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Originally Posted by aanjsmom  first, THANK-YOU to all who replied to my first post..... as I said, I am trying to learn everything BEFORE making a dog decision.....that being said, I have lots of questions , hoping for answers.... ; )
1. A lot of you have spoken on the concerns with small children and yorkies..... I am wondering if having the children first , then getting a puppy is better than having the dog for a few years, then having children. I would hope it makes more sense for training, to accustom children to having a small dog, rather than trying to teach a yorkie to "share" his owner( since the census is that they are VERY protective ) ????? does this make sense? I would think it is better to have the kids first honestly. This way the puppy grows up with children- I have no children and now my dogs don't really like kids because they were never exposed to them. I know most people say kids and toy breeds don't match. However, I grew up with toy poodles so I don't think that is necessarily true. It is about the parents- my parents taught me and my sister from day 1 how to treat animals, we knew how to handle a small dog. We were taught to bend all the way over and make sure the dogs feet were touching the floor before we let go and not just drop them from waist high, for example. We had neighbors who had a small dog and small child and that poor dog was abused- the mother said many times she would not yell at her child over the way she treated a dog  That is where problems come from. My parents taught us respect for all living things and had no trouble yelling at us if they thought we weren't treating the dog right. My (long winded) point is- if the parents teach the children right, small dogs and kids can be fine together.
2. can someone explain the health issues that Yorkies have over other dogs....are they worse? that was mentioned more than once...and was it mentioned for expense purposes, or because I have children and that being a cause for concern??? I wasn't totally sure I understood why that was mentioned ( other than just General knowledge)....I have owned many dogs in my life growing up...all breeds have their own issues....but are Yorkies susceptible to far more etc???? Yorkies do have more health issues then other breeds, I am sure people told you this just as a General Knowledge thing- and maybe for expense purposes- I know my one dogs health issues cost a TON of money- but it is my fault because I got her from a bad breeder. The only way I could see the kids factoring in is if they feed her things she shouldn't have- high fat snacks for example could lead to pancreatitis. I would buy a good treat your pup can have and then tell the kids that is the ONLY thing they are to ever give her.
3. There are 2 breeders here in my province that breed Yorshire Terriers....but I am not sure what the KEY words are that I should be looking for ....or the RED FLAGS that I need to know. could someone clarify to me what is good vs. bad???? thank -you!!!!! : )
looking forward to the responses.......  |
Its hard to answer this because breeders can talk a great game and then not really be great. But RUN if:
* they say they breed "teacup" yorkies.
*they let the babies leave before 12 weeks old
*they guarantee you the yorkie will be a certain weight.
* they say the mom has been "vet checked" but has had no real health testing.
* they give a 48/ 72 hour health guarantee.