Chow Chow

Psychoanalysis, in its founder’s own consulting room, involved a Chow Chow. Jofi arrived in Sigmund Freud’s household in 1928 and rarely left his side afterward — including during sessions, where Freud found her presence calmed his patients. She also kept the schedule: when Jofi rose and yawned, the analytic hour was over, and she was, as the Freud Museum notes, never late. It says something that history’s great student of the human mind chose this breed — a dog famous for keeping its thoughts private, and for granting affection as a considered decision rather than a reflex.

Reserved, and not sorry

The West met the breed as a genuine exotic: early arrivals were exhibited at the London Zoo in the 1820s as the “Wild Dogs of China,” and lore places a chow among the Chinese dogs presented to Queen Victoria in 1865. What drew the crowds still stops people today — the lion’s ruff, the scowling dignity, the blue-black tongue shared with no breed but the Shar-Pei, and a stilted, rolling walk that makes every arrival look ceremonial. The Chow accepts the attention as they accept everything: politely, briefly, and from a distance.

Living with one is like sharing quarters with a very well-mannered cat who happens to weigh fifty pounds. Chows are clean to the point of fastidiousness, quiet, easily housetrained, and loyal — profoundly — to their chosen few, while remaining sincerely indifferent to everyone else’s opinion. The honest terms: the coat is a serious commitment, heat is a genuine hazard, and early socialization is not optional, because aloofness left untended can harden into suspicion. Done right, you get the most dignified housemate in dogdom.

Keeping one happy

Grooming

The coat is the commitment: brush thoroughly two or three times a week — down to the skin, not over the top of it — and daily during the twice-yearly blows. Rough and smooth varieties both carry dense undercoat. Keep the facial folds and eyes clean, and never shave a Chow.

Training

Chows learn quickly, comply selectively, and do not perform for applause. Train with calm consistency and genuine respect — harsh handling is met with granite. The real curriculum is socialization: introduce people, dogs, and places early and often, so natural aloofness matures into good manners instead of suspicion.

Exercise

Modest: a couple of unhurried daily walks and a shady post to supervise from. Chows overheat easily under all that coat, so walk in the cool hours and never leave them out in summer sun. They see little point in fetch — think constitutional, not cardio, taken in your company.

Diet

Measured meals twice a day, kept honest — a low-energy breed under a big coat gains weight invisibly. Lean condition protects the hips and knees, both breed concerns. Keep mealtimes calm, skip exercise right after eating, and hold the rich table scraps; the dignified stomach prefers routine.

Two thousand years before the name

One of the world’s oldest breeds, the Chow served China for at least two thousand years as hunter, hauler, and guardian of home and boat. The English name is likely a Western invention — lore blames pidgin trade slang for miscellaneous ship’s cargo — though the dogs were never miscellaneous. The first Chow entered the AKC registry in 1903, a dog named Yen How.