Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey brain Stuff. Lauren Bogo Bam here looking for a dog that will turn heads or stop passers by in their tracks. Check out the sharp Pai with their unique loosened, wrinkled or folded skin and hippopotamus shaped muzzle. Sharpai are a unique member of the canine family, the stocky breed originated in China. The name Sharpei literally translates to sand skin.
A full grown sharpay stands at about two feet that's point six meters high and weighs between forty five and sixty pounds or about seven kilo's and it lives up to that sand skin name. The sharp pay coat is short and coarse, falling in heavy folds around the dog's head, neck, and shoulders. They're typically solidly fawn colored, but could come in anything from white to red to brown to black,
with lighter or darker spots or points. In addition to their prominent muzzle, Sharpei have small, deep set eyes and tiny ears. Their tongues are blue black, which is a rare trait in dogs. The only other breed that shows it is the chow Chow, which is also originally from China. This characteristic would seem to indicate a shared ancestor somewhere in the canine family tree, but there's no evidence of that ancestor to date. However, it is the wrinkles that
make the sharp pai so memorable. We spoke via email Dr Kirsten Lynn blood Tow of Upsala University in Sweden. They write that a sharp PA's wrinkles are caused by a particular gene called hyaluronic acid synthase two or h A S two quote HS two encodes an enzyme synthesizing hylurinin a major component of the skin. The high larnin is up regulated and accumulates in the thickened skin of shar pei. In hyper Layman's terms, the high learning is a sort of gel around the cells in the skin.
Among other things, it aids in hydration and elasticity in the skin. In a sharp pai, the HS two gene goes into overdrive, eating way too much high learning, and that causes the trademark wrinkles, which are specially visible in Sharpay puppies. By the time of Sharpay is fully grown, its wrinkles have settled down and are typically just in
the face, head, and neck. The genetics of the Sharpe's wrinkles helped Line blood Toe and other researchers uncover a mystery when they used the breed is subjects in study connecting Sharpai to a fairly common canine illness. To study linked the h a S two gene with a tendency of Sharpay to fall ill with periodic fever disease, sometimes referred to as familial Sharpay. Fever. Symptoms include episodes of fever that appear to rise out of nowhere and overall listlessness.
Linn blood Toe says that high learning is to blame for periodic fever disease in Sharpei, and the team's research bears it out. First, they compared the sharp paid genome with other dog breeds and then compared the genome of healthy and six Sharpai, searching for the mutation that was causing the fever, and each time they came to the same conclusion. And blood Toe said in the study, a mutation in a strand of DNA affecting both the fever
syndrome and the wrinkled skin was found. There are other health issues that can be challenging to Sharpei because of the folds and sharp pay skin. They're susceptible to certain skin problems and a serious eye disorder called entropion, when the eyelid, usually the lower lid folds inwards, causing irritation to the cornea. Centuries of breeding and inbreeding for specific physical traits leaves many pure bred dogs susceptible to particular problems. If you have a Sharpay in your life, talk to
your veterinarian about what sort of screenings they recommend. But are Sharpay good family dogs. That depends on what you're looking for. The American Kennel Club suggests that Sharpay puppies are better with older children, but older dogs may be okay with younger kids. They were initially bred as guard dogs and hunters, and the breed tends to be intelligent and independent, but with a fierce loyalty to their owners.
Your Sharpai will need a firm hand plan to invest in obedience, ing in socialization, because as much as your sharp Pai loves you, they're not great with strangers or other dogs, and don't mistake their natural calm for not caring. If they believe their territory is under threat, they'll protect it with determination. Sharpai enjoy a leisurely walk, just not too often, usually once or twice a day will do and watch out during the summer months. Sharpai don't tolerate
the heat well. Owners would do well to take a look at the Chinese Sharpay Club of America website. It's chock full of information about the breed, everything from those health issues to training to showing standards. Today's episode was written by Patty Resumusin and produced by Tyler Clang. Brain Stuff is a production of iHeart Radio's How Stuff Works.
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