strangers. If startled or uneasy, a Tibetan Spaniel will express their distrust with loud alarm barking. While utterly devoted to their family members, Tibetan Spaniels are fiercely independent and stubborn, with a tendency to wander off and explore rather than come when called. This quality—assertive, independent, and alert—is the standard temperament required by both the AKC and FCI breed standards. History Tibet Small monastery dogs, thought to be early representatives of the Tibetan Spaniel, loyally trailed behind their Lama masters and came to be regarded as "Little Lions" owing to their resemblance to the Snow Lions—a variation of the Chinese guardian lions—that gave them great value and prestige. The practice of sending the dogs as gifts to the palaces of China and other Buddhist countries grew significantly, and more "lion dogs" were presented back to Tibet, continuing until as late as 1908. As a result of exchanges of Tibetan Spaniels between palaces and monasteries, the breed is likely to have common ancestors with Oriental breeds such as the Japanese Chin and the Pekingese. Not only was the Tibetan Spaniel prized as a pet and companion, but it was also a useful member of Tibetan monastic life. The little dogs would sit on the monastery walls, keeping watch over the countryside. Their keen eyesight and ability to see great distances made them excellent watchdogs. They would alarm bark to alert the monks and the Tibetan Mastiffs below. In addition to functioning as lookouts, the Tibetan Spaniels were trained to spin the monk's prayer wheels. They also slept with the monks at night to provide warmth. Village-bred Tibetan Spaniels varied greatly in size and type, and the smaller puppies were usually given as gifts to the monasteries. In turn, these smaller dogs used in the monastery breeding programs were probably combined with the more elegant Tibetan Spaniel-type dogs brought from China. Those bred closer to the Chinese borders were characterized by shorter snouts. Western World Tibetan Spaniels were being bred in the United Kingdom by the 1890s. The first authenticated reference we find to Tibetan Spaniels in the United States is a litter born out of two imported dogs from a Tibetan monastery in 1965. In January 1971, the Tibetan Spaniel Club of America was formed with 14 charter members. An open secondary registry was maintained. After a period in the Miscellaneous classes, the Tibetan Spaniel was accepted for AKC registration and