Yorkshire Terrier Breed Standards

Yorkshire Terriers are unique in both their small size and their big personalities. They are a toy breed, and a full-grown Yorkie will not weigh more than seven pounds.

This makes them a great pet for those people that want a dog, but don’t have space to take care of a larger breed.

Don’t let the small size of a Yorkshire Terrier mislead you; they are a terrific watchdog and have the attitude of a full sized dog when it comes to protecting their territory.

How about we briefly discuss  the breed standards of the

Yorkshire Terrier?

The breed standards for The Yorkshire Terrier have changed little over the years.

The breed standards are similar in all countries and are discussed below.

Head

·        The Yorkie should have a flat skull on the top, with no dome, and the muzzle should be short rather than long.

·        The bite can be either scissor or level, but there should be no overbite or underbite.

·        The nose and lips should be black and the eyes should be medium in size and dark in color.

·        They should have an intelligent and alert look to them.

·        The ears are V-shaped and carried erect. They should not be too far apart on the skull, and should accentuate the           Yorkies face.

Headfall

·        Headfall refers to the long hair on the head of the Yorkie. It should be a rich golden tan and be darker at the sides             of the head, ears, and muzzle.

·        The tan color should not extend down the back of the neck; rather this should be the darker body color.

Chest and legs

·        The chest and legs should be the golden tan color, and should be rich looking and not faded or washed out.

·        It is possible that the chest color may be more silver than golden, but should be bright and shiny.

·        On the legs the tan color should not extend above the elbows on the front legs, or the stifle on the rear legs.

Body

·        The body is rather short and very flat.

·        The backline should be level with the height at the front shoulders being the same as the height at the hips.

·        The dog should seem compact and muscular.

Legs and feet

·        Both the front and rear legs should be straight with no turning in or out when viewed from the front or back.

·        The back legs can have a moderate bend at the stifle when viewed from the side.

·        The feet should be round and the toenails will be black.

·        For show dogs it is acceptable to remove the dewclaws on the forelegs.

Tail

·        The tail of a Yorkie is docked to a medium length and is carried just a bit higher than the level of the back.

Coat

·        One of the most important features of the Yorkshire terrier is its distinctive long coat.

·        The coat should be very shiny and glossy and very fine textured. 

·        The coat should extend to the ground and should be absolutely straight and not curly or wavy.

·        The coat may be trimmed to make movement easier, and the hair on the feet may also be trimmed for                              appearance.

·        The hair on the head can be parted to the side and tied back with two bows, or can be tied with one bow in the                center of the head.

·        The hair on the muzzle is very long and should blend with the hair on the chest for a nice presentation.

·        The hair on the ears can be trimmed to give a neat appearance.

Color

·        Puppies are born with black and tan coloration and possible mixing of the dark hairs in the tan.

·        As they mature the dark hairs will be shed, and they should not have any mixing of colors between the body and               head colors at maturity.

·        The body will be a blue color, that is to be steel blue, not silver-blue and can have no mixing of the tan colors in it.

·        The tan color can be darker at the roots and lighter at the tips and towards the center of the dog.

·        Again, there should be no dark hairs in the tan colored areas.

Weight

·        The Yorkie should not exceed seven pounds when fully mature.

Other factors

·        Yorkshire Terriers should also exhibit a bright and intelligent expression while they are being shown.

·        They should be energetic and lively during presentation, and should be alert to what is happening around them.

·        The breed standards of the AKC in 1966 stated “the dog’s high head carriage and confident manner should give             the appearance of vigor and self-importance”. This certainly does sum up the positive attitude of the Yorkshire                 terrier.

                           Truth About Teacup Yorkies

Ther appears to be quite a bit of confusion regarding the Teacup Yorkshire Terrier, and no shortage of people ready to take your hard earned money by selling you a poorly bred Yorkie..

Many people are keen to understand more about Teacup Yorkies, also sometimes called teacup Yorkshire Terriers, and it seems not many people, including some Yorkshire Terrier breeders who sell them, know much about them.

I found some info I thought was very good.

Here's part of the article reproduced for you now..

Teacup Yorkshire Terriers

One of the most frequently asked questions that we get is "do you have any teacup Yorkshire Terrier puppies for sale?" The simple truth is that neither we nor anyone else has a "teacup" Yorkie puppy because no such classification exists.

Sound confusing?

Let me clarify.

The official breed standard for the Yorkshire Terrier calls for adult Yorkies to have a weight of no more than seven (7) pounds.

To be exact, the breed standard states: "Weight: Must not exceed seven pounds." This definition was approved on April 12, 1966.

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Why then, you may ask, do so many breeders advertise their puppies as teacup Yorkies? There are only two reasons:

Fraudulent advertising for Teacup Yorkie puppies.

Some unscrupulous breeders advertise teacup Yorkie puppies to take advantage of those people who are not very familiar with Yorkies. By telling someone that they are getting a "teacup" Yorkie, they make the buyer feel that they are getting something special - as if one get much more special than a Yorkie at all :-). Beware, many of these people also advertise "toy" and or "standard" Yorkie puppies with adult weights up to 10 or 12 pounds. As stated above, a standard Yorkshire terrier must weigh no more than 7 pounds.

Ignorance about Teacup Yorkshire Terrier puppies.

Sadly, there are people out there breeding Yorkshire terrier puppies who simply aren't knowledgeable enough about them to know that there is no such thing as a "teacup" Yorkie. One can only image their general breed knowledge and the quality of their Yorkie puppies for sale.

I was told of a breeder recently who allegedly has adult Yorkies weighing less than two (!!) pounds all the time. The person writing wanted to know if we had Yorkie puppies of that size. I must point out that as of 2002, the smallest dog in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, was a Chihuahua who weighed just under 2 pounds at 1 lb. 14 oz. For someone to claim that they regularly have adult dogs weighing less than 2 pounds is a stretch to say the least.

One must also be cautious regarding the time at which a weight is taken. A breeder could happily tell you that a dog weighs only 4 pounds. If that weight is taken at 12 weeks of age, however, that Yorkie puppy will probably weigh about 8 pounds as a fully grown adult.

On average, Yorkshire terriers weigh between 5 and 7 pounds as adults. There are, of course, smaller Yorkie puppies born that will weigh less. Most Yorkshire terriers that you see participating in the show ring tend to be 6 to 7 pounds. A dog weighing 3 to 4 pounds is considered very small and often requires special care.

Dogs this small should not be handled by children except under strictly controlled conditions. Children are clumsy by nature not intentionally and dogs weighing less than 4 pounds are fragile, with easily broken bones. One must also be cautious regarding the time at which a weight is taken. A breeder could happily tell you that a dog weighs only 4 pounds. If that weight is taken at 12 weeks of age, however, that puppy will probably weigh about 8 pounds as a fully grown adult.

That's the end of the article.

I hope you find that information on the Teacup Yorkshire Terrier helpful. The more you know when looking at purchasing Yorkshire Terrier puppies the better because there are many breeders out there who do not have the breed's best interest in mind.

Take your time when buying a Yorkie. I can't stress that enough.

Our advice would to those who are interested in a Teacup Yorkie, would be to consider buying a well bred Yorkshire Terrier instead.

If you have made the decision that a Yorkshire Terrier puppy is the best choice of a pet for you and your family, your next decision is where to buy the animal. There are a wide range of options to consider when determining where to get your dog or puppy.

In a further articles I will discuss the best options that are available to you in regard to Yorkshire Terrier breeders.

All the best.