Lhasa Apsos have been in the West for over a hundred years, but have been little known until they came to popularity in America, Britain and other countries in the 70s and 80s. Even then, they were not high on the popularity scale, as say compared with the Shihtzu, mainly because they somehow got "lumped" into a group of "furry, longhaired dogs"!
The mystery surrounding Tibet has only begun to break down in the last couple of decade. Even in 1977 when I first went to Nepal and Dharamsala, India ("Little Tibet"), very little was openly know of the Tibetan people, their religion and of their dogs, the Lhasa Apsos. All sorts of wild stories about Lhasa Apsos being closeted off in monasteries as little guard dogs in "lost valleys of Tibet" is simply not true. As I have repeatedly said, they were a much loved dog of the people, with the aristocracy and high Lamas being given the prized ones as offerings or gifts from the people who bred them in return for kind favours that had been done for them. I would like to point out that Tibetan aristocracy does not pass down in families as it does in the West, but is often a family who was exceedingly poor and then had a child who was recognised as a high Lama's reincarnate. This includes the current Dalai Lama's family, which makes sense, because his mother was kind enough to give birth to him and also to allow him to be taken to Lhasa and raised by other high Lamas. The mother was not disregarded at all, she was also taken to Lhasa with the rest of the family and given a high status. Tibetan Buddhism praises Mothers (of all sentient beings) above all else.
Now the Lhasa Apsos, having proven to people what an amazing little dog it is, has become the most clamoured after and fashionable dog in the West.
The "modern" Lhasa Apsos have health problems, look different and (some are hardly recognisable as their forebears) they have been 'superceded' by the new, smooth model which completely lacks the individualism and charisma of the original Lhasa Apsos.
In 1902 in England the first Tibetan dogs were seen after the Younghusbands' return from Tibet. At that time Sir Lionel Jacobs who was M.I.C.E., Government Official in the Punjab, India, named them "Bhutan Terriers". Sir Lionel was listened to because he was also a recognised "dog lover" and an organizer of the Northern India Kennel Club.
"Until Mr. Lionel Jacobs enlightened the fanciers in this country by means of his very practical contributions to the Kennel press on the dogs of India, very little was known here and much confusion reigned, especially when, as in the case of the Lhasa, two distinct types obtain. Though desirable acquisitions, the true Lhasas are by no means abundant even in that capital, and correspondingly expensive." ... "British Dogs and Their Points, Selection and Preparation" by W.D. Drury, 1903
To which dog is Sir Lionel referring when he writes in "The Dog Owners Annual for 1901" that "The Tibetan, Bhutan or Lhasa Terrier, is now usually allowed to be a distinct breed, and perhaps of all others it merits the distinction." If it is "now allowed to be a distinct breed", what was it before that? Was it called anything or did they change the name?
Two distinct types yet within the same breed? Sounds amazing, but it is simple and has been glossed over here in the West!
The smooth and the long haired coat are one and the same dog, which throws huge questions out as to how the Lhasa Apsos (long haired) and Tibetan Spaniels (smooth coats) became separated and why. An English show/breeder told me that in the 1950s her friend was there when dogs arrived into England from Mr. Tenzin Norgay's Breeding Programme and they were sorted into 'short and long haired' dogs and given separate names. However, furthering on that, I have seen smooth and long haired Apsos treated exactly the same way by the Tibetans and also LARGE and SMALL ones. We have called the large ones Tibetan Terriers! It is true that the Tibetans prefer the small, long haired dogs as 'fancy gifts' for people, but they also adore the funny, frisky nature of the smooth coat, as it a feisty little dog and different from the long haired.
I fail to see the point in separating these dogs, apart from the obvious conclusion that three new breeds were better than one! St. Bernards have no problem with smooth and long haired dogs and either do many other varieties of dog breeds.
It is shameful that the poor little smooth coat is called a "Prapso" when all it is, is a throw back to the original smooth coat Apsos. I would be very proud if I bred one of these dogs and it would rightly be registered as a Lhasa Apsos! So if it is an entirely different breed which looks exactly like a "Tibetan Spaniel", how can I register such a dog with the Australian Kennel Club? Because its parents are registered Lhasa Apsos and this makes it a "smooth coated Lhasa Apsos", so where is the difference in the two breeds?
1900: "There are Tibetan Terriers as large as Russian Poodles, and have others almost as small as Maltese. A few would appear to have Terrier instincts, but many have the habits of the large dog of Tibet. The Lhasa Terrier has now found a foothold in India and is bred there, though not in considerable numbers. At one time it was only to be obtained in its purity at Lhasa, and the breed was once, it is said, jealously guarded by the Buddhist priests. But, traders finding a demand among the dog loving public of India, contrived to convey specimens to Leh and Kashmir, westward, and to Darjeeling, eastward."
"Of these little creatures there are to be two contrary types, the terrier and the spaniel. At the Muree (an Indian Hill Station, bordering Kashmir) dog show of September 1900, there was for the first time a separate class granted for this breed, and both types were conspicuously represented. The terrier type (though all Tibetan dogs have the tail curling strongly over the back), strongly resembles the Skye Terrier." ... ... Sir Lionel Jacobs
In the early 1900s the British were faced with the daunting task of bringing in new blood and some claim that breeders resorted to English dogs like the Skye Terrier. However, there is no absolute proof of this and I have seen many Lhasas while living in Dharamsala in the Himalayas ("Little Tibet") that look a lot like Cairn and Skye Terrier as their ears prick up at the base, although they drop down from there. A Lhasa Apsos's ears should lift at the base when it hears something and not lie flat to the head.
1928: The true Tibetan type was fast degenerating into another dog! Fortunately in this year, the British Kennel Club gave authority of the breed to Col. and Mrs. Bailey who had returned from Tibet with a few good, small Lhasa Apsos.
1934: Lady Freda Valentine and certain other enlightened fanciers, as well as the Baileys established a standard for the breed, based on the description given by Sir Lionel Jacob's Standard of 1902.
During his visit to Lhasa in 1934, Mr. Suydam Cutting received five dogs from the 13th Dalai Lama. This was the basis for the famous Hamilton Farm Kennels in New Jersey, USA.
1937: Mr. Suydam Cutting returned to Lhasa with his wife, which must have been a daunting task and I've never read just HOW they did this trip! It was an arduous task even up until the early 1990s and there were buses then. The 13th. Dalai Lama had recently died and it was the Regent who gave them the two Lhasa Apsos with a letter which read:
"I am sending you two dogs by way of Kalimpong. Please take great care when you receive them." 7th. of the 1st. Tibetan month of the Water-Bird year.
Westerners do not have the same understanding of "great care" as Tibetans put it. This would immediately mean to one who understood Tibetan Buddhism that there could be obstacles and hindrances involved with the dogs and even loss of them! In the case of the Lhasa Apsos it seems to be the breeding of them.
1940: Seven English Shihtzu were imported into the USA and gained registration as Lhasa Apsos by the American Kennel Club who really could not tell the difference at that time, especially in a young dog.
The Cuttings also imported two dogs from China which were most likely Shihtzu as no Lhasa Apsos were in Shanghai, China. (N.B.: Remember that letter?)
It is a shameful fact that since then the AKC has refused to register any pure Tibetan dog and yet there are some in America and Canada! They have been refused registration. It is for this reason that the American Lhasa Apsos cannot be called "purely" Tibetan descendants.
Now we have a gap in British Lhasa Apso history, due to WWII which disrupted a lot of dog breeds!
However, America continued to breed very successfully during this time as they were not actively involved in the war until 1942. They did try to stick to the official British Standard of 1935.
Late 1940s and early 1950s: The English imported a few dogs from Nepal, bred by Mr. Tenzin Norgay of Nepal, the famous trekker who climbed Mt. Everest with Sir Edmund Hilary of New Zealand. These dogs were sold and the money raised was used for housing and schooling for children in Nepal. "Jigmey Tharkey of Rungi" was one of these dogs and produced the famous "Gunga Din of Verles" - this dog was the first Champion of the breed after the war.
1950s: Mlle. Violette Dupont (France) began her renowned Annapurna Kennels with Hamilton Kangmar and Xeres, the male being of true origin.
Meanwhile in the USA, Mr. Cutting took on a few proteges Mrs. M. Stillman ("Amerikal"); Mrs. Grace Licos ("Licos"); Mrs. Dorothy Cohen ("Karma"). It seems that Mrs. Cohen's prefix lived up to its name, as when Mr. Cutting's wife passed away he sold his kennel to Mrs. Cohen who was totally devoted to preserving the breed!
Late 1970s: Mrs. Cohen realised that the breed was running out of lines and that no more were available due to the Chinese invasion of Tibet and the slaughter of not just its people, but also its heritage and this 'heritage' included the Apsos. Tibet was a closed off country where the only means of getting into it was by a very dangerous route in a rickety old bus from Nepal and the chances of being arrested for "something" were very high. Mrs. Cohen knew there would not be any pure Tibetan dogs being bred in the USA.
1980s: This began the changes in the USA of the Lhasa Apsos as they prospered and the show ring held high acclaim for the best looking Lhasa Apsos. Consequently, the Lhasa Apso began to change in coat, structure, head type, characteristics and just about every other way possible, as you can see from my little graphic above. The "new line" Lhasa Apsos had emerged and showers and breeders did not even know what an original Apsos looked like, let alone care. They wanted to win in the show ring and so the results brought with them health problems as well.
THE ADVENT OF THE NEW LINE LHASA APSOS
The smooth, overly long coated, glamorous dog that really showed no relationship to its forebears was winning in the show ring. Judges did not know any better than the showers and breeders and it seems that no one cared as long as the most "beautiful" dog won! So changed was their character that they had lost their wonderful mannerisms and were almost like automatons who obeyed show commands, which their forebears did not really appreciate doing.
They had become much bigger than the small, little Lhasa Apsos from Tibet and now had long necks with a silken, flowing coat. Gone was the wonderful rustic, proud little dog that wanted only to protect its family and love them.
This would not have been so drastic if it had remained with the shores of the USA, but other countries wanted this dog and so the American dogs were exported all over the world, and bred with good 'old line' dogs until those old lines died out! All in the name of the show ring, because certainly those wanting a Lhasa Apsos as a pet were not interested in the flowing, silken coat, the haughty expression, the lack of intelligence and health problems that were beginning to emerge with these 'new' fad dogs.
Of course the next problem was the Standard as it seems there is a different Standard for just about every country and show people actually had the Standard changed to fit the breed, not the other way around, where the Standard should DESCRIBE the breed in its original form and stick to it. The American Standard is very loose and the British changed theirs, but thanks to a handful of people in Australia, namely Mrs. Francis Sefton, Mrs. Ann Michaelis, Mrs. J. Gardiner and others, the "new" British Standard was rejected and Francis Sefton wrote her (now famous) letter to England.
The show dogs in the ring in Australia are too large, have coats that are impossible to maintain without banding and crating and the hearty, healthy, ROBUST Lhasa Apsos is nowhere to be seen in the show ring!
The "fad dog" Apsos will not survive, but its ancestors are beginning to show themselves again as the true lovers of the true to type Lhasa Apsos want these dogs.
The modifications for the show ring have shown the public what dangers are involved in these kinds of practices, even to the point now where there is a movie "exposing the cruelty to show dogs". Many breeds have been damaged in their health, life span and so on. The Queen of England has even removed her name from the British Dog Show "Crufts" and she is also removing her name from the British kennel club. This was after her own personal experience where she went to 'restock' her Corgi kennels, only to find a different dog entirely to her lovely old lines.
The modifications to the breed were brought about by many cruel practices, even to the point of feeding arsenic and strychnine to them to increase the amount of coat they have! Breeders are breeding "for the show ring", not for a healthy, robust, good tempered dog. Who can blame a dog who has been fed poison for being aggressive and unfortunately the public who are not aware of these things, have got some idea now that Lhasa Apsos can be aggressive. This is far from the truth as they are the most compassionate, kind and loving dog one could ever find... But I breed only the old lines! Having seen the difference between the "new" and the original Lhasas, I could never breed such a dog as it is just not a Lhasa Apsos to me. It may have the registration papers to state that it is, but it is a different to a Lhasa Apsos as a Shihtzu is, in my opinion. I have lived with these dogs and their Tibetan owners and I know what they should look like! The new dogs are definitely not Tibetan Lhasa Apsos, no matter what is written on paper.
However, dogs that I have bred have won in the show ring lately and this shows a marked trend BACK to the original Lhasa Apsos, thanks to all the hard work of people around the world who have stuck to their understanding of what the true Lhasa Apsos is and have worked hard to preserve the breed.
It is very difficult to get a pure bred Tibetan dog into Australia due to our very strict quarantine rules, but I will not give up trying to do so. I thank Mr. Gerald D'Aoust for his efforts and the German and now French breeders who have actually succeeded in breeding and registering new blood from Bhutan! I also thank Mme. Yoland De Zarobe for continued effort and support of the original and true Lhasa Apsos.
And to conclude, a note from Wikipedia:
"A movement called the Tibetan Line Breeding Programme exists, to breed/preserve the original Tibetan Lhasa Apso. This movement is based on the premise that after 60 years of Western breeding, the breed is losing key characteristics of their original Lhasa ancestors still living in Tibet and Bhutan."
These are my dogs of old lines in perfect health, temperament, height, robustness and are a sheer delight!
Meanwhile, in my own way I am succeeding in breeding back to the original Lhasa Apsos as much as is possible without having new blood and I think the fact that the Tibetans are now wanting dogs from me shows that I have done something right to preserve this beautiful little dog from the extinction which it faced.
