Cute Tibetan mastiffs are a craze of China's wealthiest; The dogs that cost half a million pounds

Tibetan mastiffs, bought and sold for up to £500,000, popular 

for their fiercely loyalty and protectiveness, are the latest craze among China’s wealthiest landlords. The puppies were on sale in Baoding, Hebei province, south of Beijing, with rich buyers across the country sending prices soaring.

Owners say the mastiffs, descendents of dogs used for hunting 

by nomadic tribes in central Asia and Tibet. Breeders still travel to the Himalayan plateau to collect young puppies, although many are unable to adjust to the low altitudes and die during the journey.

Last month, a Chinese dog owner issued a writ against an 

animal clinic after his £90,000 Tibetan mastiff died while undergoing a facelift to make it more attractive to breeders. The owner, identified only as Mr Yu, paid 1,000 yuan (£140) for his pet to have plastic surgery at a Beijing animal hospital last November. It died on the operating table 20 minutes into treatment. Mr Yu later discovered that the dog had died of a heart attack after complications with the anesthetic.

He is now suing the hospital for 880,000 yuan (£90,000), the amount 

he claims to have paid for the dog which is the world's most expensive breed.The dogs live for up to 14 years and have fewer genetic health problems than many breeds. The heaviest Tibetan Mastiff weighed in at more than 20 stone.

They are fed an organic diet of tripe, boiled fish heads, powdered egg shells, code liver oil and raw bones to help them clean their teeth. Marco Polo supposedly encountered Tibetan Mastiffs in the 13th century, describing them as ‘tall as a donkey with a voice as powerful as that of a lion’.

There are only around 300 Tibetan Mastiffs in the UK. They can only have one litter a year. It is thought the Tibetan Mastiff genetically diverged from the wolf 58,000 years ago.