Thanks for clarification
 

Hi there,

I did visit that site a few months back, http://www.courtashyorkies.com/index.html, and was wondering why she bred dogs that weren't standard, i.e. heavy coats. I was also appalled that she charged so much including AI! I am planning on purchasing my first yorkie and toy poodle this year. I did find someone in OK who breeds for health. Before I buy from her I will be paying for a vet check prior to shipping to be on the safe side.

Thanks again for everyone's comments...I thought I was the only one wondering about this site.

Marlee, I'm with you. Anyone who doesn't understand why Yorkies cost so much just hasn't thought it through.

When we bought Bailey a month ago, we thought we might breed her - once - primarily to get another puppy for ourselves a year down the line. Then I started thinking it through, and talked to our vet. Actually, I talked to two separate vets. Some of the serious things that come into play are (I believe these are all correct - if not, someone please correct me):

* High stud fees - routinely $1000 or more.
* Small litters - typically 1 to 4 pups, so very few sales over which you can spread the cost of producing the litter.
* High risk of C-section births (Risk goes up as size goes down) at $1000 or more for the surgery, not to mention the risk to your little girl's life or health.
* Increased risk to your female's overall health. If she's spayed before she ever comes into heat, her risk of several serious diseases is a tiny fraction (less than 10%) of what it would be if she were bred.
* Vet bills associated with the pregnancy
* Vet bills for docked tails, dewclaw removal, and shots required up to the age that the puppy is sold
* Even the little things like food and maybe some puppy toys add up.
* And last but certainly not least is time. To make a great puppy available to someone wanting to bring this baby into their home, you have to spend time with it - with each and every puppy in the litter - in order to have well socialized puppies at the time they leave their littermates.

By the time we had Bailey for a week, we had decided we would have her spayed as soon as it is medically sound to do so - and work at finding a good, loving, reputable breeder to buy our next Yorkie from. I'm glad there are good people out there willing to take on what is required to produce a puppy for sale - but I'm not going to be one of them.

they are very pricey! that's outrageous!

Well, personally I am going to bookmark her site if only to check in occasionally to see those beautiful faces! Her prices are high, no doubt about it, but she has some of the cutest Yorkies I have seen. I also think the “tea spoon” comment is rather cute! It denotes precisely “size” in very cute terms, and that Yorkies cost an arm and a leg, should surprise no one.. As long as there are people willing to pay it, then don’t expect the prices to abate.

I have often been asked “ What does a Yorkie like that cost?” and I usually say “ They usually sell by the ounce, sorta like gold!” For me, truth is not an outrage, just a statement of fact!

Any "good" breeder will not try to sell yorkies as anything else but a Yorkie...They should know that this is a toy breed....no teacup, tiny, and what the H*LL is a teaspoon??!! this is a new one! It is truly amazing just what people will do to make money on these poor little babies..

There....now I feel better~~ lol

For 3,500 I could get a biewer or parti yorkie or even three yorkies that size, that is ridiculous!!! I mean 900 to 1500 is reasonable but 3,500, come on!!!
And to top it off I have not seen any dams or sires on her site that are standard yorkies, maybe the one named Kelly, can't really tell from the pic. I mean I might pay that much for a top knotch high quality yorkie that adheres to the standard, but she does not even have that!!!

My first thought. I hope whoever considers one of these is aware how fragile those tiny pups are and the real possibility of health issues. I'd rather have healthy.

And the one whose eyes are so far apart almost looks like a pekinese mix to me.

I would becareful buying a tiny with wideset eyes.
I had a Shih Tzu puppy once that was so so tiny and I in fact bottlefed her as the mother would not nurse. It eventually started having seizures when its brain started developing . It had a disorder called hydrocephalus. This puppy seemed perfectly normal until about 8 weeks old
"Hydrocephalus occurs when fluid builds up within parts of the brain. Since the skull cannot expand, the pressure will interfere with normal blood circulation, and the brain can be damaged. Treatment is difficult and dogs who suffer from this may be mentally slow for life. Hydrocephalus maybe congenital or caused by other factors such as a blow to the head. Some symptoms of hydrocephalus may be a large domed skull and an open fontanel, . Other tests are needed to obtain a diagnosis. Other symptoms of hydrocephalus include seizures, slowed learning, incoordination, involuntary movements of the eyes, and visual problems. Manywith hydrocephalus have widely set eyes that look toward the sides of the head, and have a lot of the white of the eye showing in the inner corners. Although this condition may be evident at birth, often it is not suspected until the puppy is several weeks or even months old. "
I rescured the mother of this litter and she was spayed after she had the litter. This puppy was as cute as a button but just could not be saved.
Now when I see a small puppy with wide set eyes I cringe hoping they do not have hte problems this puppy did it was heartbreaking.
Bonnie
http://www.upei.ca/~cidd/Diseases/ne...rocephalus.htm

Something not quite right with those eyes
 

I think they've inbred too many times, the eyes are really too far apart. That's not normal. I've seen normal tiny yorkies and they look like shruken down dogs, these look like they're handicap. I noticed that their comment page doesn't have a lot of actual customers, just people who've stopped by the site. If you've been in business that long you'd think you'd have some glowing feedback to give or pictures of people after the puppy has grown. They don't have either of those things. I'd wonder what the lifespan is on them also, they give a one year health guarantee but even little Noki(the one on the Today Show) lived to be two. Mostly, I'm upset by the flat wide eyed thing, that should tell them they're not doing something that should be done. Upsetting.

I agree and was going to say the same thing....but intead of a repeat.....I'll say, ditto! :thumbup:

I agree with you 100%!! :thumbdown :thumbdown

:eek: wow

Mine weighs that at 8 weeks!
Those pups are way too tiny.:(

devoted to Lucy!
 

The puppies are so tiny! It scares me! Outside of health problems, I\'d be afraid for the safety of the puppy. Could you imagine stumbling over one of them? Some of the ones I looked at had strange looking eyes!

I couldn\'t agree more. :thumbup: Some of those dogs look so weird ... their eyes are sll spread out on their heads. How sad. :(