[jwash]

When I decided to buy a dog, I researched the web for qualities I thought would fit me. One was small. I am retired and wanted a dog I could easily handle, bathe, etc. I searched for about a year and finally found what I thought was going to be a very small yorkie. I saw her mom and dad, 4 and 5lbs, visited the breeder, asked all the questions I could, read everything I could, etc. I drove 450 miles to get Chloe, who was tiny and cute. She is now 7 lbs of cute, smart as can be and I just love her. She is, however, bigger than I thought. The next time I did the same, tried to get a reputable breeder, asked questions, etc and bought Lacey, who is 3 lbs. She's also a great pet. I paid more for Lacey but it wasn't because of any guarantee of size, it was because of her sire's championship lines. So, just how is a person who just wants a small yorkie able to judge? Not that I consider Chloe big, but people ask me things like, are these the same kind of dog? They are both yorkies, but size and coloring could not be more different. I guess when I do this again, I want to look for the right attributes and ask the right questions because I definitely feel I was not as prepared as I thought with the first two. I just made the best decision based on discussion, on site visit and I'll admit, love at first sight.