Contributed by Shih Tzu breeder-judge Victor Joris, author of The Complete Shih Tzu. Some breeders say their is no such thing as an Imperial. I also have heard from some of you they are deformed and do not live till 4 years old. Many of you people call an Imperial a runt. I believe the first tiny types could have a better chance at being a runt.
Imperials are just to small to be the runt.
Look at your Poodle sizes, Giant Standard, Standard , Miniature, Toy and Teacup. Do you belive the Teacup is a runt produced by the Giant Standard, that is ridiculous. Size is the result of selective breeding. Imperials are created from selective breeding of Standard Shih Tzu females and mating with a smaller male. Your results will always be good if you use genetically sound parents.