Appearance

Considered to be “the hairless dog of Mexico,” it is the most notable feature of a Xolo. In some cases there are times that a litter may produce a coated variety, which is short and flat dense, but is indistinguishable from the hairless variety. This variety is a complete hairless of the dog’s entire body, although some dogs have a few strands on top of the head, their toes, and the tip of their tail. They are mostly black or bluish-gray in color.

History

The Xoloitzcuintli (or Xolo) is one of the world’s oldest and rarest breeds. This breed is native to Mexico, and they can be considered as the first dog of the Americas. Evidence found in Central and South America suggests that this breed has existed for more than 3,000 years. In addition, the artifacts indicate that they are used as home and hunting companions, which still evident today. The name (pronounced show-low-etz-queent-lee) is derived from the Aztec Indian god Xolotl and Itzcuintli, which is also the Aztec word for dog. The Aztecs considered this breed to be sacred dogs because they believe that dogs were needed to guide the souls of their masters passing the underworld. The Europeans helped expand the b reed by bringing them out of South America and bringing them to Europe. One of the journals of Christopher Columbus when he arrived in the Caribbean in 1942 noted the strange hairless dogs. Although the breed is quite famous in Central and South America, where Mexico declared this breed as their national dog in 1950, they are still relatively unknown in the northern part of the content, and evidently the rest of the world. They have been mistaken for the mythical Chupacabra.