- Permissible: All colours and mixture of colours
About the Tibetan Spaniel
Origin: Tibet (China)
- Typical life span
- 12-15 years
- Size
- Small — from its typical weight
- Weight
- 4-7 kg
- Height
- 24-28 cm
- FCI status
- Recognised by FCI
- FCI group
- Companion and Toy Dogs
- Origin
- Tibet (China)
- Also called
- Spaniel Tibetano
- Known hereditary risks
- Not researched yet
About
What is a Tibetan Spaniel?
Small, compact companion breed with a silky double coat and lion-like mane around the face, known as a 'little lion'. Originally bred by Buddhist monks as monastery watchdogs and companions, featuring an alert expression and confident demeanor.
Tibetan Spaniel history and origins
Ancient breed prized in Tibetan monasteries for over 2,000 years, developed by Buddhist monks to serve as companions and watchdogs on monastery walls. Often given as treasured gifts to royalty and dignitaries.
Tibetan Spaniel appearance and size
Typically 4-7 kg and 24-28 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
“Gay and assertive, highly intelligent, aloof with strangers. Alert, loyal but independant”
Quoted from FCI standard n°231. 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
- 2 of 5
- Good with children
- —
- Cost to keep
- —
- Tolerates being alone
- —
- Intelligence
- —
- Health of breed
- Not researched yet
Pros & cons
Pros & cons for the Tibetan Spaniel
What you get with the Tibetan Spaniel
- Purpose stated in the standard: “Companion Dog”
- The standard describes the breed as: “Gay and assertive, highly intelligent, aloof with strangers. Alert, loyal but independant”
- Low grooming needs, fitting for a busy owner — the coat is “Topcoat silky in texture, smooth on face and front of legs, of moderate length on body,…”
- Longer-lived than a crossbred dog — median 15.2 years across 330 animals, against 12
What you are taking on
Nobody has written this side yet. It is a judgement rather than data, so it waits for a person — not for a missing source.
Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FCI breed standard; McMillan et al. 2024, median age at death. 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 · Tibetan Spaniel
Coat and colour
As the FCI standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording, tagged permissible.
Coat
Topcoat silky in texture, smooth on face and front of legs, of moderate length on body, but lying rather flat.
Undercoat fine and dense.
Ears and back of forelegs nicely feathered, tail and buttocks well furnished with longer hair.
Not overcoated, bitches tend to carry less coat and mane than dogs
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°231 — 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
- “Height at the withers: About 25.4 cm (10 ins). Weight: Ideal 4.1 to 6.8 kgs (9-15 lbs)”
- FCI distinguishes an ideal from what is permitted.
Quoted from FCI standard n°231. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the Tibetan Spaniel in general; any individual animal can differ.
Health guide
What to ask for in a Tibetan Spaniel
No breed-specific health panel has been written up for the Tibetan Spaniel 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 Tibetan Spaniel 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 Tibetan Spaniel 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.