[Mary4]

I tried posting this last night but I couldn't for some reason. I'm new here and have posted a little here and there. I'm so thankful for this site. I have learned so much and I visit this site multiple times a day reading and learning.

I'm being a little repetitive here maybe but we got Charlie about a month or so ago. My cousin in NYC said they knew a "breeder" who had one puppy left out of the litter and couldn't sell him because of the economy. My cousin is a huge animal lover. He has two or three greyhounds, two large mutts, a huge cat and they just got Charlie's brother before we got Charlie.

I wasn't looking for another dog, let alone a puppy but there was something that I just "felt" that made me think Charlie was right for our family. My cousin said he'd drive Charlie up to us in MA and we all fell in love immediately and Charlie settled right in.

(Just as an aside, my original information came from my cousin's wife.) When I started talking to my cousin about Charlie (by then I had found this site and realized I knew nothing and this could be trouble,) I come to find out that he didn't really come from a "breeder." Apparently they knew someone from his wife's job who had a Yorkie that bred her Yorkie with her brother's or in-law's. They thought they could make some money and then found they really couldn't.

I brought Charlie to the vet and luckily he got a clean bill of health. The vet mentioned, though, that he didn't think he was a purebred Yorkie as he was already 7.5 pounds at 12 weeks. I talked to my cousin's wife later in the week and mentioned it to her, and she insisted he was definitely a purebred. (And it really makes no difference to me; we love him and he loves us.)

So I still wasn't sure what to believe. Then last week I was carrying Charlie down the stairs (he won't go down, only up,) when I fell. I tried holding on to him but we both ended up with very slight injuries (me with a very swollen foot and he with a little cut on his paw.)

Being a new "mom," I was overly nervous about him. My daughter's took him to the emergency vet that night and they said he was fine (and even said they wouldn't charge us!) But they told the girls, "I'm not sure what kind of dog he is, but he's not a full Yorkie."

Now I'm wondering do I need to know exactly what kind of dog he is? Is there a way to find out what he is? Like I said, it makes no difference to me or the kids. Charlie is an amazing dog with a fantastic disposition. If you want to play, he'll play. If you want to cuddle, he'll do that. He's just so content and such a good boy.

Of course, if I ever get another Yorkie, (which I'm pondering ... what is it about Yorkie's that make you lose all your common sense? You just fall so totally in love with them!) I'll know how to go about getting one. I feel like we got lucky that so far Charlie shows no issues with anything but I sure wouldn't want to push my luck.

Thanks for any advice or comments, and sorry for how long this is!