Meaning and background
The story behind Shihtzu
Shihtzu is the unspaced spelling of Shih Tzu, the Chinese-origin companion-dog breed whose name is commonly rendered lion dog. English owners have used the breed label as an informal pet name, but it remains a breed term rather than a hereditary human surname. Writing Shihtzu as one word should not change the recorded Shih Tzu form or imply a different breed. The word’s cultural context should remain distinct from legends about the dogs.
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About Shihtzu
Recorded as a dog’s name
Shihtzu appears in 30 dog licence records in the 2026 New York City dataset.
How to read this count
These records cover New York City and may count the same dog in more than one licence period. They are not a national popularity ranking.
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Sources and research notes (1)
Gender association: NYC licence-period records. Any dog can use this name.
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NYC Dog Licensing Dataset — extract_year 2026 — Dog licence periods, not unique dogs; NYC only. No owner-level fields retrieved.
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