Sapsaree

The Sapsaree is a medium-sized dog with a kind expression. The thick hair on their heads earned them the nickname "lion dog."

The breed is known for its shaggy double coat. The outer coat is long and thick and can be straight, semi-curly, or curly. The undercoat is short, soft, and dense. Most dogs have furnished faces, but occasionally, smooth-muzzled dogs do occur.

Sapsarees come in yellow (hwang) and blue (chung) varieties. Yellow dogs can be any shade of red from cream to mahogany. “Blue” Sapsarees are traditionally called blue due to the color of their fur in moonlight, but are actually black, and black and tan colors are also called blue. Though rare, some dogs are chocolate, white, or spotted.

The Sapsaree has a rounded head, long muzzle, and long neck. They have a well-developed chest, strong legs, and a long tail that can be straight, curled, or in a ring. They also have large, brown eyes and floppy drop ears.

The Sapsaree, alternatively spelled Sapsali or Sapsari, originates from Gyeongsan. Along with the Jindo and Donggyeongi, it is one of three native breeds designated as cultural treasures by the Republic of Korea.

Depictions of dogs similar to the Sapsaree appear in tomb murals dating back to 37 B.C.- 668 A.D. Their name means to "drive away evil spirits and bring blessings." Because Shih Tzu and Pekingese were sent as gifts to the royal court during the Three Kingdoms period, and were also given the nickname of sapsaree, some suggest the Sapsaree was originally a category of dogs that served a spiritual function. If that is the case, the modern Sapsaree represents that ancient category of dogs as a regional variety that survived. Royal families and aristocrats adored the Sapsaree, and generals used them as military dogs in wars.

However, during the Japanese occupation of Korea from 1910 to 1945, the Japanese military killed millions of Sapsarees and used their fur to make coats for their soldiers. In 1969, 30 dogs were found in rural corners of Kyungpook province and a breeding program started. However, due to expense, in the following decades, the breed's population continued to decrease. By the mid-1980s, only eight dogs remained. Geneticist Ha Ji-Hong led the effort to restore the breed, using a combination of traditional breeding and DNA technology, and the breed was designated a natural treasure in 1992 to protect and fund their restoration.

Today, the number of Sapsarees is in the thousands. Some dogs live in homes throughout South Korea, while the Sapsaree Foundation raises others for continued breeding. Because the Sapsaree gene pool is quite small, selection for specific physical traits will not be carried out until there are at least 10,000 breeding dogs to prevent unnecessary inbreeding.