With regards to the sex, is there a difference in behavior or temperament?

Normally there are some difference on the behavior.But for me it doesn't matter whether its a girl or boy.As long as you take it very well and love him or her with all your heart.

Hi, Youbetcha. I read two breed books last night, one on the Bichon, the other on the Shih Tzu. According the the author (same author) in the SHih Tzu, there are no temperament differences in regard to gender.

In other breeds, including the bichon, unless neutered, boys tend to mark. Neutering makes this 25% less likely in the dog. Still, that turns me off of male dogs because a 75% chance they will mark at some point is NOT what I want. I don't want a dog marking up my furniture. No way.

If I do get a dog, it will be fixed, and I have no intention of breeding. I can't remember if show dogs are allowed to be spayed or neutered...

Depends if you get them fixed or not. While an unfixed male will be a little more aggressive and mark its territory, a female will leave blood stains when it has its period. Since I'm not a breeder, I have dogs fixed. From here it depends on the breed, some larger breeds I prefer female because they're a little smaller, but other breeds it doesn't really matter to me.

[lil mutt]

They say that males who are not fixed will surely more aggressive and mark its territory. This is my first time to own a female dog and i dont see any difference yet. My previous dogs are not agressive and didnt mark any teritory inside our home.

BSO, and lil mutt, I didn't realize that male dogs marked territory, our Border Collies, which were males were kept outside. Because of the marking thing, the males have lost much of their appeal to me.

If I get a dog, I'm getting mine fixed anyway, but even so this won't guarantee a male won't mark, so it looks like males are no longer a consideration for me. If my son wants a bog dog, I guess I can dress the girl in blue right? I guess as long as my son doesn't look down between her legs, we won't have a problem.

[Yogi]

actually it is not a good idea to assume females will not mark as in fact many do. If they perceive themselves as an alpha as most females are whether in a pack or not, they can and will occasionally mark their territory. I have 2 females that religiously mark over the boys.

My parents' male yorkie constantly marked his territory before and after getting fixed. Their male cavalier spaniel has yet to mark his territory and soon will be getting fixed (he's less than a year old). As a matter of fact, he peed like a girl up until just recently their yorkie taught him how to lift his leg when he pees. Their yorkie, on the other hand, wasn't fixed until he was a few years old, so it was almost a lost cause at that point. Really I'd imagine with proper training and having them fixed, male dogs and female dogs don't differ much

Gee, I can't win, can I? I'm getting either fixed, so I'll leave the gender up to my son to decide. He'll probably want a boy.

Both should be fixed and the vet will recommend the age to do it.
Females are just plain smarter. Seriously.

[UnderDog]

I love "my boys", they are amazing dogs and I couldn't ask for better pet/hunter, but being un-neutered you can imagine...Its quite embarrasing going on a field meet and having a dog that wont stop mounting the kills, even if they are only 10% the size of them. None of them mark they're territory or are aggresive but having a dog that mounts everything in site is NOT nice!
I also love my little girls, but I found they are more independent and are more of a guard dog. They calm down alot when they are with other male dogs but again with some of them being un-neutered they are safely behind lock and key. The pups I have seen a vast difference beetween boys and girls, boys are curios and boisterous (sp?), girls are again independent and much more elegant :mrgreen:.

According to the Shih Tzu Club of America, dogs are easier to housebreak than bitches, and they are preferable show dogs as well:

"Males are easier to keep in coat because they don’t go through periodic, hormone-related coat loss, making the male the ideal choice for someone planning to keep a pet in coat or have only one show dog. Also, dogs are much easier to housebreak. A male would much prefer to “hold it” until he goes outside to mark his territory in the greater world, while a female seems to think it is all right to eliminate wherever she happens to be when the urge strikes!"

Look at this adorable straight black shih tzu baby; look at the expressive eyes. Isn't she to die for?!

[UnderDog]

wouldbedogowner - IMO, thats absolute rubbish! if anything I have found the opposite as dogs can be stubborn, and when they dont want to do something they wont!! Its no more work to keep a bitch in suit then it is a dog - just needs effort.

My personal opinion a girl can be more relaxed and the male be a little more aggressive if not fixed but to me it don't matter if it is a girl or boy cause you can love them just as much! Either male or female dog is a very great companion.

Originally Posted by UnderDog

wouldbedogowner - IMO, thats absolute rubbish! if anything I have found the opposite as dogs can be stubborn, and when they dont want to do something they wont!! Its no more work to keep a bitch in suit then it is a dog - just needs effort.

So, then you know more about the Shih Tzu then the American Shihtzu Club?... Keep the advice coming underdog.

[reeskujo]

Originally Posted by wouldbedogowner

So, then you know more about the Shih Tzu then the American Shihtzu Club?... Keep the advice coming underdog.

I have to say that all the Shih tzu owners I've had in my puppy classes the biggest potty issues are with the boys.

I think you need to keep in mind that any national breed club for any breed may not be giving you the whole picture. And any statements made should be taken with a grain of salt. Whenever a breed becomes popular, the quality of the breed in general takes a big hit. The national breed clubs usually won't tell you this.

Shih Tzus are still dogs. And they have the same ingrained behaviors that all dogs have, including the marking of territory. Whether your individual dog marks depends on many factors, including how well they are trained.

Having bred dogs in the past, I can safely say that none of my dogs, intact or neutered/spayed, marked territory in the house, because they were taught at an early age that this is forbidden.

In general, spayed females and neutered males are equally good as pets. There may be some minor differences in behavior, but they aren't significant enough to cause concern.