Kekhor – decoration or a practical item?

Lately someone asked me in a mail about the mening of kekhor, so I thought it would be good to write about this characteristic item on my blog.

Kekhor is a Tibetan Mastiff’s decoration made of wool from yak (rarely from sheep) dyed red, but sometimes kekhors are dyed for example bright yellow or bicoloured kekhors.

The idea of an intense red kekhor propably came from the passion of Tibetan people to intense colours. Thangkhas and ritual items, like jewellery and clothing, are also colourful. It comes, most definitely, from the fact that Tibetan Plateau’s vegetation is mostly in the shades of gray and colours make the world of Tibetans more optimistic.

Kekhor, besides the decorative function, also has practical meaning:

It scares off potential agressors. A Tibetan Mastiff with kekhor seems bigger and more dangerous.
If it comes to contact with a predator, it is a protection of the neck area.
A dog with kekhor is better visivile to the owner, so he can always know where he is. An outsider seeing the decorated Mastiff from afar won’t risk meeting it.

A real kekhor of Yak’s wool  you can know after a specific smell. Original kekhory from Tibet can be bought in Tibetan Masitiff Shop: