Chihuahua - and things you do not know yet [EP 01]

      Today, we will learn about a cute dog. That dog is a chihuahua. The Chihuahua /tʃɪˈwɑːwɑː/ (Spanish: chihuahueño)is the smallest breed of dog and is named after the state of Chihuahua in Mexico. Chihuahuas come in a wide variety of colors, and two coat lengths.

     The Chihuahua's history is convoluted, and there are many theories surrounding the origin of the breed. Both folklore and archaeological finds show that the breed originated in Mexico. The most common theory is that Chihuahuas are descended from the Techichi, a companion dog favored by the Toltec civilization in Mexico. No records of the Techichi are available before the 9th century, although dog pots from Colima, Mexico, buried as part of the western Mexico shaft tomb tradition which date back to 300 BC are thought to depict Techichis. It is probable that earlier ancestors were present before the Mayas as dogs approximating the Chihuahua are found in materials from the Great Pyramid of Cholula, predating 1530 and in the ruins of Chichen Itza on the Yucatán Peninsula.

        In fact, wheeled dog toys representing the Chihuahua have been unearthed across Mesoamerica from Mexico to El Salvador. The earliest of these were found at Tres Zapotes in Veracruz, Mexico, which date to 100 AD, indirect evidence that the breed was in Mexico over 1400 years before the first Europeans arrived.

        Dog effigy pots dating to around 1325 AD discovered in Georgia and Tennessee also appear to represent the Chihuahua. In 1850, a pot featuring the Chihuahua was unearthed in old ruins at Casas Grandes in the Mexican state of Chihuahua, which dates from 1100–1300 AD showing the long history of the breed at this site, although most artifacts relating to its existence are found around Mexico City. It has been argued that these pots arrived with survivors from the Casas Grandes site in Chihuahua, Mexico, after it was attacked and destroyed around 1340 AD.

      In a 1520 letter, Hernan Cortés wrote that the Aztecs raised and sold the little dogs as food. Colonial records refer to small, nearly hairless dogs at the beginning of the 19th century, one of which claims 16th-century Conquistadores found them plentiful in the region later known as Chihuahua. Small dogs such as Chihuahuas were also used as living hot-water bottles during illness or injury. Some historians believe this practice is where the idea of pain being transferred to animals from humans originated, which gave way to rituals such as burning the deceased with live dogs, such as the Techichi *(image 002), to exonerate the deceased human's sins. Chihuahuas as we know them today remained a rarity until the early 20th century; the American Kennel Club (AKC) did not register a Chihuahua until 1904.

       Chihuahuas are the smallest breed recognized by some kennel clubs. There are two varieties of Chihuahua – the Smooth Coat (shorthaired) and the Long Coat (longhaired). Both the Smooth and the Long Coats have their special attractions and are equally easy to keep clean and well groomed. The UK Kennel Club considers smooth and long coat Chihuahuas two distinct breeds; matings between the two are not eligible for KC registration.

     Dogs of either coat type may be identified as either "apple head" or "deer head" Chihuahuas, particularly in the United States. Apple heads have rounded heads, close-set eyes, and relatively short ears and legs. Deer heads have flat-topped heads, more widely set eyes, larger ears, and longer, more slender legs. While deer heads were popular in the mid-twentieth century, current breed standards defined by registries such as the American Kennel Club specify the apple head conformation.

A longhair apple head Chihuahua

A shorthair deer head Chihuahua

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