Tibetan mastiff puppies are displayed for sale at a mastiff show in Baoding, Hebei province, south of Beijing. Fetching prices around £500,000, mastiffs have become a prized status symbol among China's wealthy. Owners say the mastiffs, descendants of dogs used for hunting by nomadic tribes in central Asia and Tibet, are fiercely loyal and protective. 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.

Photograph: Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images