Hi! New here. Question: Yorkie as Jogging partner?
 

Hi there. I'm new here. Found this forum doing online research on Yorkshire Terriers. What an awesome source of information, this forum.

This dog breed seems perfect, and it falls inline with my family's structure. However, is a Yorkie a good jogging companion? I know that they are small. And fragile. But after my neighbor came over with her own Yorkie - and witnessing the amount of energy it had - I thought that the small factor will be offset with the Yorkie's never-ending energy.

I jog for an hour or so, early in the morning on most days. And I can hit the pavement quite fast. Do you think a Yorkie can keep up? Any jogging enthusiasts who have experience running with toy breeds?

Thanks!

Welcome to yt:D
I'm sure it depends on the yorkie if they like to jog or not, and as long as they're not too young.
My boy can run super fast when I'm playing in the house with him but as soon as I jog with him outside he acts like he can't do it:rolleyes: so he's just not the jogging type.

My baby Kaji loves to jog! We take a very hilly trail near Dodgers Stadium. But.... There are 2 things at play here.
1. I'm S.L.O.W. it doesn't take much effort on Kaji's part to keep up.
2. Kaji is a "bigger" yorkie. He's 7-8lbs which I think is small but most people think is too large to be a real yorkie.

What I usually do, which would kill a run for most people, is have Kaji on a retractable leash, and let him sniff and mark the path as he pleases. I end up doubling back A LOT because Kaji's stuck sniffing a tree or whatever. It definitely interrupts the flow of my run, but I'm use to it now. I've been on one run without Kaji and it just felt... wrong. I know that's strange but I miss my jogging buddy when he doesn't go with me. One downside, if he's spoked and puts on the brakes right in front of me, I'm left stumbling and tripping trying not to step on him.

I do agree with ilovejoel's recommendation. Never take a puppy. Putting that much stress on their little, developing bodies doesn't seem like a good idea. Kaji was 2 yrs old when we finally starting hitting the trails together.

Hope that was helpful. :)

I had a teapot that was 15 pounds. He ran with me while I was training for a half marathon. He could go up to 5 miles. He hated big dogs. When we would see one coming toward us at the park, my husband would pick Charlie up and cover his eyes and we never missed a beat. We just kept right on running. It was the funniest sight ever. He was an excellent running companion. So, if you have a larger yorkie, I think it would be an enjoyable experience for both of you. My new baby, Barney is only 4 pounds at this time. He enjoys walking one lap around the park which is about 7 tenths of a mile. I don't think he will ever be able to run long distances like Charlie did, but I am finding that it's relaxing to take a stroll around the park and enjoy all the sights and sounds.

All of mine would be (or would have been) terrible jogging partners. You really need to get a larger and less spastic breed for that.

Even when mine were young enough to do that for a few hundred yards or even a mile or two, they are very easily distracted. Training them to not be distracted by other dogs, animals or even interesting smells that can stop them in their tracks after they have been running at close to full speed, would be miraculous.

Who knows, maybe you could get lucky with a particular Yorkie like Barney's mom in the previous post, but not only do I think its a physical impossibility for most Yorkies (especially with a smaller one), but I think you would need to find an exceptional one to even have a chance. How many Yorkies have you seen going for a run or jog vs. the usual breeds...I have seen zero except for very short sprints.

My 4 pound boy loves to jog with me. He easily does a mile and sometimes two. However, I jog at about 13 min/ mile so slow jog. But, his litter mates are more cuddle bugs than energizer bunnies. It really depends on the dog, how far you want to go, and how fast.

By the way, my boy is 8 months old.

We have tried just walking but he prefers to run.

I walk and Joey prances next to me. Hes not much of a runner, but then again Ive never tried with him. My lab runs with my hub or next to us on the bikes. But Im too scared to let Joey run with him. Hes so small.

Uni loves to run, however I do not. It depends on what personality your yorkie has. I've fostered many that couldn't be bothered to run, except maybe after a toy for a short distance. But Uni goes on 2 mile runs in a hilly park with bf, and after wards she's still ready to go. At top speed, or even a good trot, a yorkie will far outrun a human.

Long story short, foster Lily once got out and was running (fast trot pace) I could not catch up with her at all. A 6'+ tall kid saw me chasing her and he tried to help and was doing practically Olympic sprinting and still couldn't catch up with her! She wasn't even at top speed and this tall kid with a huge stride at top speed was too slow! (We ended up catching her once she got tired.)

However, how long can a yorkie go at that pace? You said you're running for an hour? that's many miles. If you can run for an hour, then def you are fast and have been running for a while. You will need a good workout for it to be worthwhile for you. I used to run, and I was slow. I did 3 miles in about 25 mins., I'm sure you are faster than that. So in an hour about 10+ miles? I think that's FAR too much for a yorkie.

If you want to bring him with you, perhaps buy a stroller. Might be more of a workout for you too. :)

I go jogging with Rufus (my yorkie), he is 13 pounds, 1 year old and loves to go with me.
I don't run so fast and it's only 30 minutes almost everyday..
I keep him next to me (in that way he learns to stay next to me) and when I'm done with my exercise I let him loose a bit so he can run and sniff and do his thing :)

Last time we went to the vet for check-up, she told me that Nena has to loose weight (my morkie) and now I take her with me as well. But because she is smaller and slower than Rufus and me, I let her loose so that she can run at her own pace :)

I agree never as a puppy or in hot weather and an hour is a long time but if they love it, they should? know when to stop.

It's fine! I settled with a chihuahua/boxer mix named Jericho! Somewhat shy, full of love - and more importantly - full of energy. He's a robust little guy. Thanks for the guidance, YorkieTalk.