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I have book marked this thread. The information is so appreciated. Thank You.

Finally, a reply from a testing laboratory!!!
 

Below is a screen shot of a reply I received from Vetnostic, a company that tests Yorkshire Terriers (and other breeds) for coat color genes. They basically say that not all dilute (Blue) Yorkies will go on to develop Color Dilution Alopecia (baldness and skin problems), but there is currently no test to determine which ones will. Here is a link to their website: VetNostic Laboratories - Veterinary Genetic Testing - Yorkshire Terrier testing

I have to give them a big thumbs up for being the first company to answer my question!

Thank you Phil for sharing this information with us. A huge kudoo.

So where does that leave the breeders at? And I don't mean this in a nasty way at all.

Many blue borns die! So as breeders de facto we would like to make sure we don't breed for blue borns.

It would appear on the face of this response; we still don't truly have a genetic test for the more severe life threatening variant of blue borns.

But if you have the carrier gene for Blue Borns just how accurate is that?

If a breeder's program has been throwing the occasional (or even one!) Blue Yorkie, the safest thing for the breeder to do is to have a D Locus test performed on all of the breeding stock, and have all of the carriers (Dd) neutered or spayed. It's only a $40 test and is well worth it for peace of mind. You're right, there is currently no test for the more severe life-threatening form of blue born, but in Yorkies, I believe that it is common for blue borns to develop Color Dilution Alopecia, so it's better to be safe than sorry and eliminate the trait completely from the breeding stock. Here is a summary of possible test results:

DD = normal Yorkie coat color at the D locus--none of the progeny will be blue, and none will be a carrier.

Dd = carrier. If mated with a normal DD dog, half of the progeny will be carriers, and half will be normal. If mated with another carrier, 1/4 of the progeny will be normal (DD), 1/2 of the progeny will be carriers (Dd), and 1/4 of the progeny will be blue (dd). In a breeding program, all carriers should be neutered or spayed.

dd = Blue Yorkie. A number of these (perhaps the majority, but not all) will go on to develop Color Dilution Alopecia (baldness and skin problems). While not necessarily fatal, this can be a debilitating disease, making for an unhappy and unhealthy Yorkie. If a Blue Yorkie is mated to a normal Yorkie, all of the progeny will be carriers. If a Blue Yorkie is mated to a carrier, half of the progeny will be Blue, and half will be carriers. If a Blue Yorkier is mated to another Blue Yorkie, all of the progeny will be Blue. All Blue Yorkies should be neutered and spayed--it would be unethical to even attempt to breed one.

I have just retread all of the wonderful information shared here. Thank you so much, Phil, for sharing your vast knowledge with us, and I also want to thank the other members who have participated on this thread. You are reinforcing my information on genetics, and it's so very important that we have this knowledge to preserve the beautiful traits of the Yorkshire Terrier that currently exist today.

I sure do wish we could know how that little puppy is today.

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We are getting saturated with this issue I strongly believe, because of indescriminate breeding and people not spaying and neutering their breeding stock that are carriers or producing actual dd blue born babies. People are getting carriers that look traditional, they are not buying from breeders that insist on spay/neuter program, and they are breeding them with another dog who they have no clue of pedigree or genetic propensity.....and there you have more saturating the pool.

Great for the thumbs up. Until all responsible breeders get on board with the genetic pre breeding screening tests, then alas we will have blue borns, and off colored Yorkies, not to mention bladder problems, PRA. These are the ones that actually have genetic markers ascertained and gosh darn it, affordable DNA tests for the same!

It would appear that many at home just "pet" breeders do not screen for a tad whit of anything, nor demand verifiable screening tests from the stud they use. Having all your vet recommended shots, is not even to base 1 or understanding what you need to know prior to breeding!

Then there are the host of other tests and pre breeding screening that needs done, and yes to breed EVEN JUST for the pet market. Which is such a sad misnomer, perpetuated by mills, by bybers, and quite frankly by a huge historical record.

Unless your "pet" does at the minimum all the health screenings, the few genetic tests that are available for the Yt, and all the other assessments and post their health information on CHIC, you are all doing a dis-service to the breed.

Not to mention breeding deliberately out of standard Yorkies, and Yorkies who have health issues.

Of course most pet breeders don't even know enough to know if their Yorkie meets the standard.... So sad

Just finished up the thread again... Love all this info! But, again, has anyone heard if the pup is doing ok? There are currently 2 baby boy blues born within the last month. I certainly hope both owners will give updates on these little guys. I can't keep them out of my mind. (Mack is rooting for you babies!)

One last bump for OP...

Tony The Blue Born Yorkie
 

Here is a picture of Tony my blue born Yorkie
As you can see some do make it! Tony has had absolutely NO health issues. He is living a great and healthy life.
All except for the hair on the tail, his hair has grown out beautiful!
The hair on his ears also does not grow long so I never have to trim the hair off his ears.

I think blue borns have always been born but breeders used to put them down and not talk about them because of the shame that they put down an innocent animal and because they did not want people to know that a blue born yorkie was born in their breeding programs but now with the sophistication of the internet we are becoming more aware of them and are able to see for ourselves that they are not all born deformed or ill just because of their color, they make beautiful pets!

Oh, isn't he a cutie! I'm glad that Tony is doing well. I would never have guessed that he was blue born except for the blue nose.