I have a chow, he is the 4th chow I have owned and they have all been big babies. The one I have now is 11 3/4 years old and I call him a chicken chow because if a stranger comes towards him he runs behind me and peeps around my legs. My friend has a pit bull that was the same way. Another friend has a yorkie that bites so you can’t always just by the breed. Chows have a bad reputation in fact in FL you almost can’t get homeowners insurance (aside from hurricanes) if you have a dog that is on the vicious list. I told my insurance company Tristen is a heinz 57.