Chin-Pin

The Chin-Pin is a combination of a Miniature Pinscher and a Japanese Chin. The former was bred in Germany as a ratter and dates back around 200 years. Although similar in looks to a mini Doberman they are a different breed. The breed was originally called the Reh Pinscher as Germans thought they looked like the small red ‘roe’ deer that that lived in nearby forests. It was also bred in Scandinavia and is still popular there. It is believed that the Miniature Pinscher is most likely descended from the German Pinscher. Other ancestors may be terriers such as the Dachshund and the Italian Greyhound. German breeders formed the Pinscher Klub, later renamed the Pinscher Schnauzer Klub in 1895. The first dogs were taken to the United States around 1919 and were recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1929. Despite its name, the earliest origins of the Japanese Chin are to be found in China, not Japan. Thought to have originated in the Chinese imperial court they were highly prized and often given as gifts. Some historians believe that the Pekingese, which also has his origins in China, was developed from the Japanese Chin, which are also known as Japanese Spaniels. In Japan, the dogs were restricted to those of royal blood. There is some evidence that the first Japanese Chin were given as gifts by the Emperor of Japan to an American naval officer Commodore Matthew Perry in 1853 when he sailed into Uraga Harbor near Edo — now Tokyo — and introduced Japan to international trade. He was apparently given seven dogs, two of which survived the passage back to the USA where some of the owners included President Franklin Pierce, then-Secretary- of-War Jefferson Davis, and Perry's daughter, Caroline Perry Belmont. They were officially recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1888.