Lhasa Apso Owners/Breeders/Enthusiasts?

[fluffypuppylover]

I'm in the research mode of adding a second dog to my household and I'm starting to narrow it down to a few different breeds. The Lhasa Apso is a favorite of mine. I've known several in my neighborhood and almost had the chance to have one when my elderly neighbor died, but the dog was 14 and had terrible kidney problems so it ended up having to be put down.

I've been doing some reading on them and they sound like such wonderful little dogs, so filled with personality. But I'm interested in some sites, books, or personal knowledge of their temperment and personality. The "down sides" of the breed would be wonderful to know as well. Most of the information I am finding in my search is either the breed standard or about health problems. Wonderful things to know of course, but I am 100% certain if I go with a LA I will be adopting, thus a breed standard isn't something I need to be primarily concerned with, and I've already found a wealth of knowledge on their health.

For a little background, if it matters, I live in a three bedroom house with Abbie, my Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, and two cats. There is an 8 foot high chain link fenced dog run and a big backyard outside of that. I have no qualms about grooming, daily brushing is a given and I have an excellent groomer for Abbie already. I know the breed is not good with children and this is not a problem. I will never be having children, nor do children visit my house on a regular basis.

One of the red flags that went up for me was that I read that these dogs are very snappish around other dogs and generally will not tolerate other animals at all. All of the LA's I know of were great with other dogs. I'm just curious to hear personal opinions about this and to find out if it is completely unfounded, goes on a case-by-case basis of how the dog is raised/trained, or if it is indeed a breed-wide trait.

Thanks for your time. Hope to hear from some LA enthusiasts or owners soon.

[Cassiepeia]

I don't know much about them but I found this great site with a helpful article that you might like to read. It's about Lhasa aggression. http://www.lhasa-apso.org/articles/aggression.htm

If you go back to the main site, it has a huge list of articles and informative links.

Cass.

[Tinaweena]

That link is silly.
I had a lhasa and he was the friendliest thing in the world! They have temperment comparable to the shih tzu.
That even says it has been re-homed about three times and may have been abused.
They are no more aggresive than any other breed. I think they are wonderful, loyal little dogs. And they even serve as a little guard dog as they like to protect their family.
It's what they were used for when the breed first started.
They were used in royal families as a guard dog.

[calgal]

They are no more snappy than ANY dog. If you raise them around other people, animals and kids of all ages they will be well adjusted. My concern is are you going to leave the little one alone with the big one? Large dogs don't usually know how to play safe with tiny ones. It's usually by accident that the little one is mowed over while they are running and playing.

[fluffypuppylover]

Thanks for the info. I did figure that it was mostly how a dog is raised and that they are no snappish than any other dog but I felt better asking since it was mentioned a few times in what i've been reading.

Calgal, not necessarily leaving them alone together. I can always crate train the Lhasa and crate him/her when I'm not around to supervise. I'm not really settled on a breed yet, i'm having a huge time finding one that meets what I want and is big enough to play with Abbie. Most of the dogs I've liked so far are toy/small dogs. I'm nowhere near deciding yet though.

[Cassiepeia]

Originally Posted by Tinaweena

That link is silly.
I had a lhasa and he was the friendliest thing in the world! They have temperment comparable to the shih tzu.
That even says it has been re-homed about three times and may have been abused.
They are no more aggresive than any other breed. I think they are wonderful, loyal little dogs. And they even serve as a little guard dog as they like to protect their family.
It's what they were used for when the breed first started.
They were used in royal families as a guard dog.

I believe if you actually take the time to read the whole thing that they do mention that the aggression people see is not a breed trait but a result of both the individual dogs personality and how it was raised.

No need to dismiss the link as "silly". I was only trying to provide a little info.

Cass.

[PawNclaws]

Oh Lhasas are great dogs(beautiful), they are not snapish at other dogs if properly socialized and same for the aggresstion. It so happends my moms best friend raised/bred/showed lhasas for a looong time. Her youngest just retired from the ring last year at the age of 9. She's been with Lhasas as far back as I can remember and I've known her since I was 6yrs. I'll email her, what kind of info are you looking at or what questions would you like me to ask ? I'll be happy to do this for you.

[Tinaweena]

Originally Posted by Cassiepeia

I believe if you actually take the time to read the whole thing that they do mention that the aggression people see is not a breed trait but a result of both the individual dogs personality and how it was raised.

No need to dismiss the link as "silly". I was only trying to provide a little info.

Cass.

Well the reason I call it silly is because of the way you set it up, saying it's "about Lhasa agression" as if it's a common thing that she needs to be made aware of.

As for finding a dog big enough to play with the other, the Lhasa is very compact and sturdy. I've seen them playing with everything from a toy poodle, to a GSD.

[Charlie_boy]

I know some people on another site who have lhasa and they are perfectly fine with other dogs. One of the has one with two shih tzus and they all get on fanstastic with no problmes at all. As others have mentioned they are not any more snappy than any other breeds, i know a lot of small breeds have this hanging over them. Shih Tzus for one and Charlie couldnt be less snappy if he tried.
I just want to mention leaving a smaller dog with a bigger one, although accidents can happen i know somebody with 3 Shih Tzus and a great dane (what a mix! ) lol and she says they never have any problems, i think dogs if they are brought up around other dogs or well socialized then they kinda figure how to play with other breeds big or small! Charlie isn't sizest at all and will quite happily play with other Tzu sized dog or a golden lab......he isn't fussy lol
Good luck on your search and let us know what you decide on
Oh and there is a Lhasa owner on here some where, Abbeys_mommy i think her name is her pup is called Abbey and she has the cutest picture with a dummy (pacifier) in her mouth lol so maybe she will come by and tell you a bit more on the breed! I know she posted on any shih tzu owners in teh toy group section.

Sharon and Charlie

[Tiffany0204]

Beni was a lhaso mix and was a great dog If I wasn't able to ever get a Shih Tzu, I was seriously considering getting a Lhaso Apso. They're dolls!

[mulroony]

We have a Lhasa, but we got it when I was very young so I knew nothing about training. He is still a really good dog, and the only thing I can say is that he was a bit stuborn, but that might be partially our fault. Their hair does grow rather fast, and mats even faster so unless you want to get it shaved every month I would be ready to comb it daily. They do have a great personally though, max thinks he is one of the big dogs and is not affraid to tell them off.