A typical Shih Tzu tops out around 15.2 mph in Fast CAT. The fastest one on record ran 25.47 mph. 7.5 mph slower than the typical dog (22.7 mph). Even a typical Shih Tzu would beat most people in a 100-yard sprint.
Based on the best Fast CAT run of 92 Shih Tzus, a typical Shih Tzu tops out at 15.2 mph, and half of them run faster than 15.4 mph. That makes the Shih Tzu the 213th fastest of the 226 breeds that have run Fast CAT.
2 Shih Tzus have topped 25 mph, but none has reached 30 yet.
Among the most popular Toy breeds, the typical Shih Tzu is the slowest of the 9. The Italian Greyhound is the quickest of the bunch at 23.5 mph, and the Pomeranian (15.6 mph) runs closest to the Shih Tzu. Over Fast CAT's 100 yards, the 8.3 mph gap to the Italian Greyhound is about 4.75 seconds.
Byrnie holds the fastest consistent run by any Shih Tzu: 25.47 mph at the German Shepherd Dog Club of Greater Washington in Maryland on April 15, 2018. That's 100 yards in 8.03 seconds.
AKC's results also show Sweetiepie at 26.22 mph, but that dog's next-best run is 18.83 mph. A jump that big is usually a timing or typing error, so we flag it rather than crown it.
On Dash-Hound, the fastest Shih Tzu is Teddy, with a best of 20.14 mph over 8 logged runs.
A little. The typical Shih Tzu ran 14.7 mph in 2023 (29 dogs) and 15.4 mph in 2025 (35 dogs). As more everyday pets join in, the average moves around.
Georgia has the most Shih Tzu runs, 313 of them, followed by Ohio, Minnesota, Wisconsin. The fastest Shih Tzu run in Georgia is 19.88 mph.
Short legs don't stop anyone from having a blast. Any AKC-registered Shih Tzu over 12 months old can enter, small dogs earn twice the points per mph toward their titles, and the crowd always cheers loudest for the little ones. Have someone your dog will run to waiting past the finish line.
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Speeds from AKC Fast CAT results. Photographers: spotted your work? Tell us at [email protected] and we'll credit it or take it down.