Do non-furry ears mean my Yorkie is a mix?
 

I have two Yorkies, one purchased as a puppy and registered and one rescued with little history. My first Yorkies had very furry ears with extremely long hair unless trimmed. I called my youngest a "Yapillon" because her ears looked much like my Mom's Papillon! :) After the death of my older Yorkie, I started volunteering as a foster parent for my local Yorkie Rescue. I eventually adopted a little boy who fell madly in love with my girl; luckily it was mutual. He was the first Yorkie I remember seeing with "skin ears.". His ears actually do have short fine hair and the "condition" is not due to an infection like "leather ears.". Since getting him, I have had several fosters with similar ears.

:confused: My question is: Do all pure-breed Yorkies have long hair on their ears or do some have short hair? How likely is it that my boy and my current foster are mixed breeds? I like to give potential adopters as much valid information as possible, but I cannot find a definitive answer.

I can say that in the case of these two skin-ear Yorkies, both have some non-Yorkie characteristics. Their noses at a bit long, their fur is rather rough and does not grow very fast, and their body proportions are different. My boy is 3.75 lbs but is not a teacup. He is very delicately boned and holds his body in a curved way that reminds me of a Chihuahua. My foster is about 8 lbs with very long legs. Neither seems to have that chest-forward stance I see with my registered Yorkie. They all have steel and tan coats, though my foster's doesn't appear tipped in light color.

TIA, Robin

Pictures would help

It's possible for a healthy full Yorkie to not grow ear hair. Simply means the dog wasn't bred to standard.

Share some pictures and people can help you guess pure breed vs mix.

Our Laddy has very little hair on his ears only gets trimmed every 3 or 4 months. He never gets the inside or out trimmed just the edges.

LilAnnCamp has a Yorkie named Crimson. Crimson is the cutest little girl :) She doesn't have much hair on her ears at all. They look like they've been trimmed down perfectly, but Ann said she's never had her ears trimmed. She just naturally doesn't have long hair on her ears.

Laddy looks like my Mikkis ears. She just doesn't have much hair there while Rosie has lots. You can see the difference in the two in the pictures. Is this what you mean by "skin ears"?

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BTW Welcome to Yorkietalk!!