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Britster · 04-21-2013, 08:00 AM

Hello,

My name is Anna and I am a certified dog addict, LOL! I volunteer at the SPCA which I absolutely adore, and I am constantly researching breeds, the diversity always amazes me. I am currently a third year university student. I also own a chocolate labrador retriever, who is turning 11 years old this year. Wow, time flies!!

I am currently researching breeders of both yorkies and biewers. I am very much interested in biewers in particular (such beautiful colours, omg!!), so I have a couple of questions for people who own this breed. I am looking to add a new dog to my life in 1-2 years...

I hope no one assumes that just because I'm a university student and a young person (21) I am not serious about pet ownership... I try very hard to be a responsible pet owner.

Hi! I am 22 and got Jackson at 18. So young owner here too. He is honestly my life... okay, well I do have a life outside of him, but he's my best friend, my partner in crime. We do as much as we can together. It CAN be difficult at this age having a dog because sometimes friends just... don't understand that you have to leave somewhere early because of your dog, or you can't go out right after work, etc. I wouldn't have it any other way. I hate being separated from him to be honest and hate leaving him when I have to.

1) How active are biewers? While I'm not an athlete, I do enjoy going out and about once a week for a hike or bike ride. I also enjoy going on daily 30-60 minute walks. Would a biewer be able to keep up with me or are they more couch potatoes?

I don't know much about Biewers. I've met 2 in real life, actually there was one at the dog park the other day, and he was a fast little guy. About 8lbs and super playful and fun. Running around with the other dogs. I've heard they are a little less 'fiesty' than yorkies, don't know how true that is? But I think absolutely they will love to do long walks with you. In fact, I think every dog should be encouraged from a young age to get out there and be active and if they grow up that way, chances are they will enjoy it. My boy is a bigger Yorkie (17lbs) but he is one of the most active dogs I know. Just yesterday, we did a 4 mile walk, and spent over an hour in the dog park, came home and he STILL wanted more... so after a little rest, we went outside and played fetch up hill for 30 mins. He also swims all summer long in my dads pool. With that said, he's also perfectly happy to sleep in with me on the weekends until noon. lol. But he needs at LEAST 30 mins of exercise each day to be content, but I try to provide more, and the only time we do nothing is if I'm sick or it's rainy or whatever. Otherwise, he needs *something*.

2) How trainable are they? Do they enjoy activities like competitive obedience, agility or rally-o?

Jackson has enjoyed everything I've thrown at him- obedience, agility, dock diving. We've never tried rally-o. We're going to do Earthdog hopefully this summer. I mean, I don't think you'll ever have a Border Collie running the agility course, but lots of yorkies excel in sports. Very smart. Jackson knows over 50 tricks (ranging from playing dead, praying, limping, jumping on my back, and more).

3) Are they good with other dogs and animals when introduced and socialized as a pup, or do they always instinctively want to kill small animals? I know they are terriers, so I'm a biiit nervous. I own a chocolate lab and a parrot, who enjoys his out of cage time. My parrot is always supervised just in case when around my lab even though my lab has never shown any interest in him. I also have tons of friends who own dogs (one who is a yorkie!!) so the biewer would most likely join in on doggy play dates (once the pup is done shots obviously).

Jackson has pretty high prey drive. He hunts bunnies in our backyard and nothing can turn him off, he's very much 'on' while doing so. He has yet to catch one but I really think if he did, he would go in for the kill. Lilly, my dads JRT mix has killed baby bunnies before. Jackson has killed a bird before in our screened in porch, but I honestly think he would be scared of a talking parrot, LOL... I think it's entirely possible to have a bird a Yorkie especially when raised together. Now a hamster or a ferret might be another story, depending. Yorkies are terriers first and foremost but some have turned into more of a 'lap dog' in today's world. I find yorkies in general to be a pretty good mix of whether they like dogs or not. A few come into the dog park and just stand there by their owners and don't do much of anything or growl at any dogs that come by them. Then others will happily run around playing etc. I will say they mostly tend to be the bit bigger ones (over 8lbs), as the smaller ones get intimidated sometimes but overall socialize, socialize, socialize from an early age.

4) I know breeders don't like this question because it shouldn't be all about money... and I am not, I know the cost that goes into breeding and I whole-heartedly admire responsible breeding... but honestly, how much does a pet quality biewer cost? I'm talking one from a reputable breeder who does health testing, shows the dogs in a venue such as confirmation, and has a good 2+ year health guarantee, not just a CKC reg'd pup from a kijiji or newspaper advertisement. I live in BC, Canada... is it realistic to hope for a $1000-$2000 price range, preferably $1000-1500?

I think that's a pretty average price range from what I've seen. I don't think I've seen them over $2000, nor would I pay more than that.

5) How hard is this breed to housebreak and crate train so there is no separation anxiety? There is never anyone in the home gone longer then 4 hours, there are 4 family members and I have reliable friends and family I can drop the dog off with if need be, but if there's only one person in the house and they need to be off somewhere for a couple of hours all the sudden it would be nice to have a crate-trained dog.

Jackson house trained pretty easily. He hasn't been left in a crate while I leave since 5 months old. He's had free roam of the house for a long time now. But they are known as a whole to be more difficult to house break than others. I think it's just about consistancy. I had a really good routine with Jackson as a puppy and I always set him up for success, and left no time for him to fail. I think a yorkie can be house trained just as well as any other breed. Some will tell you otherwise.

I think the key is to 'treat them like a dog' and by that, I just mean they ARE dogs, they don't need to be carried 24/7 etc. My dog is spoiled like crazy (he sleeps in my bed, he goes wherever he can with me, I buy him new things almost every week lol, etc) and he's given amazing care but he still gets to go run around outside, roll in the dirt and worms, play in the water, get dirty and just 'be a dog'. I've never sheltered him from anything and he's become an amazing well rounded dog because of it.

04-21-2013, 08:00 AM	#10
Britster Action Jackson ♥ Donating Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Maryland Posts: 17,815	Hello, My name is Anna and I am a certified dog addict, LOL! I volunteer at the SPCA which I absolutely adore, and I am constantly researching breeds, the diversity always amazes me. I am currently a third year university student. I also own a chocolate labrador retriever, who is turning 11 years old this year. Wow, time flies!! I am currently researching breeders of both yorkies and biewers. I am very much interested in biewers in particular (such beautiful colours, omg!!), so I have a couple of questions for people who own this breed. I am looking to add a new dog to my life in 1-2 years... I hope no one assumes that just because I'm a university student and a young person (21) I am not serious about pet ownership... I try very hard to be a responsible pet owner. Hi! I am 22 and got Jackson at 18. So young owner here too. He is honestly my life... okay, well I do have a life outside of him, but he's my best friend, my partner in crime. We do as much as we can together. It CAN be difficult at this age having a dog because sometimes friends just... don't understand that you have to leave somewhere early because of your dog, or you can't go out right after work, etc. I wouldn't have it any other way. I hate being separated from him to be honest and hate leaving him when I have to. 1) How active are biewers? While I'm not an athlete, I do enjoy going out and about once a week for a hike or bike ride. I also enjoy going on daily 30-60 minute walks. Would a biewer be able to keep up with me or are they more couch potatoes? I don't know much about Biewers. I've met 2 in real life, actually there was one at the dog park the other day, and he was a fast little guy. About 8lbs and super playful and fun. Running around with the other dogs. I've heard they are a little less 'fiesty' than yorkies, don't know how true that is? But I think absolutely they will love to do long walks with you. In fact, I think every dog should be encouraged from a young age to get out there and be active and if they grow up that way, chances are they will enjoy it. My boy is a bigger Yorkie (17lbs) but he is one of the most active dogs I know. Just yesterday, we did a 4 mile walk, and spent over an hour in the dog park, came home and he STILL wanted more... so after a little rest, we went outside and played fetch up hill for 30 mins. He also swims all summer long in my dads pool. With that said, he's also perfectly happy to sleep in with me on the weekends until noon. lol. But he needs at LEAST 30 mins of exercise each day to be content, but I try to provide more, and the only time we do nothing is if I'm sick or it's rainy or whatever. Otherwise, he needs something. 2) How trainable are they? Do they enjoy activities like competitive obedience, agility or rally-o? Jackson has enjoyed everything I've thrown at him- obedience, agility, dock diving. We've never tried rally-o. We're going to do Earthdog hopefully this summer. I mean, I don't think you'll ever have a Border Collie running the agility course, but lots of yorkies excel in sports. Very smart. Jackson knows over 50 tricks (ranging from playing dead, praying, limping, jumping on my back, and more). 3) Are they good with other dogs and animals when introduced and socialized as a pup, or do they always instinctively want to kill small animals? I know they are terriers, so I'm a biiit nervous. I own a chocolate lab and a parrot, who enjoys his out of cage time. My parrot is always supervised just in case when around my lab even though my lab has never shown any interest in him. I also have tons of friends who own dogs (one who is a yorkie!!) so the biewer would most likely join in on doggy play dates (once the pup is done shots obviously). Jackson has pretty high prey drive. He hunts bunnies in our backyard and nothing can turn him off, he's very much 'on' while doing so. He has yet to catch one but I really think if he did, he would go in for the kill. Lilly, my dads JRT mix has killed baby bunnies before. Jackson has killed a bird before in our screened in porch, but I honestly think he would be scared of a talking parrot, LOL... I think it's entirely possible to have a bird a Yorkie especially when raised together. Now a hamster or a ferret might be another story, depending. Yorkies are terriers first and foremost but some have turned into more of a 'lap dog' in today's world. I find yorkies in general to be a pretty good mix of whether they like dogs or not. A few come into the dog park and just stand there by their owners and don't do much of anything or growl at any dogs that come by them. Then others will happily run around playing etc. I will say they mostly tend to be the bit bigger ones (over 8lbs), as the smaller ones get intimidated sometimes but overall socialize, socialize, socialize from an early age. 4) I know breeders don't like this question because it shouldn't be all about money... and I am not, I know the cost that goes into breeding and I whole-heartedly admire responsible breeding... but honestly, how much does a pet quality biewer cost? I'm talking one from a reputable breeder who does health testing, shows the dogs in a venue such as confirmation, and has a good 2+ year health guarantee, not just a CKC reg'd pup from a kijiji or newspaper advertisement. I live in BC, Canada... is it realistic to hope for a $1000-$2000 price range, preferably $1000-1500? I think that's a pretty average price range from what I've seen. I don't think I've seen them over $2000, nor would I pay more than that. 5) How hard is this breed to housebreak and crate train so there is no separation anxiety? There is never anyone in the home gone longer then 4 hours, there are 4 family members and I have reliable friends and family I can drop the dog off with if need be, but if there's only one person in the house and they need to be off somewhere for a couple of hours all the sudden it would be nice to have a crate-trained dog. Jackson house trained pretty easily. He hasn't been left in a crate while I leave since 5 months old. He's had free roam of the house for a long time now. But they are known as a whole to be more difficult to house break than others. I think it's just about consistancy. I had a really good routine with Jackson as a puppy and I always set him up for success, and left no time for him to fail. I think a yorkie can be house trained just as well as any other breed. Some will tell you otherwise. I think the key is to 'treat them like a dog' and by that, I just mean they ARE dogs, they don't need to be carried 24/7 etc. My dog is spoiled like crazy (he sleeps in my bed, he goes wherever he can with me, I buy him new things almost every week lol, etc) and he's given amazing care but he still gets to go run around outside, roll in the dirt and worms, play in the water, get dirty and just 'be a dog'. I've never sheltered him from anything and he's become an amazing well rounded dog because of it. __________________ ~ Brit & Lights! Camera! Jackson! CGC ETD TKP ~ Follow Jackson on Instagram: https://instagram.com/jacksontheterrier Last edited by Britster; 04-21-2013 at 08:02 AM.