Is My "Yorkie" a Yorkie?

[Miranda619]

I have been told by a few people while walking my dog that he looks mixed or they ask if he's a Silky.

I wish I would have seen this site before I purchased my puppy. We probably didn't do enough research. I'll be the first to admit that I am very impulsive. When I saw our puppy for the first time I knew he was going home with me that day. In retrospect, my husband and I were were pretty naive when purchasing our baby boy. This was our first time buying a puppy.

The lady we purchased him from seemed legit. We went to her home and saw the mom and dad. He didn't come with papers but we have paper work on him as far as shots, microchip, and health guarantee for 1 year. She also provided us with one free vet visit to her vet. We're still taking him there until all shots are current then we're going to switch him to our current vet where our cat goes.

She seemed to know her stuff and she answered all our questions and even asked questions about us and our living situation because she wanted to make sure he was going to a loving home. She also mentioned that we probably should not take him if we have small kids. You figure someone trying to make a quick buck would just try and get him out of there asap no questions asked.

I originally wanted a little girl but all she had was one boy and we fell in love with him. I went back on line to search for her because I lost her number and needed to contact her. I found her ad and she was posting more yorkies for sale, but females. I thought that was odd since she told me she no longer had females. That was just a couple days after we purchased our boy. She also had a bunch of other types of puppies for sale, Morkies, and Beagles. I read somewhere to be wary of breeders that breed multiple types of breeds. So naturally I am a little worried about the health of my puppy and if he is indeed a purebred Yorkie. I would never want to return him but if he's not what she claims he is I need to confront her.

Now all I do is look at my little guy and compare him to Silky and Yorkie photos on the internet. I am driving myself crazy trying to figure which one he looks like. Of course now I think his snout looks long, which I never noticed before. When we got him he was 2 lbs, now he's 5 lbs. We haven't even had him for a month. I know he's a growing boy but he's 3 mo and 5 lbs, I think he's on the larger side. His hair doesn't seem silky to me but I'm no expert. I never questioned whether he was Yorkie or not until people started putting their 2 cents in.

Advice? Pictures posted. Thanks a bunch!

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[kari2001]

He looks like a yorkie with a touch of silky terrier in him. this is a very asked question because they look almost the same. there are a lot of yorkies who look much different than the standard look but are purebred. if the breeder is quality and has a background of breeding I think he is just a bigger yorkie. if the breeder is a backyard it might have some silky terrier.

[Miranda619]

Originally Posted by kari2001

He looks like a yorkie with a touch of silky terrier in him. this is a very asked question because they look almost the same. there are a lot of yorkies who look much different than the standard look but are purebred. if the breeder is quality and has a background of breeding I think he is just a bigger yorkie. if the breeder is a backyard it might have some silky terrier.

I've heard the term "backyard breeder" for the first time on this site. What exactly is the difference between a backyard breeder and a reputable breeder? Should people stay away from backyard breeders, do they have a bad rep? Thanks!

[kari2001]

Originally Posted by Miranda619

I've heard the term "backyard breeder" for the first time on this site. What exactly is the difference between a backyard breeder and a reputable breeder? Should people stay away from backyard breeders, do they have a bad rep? Thanks!

yes backyard breeders are breeders ho just are about the money and don't have experience with dogs. repuatible breeders have experience and work very hard to create better representatives of the breed. if your breeder has pictures of the parents post them so we can see them .

[kari2001]

but he is very gorgeous.

[deedeebear]

He is beautiful.

[Maximo]

He is adorable! What is his name?

Silkies typically have longer, narrower snouts than Yorkies and a different body build. Your boy's head and body remind me more of a Westie, but he definitely has Yorkie coloring and coat. He could be 100% Yorkie and just not conform 100% to the Yorkie standard, as Kari suggested.

Yorkie puppy coats are typically kind of fuzzy and can be difficult to manage. It isn't until they have their adult coat that you can be sure of silky vs cottony coat.

[gracielove]

Well, it sounds like you may have been dealing with a broker. They usually sell pups for other people. She must have been getting more pups in on a regular basis. They usually are good sales people.

As far as what he is....there is just no way to know. He sure look like a terrier and is a real cutie. I see his ears are not all the way up yet but you can give them some help by trimming the hair off the top 1/2 of the ear. It is a common practice with pups and really the official Yorkie cut involves trimming the ears anyway. He may look more Yorkieish to you with his ears straight up. Some people tape Yorkie puppies ears to help them to stand up but he may be too old for that.

There are a lot of people out there that have no idea what a Yorkie should actually look like. They think they are experts because of the one they saw or their neighbors dog, etc. There are so many unprofessional Yorkie breeders out there producing nonstandard Yorkies that few people know what one should actually look like.

You have a little doll there. He is as close to a Yorkie as many of the ones I have seen. Don't pay attention to what people say. Unless you take him to a dog show I wouldn't worry about other people's opinion of him.

[R-Teddy]

I cant answer your question as I am a first time Yorkie mama myself, and mine is only 6 weeks old. but I just wanted to chime in an say HE IS ADORABLE.

[nanahas3]

He looks a lot like my daughters silky did as a puppy but like others have said it could be just the breeding isn't what it should be. He is adorable though.

[nanahas3]

This is Petey at 3 months old. It really is hard to tell them apart as puppies though

[GuinnessStout]

Oh my he is soooo flippin cute I would not care if he was Yorkie and part hippo if I was you
He might just end up being a teapot.... I myself think teapots are the bestest kind of yorkies to have BUT that might be because I own two well rather they own me haha

[LuvmyOzzy]

What a cutie! Enjoy him.

[Marhcarter]

I can't get any of the pics to load, so I can't see this cutie, but my Huey is 1/2 silky, 1/2 yorkie, so if you look at my album, you can see what a mix looks like. I think that yorkies and silkys look quite different. My Huey has a long snout and his body is very long. Yorkies are square, like 10" × 10". Huey is 8" tall but 12" long and weighs 8lbs. He turns 5 in a few days. The best way to be sure, if it matters that much to you, is to do a dna test. They are not expensive and can give you a definitive answer. I love my little half-breed and think he has the best characteristics of both breeds.
People don't know what pure breeds are supposed to look like and many think because a yorkie is on the bigger side, that they must be a silky. On the other hand, I get many people who tell me that Huey "is what a yorkie should look like" because I keep his hair long, but I think he looks more silky than yorkie. Even my groomer thought he was pure yorkie
I got him from a byb, but she wasn't in it for money. She had one litter and gave many away to friends. I am very lucky that he is completely healthy, but I know there was no genetic pre-testing before breeding and I have no history on either parent.

[joyce evans]

He's adorable regardless if he is pure Yorkie or not. Don't let yourself get caught up on what other people think or say. Love him with all your heart. If you were not planning on breeding or showing it really doesn't matter now. There are lots of mixed breed on this site and they are precious in their own little way as you will see as you move about. One of the cutest dogs I have seen in person was just recently at a Petsmart and she was adopted from YHR in Louisiana. She was 1/2 Yorkie and 1/2 Chihuahua. She was a looker and stopped me in my tracks.