List of Rare Dogs With Coats of Human-Like Hair

While many mutts have long, shaggy coats, there are some rare breeds of dogs that boast such long, luxurious hair that they sometimes appear human. These dogs are desirable because of their unique appearance, breeding and the fact that longer hair does not shed in the same way short fur does. While these breeds require extra work in grooming, they will not leave fur all around the house the way shorter haired breeds often do.

  1. Maltese

    • The American Kennel Club describes the Maltese breed as "a toy dog covered from head to toe with a mantle of long, silky white hair." Their hair grows to great lengths, and requires the same kind of care and grooming that human hair does. Maltese dog owners generally have the hair around their heads groomed and brushed often, and sometimes styled with clips or hair pieces.

    Lhasa Apso

    • The Lhasa apso is a rare and beautiful dog breed, known for its great shocks of hair that need to be parted from head to tail. This hair looks particularly human because of the need to part it. It can be given a center or side part, much the way women style and part their hair. Their hair is heavy, straight, long and very dense.

    Gordon Setter

    • Gordon setters are large hunting dogs with black and tan fur. They have very long coats that grow and hang far below their bodies. Their hair can be straight, or can sometimes have a little wave to it, and needs to be brushed regularly. When examined, the ends of their coats can appear just like a woman's wavy locks.

    Afghan Hound

    • The Afghan hound is the breed that is perhaps best known for its human-like hair. The American Kennel Club states, "Well covered with thick, silky hair, very fine in texture, the Afghan hound̵7;s coat is a sort found among animals native to high altitudes." Its coat can come in many colors, just like human hair, and needs to be consistently styled and maintained, to avoid tangling.

    Pekingese

    • The Pekingese breed is one of the hairiest dog breeds out there. Its coat standards are defined very strictly by the Pekingese Club of America: "It is a long, coarse-textured, straight, stand-off outer coat, with thick, soft undercoat. The coat forms a noticeable mane on the neck and shoulder area with the coat on the remainder of the body somewhat shorter in length. A long and profuse coat is desirable, providing it does not obscure the shape of the body. Long feathering is found on toes, backs of the thighs and forelegs, with longer fringing on the ears and tail." While the coat of a Pekingese is thick and heavy everywhere on its body, the coat around its head and ears is particularly long, giving the hair around its head a human-like appearance.