them when they cath them, just bark in their face, but chows have a high prey drive and trying to train one not to chase a rapidly retreating cat is a bit of a nightmare. But it has been done by others ....good luck!

[MisterComplete]

I agree with Victory, apart from the cat bit. It may have more to do with the fact that my cats and my family members cats were a bit too old when I got my first dog, and have therefore always run away and kicked up a fuss, but both of my chows are CRAZY for cats. They dont hurt them when they cath them, just bark in their face, but chows have a high prey drive and trying to train one not to chase a rapidly retreating cat is a bit of a nightmare. But it has been done by others ....good luck!

Thanks! My cat is the same way, he HATES my bull terrier, even though Zeb loves him.

[lstabler]

We adopted a female 6yr old chow a few months ago and were worried about how dog and cat would survive together in a small apartment. After some hissing and chasing...a week or so, now they actually instigate play together (still hissing and chasing . The cat runs and hides and the dog chases and whimpers. We try to explain that cats dont know how to 'play dog' but our chow still wants her to play chase. When the cat plays with her toys the dog just looks on as if wondering what in the world she is doing. At feeding time they ignore each other entirely...except the cat wants to eat the dog's food.

One very interesting thing...the chow dog does not have any interest in messing with the cat's litter box. This was a very nice bonus!

Good luck with your new dog if you decide to get a chow.

Lyn

[JasonandNat]

Hehe, well we have friends in Arizona with a beautiful chow. He loves the climate. We all meet up yearly in Myrtle Beach. Cats, well it depends, ours were born around a cat, but since then they have discovered cats are more fun as food. They are usually fine until the cat hisses (challenge) and/or runs, then it's full on hyena screams ( you have heard these, right), and go kitty go, or else. Now to be fair, they treat all small furry critters equally. Something people tend to forget, chows are predators, much more than 90% of dog breeds. This is note bad thing, just something to keep in mind.