Shar Pei

History
The Shar Pei breed comes from the Guangdong province of China. The original Shar-pei from China looked very different from the breed now popular in the West. People in southern China, Hong Kong, and Macau differentiate the Western type and the original type by calling them respectively "meat-mouth" and "bone-mouth" Shar-pei.

The ancestry of the Shar-Pei is uncertain. It may be a descendant of the Chow Chow, however, the only clear link between these is the blue-black tongue. However, pictures on pottery suggest the breed was present even in the Han Dynasty (206bc). For many years the Shar-Pei was kept as a general-purpose farm dog in the Chinese countryside, used for hunting, protecting & herding stock and guarding the home and family. During that time the Shar-Pei was bred for intelligence, strength and scowling face.

Later, it was used for dog fighting. The loose skin and extremely prickly coat were developed originally to help the Pei fend off wild boar, as they were used to hunt. Dog Fighters used these enhanced traits to make the Shar-Pei difficult for its opponent to grab and hold on to and so that, if it did manage to hold on, the Shar-Pei would still have room to maneuver and bite back. The Shar-Pei's most intriguing feature, in this respect, is that if you grab them by any loose wrinkle they can actually twist in their skin and face in your direction. This trait was used in fighting as a means for them to fight back, they would be bitten and twist in their skin to bite back at the offender. During the Communist Revolution, when the Shar Pei population dwindled dramatically, dogs were rescued by a Hong Kong business man named Matgo Law, who appealed to Americans in 1973 through a dog magazine to save the breed. Around 200 Shar-Peis were smuggled into America. The current American Shar Pei population stems mainly from these original 200.

DNA analysis has concluded that the Shar Pei is one of the most ancient dog breeds

Famous Shar-Pei
.Lao-Tzu, Martin Prince's dog in The Simpsons, appeared in two episodes; "Bart's Dog Gets an F" and "Two Dozen and One Greyhounds".
.Fu Dog from the Disney cartoon American Dragon: Jake Long is a Shar Pei.
.Satchel, from the syndicated comic strip Get Fuzzy, is half yellow lab and half Shar Pei.
.Malcolm and Derek, from the TV version of Creature Comforts.
.A Shar Pei appears in the television show Lost as character Sun Kwon's pet, Bpo Bpo.
.In a British television advert for a Garnier anti-wrinkle cream, a Shar Pei puppy is featured.
.New Kids on the Block member Jonathan Knight had a Shar Pei named Nikko that went on tour with him and appeared in many magazine articles and pictures focused on the group.
.In Australia and New Zealand, a Shar Pei puppy named Roly has been used for many years in television commercials for Purex toilet paper.
.Popeye, a Shar Pei dog that appeared in Hong Kong TVB comedy shows.
.Zac Lichman from Big Brother had a Shar Pei named Molly, who undertook a task on Day 55, and was also reunited.
.Alfie, a Shar Pei from Essex. Owned by the Seaton family. Best known for winning the Crufts 2006 gold show dog award.