The Western Shar-Pei comes in three different coat types: horse-, brush-, and bear-coat. The unusual horse-coat is rough to the touch, extremely prickly and off-standing and is closer to the original traditional Shar-Pei breed in appearance and coat type than the brush- or bear-coat. This coat is fairly prickly and can be rough or irritating when petting in the opposite direction of the fur. The horse-coat is generally thought to be more active and predisposed to dominant behavior than the brush-coat. The brush-coat variety has slightly longer hair and a smoother feel to it. The brush-coat is generally considered to be more of a 'couch potato' than the horse-coat. This breed sheds normally twice a year. Any coat longer than one inch at the withers is called a 'bear-coat' and is not considered the breed standard, as it occurs only when both the male and female carry recessive coat genes. This coat length resembles the coat of the Chow Chow and was probably inherited from that breed. The personality of the bear-coat is very much like that of the brush-coat.