Breed library

Chinese Crested

Chinese Crested photograph.
IndyStands.jpg - Tommy Gildseth. CC BY 3.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IndyStands.jpg. License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0. License: CC BY 3.0.

Breed overview

The Chinese Crested Dog is a hairless breed of dog. Like most hairless dog breeds, the Chinese Crested Dog comes in two varieties, without hair and with hair, which can be born in the same litter: the hairless and the powderpuff.

  • Breed classification: toy dogBreed reference breed group.
  • Breed type: dog breedBreed reference breed kind.
  • Country of origin: People's Republic of ChinaBreed reference country of origin.

Breed facts

  • Although hairless dogs have been found in many places in the world, it is unlikely that the origins of the modern Chinese Crested Dog are in China.
  • Spanish explorers found Chinese Crested dogs in Mexico and other parts of Central and South America as early as the 1500s.
  • British, French, and Portuguese explorers likewise found the breed in various parts of Africa and Asia during the 1700s and 1800s.
  • In the 1950s, Debora Wood created the "Crest Haven" kennel and began to purposefully breed and record the lineages of her Chinese Crested Dogs.
  • The famous burlesque dancer Gypsy Rose Lee also bred Chinese Crested Dogs, and upon her death her dogs were incorporated into Crest Haven.

Size and appearance

The Chinese Crested is considered an extra small breed, weighing on average 10 - 13 lb. The height is 11 to 13 inches (27-33 cm). The breed is fine-boned, with almond-shaped eyes and large, erect ears. There is no color standard for the breed. At first look, the hairless and powderpuff varieties of Chinese Crested Dogs appear to be two different breeds, but hairlessness is an incomplete dominant trait within a single breed. The Hairless has soft, humanlike skin, as well as tufts of hair on its paws ("socks") and tail ("plume") and long, flowing hair on its head ("crest"). In addition to being an incomplete dominant gene, the "hairless" gene has a prenatal lethal effect when homozygous. Zygotes affected with double hairless genes never develop into puppies, and are reabsorbed in the womb. All hairless Chinese Crested Dogs are therefore heterozygous.

  • Height reference: Up to 30 cmBreed reference height. female, maximum.
  • Height reference: 23 cm or moreBreed reference height. female, minimum.
  • Height reference: Up to 33 cmBreed reference height. male, maximum.
  • Height reference: 28 cm or moreBreed reference height. male, minimum.
  • Coat layers: single
  • Coat layers: double
  • Coat length: hairless
  • Coat length: long
  • Coat texture: straight
  • Height category: short

Personality and behavior

Care planning: record what your dog enjoys, how they greet visitors, and how they respond to new places. Add notes after walks and training so you can see their habits over time. Where this profile includes behavior research, use the same named measures when comparing your shortlist.

  • Attachment and attention seeking (C-BARQ mean): 2.16 / 4Owner-reported attachment and attention seeking factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Chasing (C-BARQ mean): 1.64 / 4Owner-reported chasing factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Dog-directed aggression (C-BARQ mean): 1.01 / 4Owner-reported dog-directed aggression factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Dog-directed fear (C-BARQ mean): 1.14 / 4Owner-reported dog-directed fear factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Energy (C-BARQ mean): 1.77 / 4Owner-reported energy factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Excitability (C-BARQ mean): 1.95 / 4Owner-reported excitability factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Familiar-dog aggression (C-BARQ mean): 0.94 / 4Owner-reported familiar-dog aggression factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Non-social fear (C-BARQ mean): 1.14 / 4Owner-reported non-social fear factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Owner-directed aggression (C-BARQ mean): 0.17 / 4Owner-reported owner-directed aggression factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Separation-related problems (C-BARQ mean): 0.67 / 4Owner-reported separation-related problems factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Stranger-directed aggression (C-BARQ mean): 0.63 / 4Owner-reported stranger-directed aggression factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Stranger-directed fear (C-BARQ mean): 1.64 / 4Owner-reported stranger-directed fear factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Touch sensitivity (C-BARQ mean): 1.01 / 4Owner-reported touch sensitivity factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.
  • Trainability (C-BARQ mean): 2.66 / 4Owner-reported trainability factor mean for US reference population Chinese Crested.

Exercise and activities

Care planning: build a weekly routine with walks, play and time to explore. Enter the minutes and sessions that work for your dog, then compare the weekly total with your available time. Keep notes about the activities your dog enjoys and adjust the routine together.

Training and enrichment

Care planning: choose one everyday skill to practice and keep a record of each session. Note the cue, the reward your dog enjoys and what went well. Rotate familiar games and new activities, and use your notes to choose the next small step.

Coat and grooming

Both varieties require certain amounts of grooming. The powderpuff is entirely covered with a double, very soft, straight coat. Although a powderpuff's coat does not continuously grow, it can grow to be quite long at full length; a weekly bath and frequent brushing typically helps to prevent matting. For an optimal coat, it is recommended not to brush the dog's coat when dry or dirty, as a light spray of water or grooming spray to their coat is recommended before brushing. Many choose to shave their powderpuff in a "pony cut" leaving long hair on the bottom of legs, tail, head and crest for an easy care coat. The breed has "little to no shedding". Maintenance of the hairless variety's skin is similar to maintaining human skin and as such it can be susceptible to acne, dryness, and sunburn. Burning can occur in regions that are subject to strong UV radiation, especially in lighter-skinned dogs. Some Chinese Crested Dogs have skin allergies to lanolin.

  • Coat layers: single
  • Coat layers: double
  • Coat length: hairless
  • Coat length: long
  • Coat texture: straight

Health and lifespan

A 2024 UK study found a life expectancy of 13.4 years for the breed compared to an average of 12.7 for purebreeds and 12 for crossbreeds.

Living with this breed

Care planning: compare this profile's adult dimensions, coat care and available activity information with your household's routine. Make a shortlist, plan who will handle daily care and save the questions you want to ask a breed club, rescue or breeder.

Compare breeds

Compare supported adult height and weight ranges, matching research measures and sourced coat and care categories.

Add Chinese Crested to a comparison

Breed history

Although hairless dogs have been found in many places in the world, it is unlikely that the origins of the modern Chinese Crested Dog are in China. The same genetic mutation shared with the Xoloitzcuintli leads to the theory that they have a shared origin. It is thought the origins of the modern Chinese Crested dog are either Africa or, more likely, Mexico. Spanish explorers found Chinese Crested dogs in Mexico and other parts of Central and South America as early as the 1500s. British, French, and Portuguese explorers likewise found the breed in various parts of Africa and Asia during the 1700s and 1800s.

Clubs and further reading

Sources

  1. Wikidata structured breed dataWikimedia contributors Retrieved 2026-10-14.License: CC0 1.0. Wikidata contributors (CC0).
  2. National C-BARQ breed and all-breed means from USA.PLOS ONE / Figshare Retrieved 2026-10-14.License: CC BY 4.0. Bohland, Kyle R.; Lilly, Meghan Leanne; Herron, Meghan E.; Arruda, Andréia G.; O’Quin, Jeanette M. (2023). National C-BARQ breed and all-breed means from USA.. PLOS ONE. Dataset. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0289356.s003 CC BY 4.0. Selected rows and field names adapted; values unchanged.
  3. File:IndyStands.jpgWikimedia Commons Retrieved 2026-10-14.License: CC BY 3.0. IndyStands.jpg - Tommy Gildseth. CC BY 3.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:IndyStands.jpg. License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0.
  4. Chinese Crested Dog - WikipediaWikipedia contributors Retrieved 2026-10-14.License: CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted excerpts from Wikipedia contributors, Chinese Crested Dog, revision 1369029549. CC BY-SA 4.0. Formatting, citations and selection changed. Source history: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chinese_Crested_Dog&action=history
  5. Palipaws everyday care planningPalipaws Retrieved 2026-10-14.License: Palipaws original factual summaries. Palipaws. Original care-planning text, separate from breed measurements and licensed article summaries.