How did you get your Yorkie?

[gracielove]

My Shih Tzu friend of 15 years had to be put down in December of 2009. I was never going to have another dog. My guy had been such a good boy and I didn't want to start over. Well, that lasted for a few months. When I decided I needed another fur baby in my life I started searching the local shelters and ads to find an older dog that needed me but I wanted a small dog and small dogs just don't turn up in our area shelters. We are a "big dog" area.

I was taking one of my cats for it's yearly shots and check up and there was a lady there with a Yorkie and some puppies. My heart just did flip flops. I have to say I didn't like the lady that owned the dogs but the mother dog and pups were of course adorable. I spoke to the vet about them and she told me they appeared to be healthy. She said she knew nothing about the line they came from but so far they had not seen any problems with her pups. She was a little concerned about the little female in the litter because it was so much smaller than the other pup. There were only two in the litter.

I went to see the lady and fell for the littlest puppy, a frequent mistake that people make. Now I know that the smallest pups are often small because of health issues. The two were so identical except for the size. I had no idea about the issues Yorkies have. I knew nothing except that that little face had to be mine. That was the beginning of my adventure. According to the lady I bought her from Gracie would mature at 8 or 9 pounds which seemed fine to me. She actually grew to a whopping 5 pounds! Having such a little one was frightening to me. Gracie has never been aware of her size and sometimes thinks she is a cat, climbing up on the back of the recliner other places only a cat would go. She refused all dog food for the major part of her first year of life. Thank God I found YT and learned how to cook for her until I found the right food for her.

I come from a family that knows dogs. Some of my family have raised and shown dogs for years. I have purchased dogs from breeders before I know what to look for in a ethical and quality breeder but it all went out the window when I saw that baby's face. I haven't had any health issues with Gracie. I got off easy in that area but it has been an experience learning how to deal with the terrier personality and her eating issues.

I have always regretted not buying Gracie's sister when I got her. I really would like to get another one but would like to get a pup from a better breeder next time. It will mean traveling quite a distance so I haven't really been able to do it up to now. I think she would love to have a playmate and I really want to have another little furry face to love.

[BabyGirl Rosie]

My sister in law had to get rid of two of her Yorkie pups. She gave one to my mother in law and asked me if she could give the other one to my son. I was very hesitate but DH and I finally agreed. Rosie was 6 months old when she came to us. She was suppose to be my son's dog. But she is all momma's girl.

Mikki, on the other hand, was a little more exciting venture. I had been looking to add another Yorkie to my household. I had been on Petfinder and had even emailed about a few. Every time they just were not working out. I am finally decided to just wait and get a puppy from somewhere. About a week after that decision, I get a text message from my friend. She tells me that there is a Yorkie for sale at one of our gas stations. She sent me the phone number and said the lady wanted $150.00 for a 4 lb female. I called only to find out that she was not fixed. I talked to her for a while and told her about my Rosie. She then said, all I want is for her to have a good home and offered to sell her for $50.

Here is the thread I posted that day. http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/gen...ld-you-do.html
I still like to read it because it was such an exciting day.

Needless to say, the way I got Mikki was fate. Now she is one spoiled little Yorkie furbutt!! And I really think she is glad to be here with us.

[My lil friend]

10yrs ago my husband and I were discussing having another child (people puppy),well I was discussing and he was firmly saying NO (we have 6),this is the ONLY thing he has ever said no to in 35yrs,so he must of known something. I became very ill physically for the next entire year,which gave me alot of time to think. I decide that it was time to take a different outlook on life,alot of things changed in our house that year. I purchased a tiny poodle,actually I purchased two,one for me and one for my then 10yr old daughter. They are Buddie and Bunkey.
Bunkey was my,oh so sweet,baby boy. He weighed 5lbs as an adult and went everywhere I went. He hardly ever barked and when he did he sounded like a girl,he was so tiny. Yes, he wore clothes too. I woke up one night to him having a seizure, he was very ill and gone in less than 36hrs. We never have figured out what caused his death and truely I am still not over it all. His death effected me so badly that my husband insisted that I get a new baby. I decided on a yorkie and was willing to wait. I began my research and found YT,I read and read and read,it filled a void. I made a point not looking at the wanted/for sale threads,I had a friend that thought that her female might be pregnant and again was willing to wait. On a Thursday I just had to look and there was a member close to me that had 3 little females,but I was waiting to find out on Sunday if my friend was going to have puppies in her house. There was one little girl in this picture that just stole my heart and all I could think about all weekend was this sweet face. I waited patiently for the email from my friend/no puppies. I decided to email the YT member,thinking that there was NO way that any of the puppies were left. In her response she told me that there was only one puppy left,that she was actually holding her back because there were two family members that were interested in her and it was the one that I had fallen in love with. She said that possibly I wouldn't mind filling out her questionaire (3pages) and I sent mine to her (2page). We spoke on the phone that evening (2hrs) and became fast friends. She said that she would give me her answer the next day. I didnt sleep and I waited and waited and waited. The next afternoon she sent me an email to let me know that she thought the best home would be ours!!! The puppy would not be ready until the next Monday,she had a vet apt. So I had one week!! My daughters and I spent every evening picking out names & their meanings,the breeder sent me pictures everyday and began calling her by her new name before she was picked up,"King's Minnie Mina". the meaning of Mina is "strong willed warrior" and it fits, she is the princess around here,the other dogs will even allow her to take food and chewys from them. When I went to pick Mina up she,her mommie and a sister from a previous litter were all dressed in purple dresses with matching bows. We stayed and played with mommie,daddy and sister dogs for over an hour.
I really had intended to wait until the summer for a new puppy,but this was just ment to be. Mina is my heart. I do tell her about Bunkey because he was "My lil friend",she is my sweet little girl.
Although I have had dogs all my life,I have learned so much here on YT and it has helped me be a better petparent to all of the dogs here. The people in my vets office tell me that I am the best client that they have because I ask great questions and even take new information to them. So I owe a thank you to the members here that helped me walk through my grief and helped me learn so much before Mina arrived.

[SWHouston]

Originally Posted by Foster Mom

I still cry for him at times. He got me through some pretty dark times in my life.

OH WOW, do I know what you mean

[CoCos_Mom]

Originally Posted by concretegurl

Doing it 5, 10 or 15 years means nothing...people can do anythign for a long period of time it doesn;t by any means mean they do it right. A good breeder shows, trains, is an expert of the breed in health, training, behavior, breeding, often knowing more about the breed than most vets, they are not "regular folks" who never health test, consider matching, know the lines and responsibly treat their animals with the utmost care..."regular" folks should not be breeding it's the reason we have a so many rescues, pounds,etc.

BYB can in fact breeding in their home and have nice set ups from first glance however they don't know what they are doing and they often give themselves cute names like hobby breeder-this means they just throw any two dog they think might make decent pups together and see what happens and sell pups...yeah and what SW Houston said but in a longer more detailed version.

Regular folks don't have detail AKC registries, know their dog's lines have heath genetic testing done, offer health guarantees re-homing policies CHIC certifications OFA testing and certifications and concern themselves with responsible breeding practices.

Thank you so much for your detailed expalnation. I'm not going to act as if I know all about the breed, because I don't I've always wanted a Yorkie since childhood. My mom....well, I guess she would be considered somewhat of a BYB. Yes, hers are AKC, and she knows the lines, etc. She doesn't breed her babies all the time, she spends most of her time loving on them. Regardless, I love my CoCo.

Thanks again for taking the time to explain all of that to me.

[concretegurl]

Darn I threw this thread OT a bit on my part so here's a funny story about getting my Yorkie (well Schnorkie Scoobers).

A friend knew what I was looking for we know each other from Chinchilla rescue.
She emailed me to tell me about a listing of a Yorkie mix that had been found dumped outside the pound in a bag with another designer dog breed puppy.

They were both microchipped but the "breeder" wasn't responding to contacts and they honestly were hoping they wouldn't.

I went online to look at the pic and instantly I knew "she" was the one for us!
She was gorgeous and looked so skinny and sad.

She was listed as black and silver.
Well I went through the process of adoption and the breeder never responded so I go the call we could come get her as soon as she was spayed the following morning. I was given some detailed information about her behavior and the special needs she would require based on her assessment by the behaviorist at the pound.

Didn't care she was perfect we had so many beautiful girly items waiting for her at home everything was pink from the mini kong to the harness to the super frilly dresses to the princess crown bed and feeder.

Well wen drove the 6 hours to get her leaving into a few drop call zones. Just before arrival we got the missed calls.

The adoption coordinator said there was an issue we needed to discuss could I please call her right away.

What could we need to discuss I knew this was a special needs adoption I felt sick thinking something went wrong during the spay????

I decided to go in myself and see before bringing the family in with me.

Well they brought her out-she was was a he!
Scooby is what they were calling her now and I brought the fam in Milo looked at her and said, "she's just a Scoob" noting her small size-about 7 pounds at adoption.

I thought wow what are we going to do and then i looked at this tiny skinny dog with giant deep very alert eye...that's how we got our Scoobers guy who is now a proud 21 pounds!

He rocked pink for the first few months and has truly blossomed!

I'll always prefer males after getting him.

Oh and he wasn't black at all he was just dirty!All that in the pic is misleading he was very re blond and did get some bark brown in his adult coat later.

[Silver Lace]

Hi,
I have to tell you that I have read with great interest how each and every person got their own yorkie/yorkies. But what impressed me the most was the way the men fell in love with the little darlings. "No, I won't have one" so many said but then when they saw them, it was YES you can and the love they had for them. My husband did say I could get my Yorkie but I must say I am kind of surprised at how he has bonded with him and Joey gets so excited when he knows it is time for him to be home from work. He waits by the kitchen door where he comes in at every night. And if he is late which he is often why he just lets him know. Where were you? You should have been home by now. You should hear him. LOL Thanks for all your stories. I really enjoyed reading them. And thank you to the one who asked the question in the first place.

[pkgof3 kd7kbe]

Yes Elvis is the name of my puppy I just got him 2 days ago. He is a rescue pet. I get to take him to the vet next week to have him checked out it looks like they had to shave his hair off but it is growing back some but he is doing fine not sure how old or when his birthday is. He has a great disposition and loves to be held. He is my dream come true I have wanted a Yorkie for years and now that I have him he's my buddy.`Just looking for some advice on what shampoo to use and any advice Thanks

[Marlee12107]

I have 2 yorkies. Marlee was gotten from a very good breeder who is trying to stick to AKC standards......She had to have a c section so she got her fixed & she came to live with me. Then poor Katie was given to a girl that only kept her a week & decided to give her up. She wanted 50.00 for her but after we talked she gave her to me. She is only 2 but has not been loved or cared for,. Didn't even want to eat out of a bowl when I took her, She has come a long way in the few months I have had her. So loving. Still has a fear of men.....was raised by a man. I love both my girls so much .............They are great!!!!