The Zoo

Today we went to the Zoo it was nice to see the pandas and also the original Aztec dog called Xoloitzcuintli. The Xoloitzcuintli (pronounced sholo-its-quintli) meaning "dog of the god Xolotl", the Aztec god of twins, of things which are deformed, and of the Aztec ball-court game. It has also been called the Pelon, or Bald Dog. Breeders usually refer to it simply as the Xolo (pronounced sholo). Its primary function in the ancient times was as a source of food.
The dark, mottled, soft skin of this unusually appealing breed is hot to the touch and this feature also gave it a secondary role as a healer. Early Mexicans used them as living hot-water bottles, and the absence of canine skin-sweating, combined with a normal temperature that is higher than that of humans (101-102°F), would certainly make them ideal for this role. Pressing the warm animal next to a part of the body that was hurting was believed to "draw out" the pain. It was said to be especially useful for curing headaches, asthma, rheumatism, aching muscles, insomnia and even malaria. An addition, the Xolos were ever alert watchdogs.