How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization
Author: Franklin Foer
Who knew you could learn so much about globalization, economics and politics from soccer? Great read.
Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity
Author: Julia Cameron
One possible path to re-discovering the creativity you never knew you had.
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, New Edition
Author: Jared Diamond
An admirable crack at explaining why the world is the way it is by way of an anthropological macro-history. This book probably comes up the most in conversation as we travel.
The Cathedral Within: Transforming Your Life by Giving Something Back
Author: Bill Shore
Inspiring profiles of social entrepreneurs and projects we all can learn from and hopefully replicate to give back to community.
Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation
Author: John Carlin
Although the storyline is built around the South African rugby team and the 1995 World Cup, this book is more about Nelson Mandela and how he was able to unite a divided country. Inspiring.
Dark Star Safari: Overland from Cairo to Capetown
Author: Paul Theroux
The author re-visits Africa and re-assesses the place he once knew... and judges it once and for all. Well written, poignant observations of the thumbprints left by career politicians, aid workers, and everyday people.
Outliers: The Story of Success
Author: Malcolm Gladwell
A look at the internal and external factors of how extraordinary people got to be, well, extraordinary. One of those books that challenges assumptions and makes you think differently.
Shantaram: A Novel
Author: Gregory David Roberts
Administering first aid in a Bombay slum, selling fake passports and running guns to the Mujahideen in Afghanistan. Technically a novel, but closely linked to the Author's own experiences. Fantastic read.
Dogs with tiger stripes?
Is it the next new Chinese dog breed coming your way? An experiment in genetic modification that escaped from the lab with the help of an ambitious entrepreneur?
Or do the stripes wash off after the first bath?
Just a few of the many unanswered questions from our time on the streets of Urumqi in China’s Xinjiang Province.
Has anyone seen dogs like this before?
Photos of Chinese Striped Dog (from Monty Graham)
Please use your REAL name and not your website or company name. People enjoy talking to people, not websites. Spam will be deleted, as will duplicate links. Thanks for taking part in the conversation.
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October 14th, 2008 at 3:57 am
I have a similar pic( including the duffel bag!) and video clip from Nanjing last week (October 1st?). My wife is a vet tech and had never seen anything like this. There was one in the litter that was shaved or hairless so you could see it wasn’t painted. One of the litter was lighter striped and one was almost white with no stripes, I was trying to identify them and found your post. My thoughts went to genetic manipulation too, more disturbing than cute.
October 16th, 2008 at 6:55 am
Ian: Amazing that you saw the same thing a few weeks ago! It’s hard to believe without seeing it. The woman selling these dogs got annoyed at us when she saw us taking photos and packed up shortly afterwards. Don’t know if she was selling illegally or maybe just didn’t want the attention. Please let us know if you get to the bottom of the stripes and this new breed…or trend in dog modification.
October 16th, 2008 at 8:27 am
I can’t find any other info about these but our Chinese translator told us about Chows that are painted like pandas. I’ve seen some of those pics and the dye job is very realistic. Seems like the entrepeneur we saw had dyed the skin of the dog too. Using a simple airbrush and vegetable dyes would be within the resources of a street vendor so I’m guessing, and hoping, that this is what has happened here. Probably not all that traumatic for a puppy although I doubt that duffel bag puppies are well loved. BTW your site is amazing and inspirational. I thought a trip to China, staying in a hotel, was an adventure but…WOW!
October 17th, 2008 at 11:12 am
Like you, I prefer to think that these striped dogs were the result of some creative entrepreneurs rather than mad scientist. I can’t imagine that dogs sold on the street are treated that well by the vendors, but hopefully the buyers think these dogs are pretty special – like a fashion item – and take good care of them. Thanks so much for your kind words about our website!
January 20th, 2009 at 2:06 am
We saw dogs like these in Shenzhen yesterday. Shenzhen is just over the boarder from Hong Kong. They were also on the street being sold by a vendor and we could not believe our eyes, so I googled “dog with tiger stripes” when I got home which lead me to your site. We were unable to stop and take a closer look, but it was for sure exactly the same dogs as these on your site! Very strange!
January 25th, 2009 at 10:56 am
I have seen this kind of dog more than once in China. I live in Macua right across the border from the city of ZhuHai. I saw exactly the same kind of dog in ZhuHai last fall and then in the city of Guangzhou at Christmas time. Both times the dogs were for sale from a street vendor and were not all the same colour, but they were all striped.
January 25th, 2009 at 11:08 am
@TJS and Maureen: The only thing I can think is that the stripes are spray painted on, but these dogs are still an amazing sight. Wonder why they are a big thing in China and no where else. At least, I haven’t heard of any striped dog sightings from other countries.
February 25th, 2009 at 3:23 am
I am currently working in Xiamen China and saw one of these puppys that was fortunate enough to be purchased for 50 RMB = $7 us dollars by a woman who adored the puppy. I know that particular puppy got a good home. I held the dog for about 15 mins if its dye i would think the dye would come off on my clothes. The stripes had the same texture as the rest of the fur. The stripes went all the way down to the skin. Unless it was dyed that day (she had the dog several wks) id think there would be roots or faded portions within the stripes. Furthermore the dog is the same breed shown in these photos. Could they be dying this same strain of dog? It would seem that somebody would dye the wrong breed and there would be variation in the dog’s body shape. I used to breed and show bull terriers in the USA and have seen many dogs and dye jobs on dogs (pink poodles). I really dont think this is a dye job if it is I need them to dye my hair this thoroughly. Im wondering what breeds you would combine to acheive this over sucssive generations. Im as baffled as the rest of this group.
February 25th, 2009 at 8:21 pm
@Tanya: So far, you’re the person who has gotten the closest to one of the dogs – you actually held one of these cuties! That the stripes went all the way down to the skin and the texture of the hair is the same seems to indicate that maybe they aren’t dyed. But I can’t think of any breed combination that would produce this result. These dogs seem to stupefy everyone! If you find anything out, could you please let us know?
February 26th, 2009 at 1:54 am
I have shown the pictures to the native Xiamen people at work and asked them if they have seen or heard of this breed. It was new to everyone I asked. I did ask them to keep me informed if by chance it is to show up in Chinese news as hoax or new breed. I have seen panda dyed Chows here and they just dont have this kind of “throughness” to the dye job. Ive put my feelers out and book marked this sight to keep track of the topic. I am going back tonight where i saw the dog in hopes of finding her again to get my own picture. I was out ordering food and didnt expect a “photo opp” to arise. Tonight I will take the camera. I know this isnt a dog breeders website but I will keep track of the thread and report any new information Im able to aquire.
February 26th, 2009 at 10:52 am
Tanya,
Thanks for keeping up with this. My wife has told her co-workers and some breeders about these and we are all interested in your findings.
You mentioned ordering food. Have a jian bing for us, definitely our favourite street food from our time there. My wife may have a chance to go to Beijing in May. I’ll ask her to keep the camera handy.
Ian
(Ottawa, Canada)
April 1st, 2009 at 6:46 pm
Hi my parent’s are in china now and they also seen these puppie’s for sale in the market. They asked me to research what breed they are cause they want to import them to the US.
April 11th, 2009 at 11:41 pm
@Brandon: Any luck in finding the answer to your parents’ striped puppy mystery?
August 6th, 2009 at 11:02 pm
Hello Everyone! A few years ago, I was in New Orleans for my brothers graduation from Tulane University (it must have been about 2006), when I saw a woman with a dog JUST LIKE THIS at our hotel. I was amazed, obviously, and went right up to the woman and started asking questions and attempted to pet the dog. The woman told me it was a “chinese peasant dog” and then grabbed the dog and walked away in a very dismissive manner. It was definitely a puppy and it is stunning how much it looks EXACTLY like these puppies. I remember trying to search for “chinese peasant dog” on google to no avail and just now I remembered the incident (don’t ask why my brain remembers these things) and googled “looking for striped dog china” and I happened upon this website. Pretty weird indeed! I would love to get to the bottom of this mystery, because if this dog was bred in China and then moved to the United States, several days must have elapsed in the least, and there is a chance that the stripes could be real and not dyed.
August 6th, 2009 at 11:15 pm
Also, in my deep internet image searching, I stumbled upon this webpage, which contains the only other photo I’ve managed to find of one of these mystery dogs. You should definitely check this out:
http://blog.lucky-dog-biscuits.com/main/2008/03/off-leash-in-ch.html
August 6th, 2009 at 11:24 pm
I just found these too:
http://www.whatsonxiamen.com/photo_images/Striped%20pups_3121.JPG
August 12th, 2009 at 9:20 pm
@Marcia: Great story. Thanks for the links to Chinese peasant dogs, tiger dogs, striped dogs, dyed dogs…whatever they are. Looks like the mystery continues as to exactly what breed they are and how they got that way.
December 1st, 2009 at 5:46 am
Hey a couple i know has one of these in america, bought in china.
I live in China and i haven’t seen any around, but they had pictures of when he was a puppy and looked like this. Eventually the stripes disappeared but they said that on some of them they stay through adulthood.
I forget the breed name though, sorry
December 3rd, 2009 at 5:59 pm
@Jason: Thanks for the tip. If you find out the name of the breed of these striped dogs, please let us know. Or, if you have some photos, send us a link.
January 5th, 2010 at 2:19 am
Well, I sure hope someone gets to the bottom of this. Too interesting.
Dye job? Possibly. I don’t see any reason why these dogs can’t be bred over time to look the way they do as well? They have bred the Toyger cat to look almost perfect striping wise like a real tiger (2010 is projected date of completion) through a breeding program over the yrs.
http://www.hicats.com/breeds/toyger.html
Then we are back to the genetically engineered thing. When they can do this: http://www.weirdasianews.com/2009/05/16/south-korean-oddity-cloning-creates-neon-dogs/
anything is possible I suppose.
February 1st, 2010 at 3:23 pm
Wow this seems to be the closest I’ve come to finding out what a rather old animal pelt I have could be, about 6 years ago I bought from a guy that lived in Scotland an old aniaml skin which he hais was Chinese dog I’ve always been interested in strange animals and have taxidermy in my house but had never seen anything like this before so had to buy it. A few months after having it I took it to the museum and saw the head of the natual history department and he had also never seen anything like this before, he took some measurements and photos of it but I’ve never heard anything back from him although he did comfirm it was not a dye job.
A few of the photos of the pelt have been posted on a cryptozoology website and can be seen here – http://www.cryptozoology.com/gallery/display_picture.php?id=2489
March 25th, 2010 at 1:25 am
I took the following photo with my mobile phone while walking along a major road in Huizhou, Guangdong. China this March 2010. A litter of these striped puppies was being sold by a peasant-type fellow alone by the side of the road. I had never seen anything like it. I did not pick one up, but the stripes seemed real. I was about one metre from the pup when I took the photo. The man didn’t mind and put the pup down for me to get a better shot. It is possible, I suppose, for a really good faker to do it. But why would you, if the local people know they are fake? There would be no premium on the price for your efforts.
http://i956.photobucket.com/albums/ae48/bernard3842/stripeddoginHuizhouGuangdongChinaMa.jpg
March 25th, 2010 at 9:06 pm
Well folks…
I think I have found a reference name for this guy and a little video clip.
Wuxi China Bengal Dog
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgU_AQkxlA0
Wuxi being the region
June 19th, 2010 at 9:51 am
considered good luck especially in Year of the Tiger, our dog is a brindle and has been admired by Chinese here in Los Angeles. BTW just discovered your site and am exploring and really enjoying. You all sure are comprehensive! Loved the food stories. This site is amazing.
June 24th, 2010 at 12:19 pm
@Sue: Fascinating!
@Bernard: Great shot. Looks like similar — if not the same — dogs. Raises an interesting question, particularly in the context of China: “What is fake?”
@Yvette: Thanks for the added bit of information…and clarification.
@Cardie: The brindle is certainly close to the dogs with tiger stripes, but their “stripes” are a bit more marbled.
Thanks for the compliment and glad you are enjoying the site!
July 1st, 2010 at 1:39 pm
If the coat color was something genetic its unlikely due to genetic manipulation. Theres a great deal of variety in phenotypes in dogs and new traits in something like coat color can pop up all the time. Especially if theirs genetic drift or artificial selection are involved once a new trait is discovered. Many dog breeds and lately cat breeds have arisen this way. Lots of dogs already have tiger like coat patterns.
But it could also be a dye job since they are highly uniform and thick.
http://www.greatdogsite.com/watermark/Greyhound-2%20year-Tiger%20Striped-1183928386.jpg
September 1st, 2010 at 6:22 am
I live in Vietnam and saw these tiger-striped puppies for the first time in a Saturday market. Even the nationals were intrigued by them. And b/c this is the Year of the Tiger, they are even more inclined to give them a 2nd look. The vendor said they are from Lang son Province. I have not researched yet. I held one and the coat was very soft. I didn’t check to see if the stripes were skin deep. Very interesting. Does anyone know about the nature of these “Bengal dogs”? Are they good around children?
September 1st, 2010 at 7:41 am
@helendragon: We’d seen tiger-like patterns in dogs before, but nothing quite this pronounced. Genetics or dye jobs in tiger-striped dogs? That seems to be the unanswerable question.
@Robin: What a terrific story. Tiger-striped dogs on the rise in popularity because it’s the Year of the Tiger. Come to think of it, dogs (or at least eating dog at the proper time of the month/cycle) in Vietnam are supposed to bring good luck in business. So a tiger-striped dog in Vietnam during the Year of the Tiger sounds like hitting the mother lode of good luck.
Everyone who has commented on this thread would’ve loved to hear your report on whether or not the tiger stripes were skin deep.
As for whether or not tiger-striped dogs are good for children, I have no idea, but I’m guessing and hoping someone will chime in soon.
September 4th, 2010 at 3:01 am
Whether natural or dyed… it appears it must fade as the dog ages? Hmm – of interest is that nobody has mentioned anything about ever seeing an adult dog with these markings.
Robin: Have you seen an adult? What size do you think this puppy would be as an adult (sm, med or lg breed)? Is there any chance to inquire about it further at the market about the lineage of these dogs? You seem to be the closet to the source at the moment.
Anyone have any idea how many other countries this critter is turning up in? Seems we have both China & Vietnam now. I would just venture a guess it is in a number of different areas in SE Asia. I never saw one during the time I lived in Korea though.
I hope everyone is doing well. Maybe one day we will get to the bottom of this mystery.
October 21st, 2010 at 10:38 am
After having held a BEngal dog two weeks ago outside Hengli, I’m fairly convinced the stripes were dyed, not some genetic modification. Who knows with what.
The man had half a dozen puppies and all the stripes were placed in pretty much the same location. Most telling though is he had one that had white paws, or “socks”, that he was clearly born with. I’m sorry I did not get a picture of that one.
October 26th, 2010 at 5:10 pm
@Yvette: We are headed back to Southeast Asia, so I’ll keep my eyes out for more tiger striped dogs. We’ll probably be in Thailand, though.
@Gretchen: When you say the dog’s stripes were placed in pretty much the same location, do you mean that they are placed in the same pattern or that they originate from the same position on the body?
I’d love to see the one with socks. A dog with tiger stripes and socks. That’s difficult to beat.
October 26th, 2010 at 8:20 pm
I am currently Living in Donguang, it is just outside of Shenzen. Afew days ago was my daughters 4th birthday and my husband bought her one of these puppies. He is very young, not old enough to be away from the mother I think, but we are taking very good care of him.
When my husband first brought him home he was dehydrated and very hungry and slept a lot. He also had a mild case of fleas, so I gave him a flea bath. If these stripes are indeed dye, they are a very powerful dyes because they did not come off when I bathed him. Which also arises my next question…if he was dyed, how could they dye so close to his eyes and nose and not leave any permenant damage?? As I said he is very young maybe 6 wks, so I would think harsh dyes would blind or aggrivate his skin.
He is doing much better now, he is alert and looking healthy, his eyes are bright and shinny and he is very affectionate, but just to be sure we are taking him to the vet today.
If anyone has more information about how my little pup got his beautiful markings I would love to hear from you.
Thanks,
Tiffany
October 27th, 2010 at 1:19 am
My wife is a veterinary tech with over 30 years experience. When we saw these in Nanjing she handled one and is convinced they were not dyed. We have not seen anything about these in mainstream dog breeding info and find it strange that they seem to be found exclusively for sale on the street. 2 years later and we still enjoy the comments.
October 27th, 2010 at 10:12 am
@Tiffany: OK, more data. This is good. I’d love to see a photo if you have one online.
And your question is right on. This is why I asked @Gretchen the question I did. The pattern of the stripes should indicate whether it’s really possible that the dogs were dyed.
In any event, congratulations on your new puppy. We’ll look forward to hearing about his progress…and seeing photos of him as he grows up!
In the meantime, hopefully someone will write in with a definitive answer as to where these dogs come from and how they got their tiger stripe markings.
@Ian: More good data and from an expert.
We, too, enjoy following this thread and reading the comments. Although I look forward to an answer one day, the mystery has certainly made for interesting and humorous discussion.
October 28th, 2010 at 2:08 am
Tiffany,
We all look forward to info on your newest family member. It will be interesting to see if he retains the markings as he grows. Since you are over there and taking him to a vet,, I’d be curious what the vet has to say about the breed.
Sad that he was allowed to be in such sad shape when you got him. So glad you are caring for him. Poor little thing.
Would be interesting to note the export laws on dogs to the US. Any thoughts there. I’d love to get one of the little guys myself. Love the body style.
Thanks for your inputs.
YO (Yvette)
October 30th, 2010 at 11:22 am
Found more of these remarkable puppies INCLUDING the ones with the white socks.
They are seemingly not painted or dyed. With closer inspection this litter appears to be a single sole litter from one ‘mother’ hence the colour changes and the one or two recessive gene puppies are, as it appears, included in the litter.
I have a friend in China right now, and hopefully I can have a little more insight for you later. I am desperate to find these pups and am more than willing to import to where I am with them just to raise their health as it is seeming more and more that it looks like a vendor puppy mill. Which is so very heart breaking.
I’ll follow up with more as I dig more into it. It shouldn’t take long. I’m rather good at ‘detecting’ things I’m interested in.
Good luck to all, hopefully we can at least establish breed at some near point in the future
October 30th, 2010 at 11:23 am
http://www.whatsonxiamen.com/photo_images/Striped%20pups_3121.JPG
Sorry forgot to post the photo link.
October 30th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
Lorna – hmm, interesting, the one looks like it is very short furred (or is there a problem w/ that one?) Wonder if we were able to get one back to the States if they could do a DNA test to try to determiine if what breeds may be existent in them (of what is on record so far anyway).
I am rather surprised if a puppy mill system, that they do not look “malnourished” & thin. Many countries do not care well for animals health wise anyway.
We look forward to data from your research investigations.
Thanks for your efforts.
December 30th, 2010 at 11:27 pm
hi
im live in china and saw this dogs few time
here on the streets
i also saw a mature dog skin for
sale in one of the farmer bout at the market
i was really interesting
and it dose not look like a dying job
its look very realistic down to the small detail
ill try to track them and upload some more pictures
or get information
also never seen this breed big size alive.
January 7th, 2011 at 12:12 am
@DORE: Where in China are you?
I’d love to see more pictures if you can get them and upload them. Please keep us informed as to what you find.
January 7th, 2011 at 4:59 am
I am in yiwu china
ill keep you updated
January 28th, 2011 at 5:37 am
WoW it almost looks like it’s spraied on the pups… it just doesn’t quite look right.
February 3rd, 2011 at 3:49 am
Dore,
Any further activity on investigations/pictures on these wonderful dogs? Have you noticed if there are (live) adults that retain the striping coloration as they mature?
I almost hate to ask, but what is the main purpose they utilize these dogs for? I would love it if you could find out how to export a couple from China to the US.
February 3rd, 2011 at 2:43 pm
Hi
Wow I saw the video on utube of one of these puppies. He’s called Wuxi and I fell in love! I have a chow chow and I have feeling they have to be some sort of “family” breed ad they have curly tails! Please keep us updated! I’d love to see if you actually get one imported to the states or to uk as I’d live one as a pet! What a beautiful creature! Xx
March 9th, 2011 at 11:38 am
bhupinder singh saini
this is a beautygful dog i have a rotweiler,a e,german sheperd,doberman i think that if they have this strips they will look nice
March 10th, 2011 at 2:56 am
Soon as I get it figured out, I will holler Laura. Need to track down a Chinese friend I lost touch with, maybe she can find out. hmmm.
March 14th, 2011 at 6:29 am
@bhupinder: Please don’t dye your dogs or give them stripes. Hopefully someone on this forum will find out where you can get a real striped dog so you can just add it to your collection.
March 28th, 2011 at 9:05 am
Hi every one
I have seen the tiger stripe dogs today in Xujuihu shanghai , I wanted to buy one, I had a long hold of them, and a good look at the fur.
It would be really difficult to spray the dog and get it so perfect against the skin, I was required to sew fur in my job training a long time ago and learnt a lot about pelts etc, and this dogs coat is real.
Tiffany Glascott I read that you had brought one for your daughter, can we see pics please I would love to see how they grow and how big, the seller called it a Japaness dog ???
March 29th, 2011 at 3:26 am
These dogs are genetically engineered and have been recognized as a breed for around two years now. The coat patterns are real, not painted. Like I said they have been been an established breed for about two years.
April 3rd, 2011 at 2:57 am
@Karen: Excellent account. Thank you for adding to this thread. So Shanghai striped dogs. Like you, I’m hoping to see some more photos from people who own them! Would be interested to see what one of these striped puppies looks like fully-grown.
@Kylie: Thanks for your comment. Any idea what the name of the breed is?
April 3rd, 2011 at 5:50 am
@Yvette: Thanks for the all the information and links. I’m sorry about our commenting system. Looks like a bunch of posts (probably because the length of the website address of the striped puppy photos) got caught in the spam filter. Hopefully, your comments are now all posted.
April 3rd, 2011 at 6:29 am
Love to see the mystery slowly unraveling after all this time. I am concerned about the genetic manipulation aspect of this. It seems strange that this breed has not made the jump into Western dog breeding circles. I would have thought that some celebrity-of-the-month would have picked one up and had the breeding world go crazy. Do we have any pics of adult dogs yet?
April 3rd, 2011 at 7:13 am
@Ian: Excellent point. Why haven’t we seen anyone toting around a striped puppy or two? (Next thing you know, Brad and Angelina will adding one to their ever-expanding family.)
April 13th, 2011 at 12:39 am
Its under google as “wuxi china bengal dog”.
Not sure if thats the official breed’s name but that’s what it seems to go by.
April 13th, 2011 at 1:32 am
@ Kylie: If you look back at post 23, you will find that has already been given, along w/ a youtube video.
@Daniel: Thank you. Wonder what happened to those link msgs, I thought they had made it through last I looked. Thanks for the site. I think we are all loving it.
April 17th, 2011 at 11:11 pm
@Yvette: You are very welcome. Am glad that one of the discoveries from our journey around the world has offered continued mystery and conversation!
May 12th, 2011 at 9:08 pm
Still waiting for someone to post where in the U.S. I could possibly get one of these. Any info would be much appreciated. Would love to have one of these pups
May 12th, 2011 at 11:34 pm
@Gabe: U & me both. 1st thing to determine is IF they are allowable to export to the US from China. I also await someone posting pics of some adults. Would be neat to see how they change in color/structure/etc…
@Tiffany: Any chance of some updated photos of your pup??? You’d have to ask Daniel how to put them on. I suppose placing them on facebook or snapfish or some such & then giving a link would work.
@Daniel… thoughts???
May 15th, 2011 at 9:04 pm
@Gabe: I have no idea where to find striped dogs in the U.S. Maybe it’s possible to contact one of the dog breeding associations and work your way from there. I have a feeling these striped pups are still a bit of an underground thing, however. But I imagine they’ll be arrived on the shores of the U.S. on ships from Shanghai one of these days.
@Yvette, Tiffany: If you email me a couple of photos, I’ll be glad to add them to this post. Our general email address is listed on our Contact Us page.
June 4th, 2011 at 1:03 am
I recently bought one of these dogs in Beijing China. I was worried about its health because I figured the lady had dyed the dogs skin. I bought the dog for 60 yuan to save it, 10 dollars in U.S. dollars.
I got it home and it was very dehydrated. I’ve been taking care of it ever since. I took it to the vet today and they confirmed that its hair had been dyed. It is a black dog, that gets to be about medium sized. They dye the orange part, that’s why the orange is never around the eyes, or nose, and the stripes are so uniform. The vet stated that the dye would wear off in about 2 months, and that the dog would be healthy unless we continued to dye the dog. We were never going to dye it, but we found it like that so we told him that would not be happening.
Luckily, the dog did not have any diseases and was healthy whenever I heard from the vet. I’m currently finding it a home in Beijing because it is to costly to take back to America.
I would suggest people stop buying these dogs, now that we know what they are. They are adorable and sweet little puppies, but if we continue to buy them then the farmers will continue to mistreat animals so that they can sell them. It’s similar to how the beggars work over here. If they can cripple themselves for more coins they would do it.
Thus, in conclusion, this is not a new breed of dog. It is officially dyed. There are other dogs that are similar called brindle besajanis that are the closest dogs I’ve ever seen to actually being tiger stripped. But this dye job is not the real coat of this dog. Hope this helps solve the mystery.
June 4th, 2011 at 3:14 pm
Wow. Thank you Kurt.
Pretty amazing run to get to the truth. Interesting to find they are a Basenji background. As I was researching they appeared as though they might be of the shiba variety.
Sad that people are exploiting the dog at the expense of their health. Too bad China does not have the oversight to put an end to such things.
Out of curiosity… how much IS it to get certification and ship a dog back. Please let us know how your little black dog does and about his new home.
thanks
YO
June 4th, 2011 at 3:18 pm
Well Daniel… looks like it is on to a new mystery.
How about a suggestion of the “ropen” of Papua New Guinea (potential Pterosaur/flying dragon)?
Perhaps we might get people from there/going to there to weigh in on their knowledge.
Just an idea.
Take care and thank you for this thread.
June 7th, 2011 at 3:28 am
It was going to cost 20,000 yuan to get to the states, 3000 dollars using globypets. However, this was because my puppy would have had to stay an extra 30 days because it had to wait until 3 months old to get its rabies vaccination before it could travel.
If someone was going to be in China for several months they could get one of the puppies home by actually carrying it on to the plane, as a carry on. That wouldn’t cost hardly any money at all.The only stipulation is the dog must have it must be 30 days after the dog had its rabies shot.
Hope this helps! I appreciated this thread because it helped me in finding out the conclusion of my puppy. Thanks!
June 7th, 2011 at 3:36 am
Thank you Kurtis. Quite insightful info out of the world of China.
Safe travels.
June 7th, 2011 at 3:47 am
Yes, definite characteristics of the Basenji. The only thing I notice is maybe it is a variant… as most basenji pups are very smooth (short) furred and these guys are fluffylike. Course their ears aren’t yet upright, but that would occur as they mature. Shape of face/body is right.
June 15th, 2011 at 9:23 am
@Kurtis: Thank you for a long, thoughtful comment relating your experience. What a terrible story. Cruel, really. Sounds like your pup is on the right path now, though. Safe travels.
@Yvette: You are welcome. I suspect we’ll see some other information and experiences yet to come on this thread. At the very least, we’ll keep the conversation open so that others may know what’s going on with these dogs, whether they stay in China or somehow end up in Europe, North America, etc.
Papua New Guinea. Now that’s an interesting idea/thread. Our hope is to get there in the next year or two on our travels. Who knows what we’ll find.
June 30th, 2011 at 12:07 am
I’m sorry to bring down the vibes a bit here, but striped dogs fetch the highest prices at restaurants. My close friend, who is fluent in Mandarin and lived in Peking for two years, explained to me that many Chinese believe that dogs give more “potency” (not necessarily sexual) depending on their color, ranging from white — the lowest– to blue: the maximum, and rarest, are striped dogs, so much so that unscrupulous purveyors will dye dogs striped.
I never quite believed her until I saw this thread and others like it
June 30th, 2011 at 3:19 am
Surely, even these people must understand it is a sham then. Horrible enough to eat dog, but to actually think a coloring makes a difference, especially if created, is ridiculous.
June 30th, 2011 at 6:56 am
@Ese: I’m enlightened, but not at all surprised, to hear that striped dogs fetch higher prices than their non-striped, ordinary cousins. What an economy. I never considered this dimension of the striped-dog story.
The talk of eating dog in China (and less generally in East Asia) is a hot topic in the news recently. Coincidentally, we recently posted a 360-degree panorama from a rural market in southern China and wouldn’t you know it, there was a dog vendor in the scene.
@Yvette: I agree totally. Anyone who buys one of these dogs for enhanced potency is really being duped. But the trade in fakes and fibs (in the world in general, and China especially) is alive and well.
July 2nd, 2011 at 7:06 am
Be confused no more! A few years ago my grandparents purchased one of these dogs (the exact same one from the phote) from an underground bridge in Beijing, China. Like most of the people who’ve seen the dog, they are both amazed by the coloration of the fur, and decided to purshase it. For the first several weeks the color stayed the same, so they were convinced that the color is real. However, after about half a year, the color started to fade with the washes, and the dog finally revealed it’s natural color: black. The dog was completely black exept for his four white feet, proving that once again we’ve all been fooled.
July 2nd, 2011 at 4:49 pm
Thank you Beatrice, for a “real life” insight/experience about these dogs.
July 4th, 2011 at 7:47 am
@Beatrice: What a story. Not sure if they have any photos of the dog when it was a puppy (or when the stripes began to wash off), but those would be great to see. At any rate, thank you for sharing!
July 8th, 2011 at 5:51 pm
what are the breeds of this .. and thank god they was rescued from labs.. those places should all be shut down!
July 9th, 2011 at 7:53 pm
@janice: Basenji (or a basenji mix?) seems to be the prevailing guess, but I’m really not certain.
July 29th, 2011 at 8:37 am
These puppies are dyed that way to look more appealing to potential owners. It’s the new fad for dogs in some parts of China, people are dying them to look like tigers, pandas, etc. There are some serious health concerns for quite a lot of these pets, as it’s not certain if the dye is healthy for them. But, no, these pups aren’t genetically enhanced or bred that way… it’s a money making strategy.
August 1st, 2011 at 6:02 am
@Kiongozi: Dogs that look like pandas?! No way. And we all thought dogs that look like tigers were bad enough. Where does it end?
November 10th, 2011 at 12:19 am
This is a pretty cool thread… Only thing is, I have gotten pretty confused. I saw an ADULT dog once that was striped. Thick, black stripes on its back, about an inch or two wide each and tapering, looking like triangles. The fur color was the same as the brown part of brindle-coated dogs. This was in the middle of Indiana… I don’t know what to think of it. It was a mid-sized dog, I think the size of a boxer. I cannot remember if it was a boxer, but while they can come in brindle they don’t come in such a marked contrast.
November 30th, 2011 at 1:30 pm
@Colleen: Well said, this has been a wild (and sometimes confusing…because of limited information) thread about striped dogs. I’d love to see a photo of the one you saw in Indiana. For sure, there are the subtle striped brindle-coated dogs around (if you look up brindle on wikipedia, you get to see a brindled great dane) but the marked striped like the ones shown here…they apparently cannot be for real.
January 6th, 2012 at 4:43 am
One of my students at my school in Shanghai brought one of these puppies into school today. Its nose looked really banged up. She said it was a friend’s dog.
January 7th, 2012 at 2:33 pm
Ha. I can’t believe I found this string. Our son just finished his semester abroad at Shanghai University. He saw one near the Bund for sale by a vendor, felt bad for the puppy…and of course bought it. I and wife were heading over to tour, so we made plans to bring it back…after modest paperwork etc., we are pleased to said striped puppy is now a permanent resident of Mobile, Alabama.
Short is…he is now about 4 mo old, and stripes still there. Though it does appear that his hair had been bleached with peroxide and perhaps re-blackened the stripes. Still, we are not sure at all what breed mix this is. Ear flop at tips and tail curls a bit so we think some shar pei, but does not have the folded skin of that breed.
I don’t see how to post a pic to this string, but anyone really interested in seeing it can reply and we can figure how to email a pic.
January 8th, 2012 at 5:30 am
Wooohooo. Way to go Graham family. I would love to see a pic of the little guy.
I have thought perhaps they were some version within the (Japanese) Shiba family. Seems to be in that group from what I can ascertain. (3 variety, with the Akita being the large, then there is a med and a small one)
@ Daniel – is there a way they can send you pics to post for everyone???
January 8th, 2012 at 3:31 pm
I sent some pics to the info@uncorneredmarket.com address. Maybe he can find a a way to share them. Our vet is also stumped, and all thought it was just a mix. Perhaps including some Shiba Inu. However, looking at the images and stories in this blog, all dogs being sold by this vendor appear to have remarkably similar features, so now I am less sure of his muttness. Would really like to hear more about this.
January 9th, 2012 at 12:19 am
It makes sence that any given asian mix would be some type of spitz (aka sheba, akita,chow,ect) and not entirely impossible that a new color variation would appear in common mutts however I am a little skepticle that there would appear to be so much uniformity of type appearing so suddenly in the street markets and during the year of the tiger. I have been grooming dogs since 1986 and I have done dye art since before it was popular, and even food coloring lasts a really long time and stains the skin underneath. Though I would never attempt it myself for the sake of the animal, it wouldnt be that difficult to creat very realistic coloration with dye on a very young puppy. As a dog enthusiast I would love to find out this is a true anomily, but as they say seeing is believing.
January 10th, 2012 at 10:12 pm
@Amy: Kids are bringing striped dogs to school? Show and tell, maybe?
@Monty: Looks like Shanghai is tiger striped dog central. But now he’s in the United States!
Thanks for sending the photos. We’ve posted them. You can find them above or at:
1) 6-8 week: http://www.uncorneredmarket.com/photos/picture/6676334263/
2) 4 months, profile: http://www.uncorneredmarket.com/photos/picture/6676333637/
3) 4 months, face: http://www.uncorneredmarket.com/photos/picture/6676333361/
4) 4 months, undercoat: http://www.uncorneredmarket.com/photos/picture/6676334055/
@Yvette: Please find the links to photos above and thumbnails in the post.
@Kris: Tiger-striped dogs and the Year of the Tiger — another vote to an interesting thread.
January 12th, 2012 at 1:53 am
Whoa – thanks you 2… Monty via Audrey.
What an awesome looking little guy. I would have thought the markings would have faded out by now if a “dye” job. Interesting that the skin coloration is pretty much pinky-white. I would have thought perhaps some pigmentation as w/ say a leopard dog or something. But perhaps it is more like a black lab that way. What a nice specimen of a dog.
@ Monty: How many pounds is he @ the 4 mo mark? I am curious how difficult it was to get him set up to take out of China and into the US? They did not give you any problems about taking it out of the country? (unlike an Anatolian out of Turkey – won’t happen.)
@Kris: as you can see, on this site, we have been tracking this dog for a while, so I don’t think it is “new” to the area/market or just for the year of the tiger. I have also talked w/ people who were there a number of yrs back and saw them.
January 12th, 2012 at 1:58 am
Ya know… it really reminds me of a Thai Ridgeback, only w/ fur. I wonder if there is a furry version.
January 12th, 2012 at 7:55 pm
@Y He is 12.5 lbs in those pix. I think he will end up black, and the orange really looks like they used peroxide on him. So the dye would wear off, but rather his coat would need to grow in. It wasn’t too difficult to get him back (other than a restless puppy in a small carry on kennel for the 13 hr flight). My son found a good vet in Shanghai, we got his rabies 4 wk before the flight. Went back 3 days before flight and got final check up and docs that he was healthy. He has a little Chinese doggie passport. US customs asked to see the papers, and he is home quarantined for 30 days. I think the extra cost of him coming from china added $300. I wouldn’t recommend going to china to find a dog, and I agree whole-heatedly with the comment above about not supporting these vendors by buying them. We didn’t find out until post-purchase! Any way, he’s an awesome and very bright pup, and we are glad he’s in our family. BTW his name is Shao Lao Hu Gou…Little Tiger Dog. We call him Hugo.
January 13th, 2012 at 1:31 am
aaaaaaah – so it appears, he won’t be all that big, hunh? Were you able to get any info from the “vendors” about the use of this dog? Pet or hunting or ratter or ??? Curious as to what function they utilize them for. Would be interesting to know to find out what his “motivation/aptitude” is.
Are you starting to see black roots in his fur then?
Cute name. He has a wonderful face/body structure. Looks to have bright, intelligent eyes. Glad you guys “rescued” him and he has a great home.
January 23rd, 2012 at 9:48 pm
OMG! these dogs are so cute! I was skimming videos on Youtube and came across it… so i googled it and came here. Well anyways they remind me of jack russel mixes, only because i have a jack russel mix. They have around the same face shape.
Anyone know about how they behave? Or if there are any adult pictures of them? I know you’ve been trying to get them from people as it is already…
~Going to add to Favorite~
January 25th, 2012 at 3:45 pm
Even though the are in China and possibly could be an genetic experimentation. All I got to say is I want one. Wish there was more information so i can purchase one for myself because I love tigers and dogs but put them together and its awesome to get this type of dog is amazing. Hopefully soon there will be more information.
January 25th, 2012 at 3:58 pm
Hi. Y and Melissa: he is definitely growing out his stripes. Soon will be either dark choc brown or, more likely, black with white chest and toes. He still has stripes on top of his head and looks a bit funny. As far as temperament, he is very active, alert and smart. I agree that he is a bit like a jack russell.
George: my wife bought one of those DNA kits, so we shall see soon what odd mix of critters he is. Actually, we really do want to know his breed before having him lose his manhood. Just in case he really is something special. Sounds like if we found a female and some hydrogen peroxide, we could start a business (I’m kidding!). Will let you know what he is in a few weeks.
January 25th, 2012 at 7:31 pm
ooooooooh, can hardly wait. This is waaaay awesome.
He has such a good look to him (and probably perso, er, dogonality to him), the stripes were cute of course, but the essence of who this dog is, that is what we are after, right?