9781422279328

Techichi played an important part in Aztec culture. When a person died, a yellow or red dog was sacrificed so he could accompany the dead person on his journey to the afterlife. This explains why many graves excavated in Mexico contained the skeletons of small dogs. There is a gap in the Techichi’s story following the Spanish con- quest. Some believe they went feral and survived by hunting small rodents. Others think it is more likely that they were crossed with the black and tan terriers that the Spanish brought with them. In any case, it was more than 300 years before the little dog from Mexico was next heard of. The Mediterranean theory The origins of many of our Toy dogs can be traced to the Medi- terranean, and there is a theory that the ancestors of the Chihuahua were found on the island of Malta. It is known that dogs with the molera trait came from Malta and were taken on trading ships to

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