Frustrated, Need Advice on selling pups
 

So, I had a litter of 4 yorkie pups.. I have decided to keep two of them and sell the other two. I started posting ads for them at 9 weeks and here it is almost 13wks and still have had no luck selling them. I've had many inquiries and had two ppl look at them. I had a couple look at a girl, but their other dog got jealous of her so they decided not to take her. Then today, I had a couple look at her again and I made the mistake of taking my super tiny 1lb 3 month old litter mate with me. Once they seen him they decided they wanted a pup that was "smaller". I just cant believe people sometimes. My tiny pup is really tiny and the other ones are a little under 3 lbs at 13 wks. They should be about 5-6 lbs.. How much smaller could one ask for? I have yet to see a "big" yorkie. I started off asking $600 for them and have now lowered the price to $450 and $400. They are home raised and this is my first and last litter. I thought maybe it was because of the economy but after that lady said my female was "chunky" I got a little irritated.. It seems like people want teeny tiny dogs which to me seems a little unhealthy. Sure, there are 2 and 3lb yorkies that are healthy, but there are also alot that aren't. And these people mostly want them for breeding.. Yikes! I would just feel wrong about breeding a dog that small. I told the couple mom and dad were only 4 1/2 and 6 lbs. so the pups surely wouldn't get to be very big at all.. I guess i'm at a loss here.. I can't keep the pups forever, but i'm not going to just give them away either and they are getting older and it seems everyone wants one that's fresh off the teat.. But, I was told from everyone on here to keep them til they were 12 wks old.. I did, and now no luck.. Anyone have any advice? I mean, i'm not rushing them out the door or anything and I don't mean to sound rude, I just don't get it.. Another thing is, my girl has white on her chest which is completely normal and people see it and it's like they think she's not a full blooded yorkie because of it.. These folks just must not know a whole lot about yorkies... Geesh.. what to do, what to do..

Potential Yorkie owners who are have done their research beforehand look for a breeder who has an established reputation and is breeding to the standard. Since this is your first litter, you haven't built a reputation and unless the white spot on her chest is less than inch, your female is not within the Yorkie standard.

Yorkshire Terrier Club of America

The preference does seem to be for smaller Yorkies and yours will probably be on the high end of the standard if they are three pounds at 13 weeks.

You may end up keeping all of them. :)

I have no advice but hope you can find them good homes soon,

Anytime someone decides to breed, they must be willing to keep the puppies if they aren't sold. Also, a good breeder will always take one of their puppies back if it's new owner can't keep it at any point during its lifetime. Unfortunately there are so many people breeding pet quality yorkies, that the pet market is just flooded with puppies right now. I hope you'll make sure you find the best homes possible and not just the first person that decides they want one.

The white spot is within an inch and I would always take them back at any given time. I have had probably 30 ppl ask about them and I didn't let them go to the first person that has asked. The growth chart says they will be 6 lbs. This is an average size, I would think.. The standard is up to 7lbs.. And yes, I know I haven't built a reputation as a breeder... That may be most of the problem. I know people around here would rather buy from a puppy mill than a hobby breeder... so, I suppose I will have 4 pups if nothing happens..lol

To be honest many want a teacup "2 pound dog". Many do not care about standard, health..... It's sad but its true. As for the white on it's chest many purebred champion sired pups have this, just many who have not studied the breed do not know this.

You may want to sell quickly but #1 you want a better home for these pups, someone who cares more for health then size.... Their homes will come. :)

Good luck and puppy kisses to the pups. :)

The inch would be the size of the white spot on an adult dog, not a puppy. If the puppy doubles in size, the white spot would also most likely. Of course, you are not selling these puppies as show potentials anyway.

As MyFairLacy said, the market is flooded with puppies from backyard breeders, hobby breeders, etc. The supply is far greater than the demand.

Confused
 

Ok I am a little confused here....you seen to get angry with these people for wanting a smaller yorkie yet you say that you kept the tiny litter mate of these puppies. I dont mean to sound rude but it sounds to me like you wanted the tiniest puppy also...lol..sorry just an observation from what you posted.;)

:thumbup::thumbup:

You might want to reconsider and try to sell the tiny male since he is the most desirable and keep one of the larger males instead. The older the other males get, the more unlikely that they will sell. Many show breeders end up practically giving beautiful males away when they get close to sexual maturity.

Have you tried posting your pups for sale here on the "yorkies for sale or wanted section?" I'm not sure if you have to be a donating member to list, but even if you do, it may well be worth it to you. Lots of people looking for yorkies check that section. Give that a try and I bet you'll have interest in your babies!

Good luck in finding good, forever homes for your babies. As far as the white spot...doesn't that disappear when the pup gets older?

Haha...I was thinking the exact same thing!! I was thinking, "didn't you go for a tiny puppy??" So now you can understand what the market is leaning towards. I personally don't care if the yorkie is 2 lbs, or 10lbs, as long as it's got a great personality, and no matter what, it would become the love of my life. However, a lot of people think the smaller the better.

Good luck!

Yes, I did keep the tiny one.. But, he was the biggest when he was born and I fell in love with him because of his personality.. Now, it's like his growth is stunted.. When he stayed small I was afraid to sell him because I was scared to death that someone would tromple him. I have taken him to the vet due to my concerns but the vet says he is healthy. So, I guess what im saying is, I didn't keep him because of his size because I didn't know he would turn out this small. I am also keeping his sister who is the biggest of the litter.. And I would never sell him, he's already attatched at the hip.. Its not about the money, I just want to find them good homes.. And as far as the white spot, I was thinking the same thing. Of course it will get bigger as the puppy grows, but my other dogs had it too and theirs are turning tan now.. Hers will too in time.. And as far as breed standards I'm not breeding for show so I don't think the white should be too big of a deal.. I don't know I think shes adorable...and so is the boy.. he smiles! its so cute... :D

The white usually fades away over time and blends right in with the tan.

My rylie still has a white patch on his chest. It's probably around an inch in diameter. His has stayed white although you really have to look because his hair is long. But he's got a nice thick patch of long white hair.

I'm sorry you felt a need to defend yourself. There is no reason for people judging you. I hope you find homes for your precious babies! Do you have any pictures?

There is nothing wrong with you wanting to keep the tiniest one of your litter. Whether you are an long term experienced breeder or not, if you love your babies, you should care where they go and if the potential owners have not had experience with tiny yorkies or yorkies period, you should be cautious of just selling him to them whether they are in high demand or not.

I think you are doing fine. Yes- unfortunately with the economy and everything, it may be longer and more difficult to sell them right now but I still would not rush in doing so....or lower the price TOO much.

And as you already stated, you may have them around longer but that is one of the things that comes with breeding

Best of luck to you.

Not judging
 

I am sorry if you thought I was judging her I was not like I said it seemed a little confusing to me that she had said that about others wanting the smaller yorkies when she had kept the smallest herself. Some do prefer smaller and that is fine and thier choice. I just want healthy as I am sure you all do no matter what the size. Didnt mean to offend anyone:(

It's still too early for you to give up! I got my girl when she was 4.5 months and paid $600 for her. :) Before her, I had actually found one I was interested in who was 2 years old, 5 lbs, 1 ear up, 1 ear down, and spayed being rehomed for $450 and it was coming from a many hour drive from where I lived. Unfortunately, when I called to confirm the night before we were to meet up midway between us already with location set, etc, the couple had chosen to rehome her to someone local to them who already had a male yorkie.

I had also expressed interest in an older boy located in Portland, Oregon. Apparently, he was a bit of a barker, and needed rehoming because the owner didn't have time for him. I forget the cost of the rehoming, but it wasn't far off from what you're asking. Again, someone else beat me to it. :( I loved the look of this guy. He had the whole butterfly/bat-ear thing going. ;)

The above were all from ads found on Kijiji.

Yorkies and mixes in my area are fairly quick to sell. Sometimes it takes a little longer, but if they were priced as low as yours, they'd definitely sell no matter what the parents of the pups looked like as people just want a relatively inexpensive toy breed as their family pet. This may also be why so many end up in shelters. :( But the point is, with the right buyer, they all sell.

I guess it depends also on where you live.

The same thing happened to me. When my princess had her first litter she only had one puppy. I did advertise him but like you said, everybody wanted a little 2-3lb full grown. I was only asking enough to cover the vet bills for shots etc. Didn't hurt my feeling any, because i still have him and hes almost 2 yrs old and weighs around 6lb and is so sweet and here to stay. When my princess had her second litter, she had 4, two girls and two boys. We lost two, a girl and a boy. Well, when i advertised them, everybody that was interested only seemed to be interested in the little female and wanted her for breeding. No way was i selling that baby for breeding. It scared me to death, thinking someone would get her and keep her in a crate just for breeding. I kept her until the perfect family came along, but i did sell her and it was so hard to do, but they kept in touch and sent pictures. I turned so many people down that wanted her, i wasn't in it for the money, i just wanted that baby to have a great forever loving home. You just have to wait it out and a loving family will come along and if not, then you just might end up keeping them. I still have the other little boy from the second litter because everybody was looking for that little tiny 2-3lb when full grown. Well, happy to say, i still have my little 5 lb monster lol and hes such a joy.No matter how many puppies i have, if i don't find the perfect loving family, then i will keep them lol....im so picky :rolleyes: All of mine were good and healthy and still are. Good luck with finding the perfect loving family for your puppies.

when i started out i started advertising before they were born
it gave me time to meet people and get to know them, and it gave them time to save up

i did my advertising online
Kijiji USA Free Classifieds - Post & Search Free Classified Ads free
www.hoobly.com free
Puppies for Sale, Dogs for Sale and Dog Breeders

i include puppy packs, health guarantee, contracts and i always sent updated with pics to people who placed deposits (and to ppl who hadnt just to get their attention) explain in the ad about the registration papers, call for an appt, stuff like that.

now i dont have to do that anymore its all word of mouth and i have a waiting list every time i have a litter

i also did a free website, i know when i was looking i always looked online and i always looked for websites with lots of pics of the pups the parents and the house

good luck

I think It's a good thing that they didn't take the puppy. The right family will come and just fall in love. Maybe I'm the strange one but I like a bigger yorkie. If I didn't have a full house I would be calling you and maybe some one on YT will be calling;)

I think mainly it is the economy. I have only had two litters this year because I purposely didn't breed a couple of girls that came in heat. My last two litters sold really slow. I sold them locally and ended up keeping three of them to show for myself. I will never sell a cheap puppy. Sorry but that is the way I feel. My puppies are worth more than the two to three hundred dollar dogs I see in the paper around here that are such low quality that anyone that knows about yorkies wouldn't even want them. Problem is, people are not looking for quality. They are looking for cheap. Used to be a time when I posted my puppies on here and within one hour, they were sold. Then I had a two year waiting list for the two to three litters a year that I breed. I have been trying to sell a two year old adult female for awhile but people don't want to pay what I feel she is worth and that's okay. When my dogs don't sell, something is seriously wrong with the economy. My attitude is that if people don't want to pay my prices, they are free to buy a two hundred dog from the paper. I have big ones, little ones and tinies sometimes all in the same litter. I certainly don't breed for tiny but I don't breed for giant puppies either. I like a nice average size dog of around 4-1/2 to 5-1/2 pounds. Just hang in there and keep trying. Do not breed for what people want, breed to the standard, even if they are to be only pets. Price them what you feel they are worth and don't back down. Be prepared to keep the puppies.

Take some pics of them & put them on the YT For Sale section. SOmeone here surely wants a beautiful pup! :wavey:

I agree. I know a couple of the top Maltese breeders are going to stop having litters for awhile. The economy is terrible and the demand just isn't there anymore.

I think part of the problem may be location. I know of several people in Texas that are looking but won't do shipping. They are willing to drive a little ways to get them, but don't want to risk shipping the puppies on planes.

Good luck, I hope you can find good homes for your babies. :)

I have no advise but I do think it has something to do with the economy. Hope you can hold on to them until they get good homes:aimeeyork:aimeeyork

I would love a baby boy!!!! Do you have pics???

Well, I guess with this being my first litter i'm a little scared. I know how big the parents are and I refuse to guarantee a size because i have no idea how big the pups will get. I've heard of them having growth spurts and also stop growing.. All I can do is guess from size of parents. Another thing is, I'm scared they are ugly to other people??? I think they're cute but maybe they're not.. I've tried to post pics of them but it says the size of pics is too large.. They do have floppy ears still but that can be corrected... I'll try to figure a way to post pics...

I bet they are cute. Young pups usually have floppy ears. Both of mine had them when I brought them home. I agree with the others it is the bad economy

somehow id be willing to bet they are adorable! and as far as the floppy ears, my Oliver has them and i love his ears! I never really cared that they never stood up. Im sure your puppies are precious! Good luck finding them good homes! Just be patient...they will come along...be picky..:)