Xoloitzcuintli puppies

About the Xoloitzcuintli

The Xoloitzcuintli is one of the oldest dog breeds in the Americas, kept by the Aztec and earlier peoples of Mexico and named for Xolotl, the god believed to guide the dead. They come in three sizes and in two varieties, a hairless dog with tough smooth skin and a coated one with a short flat coat. Temperament is calm and watchful: attentive and quiet in the house, closely attached to their own family, and naturally reserved with people they do not know.

Adults are famously restful indoors, but young dogs need proper walks and structured play or they invent their own entertainment. Care is skin care more than coat care. Hairless dogs burn and need sunscreen with prolonged sun exposure, they feel the cold and want a jumper in winter, and adolescents can get acne that needs managing. Rated three out of five with children and with other pets, they want supervision and early socialisation. Go easy on the lotion, though: slathering it on blocks the pores and causes the very problems it was meant to prevent.

What to expect at eight weeks

At eight weeks a Xoloitzcuintli puppy is sleeping around 18 to 20 hours a day, is not house trained, and cannot hold on for more than an hour or two at a stretch. A medium breed puppy at eight weeks is a manageable armful that will not stay that way. Most of the growth happens between now and six months, so buy for the adult dog where you can. This is a high energy breed. At eight weeks that shows up as intensity rather than stamina, and they will need a job to do long before they need long walks. Grooming is straightforward, but start handling the coat, feet and ears in week one anyway so it is never a fight later. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything they meet calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of their life.

Health worth knowing about

Conditions this breed is reported to be predisposed to. Predisposed does not mean inevitable, it means ask about it.

• Hip dysplasia, screened by hip evaluation of breeding stock
• Patellar luxation, found on a routine patella evaluation
• Eye disorders, picked up by an ophthalmologist evaluation
• Missing and irregular teeth in the hairless variety, which travel with the hairless gene and are checked at dental examination
• Skin problems including sunburn and adolescent acne, spotted on routine skin checks

Your Xoloitzcuintli puppy's first six months

• Vaccination schedule, dated for your country.
• Worming and parasite schedule.
• Feeding calculator. Set expected adult size to Medium for a Xoloitzcuintli.
• Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 4.5 to 24.9 kg adult range.
• Puppy names and the first week checklist.

Kit sizes: crate 36 inch (36 x 24 x 26 in, 91 x 61 x 66 cm) for an adult of up to 24.9 kg; chew toys made for medium breeds. Worked out the same way as the crate size calculator. PetMD bases a crate on the dog's own measurements, not weight or breed alone, so measure once the puppy is home.

Buying guides for this

• Best crate for a puppy: wire, plastic or soft, and how to size one with a divider

Other medium breeds

More on the Xoloitzcuintli

Previous: Working Kelpie · Next: Yakutian Laika

Sources

• akc.org for adult weight and height, life expectancy, energy, grooming, shedding and the temperament ratings, coat type and health notes
• fci.be for country of origin
• Health notes from Xoloitzcuintli breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/xoloitzcuintli/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.

Photo: Canarian, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped. All photographers are listed on the photo credits page.