What are the 3 most important things you've learned about caring for a Yorkie?

[AllisonsLilRemy]

Hi Everyone. I've been on this site since not long after we got Remy.(He was 3 1/2 mos. old). He's just turned 10 months old and I've been spending a lot of time reading different posts over the last week for new info. I'm always trying to find new & better ways to take care of him, b/c he is truly one of the sweetest little boys ever! It seems like a lot of Yorkies don't really do small children, but my daughter just turned 2 and he LOVES her dearly, even when she's not as nice or gentle as she should be- but she's gotten so much better! House training was going extremely well, now over the past 2 weeks, he's started reverting back to 'sneaking' to go #2 in the living room. I have no idea what that's about. Nothing has changed in the home, but I'm trying to get him back on track.

So I said all that to ask, what do you think that the top 3 pieces of advice that you were given or information that you've learned for caring for your yorkie? (food, grooming, house training, etc. - whatever you can think of) lol Thanks so much & Happy New Year!

[nneessaa]

Not sure if I can come up with three.. but here goes

Teeth: the vet where I volunteer said Yorkies get the worst tartar on their teeth. Be sure to brush your Yorkies teeth at least several times a week (preferably everyday), and use chews. I just got bully sticks and I really feel just one made his teeth a lot whiter. He chewed on it for like an hour. I've also been using CET Vanilla-Mint toothpaste (smells soooo good ) and CET Hextra chews, so I am not sure which is making his teeth white but it seems to be working. I think I'd suggest bully sticks over CET chews as they seem less dangerous. You have to watch them with the chews though.

Exercise: every dog needs exercise! Even the little ones. There are some exceptions of course but if your dog is crazy hyper, try taking him on an hour or two of exercise daily. That's what happened to Scruffs, and in about a month he finally calmed down. Better behaved too. Then again, he had never been walked before I got him.

House training: I admit Scruffs is still not 100% house trained, but he has never had an accident in his crate and I recommend crates so much!! Scruff is the same way about pooping once in a while in my living room. Sometimes I feel like he just can't hold it... when he is running on the treadmill sometimes he tries to hold it in, but he just goes. I get lazy sometimes , and he needs like 45 mins minimum of exercise, so I turn on the treadmill, but he takes water breaks and is supervised and enjoys it! Well I'm off topic now, but I suggest crates as it is a big help from him staying out of trouble.

[dwerten]

I would say brush teeth daily

and low fat diet as i almost lost my boy yorkie at two to pancreatitis and it is prevalent in the breed so watch the treats and food your little one may drop i would try to minimize that - oh and it is very costly to treat and life threatening

and 3 for me I would be more cautious of where i got my yorkie next time

for you number 3 would be to be real careful with your little one as yorkies are fragile and dropping them, etc can cause serious injuries that can be costly and long term damage

Also setting aside a credit card for vet care or a fund where you put money aside monthly for care or getting pet insurance as i had no idea how expensive health care cost when they get sick

[AllisonsLilRemy]

Thanks Vanessa! I'm ROTFL about the treadmill. I've only seen people do that with big dogs, so I'm glad to know that it works for the little guys as well. And I'll definitely get some of the bully sticks. Thank u soo much!

[AllisonsLilRemy]

Thanks so much Debbie. Because Alli is only 2, she's never been allowed to pick Remy up, because I do know how fragile they can be. Sometimes she can just be over zealous with trying to hug him when she's bending down. I would be heart broken if he got hurt in any way, so I try really hard to teach her the right way to be 'gentle' with him. The breeder that I got him from, here in Arizona, was really nice, knowledgeable and she had very nice looking dogs with good temperaments. So I was very happy with the breeder. I just think that its good to get info from different people because no one knows everything. I also saw one of your earlier posts about putting money aside for medical emergencies and I totally agree. Thanks so much & Happy New Year!

[Lolli_lah]

1. The importance of keeping teeth clean in dogs. It's easy for people to do as we have a lot more available for our teeth and the maintenance of them than dogs do. There's a lot of research to be done in order to find what paste works best for you, if you want to use any sprays or gels or sponge pads as a lot of the toothpastes out there on their own have little benefit on the teeth other than removing tartar but that removal is more or less dependant on you.

2. That not every little thing needs to be checked out by a vet although it seems we all want to suggest it. Sometimes things happen and it concerns us but in actuality it's no different than when something weird happens to us and it passes with no alarm. I'm sure a lot will question this, but I have been a yorkie mother for about 3 months now and I can say that a lot of the 'little' things you post about that seem harmless but you are not experienced to know the difference are just that. I'm not saying that you should not talk to your vet or that you should not be that concerned with whats going on with your yorkie because I am constantly worrying about what everything means.. but if I took her to the vet for everything I asked a question about I'd be thousands in debt right now, and not for any good reason because my baby has a clean bill of health right now. A lot of vets will be honest with you and tell you not to worry about certain things or if you really should be concerned if you just make a phone call from my recent experience. But every vet visit results in a bill, even just an office fee. So making a phonecall instead of rushing to a vet for everything is more logical.

3. That food and treats and other such consumables are important. What we put into our mouths as a human is not always the same as a canine. We have a very large tolerance for things like preservatives and other things that are potentially long-run hazardous, but canines do not always have that same resistance and can become very sick very fast if we do not watch what we give them, and the signs they might be subtley giving us that something is wrong and it is likely food or treat related.

On the same number as 3, some things could be food related that have nothing to do with nutrition but moreso an issue of a dog having a serious choking hazard.

[SophieKatesMom]

The three most important things I learned about caring for my Yorkie (mostly learned from Yorkie Talk).

1. Walk her with a harness but keep a collar and tag on her at all times (just in case she becomes an escape artist).

2. Feed her good food.

3. Exercise is good for her, we go for walks daily and play a lot during the day.

[diane boden]

When I joined this site I thought I knew so much about the breed after owning them for over 20 years but you truely never stop learning.
I especially am thankful for the posts on allergies and itching as never having had a dog with it before its been a shoch to deal with Rosies problems.
That would lead on to number two, different foods and the number of additives put into so many comersial brands.
3 would be an introduction to all the grooming products you guys have available and which are good for the coat and which to avoid.

[CouversMom]

The three most important things I have learned from YorkieTalk are:

1. Types of quality food. Before this site, I thought the cheapest was the best, but in the end, you will spend more money on vet bills if you feed low quality food. Couver only gets the best

2. Yorkies are prone to collapsing tracheas. It is important that you never walk them on a collar... harness only!

3. How to find and recognize a reputable breeder. While Couver did not come from the best situation, I now know how to find a great breeder in my area for my next pup.

[Judy in Waco]

The most important things I've learned...

1.) Set money aside for vet care, schedule regular checkups and vaccinations and establish a good relationship with your vet!

2.) If your yorkie gets loose and is heading for the street, run AWAY from him/her!! Run AWAY! They will follow thinking it's a game and you could save his/her life! Microchip!! If someone picks up your pet, it's the ONLY way to prove ownership.

3.) Brush (teeth and coat) every single day without fail and ONLY bathe them every couple of weeks. More often will dry out the skin.

[AllisonsLilRemy]

Thanks so much Lolli Lah!

[AllisonsLilRemy]

Thank u SophieKates Mom! What type of food to you feed her?

[AllisonsLilRemy]

Thanks Diane! Which grooming products do u recommend?

[AllisonsLilRemy]

Thanks CouversMom! So Michelle, what do you feed Couver now? The harness does sound much better. Remy doesn't go on very many walks, he seems to like to ride in the stroller with my daughter Allison instead. lol But I'd like to get him a harness and walk him more.

[Judy in Waco]

Forgot a couple of really important ones!

Be CAREFUL with medication and poisons! Make sure whoever lived in your house before you did, did NOT hide rat poison anywhere. Check all packaging carefully! Some contain little packets of rat poison to keep rodents out of electrical equipment. Watch out for silica packages in packing materials. Make sure that all medications are carefully contained and disposed of properly. Put NOTHING dangerous in a trash can. This includes medicine, hair dye, razor blades, Nair hair removal bottles, etc... Check your cleaning supplies and lawn fertilizers for toxic properties.

Also, check with any guests about medicines they might have and any packages, presents that may contain chocolate.

NEVER feed people food and remind guests not to do it either. One little piece of pork roast could cause pancreatitis.