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This is the "cult of arms" of Shar-pei. This is the spear of a Chinese warrior, the flag of a Chinese warrior, raised high and proud.
Always pointing high or forward with pride. The photo on the left is a bronze Chinese warrior statue made in the Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 A.D.) showing how a warrior carries a spear (Ji in Chinese).
Tail set high above the croup The Chinese way of describing "tail set high above the croup" is "anus facing sky". In Cantonese it is "Si ngan chiu teen". " Si ngan" stands for "shit eye" or simply means anus, "chiu" is facing and "teen" meaning sky. Anatomically, in order to have anus facing the sky, the tail set necessarily need to be high above the croup and pointing toward the head.
The schematic diagram below depict how an anus can face the sky. Photo in the middle is an actual tail set of a reasonably good high set tail, and photo on the right is a digitally corrected photo of the same dog with an ideal tail set of "anus facing sky".
Another good representation of "anus facing sky" can be seen also in photo "F" inside the Sharpei Club Hong Kong web site special section on tails.
Tapering to a point like a whip They should be a strong sturdy tail, tapering to a point like a whip, with very short hairs, tip of tail preferably without hair.
In Cantonese this is figuratively referred to as "Teet sheen mei" (Iron wire tail) or "Latjiu mei" (Hot pepper tail). Whether one describe a Shar-pei tail as looking like a whip, metal wire, or hot pepper, they all point to the fact that the tail of traditional Shar-pei should have very short hair, not bushy, brushy or hairy.
Some photos of Chinese "Latjiu" or hot peppers:
Terminology table
Chinese love to describe features of things figuratively. Shar-pei is no exception. These terminologies are frequently used by traditional Shar-pei breeders in Hong Kong and China.
|
English
|
Cantonese
|
Putonghua
|
Chinese
|
| Iron wire tail |
Teet sheen mei
|
Tie xian wei |
鐵線尾 |
| Hot pepper tail |
Latjiu mei
|
La jiao wei |
辣椒尾 |
|
Sickle tail
|
Kwa leem mei
|
Gua lian wei
|
掛鐮尾
|
| Large sickle tail |
Dai kwa leem
|
Da gua lian |
大掛鐮 |
| Small sickle tail |
Siu kwa leem
|
Xiao gua lian |
小掛鐮 |
| Weighing hook tail |
Ching au mei
|
Cheng gou wei |
秤鈎尾 |
| Iron ruler tail |
Teet chek mei
|
Tie chi wei |
鐵尺尾 |
|
Coin tail
|
Kam chin mei
|
Jin qian wei
|
金錢尾
|
|
Pseudo coin tail
|
Ga kam chin
|
Jia jin qian
|
假金錢
|
|
Spear carrying tail
|
Daam cheong mei
|
Dan chang wei
|
擔槍尾
|
| Fishing rod tail |
Diu yu mei |
Diao yu wei |
釣魚尾 |
|
Shit eye (anus)
|
Si Ngan
|
Shi yen
|
屎眼
|
|
Shit eye facing sky
|
Si Ngan chiu teen
|
Shi yen qiao tian
|
屎眼瞧天
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Carriage of tails
Carriage of tail can come in three general categories:
- Sickle tail
- Coin tail
- Spear carrying tail
Under these categories, the traditional Shar-pei people have further divide into smaller variations.
Sickle tail
In Cantonese is "Kwa leem mei". Literally means hanging sickle tail. "Kwa" stands for hanging, "leem" means sickle and "mei" for tail. Under this category, it is further divided in big "Kwa leem" and small "Kwa leem" to differentiate between a larger curved sickle and smaller curved sickle. Another variation from this sickle tail is the Iron ruler tail (Teet Chek mei). "Teet" is iron, "Chek" is ruler, and "mei" is tail.
Coin tail
Kam chin mei. "Kam chin" is coin, "mei" is tail. We have double and single coin tail. A variation of this is "Ga kam chin" or Pseudo-coin tail. By pseudo, it means the tail curled into a spiral screw instead of a spring coil.
Spear carrying tail
(Daam cheong mei) A variation of this category is Fishing rod tail (Diu yu mei). Not as straight as a spear but a little curve like a fishing rod above water. Description of various tail carriage Photos of tails of Shar-pei can be seen inside the Sharpei Club Hong Kong web site, section on breed standard and special section on tails. Based on description offered by Lee Fuk Wah, the description for each type of tail as follows:
| Big sickle |
Sickle |
Small sickle |
Big-sickle |
| A |
B |
C |
D |
| Pseudo coin |
Double coin |
Single coin |
Fishing rod tail |
| E |
F |
G |
H |
| Iron ruler |
Sickle |
Spear carrying tail |
Spear carrying tail |
| I |
J |
K |
L |
|
|
Introduction
Tail and Anus
