Where do chihuahuas come from? Most of the Chihuahua's history is based on speculation, legend and theory. It is believed that the breed descended from a small Mayan dog called the Techichi, around the Fifth Century AD. The Techichi breed was long haired and mute, and larger than the modern day Chihuahua.The Mayans were eventually conquered by the Toltec civilization. The Toltecs might have been the first to domesticate the Techichi. They brought the little dogs into their homes as pets, and also used them in religious ceremonies. After the Aztecs conquered the Toltecs, they not only used the dog as a companions, but they turned the dogs into sacred symbols of the upper class. The wealthy and clergy considered the Techichi sacred animals. Mayan, Toltec, and Aztec writings in tombs, temples, and pyramids lend support to this theory. Relics from these ancient Mexican civilizations, including sculptures of these small dogs were found in graves in Mexico. Stone carvings of the Techichi exist at the Monastery of Huejotzingo, which is between Mexico City and Puebla.
When the New World was settled by the Spanish, the Techichi might have bred with a smaller, hairless dog that was brought over from the orient. The result is the modern day Chihuahua, which were found in Mexico, in 1850 in old ruins near Casas Grandes. The American Kennel Club (AKC) first registered the Chihuahua as a breed in 1904, and was named for that Mexican state that borders New Mexico, Arizona and Texas.
