Do breeders breed standard size yorkies anymore?
 

I've been looking for a yorkie, a standard 6-7 lb one. It seems that most breeders I've seen produce ones that are less than 5 lbs. I thought the AKC standard was right at 7 lbs or less but with most show dogs right at the weight limit. Is the standard changing or people here just prefer them a lot smaller?

Yeah, people seem to like them smaller and smaller :rolleyes: I think all the Paris
Hilton's, etc have made that seem very appealing to a lot of people, lol. I do
believe though that the standard is technically between 4-7 pounds, I believe.

"Weight
Must not exceed seven pounds"

American Kennel Club - Yorkshire Terrier

You just aren't contacting the right breeders :D my babies range from 4 to 7 lbs when grown - with the ocassional one over or under that range .
Keep looking you will find lots of them out there

Both of Rocco's parents were five pounds and he is 9.5 But I too have been looking for more of a standard size so when we get another it will be similar to Roc, don't want him to hurt a little one when they play.

:thumbup::thumbup:

I do realize that but this is taken from the YTCA website


All breeders may occasionally have an unusually small Yorkie (hopefully healthy),
though no responsible breeder breeds for this trait. Many breeders prefer a
general weight range of 4-7 four pounds believing that size retains desired Toy
qualities while maintaining optimum health. The Yorkie Standard states weight
"must not exceed seven pounds" and as a prospective pet owner you should
realize that even at 7 pounds, the Yorkie is still a small dog. (Females weighing
less than 5 pounds are considered by most breeders to be unsuitable for breeding.)

I like My Suzi's weight:) she is right around the 7 lb range> She still looks very small , and i'd be honestly scared to have a tiny running around my place, although as precious as any other Yorkie , I feel like it important to breed to the standard. However, even for the reputable breeder it is difficult to determine the exact weight a yorkie pup will be at it's full weight all the time. I think they do, at times surprise you. :aimeeyork I'd love to have anther Yorkie , and I'd still will go for the 7lb range :D

i also remember reading the standard size is 4-7lbs. is that incorrect?

i was just thinking today that if it wasn't for possible health problems, i personally really like the smaller yorkies. because they really are a lot easier to travel with. (i take milu everywhere with me, and it's so easy! :D)

but i rather have a healthy dog than an easier to travel with dog. so i still think it's VERY important to find a good breeder.

the AKC standard only says not more than seven pounds. There is no bottom weight. I have all sizes. My guys are around 4 lbs, two girls are six pounds and one is almost seven and has just prioduced the biggest puppy I have ever had. She will be built big like her mama. I do not breed for tiny but have sometimes had them. My one stud, Ceeby, rarely has produced anything over four pounds. He has only had two that have reached five pounds well actually three now because i think this new puppy will be around 6-7 lbs. I prefer mine to be about five pounds to six pounds. I also think that only unethical breederss breed for the tinies on purpose.

check out breeders.com you might have some luck there
from what ive read 4-7 pounds is standard.

The best thing to do is call several breeders and tell them what you are looking for. Eventually you will find one that has a full-size yorkie for sale. Both of my boys are over the weight standard, but that was what I was looking for. We couldn't be happier with our sturdy little guys. :)

I do not breed for tinies.. although that is not to say I would get one.. but I only breed a female over 5 pounds and like then at least 6 to feel better about my momma... my male is 5 pounds and I do not know yet what size he will produce..but comes from show lines..so knowing this I feel pretty good about what size I will be breeding..
anne

AKC standard
 

reading thru these post, it is obvious that most people posting are not familiar with the AKC standard so here it is copied and pastied from their website. Note what is says about weight. it is a misconception 4-7lbs

Yorkshire Terrier Breed Standard
Toy Group
General Appearance
That of a long-haired toy terrier whose blue and tan coat is parted on the face and from the base of the skull to the end of the tail and hangs evenly and quite straight down each side of body. The body is neat, compact and well proportioned. The dog's high head carriage and confident manner should give the appearance of vigor and self-importance.

Head
Small and rather flat on top, the skull not too prominent or round, the muzzle not too long, with the bite neither undershot nor overshot and teeth sound. Either scissors bite or level bite is acceptable. The nose is black. Eyes are medium in size and not too prominent; dark in color and sparkling with a sharp, intelligent expression. Eye rims are dark. Ears are small, V-shaped, carried erect and set not too far apart.

Body
Well proportioned and very compact. The back is rather short, the back line level, with height at shoulder the same as at the rump.

Legs and Feet
Forelegs should be straight, elbows neither in nor out. Hind legs straight when viewed from behind, but stifles are moderately bent when viewed from the sides. Feet are round with black toenails. Dewclaws, if any, are generally removed from the hind legs. Dewclaws on the forelegs may be removed.

Tail
Docked to a medium length and carried slightly higher than the level of the back.

Coat
Quality, texture and quantity of coat are of prime importance. Hair is glossy, fine and silky in texture. Coat on the body is moderately long and perfectly straight (not wavy). It may be trimmed to floor length to give ease of movement and a neater appearance, if desired. The fall on the head is long, tied with one bow in center of head or parted in the middle and tied with two bows. Hair on muzzle is very long. Hair should be trimmed short on tips of ears and may be trimmed on feet to give them a neat appearance.

Colors
Puppies are born black and tan and are normally darker in body color, showing an intermingling of black hair in the tan until they are matured. Color of hair on body and richness of tan on head and legs are of prime importance in adult dogs, to which the following color requirements apply: Blue: Is a dark steel-blue, not a silver-blue and not mingled with fawn, bronzy or black hairs. Tan: All tan hair is darker at the roots than in the middle, shading to still lighter tan at the tips. There should be no sooty or black hair intermingled with any of the tan.

Color on Body
The blue extends over the body from back of neck to root of tail. Hair on tail is a darker blue, especially at end of tail.

Headfall
A rich golden tan, deeper in color at sides of head, at ear roots and on the muzzle, with ears a deep rich tan. Tan color should not extend down on back of neck.

Chest and Legs
A bright, rich tan, not extending above the elbow on the forelegs nor above the stifle on the hind legs.

Weight
Must not exceed seven pounds.

Disqualifications:
Any solid color or combination of colors other than blue and tan as described above. Any white markings other than a small white spot on the forechest that does not exceed 1 inch at its longest dimension.

Approved July 10, 2007
Effective October 1, 2007

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THANK YOU! I see it stated all the time that the standard is 4-7 lbs and that is NOT CORRECT. :confused: The standard per AKC, as you have posted, is "not to exceed 7 lbs." 4-7 lbs may be the average size, or the preferred size (as worded on YTCA's site above) but it is NOT the standard for the breed. :)

[QUOTE=Disqualifications:
Any solid color or combination of colors other than blue and tan as described above. Any white markings other than a small white spot on the forechest that does not exceed 1 inch at its longest dimension. [/QUOTE]

One of my pups has a white spot that kinda looks like the state of Florida on her chest. It is not longer than 1 inch.

Where does the white spot come from in Yorkies?

Betty

Some people will try to tell you that means it is a splitter or a parti gene carrier but that simply is not true. In fact, most yorkies do have a tiny spot of white on their chestss. Gradually, it will turn a beautiful gold or tan. Also, the white spot seems to be more prevelant in some lines than others. Nearly all of mine have had this spot. This is the way I tell my pups apart until the spot starts changing. For instance in a litter last year, I had a straight line, aa ziggy, a dot and well you get the picture.:) You cannot expect the colors to maatch the standard until the puppy matures.

I have read that if a Yorkie has white on his head and chest when he
mature's he will be golden in color as opposed to tan on his head and
legs.
Buddy had a white chest and white on top of his head and he is
a rich gold color on his head and legs now so maybe this is true.
Not sure.

Thanks for the info.

Personally, I think they should have a bottom weight. 3-4 pounds SHOULD be the smallest and hopefully people don't try purposely to get dogs between 1 and 3 pounds. I just think that is so ridiculously small they can't even be a real dog because they can get hurt SO easily so they have to be so overprotected their whole lives. I understand things happen and you can't always predict. But I think there is so many people who breed for really small and that's not right. Yorkies were not ALWAYS so tiny if you look back in history. I know some prefer the tinies and that's totally fine. But a 4 pound dog is REALLY tiny. Anything less is extremely tiny. I prefer the 6 pound and larger range. I also think the breed standard should be upped a bit in the weight. Rather than not exceeding 7 pounds, they shouldn't exceed 10 pounds. But these are just my opinions of course!

I agree with having a bottom weight. The Maltese standard is also under seven pounds, but it states that 4-6 is preferred. I wish the YTCA would follow their lead.

There is too much emphasis on breeding the super tiny ones. They are at such a high risk of injury when they are that small. My vet told me one of her super tiny Yorkie patients was killed when he was accidentally slammed in the door. She said they see too many tragic accidents with the tiny ones.

I agree that there should be a bottom weight. I work in an animal hospital, and we just see way too many issues in the super-tiny dogs. For the AKC to validate that by putting no lower limit on weight is really irresponsible.

In my opinion, whenever somebody breeds a dog to a standard that does not allow them to live healthy lives in a way that dogs are designed to live, there is something ethically wrong with what they are doing. They are animals, not toys, and we shouldn't feel like we can warp them in whatever way we feel like when what we are doing does not allow them the vitality that they need to live the life of a dog. Breeding dogs too tiny is just one example. Humans have bred English Bulldogs such that they can't even deliver a litter of pups without a c-section. Humans bred for a sloping back in German Shepherds because we thought that it looked nice, and produced generations of dogs with serious hip and spinal issues. Humans thought pugs looked cute with deeply wrinkled, squished-up faces, and wound up with some little dogs who can barely breathe, and will sometimes die because of it when placed in "extreme" conditions that more hardy dogs can handle without blinking, and that develop painful skin infections in the folds in their face.

Just because the breed standard says something doesn't mean that it is OK.

My furbaby is 5lb 5oz and that seems tiny, I want her to grow bigger as she seems delicate.Shes almost 11 months old and the vet seems to think that shes done growing. How can they tell! Hopefully she will put on another 1lb or 2 and then :animal-paI wont keep treading on her.

1st I have to say...you Westie is ADORABLE!!! Second...a lot of us have teapot...the sturdy kidz who go over &, sometimes WAY over 7 pounds! We love 'em.

I love my teapot boy! LOL. He's a whooping 13 lbs, closer to 14 lbs now and the thing is... HE is still small. I can't even imagine having a dog stay 2 or 3 pounds forever. That's nothing against the people on here who do have the tiny ones. I'm just sayin'. Jackson still seems "small" to me at 13 pounds so... people aiming for 2 pound dogs seem crazy to me.

I agree I wish they would state a bottom to the weight. Too many breeders are breeding for the tinies. The ideal weight to me is 4-7 lbs

now i am so confused! i kept thinking that 4-7 was the standard because that's what i read in many posts. so i've been telling people that milu is not a teacup (because we all know there is no such thing, but the general public is very CERTAIN that there is a 'TEACUP' category.)

so milu is also a STANDARD yorkie? (she is 3 lbs.) sigh~ so she could be a show dog if i wanted to show her? just curious, because i had thought that milu fail the "standard yorkie' test since she is only 3 lbs.

but i do agree that it's kind of stupid to have "not to exceed 7 lbs." as a description. doesn't make much sense to not have a limit on both ends.

but i don't think 3 lb. is too small. i agree that they are fragile when they are small and i understand that people have to be over protective when they are that small. but is 1 more lb. really going to make that big of a difference? i don't know, maybe it does? maybe that 1 more lb. makes a big difference?

Thanks, we love her. She's a great dog and we're hoping to get her a yorkie playmate soon.

You could "try" to show her but the judges won't give her a second look at three pounds. The whole purpose of showing is to have your breeding dogs evaluated. if it were a three pound boym they might look at him but probably not many judges would seriously consider placing him altho it has been done.

I suggest contacting one of the members/breeders from the YTCA website. There are several in your area of the country. Good luck in finding a nice, healthy puppy.Yorkshire Terrier Club of America

3lbs full grown Yorkie is not small? :confused: I brought home my 9m week old pup and this is exactly what she weighed> LOL .IMO , this is very small. I know I could not have a grown yorkie in my home this tiny running around all over the place without always scared that she would be hurt. Yes, I beleive a extra LB makes a big difference for such a little dog! A incredible difference. I stil remember when Suzi could jump up and down furniture all by herself, it was a big event , she could do it, and even up and down off the bed! YAY, this met she was safe, and I did not have to worry she was going to break her neck .
I have no idea if your Milu could be shown at his size . I still bet he is a very beautiful dog. I feel like all Yorkies are regardless of their sizes. It just gets scary when they are tiny, and fragile. Because I think they are at more risk of getting hurt. I too, beleive that by The AKC standards their ought to be a size limit for the smaller end .