- Permissible: All colours and markings and of equal merit, except albino or liver
- Parti-colours evenly broken
About the Pekingese
Origin: China
- Typical life span
- 12-14 years
- Size
- Small — from its typical weight
- Weight
- 3.2-6.4 kg
- Height
- 15-23 cm
- FCI status
- Recognised by FCI
- FCI group
- Companion and Toy Dogs
- Origin
- China
- Also called
- Pekines
- Known hereditary risks
- Not researched yet
About
What is a Pekingese?
Small, compact toy dog of Chinese nobility with a long, profuse double coat, distinctive flat-faced expression, rolling gait, and regal bearing originally bred for Chinese royalty
Pekingese history and origins
Ancient breed developed in Chinese imperial court and held sacred in the Imperial Palace in Peking (now Beijing). Exclusively owned by royalty for over 1000 years until Western dogs were brought to England after British troops entered the Forbidden City in 1860 during the Opium Wars.
Pekingese appearance and size
Typically 3.2-6.4 kg and 15-23 cm at the shoulder — published as one range rather than separately for males and females.
What the breed standard says
- Bred for
- Companion Dog
- Behaviour and temperament
“Fearless, loyal, aloof, not timid or aggressive”
Quoted from FCI standard n°207. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Breed reference from The Dog API.
Characteristics
- Size
- Small
- Exercise needsRead from what the breed was bred to do, in the registry’s own words: “Companion Dog” That is a working purpose, not a measured exercise requirement — an individual dog’s needs depend on its age, health and household.
- 2 of 5
- Easy to train
- —
- Amount of shedding
- 3 of 5
- Grooming needs
- 4 of 5
- Good with children
- —
- Cost to keep
- —
- Tolerates being alone
- —
- Intelligence
- —
- Health of breed
- Not researched yet
Pros & cons
Pros & cons for the Pekingese
What you get with the Pekingese
- Purpose stated in the standard: “Companion Dog”
- The standard describes the breed as: “Fearless, loyal, aloof, not timid or aggressive”
What you are taking on
- High grooming needs — the standard’s own description is “Feathering on ears, back of legs, tail and toes.”
Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FCI breed standard. One breeder’s animals can differ from any of it, and an empty column means we hold nothing for that side rather than that there is nothing to say.
Characteristics
FCI standard · Pekingese
Coat and colour
As the FCI standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording, tagged permissible.
Coat
Moderately long, straight with mane, not extending beyond shoulders, forming a cape around neck.
Top coat coarse with thick, softer undercoat.
Feathering on ears, back of legs, tail and toes.
Length and volume of coat should neither impair the activity of the dog nor obscure the shapeliness of body.
Excessive coat must be heavily penalised
Colour
- Preferred
- Permissible
- Undesirable
- Disqualifying
Preferred, permissible, undesirable and disqualifying are FCI’s own words about the breed. They describe what the standard asks for — not an assessment of any individual dog, and not ours.
Shortened from FCI standard n°207 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
What the breed standard says
- Size
- “Ideal weight not exceeding 5 kg for males and 5.4 females. Dogs should look small but be surprisingly heavy when picked up; heavy bone and a sturdy well-built body are essentials of the breed”
- FCI gives a bound on one side only, so there is no range to state.
Quoted from FCI standard n°207. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the Pekingese in general; any individual animal can differ.
Health guide
What to ask for in a Pekingese
No breed-specific health panel has been written up for the Pekingese on this platform yet. That is a gap in our records, not a clean bill of health — ask the breeder which hereditary conditions their lines are tested for, and ask to see the results for both parents, dated and from a named laboratory.
Gallery
No photographs yet
This is where Pekingese owners’ own photographs will go, from the pet profiles they keep here. Nobody has added one to a public page yet.
A photograph in a pet profile stays private to its owner. We will not put one here unless they ask us to.
Puppies
No puppies listed right now
No Pekingese breeder has a record on this platform yet, so there is nothing to list. That is a gap in our coverage, not a fact about the breed.