The honest version
Teacup Shih Tzu Puppies for Sale
If you searched for a teacup Shih Tzu, you are probably picturing a very small dog. Here is what the word means, what our dogs actually weigh, and why we describe them honestly rather than promise a number.
There is no such thing as a teacup Shih Tzu in the breed standard, and I do not breed for one. My adults finish about 8lb: under the 9lb floor of the standard, small enough to carry in one arm, and not teacup. If a small purebred Shih Tzu is what you were picturing, we have 6 here now. If you need a dog under 6lb, ours will be a little bigger than that, and we would rather say so now.
What people mean by teacup
When somebody searches for a teacup Shih Tzu, they almost always mean one of two things. Either they want a Shih Tzu that stays very small, smaller than the ones they have met, or they have seen the word on a listing with a high price next to it and assume it describes something special.
It describes a size. Usually a dog that will finish around 6lb or less, sometimes less than four. There is no separate bloodline, no registry that recognises the word, and no way to tell a “teacup” eight-week-old from any other eight-week-old except by what its parents weigh.
What my dogs actually weigh
about 8lb as adults. I can tell you that because the parents live with me and I know what they weigh. That puts my puppies at the small end of the breed, comfortably under the show standard, and about the size of a large house cat when grown.
It does not put them at 6lb, and I am not going to describe them as teacup to match a search. Every puppy on this site will grow into a small Shih Tzu you can pick up with one hand, and that is the honest description.
Why I will not promise under 6lb
Two reasons, and they are mine rather than a comment on anybody else.
The first is that I cannot. Nobody can promise an adult weight from an eight-week-old puppy. The parents’ weight is the best guide there is, and mine tell you about 8lb. Anyone who guarantees a number smaller than the parents is guessing on your behalf.
The second is that I would not want to. Breeding deliberately for the very smallest dogs means selecting the runts of litters and breeding them to each other, and I am not prepared to do that with a breed that already has a flat face to manage. I breed for a small, sound, ordinary Shih Tzu. about 8lb is what that looks like here.
If an 8lb Shih Tzu is what you were picturing
All 6 of them, and every one will finish about 8lb. The photograph on each card is of that puppy, not a stock image of the breed.
All 6 puppies, in full · Each one described · How buying works
Teacup Shih Tzu puppies for sale near me
I am in Sedona, Arizona, two hours north of Phoenix, and I send puppies all over the country. The searches for a teacup Shih Tzu near me come mostly from New York City, where the boroughs have more of this breed per square mile than anywhere in America, from California, and from the bigger midwest cities. The answer is the same wherever you are: a nanny carries your puppy in the cabin, or a transporter drives it to your door, and it is an about 8lb Shih Tzu at the end of it rather than a teacup.
Where I most often send them: New York, California, Michigan, Ohio and everywhere else. How the journey works.
Teacup Shih Tzu questions
Are teacup Shih Tzus real?
Not as a variety, no. There is no teacup in the breed standard, no registry that recognises the word and no separate bloodline behind it. It is a description of a very small dog, usually one that finishes around 6lb or less, and anybody can apply it to anything. That is worth knowing before you pay a premium for the word.
How small do your Shih Tzus actually get?
about 8lb grown. I can tell you that with confidence because both parents live with me and I know exactly what they weigh, and the parents are the best predictor there is. That is under the 9lb floor of the show standard and about the size of a large house cat, so it is a small dog. It is not 6lb and I will not tell you it is.
How much is a teacup Shih Tzu puppy?
Mine are $700 for a boy and $750 for a girl, which is what I charge for any puppy here. You will see teacup listings at three and four times that, and what you are paying for is the word rather than a different dog. No deposit and no application form either way. What one costs in the first year.
Can you guarantee my puppy will stay under 6lb?
No, and I would be careful of anyone who does. Nobody can promise an adult weight from an eight-week-old. Breeding deliberately for the very smallest dogs means picking the runts of litters and breeding them together, which I am not prepared to do with a breed that already has a flat face to manage. The sizes, side by side.
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