What should I do? WE need anther Yorkie?
 

I am on fully disability.. My son is disabled. HE recieves income off my record right now. I was approved a service dog a year ago, and brought my first yorkie puppy home a day before mothers day last yr. Suzi has done wonders for the both of us, she has truely been great, and we are thankful every moment for her. I know i made the right choice getting a Yorkie as a service dog, and have never regreted it .
The problem is that my son , who is nearly 16 and high functioning , loves her so much that him and I tend to clash when it come to sharing Suzi. Suzi loves all the attention , of course she does, however, it is hard for me to (share) . When she is with me on the couch all comfortable he will just pick her up and take her ! I try and stop him, but it is too late:mad: Or Suzi again will will be with me on the couch, and my son sits down on the other couch and calls her, she comes running to him, and stays with him for a while, then jumps back up with me. Is this confusing Suzi?
I am thinking of requesting the Psych. Dr. Writing a letter for my son to have his own service animal. AND i'd like honest opinions about bringing anther Yorkie into my home. WE brought Suzi home at 9weeks old. I am here 24/7 .I am not looking for a tiny yorkie baby full grown. I'd like a yorkie who is at least 7lbs as an adult. I know we can handle a yorkie puppy. WE have not have had 2 though. Suzi is just over a yr old. ANd is full of it. I know we would have to be very careful.
CAthy

I was under the impression that a service dog was just that. Not a "family pet' for others to play with. I have also never heard of a Yorkie as a service dog. Where did you get her and how was she trained, if I might inquire.

Any dog can be a service dog there are no rules, or regulations regarding the size or type of dog. Each state differs in what they require for a service dog. Some states require a test while others do not. If this is something you are interested in I would suggest checking what the regulations are in your state since it varies so much.

wow, i see this is a tough situation for you on so many levels. I know there are different kinds of service dogs. with suzi being so small i take it she is an emotional type of service dog. I do not know what is disabling your son, and i see that he is 16. Maybe he would like a different breed of dog to be his buddy and helper?

my thinking is that suzi is a year old and you had her from a puppy so you trained her to be your service dog. you say that you want another dog to be your sons service dog, but you'd perfer an older yorkie. what if you get this older yorkie and she/he has no interest in being a service dog (ie doesn't want to spend tons of time with your son, doesn't like suzi, has housebreaking/training problems)? Maybe a trained service dog like a larger mixed breed/lab/golden/doodle would be nicer for him? ya know?

i'm just throwing my thoughts out there. i know this is tough for you.

Thank you,
This is what I am looking for, is ideas. SUZI is my Service dog, due to my serious /multiple psychatric conditions. My son who will be 16 yrs old, has High functioning autism, along with cognitive delays, meaning mild Mental retardation which makes him seem like he is much younger then he really is at his age. With the autism, he has narrow intersts. his our dates or actors and acteress, movies, dates of deaths, births , when people are born, when they acted in a movie.
A great distraction is the DOG> My Dog. Suzi is usually always with me. UNtil My kid distracts her .Which is mostly all the time when he's home. COnfuses Suzi, of course, she is a friendly little sweet dog , though, but he has nicknames for her too.
My son has severe allergies> the dog would have to be a hypo allergenic kind. I am unsure if it ought to be a grown dog. I have thought the dog would have or could have behavioral issues already? and wating to train a dog for a service animal then it is best to start out as a puppy, correct? We live in a apartment, so the dog needs to be small.
Any other suggestion? Even a mixed breed? A yorkie Poo? I wonder who breeds them in my area? I am not fond of CHi's That is a no go . I think Anther Yorkie would be ok? Just not a super tiny ! Any other suggestions?

There are several small breed dogs that are larger in size than a yorkie say the 10-15lb range that might work better for your son
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This is a large list you should check it out you might find what you are looking for
Dogs Good For Allergy Suffers, Hypo-allergenic dogs

hmm, other small hypoallergenic breeds that would be good with your son. Since he is allergic i don't think i would recommend a mixed breed now, you never know what your gonna get with a mix, even if you mix two hypoallergenic breeds together. i wouldn't chance it. But here are some breeds that might be good: Poodle (toy or mini), Min. Schnauzer, Shih-tzu, maltese, or havanese.

Or what about applying for a dog through a company that trains service dogs for people with disabilities. I'm sure they get people with allergies so they must have some hypoallergenic dogs too. this place TLCAD provides service dogs to people in san diego county (i'm not sure where your from exactly) and they train for autism. There are probably others like this one in CA (since its a huge state) and they might be able to help you.

There are several people on YT that have Yorkie's as service dogs . Suzi being so young, she needs to be handled be family members to become a well socialized animal , + when we are out in public.
A service can be propperly trained by it's owner, or a professional. Acccording to the ADA. When a dog is working the service animal is not allowed to be touched by the general public, because it is trained to follow directions by it's owner, and can become confused or distracted.
I got her as a puppy and got her from a breeder. I went through certain steps to obtain a service animal through my DR's and where I live , which there is a no pet policy . It was a process to be approved and therfore needed to follow strict guidelines set forth by the law, and housing regulations before bringing her into my living arrangements.
This will apply also to my son who is disabled as well, under different circumstances who meets a critera of full disability , under ADA that he has had since he has been a very young age. Now that he is older, his disability is not the kind that goes away, it is for life>

That's great THank you so much! This is only for San diego county residents? My father has a house in S.D. I might be able to use his Address? Or is this too sneaky? It's my son's grandfather. To dishonest? I wonder if they would make exceptions? Or I'd be better off looking first in my area . I am located in the San Joaquin Valley> Close to Fresno Area. Do you no of aything out my way? Wher ecould I start looking? I thank you for your information. Very much. To everybody who has helpd me.

I don't know very much about the actual service dog part of your situation. But I do have experience with bringing home another yorkie! Copper was just over a year old when we brought Rocky home, They did wonderful together. He was almost 2 when I brough Maddie home. It took him a little longer to warm up, but they enjoy eachother's company very much. It shouldn't be to hard to find a yorkie that is arround 7lbs.

However if your considering different breeds as well I would like to recomend the Coton De Tulear they are a bit sturdier than a yorkie. But they have a wonderful calm sweet temperment and don't shed. They love their people too like yorkies:)

Thank you
 

thanks so much for answering my questions. wow...we learn new things every day:) all the best of luck to you.

You can call that place, tell them your situation and see what they say. maybe they'd still be willing to help even if you and your son don't live in the area, at least your father does.

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Ok so i just did a quick google search for "San Joaquin Valley service dogs" and here are a few places i came up with. I read a little bit of each site just to see what they were about but i know nothing really of them. if your interested i'd say to call or email them, tell them your situation and what your looking for. hopefully one will be able to help you.

Canine Caretakers for Life Main
Canine Support Teams
Assistance_Dogs

also go here Wolf Packs® - Service Dog Trainers and click on California. this will give you a big list of service dog trainers/associates.

I have not heard of this breed before . Coton De Tulear. I will do research on it and learn more. Are they big? They have have fancy name too. Are there many breeders out there? Or is it going to hard to find one?
Thank you for your support. i am interested in finding out more about this breed.

WOW, this is going to be a huge help. A very big thanks to you.
Cathy

your welcome! i hope it does help if you decide to go this route.

oh yes these are cute little fluffy dogs. They're not very popular in my area yet but i have seen a few.

here is the USA Coton De Tulear club website and information about the breed. General Information they originate from Madagascar, how cool is that!

I think it would be a wonderful idea to have a service dog for your autistic son. It does sound like his issues might be better address with a dog that is trained to his disability. Is it your hope that he might some day be able to leave home and live independently? Is that a possibility? If there is even a slight chance that would make it even more important that the right dog be matched to your son. This is a very interesting thread and I hope that you keep us updated to what you are able to find out.

Thank you,
My son, Matt, is high fuctioning. He is verbal, yet , with the cognitive delays, he falls far below average . He is in a SDC classroom , goes to school out of town is gone from 6:15am-5pm during the week days.
Now that we have Suzi , we are sharing her. Matt loves her so much as I do .ANd it is hard at times for me. ANd for him, I don't like it when he just takes her off my lap... However, he needs to spend time with her too.. Matt is wonderful with Suzi, no problems , or issues> He wants Suzi to sleep on his bed, i will not let her. But, Every morning, i'll still be sleeping and Matt takes Suzi off my bed , and She's with him, then he lets her out of his room, she "attacks" me! LOL .
I guess you could call it Doggie Rivarly! Matt needs his own service animal. I just do not know what kind yet or if it ought to be a yorkie, or what would be good to have with Suzi? She is only a little 7-8 lber. I would not mind anther yorkie around, Matt loves the Yorkie Breed, considering how much he Loves Suzi>
I understand I need to go through the same approvals I had to when getting Suzi for a service animal > However, if this worked out, and he is approved, I am looking at anther service animal for my disabled son. He is not going to be living on his own , due to the cognitive delays, and if he did he would need the support services , such as a developmental disabled home for adults > however, i would not do that to him, unless that is what he wanted to do. But, if he was 30, YES, that is something he might consider> i am a single parent and he is my only child.

Ha ha! It sounds like he is doing some pretty typical kids things to me with Suzi ;) The point of my question was that if he did ever decide that he would like to transition away form home to an assisted living situation I would think that having a professionally trained service animal would be a wise choice for him. A few years ago I took a class and was certified as a disability childhood advocate and there are a lot of wonderful services that you could be offered when he is no longer eligible for disability services through your school district. I believe it is 19 they start the process of finding services as an adult but I am sure that you already know this information. Keeping this in mind, it might be wise to really think about different scenarios that you both may face in the future. He might be able to work through a local program and want to take his service dog along. A dog trained specifically to react to his disability would be a wonderful asset to his even small independence.

You sound like a wonderful and loving mom to want the very best for your son. :)

Well... the way I see it is a fairly normal situation. I don't think it confuses Suzi at all. Everyone usually has "family dogs." Growing up, I got Daisy, our Golden Retriever, for my 5th birthday. Well, of course I was too young to take care of her myself so even though technically she was *my* dog... she was really my parents dog. She would love on me sometimes and come cuddle with me and give me kisses... but she was my dad's dog. She slept with him, she listened to him, he fed her, etc. So, that part of it sounds like a very normal situation and I don't think you should be jealous when Suzi wants to be with your son. You also have to think.. IF you get a dog for him, you will have to make sure he is the sole caretaker of her (or at least most of the time) so that the new dog would connect with him. If you're the one it, taking care of it, etc... it's going to look at you as it's owner as well, just like Suzi does.

Second, I think it'd be really cool if you got another Yorkie and don't see the problem! :) But, I love having more than one dog so maybe I'm biased.

They are not very big, about 12-15 lbs my grandmother and her sister both have one as companion dogs. The reason I suggested is because they are smart, don't shed, and great people dogs just like the yorkies. But they are not terriers and they are a little more mellow, but still playful. They are quite a bit sturdier. They need to be brushed, but tend to stay very clean and no smell, so they don't have to be bathed very often at all. They are a easy maintanence dog:) I ofcouse would love to see you get another yorkie, but for me a coton would be a close second. They are also very cute and soft and fluffy. As far as breeders go there are not a ton out there but they are deffanately findable.