The Japanese Spitz is a decorative dog with a luxurious snow-white fur is quite justifiably very popular in almost all countries of the world.
Representatives of the breed are not only beautiful, they are friendly, playful, not whimsical and, unlike most indoor dogs, calm, not conflicting.
Japanese Spitz photos
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Physical characteristics
The Japanese Spitz is a small to medium sized dog. Typically, it resembles a Spitz and has a thick coat that protects it from the weather, a fox-like muzzle and triangular eyes, and a fluffy tail that curls over its back.
The height of adult males is 34-37 cm, females 30-34 cm and weigh 6-7 kg and 5 – 6 kg respectively.
Distinctive features
- Head: the skull is rounded, relatively small, widening towards the back of the head. The muzzle is elongated, like a fox, the stop is clearly visible.
- Jaws: Small, strong. Bite: scissors.
- Ears: Upright, triangular. Average height. Tight set, with small fringe.
- Eyes: Unlike color, which gives the Nordic snowball more expressiveness and attractiveness. In addition, eyes with black features.
- Body: Slightly elongated with a straight back, the neck is not short with an elegant curve that fits into the chic look of the whole. The pubescent tail is thrown over the back and serves as an additional decoration for the dog. The belly is turned up. The chest is wide.
- Legs: Long with short hair and small feathers on the back.
- Coat: Exceptionally snow-white, elongated on the body. Very dense due to the soft undercoat which maintains the general silhouette of the ball-shaped ridges.
Character and behavior
The Japanese Spitz is a wonderful companion because it is loyal, energetic, playful and affectionate. Its loving, kind nature means it is also good with young children.
This breed thrives on being close to people and the Japanese Spitz loves to be at the center of its family. It is very loyal and will want to be at your side at all times.
Its sociable nature means it gets on well with other dogs and pets in the house. Despite its “knee-size” appearance, this breed enjoys being active, spending time walking and running off the beaten path. This does not mean that you will not find this your friendly Japanese Spitz curled up on your lap for a while later.
There is no need to invest in a burglar alarm, as this breed is an excellent watchdog and barks easily to alert its family of a visitor’s arrival at its home.
With the children
The Japanese Spitz and children get along well. The dog rarely shows aggression towards them. However, children should be respectful of the animal and its personal space.
With other animals
With other dogs, the Japanese Spitz easily finds a common language. But it is better to have another Japanese Spitz or a small dog of a decorative breed as a second pet.
The Japanese Spitz dog breed is not at all hostile to other pets, especially cats. The Japanese Spitz and the cat quickly become good neighbors
Health
The Japanese Spitz has a predisposition to the following health problems:
- Dislocations – the joint is displaced from its normal position.
- Excessive tearing – this phenomenon occurs due to too small tear ducts or due to stress.
- Allergic reaction – often occurs to care products, in particular to shampoo.
- Cataract is an eye disease that can lead to complete loss of vision.
- Volvulus – happens due to poor quality food and improper diet.
- Oncological diseases are more often observed in elderly Spitz.
Life expectancy
The average lifespan of a Japanese Spitz is about 12 – 15 years.
Care
The Japanese Spitz should be combed once or twice a week and should be bathed once a month. If your pet likes to sleep in bed with you, it’s best to wash it weekly.
Be sure to keep your dog’s eyes and ears free of dirt and debris, and trim your dog’s nails about 3 times a month. This breed can tolerate the cold, but it’s best to dress your pet in overalls for a winter walk.
By the way, the secret of their snow-white coat is that dirt clings to it very poorly and, on the contrary, it is very easily cleaned.
Exercise
The Japanese spitz needs about one hour of exercise a day.
Fun facts
- The Japanese Spitz has a special texture of the coat, thanks to which dirt does not stick to the coat, it is very easy to remove, sometimes it is enough for the dog to shake off to become clean again.
- All organizations of dog handlers existing in the world have officially recognized the “Japanese Spitz” breed, only the American club refused to recognize this species as independent. American dog handlers believe that the Japanese Spitz is identical with the American Eskimo dog.
- The Japanese Spitz is quite rightly called “the silent dog”. All due to the fact that such a pet barks only justifiably, it never makes noise in vain. If the Spitz is too noisy, this is a serious drawback, a marriage.
- The Japanese Spitz is a dog characterized by increased cleanliness.
History of the breed
The homeland of the Japanese Spitz is Japan, it is clear from the name. The formation, development of the breed took place in this country in 1920-1930.
For all the time, it has not been possible to find a 100% correct answer to the question of which dogs’ genes were used to improve the Japanese Spitz, which breeds are its ancestors. There are two most plausible versions:
- From northeastern China to Japan in the early twentieth century were imported German Spitz. The Japanese, seeing these dogs at a show in Tokyo (1921), were delighted with their beauty. It was decided to create a similar breed in Japan.Breeding work was carried out from 1925 to 1936. Crossing of German Spitz with dwarf white Spitz was carried out, they were brought from different parts of the world. As a result, we managed to breed a snow-white dog, named a new species – Japanese Spitz.
- There is an assumption that the direct ancestors of the modern Japanese Spitz are the undersized Samoyed Siberian huskies.
In 1948, the breed standard was officially established in the homeland of the Japanese Spitz. In European countries, it was recognized and registered in the seventies of the twentieth century.