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Xoloitzcuintli
(Mexican
Hairless) (Tepeizeuintli) (Xoloitzcuintle) (Xolo)
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Description
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The
Xolo comes in three sizes, Toy, Miniature,
Standard, and two varieties: The coated
and the hairless. The Hairless being the
more sought after and popular variety.
It is very hairless with or with out a
short tuffed of hair on the head and tail.
The hairless Xolo should never be hairy,
or possess long hair, wire hair or wavy
hair. It's skin should be soft and smooth,
yet hardy to the elements. The Xolo comes
in a variety of colors, from black to
slate, gray, bronze, brindle, red, fawn,
solid or spotted. The coated variety should
have a full coat of hair, short, sleek,
clean, like that of a Doberman, and with
regular brushing shed very little. The
coated Xolo should also not possess long
hair, wire, or wavy hair. It has a loyal
following to those who love the breed
but prefer a coat of hair on their dog.
In an average litter of five. Four will
be hairless and one will be coated. This
is a very robust and hardy breed, with
a broad skull and black or skin colored
nose. Almond shaped eyes are dark or in
keeping with the color of the dog. It's
most noticeable character is it's large
upright bat like ears, it is very keen
and can hear and alert you to danger or
stranger. Xolo do change colors as they
mature.
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Temperament
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The
Xolo is very intelligent, loyal, alert,
athletic, and extremely loving to it's
family. It is important that all family
members play a role in rearing, training,
and feeding the Xolo, or it will bond
to the one person or people who do. It
is naturally protective and aloof to strangers.
With proper socializing it is very good
with company and children. It is a myth
that Xolo's are vegetarian's, however
they do love veggies. This breed is easy
to house train, and learns very quick.
You must be the leader and teach the Xolo,
or it will lead, and run the house for
you. This breed is becoming very popular
as an obedience dog, therapy, agility,
great pet, and conformation. Many swear
they have learned more from their Xolo
than any other breed, because they are
so intelligent and in tune with their
family, they seem to know when you are
not feeling well, and stay with you, comforting
you when alone or depressed. The Xolo
is often called a velcro dog, staying
with it's owner at all times, it very
seldom runs off or away. One owners testament
claims she called and called for her Xolo
only to look down and find it sitting
right there looking up as if to say here
I am. So she learned quickly to simply
look down first and there it will be.
another owner claims her Xolo loves to
climb trees with the kids and ride the
horses with the owner. Which brings up
a very important fact. Xolo can escape
anything, climb anything only to get to
were you are. However since they are so
smart they can also learn to stay were
you want them as long as it is not forever.
Another testament to the intelligence
of a Xolo is: an owner was having trouble
teaching her five year old child to sleep
in her own bed, after many a sleepless
night and at her wits end, the pet Xolo
jumped in the child bed to the child's
delight and slept with the child for two
weeks, till the child was comfortable
to go to bed on her own. It was then the
Xolo returned to the parents bed were
they had all slept for five years. Being
a primitive breed with great survival
skills, A Xolo will not tolerate abuse,
or an unstable environment. With no shedding,
no dander, and no fleas, the hairless
variety is very popular with the clean,
neat person, those with allergies and
asthma, and with people who suffer from
pain, arthritis type ailments. Being hairless,
they radiate a warm, soothing, healing
heat. This is only because they are hairless
and not hotter. This is not a yappy or
hyper breed so do listen when your Xolo
alerts you.
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Height,
Weight
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The
Xolo comes in three sizes, The exact sizes
vary from breed club to breed club however
in general The sizes are as follows.
Toy: Height 9-14 inches (23-36 cm.)
tall at the shoulder.
Toy: Weight 5-15 pounds (2.3-6.8 kg.)
In the U.S. the small Xolo is called a
toy and in Mexico it is called a miniature,
which can be confusing.
Miniature: Height 15-20 inches (38-51
cm.) tall at the shoulder.
Miniature: Weight 15-30 pounds (6.8-14
kg.) In the U.S. the miniature is called
a miniature and in Mexico it is called
an intermediate.
Standard: Height 20-30 inches (51-76 cm.)
tall at the shoulder.
Standard: Weight 25-40 pounds (11-18 kg.)
and up to even 60 + pounds (27 kg.)
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Health
Problems
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The
Xolo is a very hardy and healthy breed
possessing no known breed related health
concern. A top breeder will keep it that
way by Breeding only those specimens who
have these health qualities, fine skin,
temperament and conformation. A breeder
who breeds for money and not the health
and welfare of the breed may not be concerned
with these health quality's, breeding
only what they have on hand and not what
they should. Breeding is a very big responsibility
by the very dedicated fancier. We all
know what has happened to many of our
very popular breeds in the past and so
we all know better than to breed for any
other purpose other than the complete
health and welfare of this Very rare a
magnificent breed. Skin health is very
important to the hairless variety, a sweater
in very cold climates is recommended.
Despite what many have read on the internet,
the Xolo's skin is very hardy and requires
very little care. In fact Over bathing
can strip the skin of natural protection
causing more harm than good. Also over
lotioning and sunscreening can clog pores
and damage skin, causing acne and such.
So only bath and lotion or sun screen
as needed. Let the Xolo's natural protection
do it's job. Dark colored and solid colored
Xolos have the hardiest skin, Spotted
and light colors require more care: See
Grooming.
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Living
Conditions
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Young
Xolo's require allot of exercise, discipline
and attention, lots of toys and things
to do to keep them happy and out of trouble.
If you do not have the time required for
the first year, you may consider a trainer,
dog walker, or doggy day care, while at
work all day. Or an older Xolo. As they
mature they calm down and are very easy
going, quiet and laid back, and are content
to stay at home while you work. However
they would prefer to go with you if they
can and do very well at work with you.
This does not mean they are not game to
go jogging, hiking, Or any other activity
it just means they don't require as much
as say: a working breed or terrier breed.
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Exercise
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The
smaller Xolo was bred as a companion and
larger Xolo for protection. No matter
which Xolo you choose, they need to be
taken on a
daily walk. While play can take care of a lot of the smaller
Xolo's exercise needs, as with all breeds,
it will not fulfill their primal instinct
to walk. Dogs who do not get to go on
daily walks are more likely to display
behavior problems. They are very hardy
and adapt to many life styles as it comes
in many sizes for every need. All hairless
breeds must be protected from severe cold,
and heat as you would yourself, were ever
humans are Xolos can also be, providing
they can live in the house with you. They
make very poor kennel dogs, or permanent
out door pets, as they need to be part
of the family. They do crate train very
well and even prefer a nice quiet place
to call there own for a few hours in the
day, or at night if they do not sleep
with you as most do. Many owners paper
train or litter box train the smaller
size Xolo, so it does not need to go out
in severe winter weather. However when
the weather is nice, no one loves the
outdoor as much as a Xolo, they do like
to sun bathe and bask in warm weather.
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Life
Expectancy
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The
Xolo is a very long lived healthy breed.
About 15 and up to 20 years is very common.
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Grooming
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The
coated and the hairless variety of Xolo
are very easy to groom and care for. For
the Hairless: Most skin problems arise
from poor breeding, neglect, or over bathing
and over lotioning, stripping natural
protection's and clogging pores. A well
bred hairless Xolo will have very fine
soft skin, yet hardy. Bathe and lotion
once or twice a month, or only as needed.
Sunscreen as needed as you would yourself
in very sunny weather. We do not recommend
a ton of products to keep the skin nice,
as you might read on the internet today.
Products need not be expensive. An owner
claims she buys her Xolos bath and lotion
products at the dollar store with great
success. Top breeders recommend hypo allergenic
gentle human products, a nice bath, exfoliating
cream, lotion and sun screen. Keep it
simple. Favorite products are: Johnson's
baby bath and lotion. favorite is the
bedtime bath and lotion with chamomile
and lavender. Very calming and soothing
to skin and smells great. For the winter
dry ear tips and feet,: Bag balm or udder
butter. For the occasional acne or pimples
especially in teenage Xolos, and to keep
skin soft and remove dead skin build up:
St. Ives exfoliating scrub or similar
product. Exfoliate with a buff puff and
bath a needed, then lotion with a nice
hypo allergenic light product. There are
some nice lotions with sun screen in them.
Or a favorite is bull frog for baby's.
People who show or if you are planning
an outing and want your Xolo to look his
best. Almond oil is nice, also palmers
spray on oil is great for shiny skin and
smells nice too! Always bath after a day
out at a show or park to remove unwanted
germs and or dirt and oil build up. In
between baths at home a warm water rinse
is best, wash dirty face and feet with
warm water and wash cloth. For the coated:
Bathe the coated dog as you would any
coated breed, brush daily or at least
weekly to keep shedding at bay. For both
varieties: Clip toe nails and brush teeth
weekly. Although the dark solid colors
do not burn, it is wise to sunscreen any
hairless breed as we would ourselves in
hot weather. The spotted and white marks
can and do sun burn if not protected.
The hairless variety is ideal for allergy
sufferers, because there is no hair to
shed. The coated variety, with regular
brushing sheds very little.
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Origin
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The
Xoloitzcuintli also spelled Xoloitzcuintle,
is more commonly known as the Mexican
Hairless, or Xolo. It resembles a robust
Manchester Terrier. The Xolo is one of
the worlds oldest and rarest breeds dating
back over 3,000 years. Artifacts and clay
pottery of this ancient breed has been
found in the tombs of Colima, Mayan, Aztec
Indians. They were highly prized for their
loyalty, intelligence, curative and mystical
powers. The Xolo of today remains virtually
unchanged. Ancestors of the Aztec Indians
brought hairless dogs called "Biche" (meaning
naked) with them when they arrived in
Mexico from Asia. The Aztecs enjoyed the
hairless dogs as pets, but also found
them useful as bedwarmers, food, and sacrificial
offerings. The toasty warm body heat of
the toy hairless dogs made them in demand
as ancient hot-water bottles, relieving
stomach pains and rheumatic joints, or
simply for warming beds during cold nights.
Extreme cold made for a "Three Dog Night."
The breed's palliative qualities magnified
until its "healing powers" became a cure-all.
Clay figures and remains of these dogs,
dating from 300 to 900 AD, have been found
in burial sites, where dogs guided the
souls to a happy afterlife and furnished
nourishment until it was reached. The
Xolo is native to Mexico and is widespread
throughout South America. It is named
after the ancient dog Xoloti. At the end
of the nineteenth century, it became completely
a companion dog. The warmth from these
dogs is still enjoyed today, particularly
by the elderly. The Xolo is no longer
in danger of Extinction and is not
in danger do to lack of interest. The
Xolo today is being acknowledged with
increased interest, for there companion
ship, loyalty, cleanliness and flexibility
to do it all! They make great companions,
show, agility, obedience, therapy and
service dogs.
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