Hi friends!
Most people call me Zazu. I am a German-Arabic mixed-breed child, born and raised in Germany, now living in Spain. My Xolo is one of the reasons why I live here today and I am happier than ever. Beetlejuice is a rescued Xolo from the Arab Emirates, but I’ll get to that later.
More than 10 years ago I had a reptile sanctuary. Through the well connected global reptile community I made friends with someone from Mexico who told me about the Xoloitzcuintle and the more I learned and read about them, the more I fell in love with them. Many years passed before the time came to share my life with one.
Two years ago was the moment I received the acceptance from the Arabian rescue home I had applied to. But Corona already hit the planet and I couldn’t find any flight volunteers to bring Beetlejuice to Germany. So I took it into my own hands and flew to the Arab Emirates 24 hours before the first real lockdown was introduced. I brought him and three other dogs to Germany. The whole journey was really exhausting, especially as more and more flights were canceled while I was waiting at the airport in the UAE. But we made it on time before the borders closed and arrived safely in Germany.
Beetlejuice was the first to lick my bald head.
In the car, he immediately put his head on my lap. I was crying with happiness.
Yes, that's right, I am mostly as bald as my dog, I am also missing a molar. The difference is that I have a disease and my dog has not. We even have our birthdays almost on the same day.
Juice came into my life when he was already two years old, so I haven't been with him through all the major stages of his life. This, of course, complicates his upbringing immensely.
In the beginning, people were not allowed to look at him or me. He immediately barked loudly and growled. Friends were not allowed to hug me, and he was not enthusiastic about visitors either. It is hard to train these issues in times of Corona but not impossible. Through necessary training and a lot of time and patience 99% of these problems are gone today: Even strangers can hug me. I can even get Juice used to children occasionally. Every step in this training must be very well thought through. He has really turned out great and I love him more than anything. He truly is my soul mate.
Why did this dog bring me to another country?
I had wanted to leave Germany for many years for various reasons, but Juice was the deciding factor in choosing the country. I wanted to be in a country where the Xolo is welcome.
You should know that the Xolo is about to be banned from being bred and imported in Germany and in some countries of the EU. Our dogs are seen as the results of so-called “torture breeding”.
The Xolo is hardly known in Germany. While many people in the EU have never heard of this breed, a few people are fighting to keep it allowed in their country. Unfortunately, the propaganda of those who want to see it banned is very good. They claim that our animals are sick because they are hairless and not have a complete set of teeth. There is more the dogs are being accused of but that is beyond the scope of this article. For example, it is claimed that our dogs have no whiskers and suffer from sunburn all the time, and many people believe it due to their lack of knowledge of the breed. I live only a stone’s throw away from Africa and Juice has never had a sunburn. There’s people who try to intimidate the breeders of hairless dogs to finally stop fighting back. Other opponents want to cross-breed our dogs with mixed breeds from abroad so that our dogs grow fur. By doing this, they would not only eliminate the nudity but also change the character. In my opinion this idea is absolutely horrible. It breaks my heart.
I know Xolo owners who lay in bed at night crying out of fear that their beloved breed will no longer exist in their country.
But despite all the fear, these people fight back with all means allowed by the law. Sometimes fear can also be an engine. It awakens the survival instinct.
Currently, a lot of educational work is being done, for example through information booths where lovers of hairless dogs talk to people about this breed. They also talk to politicians and argue with official veterinarians. There is also an association that tries to prove scientifically that our dogs are healthy and do not suffer..
I myself have already spoken to politician how I know since many years. Whether it chances something? I don’t know. The future will show it.
Nowadays, Spaniards are very open to this breed. Some members of the Policia Local in my
village are big fans of Beetlejuice and even know this breed. Sometimes they stop with the car next to me to greet Beetlejuice or they wave at us from the car when we train.
From Spain, I try to help people in Germany as much as I can to stop this ban. This happened by accident. I made two funny TikTok videos and suddenly some people asked more and more questions about this breed and like this more and more videos filled with information have emerged. People asked me things about the skin, sunburn, mythology, history, dentition and much more. Different people help me again and again to explain these topics, for example my dear Tabea as well as other dear Xolo friends who help me with pictures that I can use for my videos.
Many people at first think that our dogs are suffering but after seeing my videos, they now think differently and are shocked about the proposed ban on the breed. My account on Tiktok is not very big, it has only a little more than 1000 followers. But this shows that even a small account can make a difference and change views.
If this ban will really come to Europe and spread across the continent, so that also my new home country will be affected at some point, sooner or later I would find a way to leave Europe. A life without Xolos? Unimaginable for me.
Get in contact with Zazu -
instagram - @team_hairless