The nightmare of owning a "tiny":

[Rae Rae]

Good post on tea-cups! I'm glad your babies OK. I agree w/ you, 4-5 lbs is already tiny. I don't get why some people think anything about 4lbs is large

[Furflurry]

Good post. I'm glad this information is getting put out there. I am a first time Yorkie owner and my little guy is almost 5 lbs. Taking care of him has been quite a learning curve compared to my 60 lb. golden retriever and 2 cats who are both over 10 lbs. I'd like to say I think more responsibility needs to be put on the breeder for educating the people they are selling these dogs to. I had not done much research before getting my yorkie because I was not in the market for another dog. I guess you could say it was almost an impulse buy, when I saw the little guy's face I had to bring him home. I've also never "bought" a dog, I've always adopted from shelters. The lady I bought him from (a friend of a co-worker) did not inform me of any of the challenges and potential hazards of having such a small dog. Now that I know and have read up on the breed, I am the first to educate anyone who asks me about yorkies or other small breeds. It is the breeder's duty and responsibility to make sure that people are aware of the needs of these dogs so that they can have healthy and safe environments in which to live. Never assume people know. I didn't know what questions to ask so I didn't get the information I needed. I also take responsibility for my ignorance and know that it is also the owner's responsibility to educate themselves. But, as a first line of defense, the breeders should ensure that their animals will have the best educated parent they can possibly have.

Thanks for letting me have my say.

[BAER]

When i got my baby he weighted 1lb 7ozs he was so cute. Every where I went people ho and ha over him which is nice. but they didn't know how much I worried over him I cryed many nights over him. thought I was going to lose him over any thing. I just drove my vet nuts. he was just like have a new born baby. I told my husband and many other people I would never want a smaller yorkie or any other breed that small. To many worries. They are cute and seem more cuddley. but My now 5 lb healthy baby is just as cute and loving and totally spoiled as any smaller dog.

[Patti]

So glad your baby is ok after that scare. Cali was 1 lb at 10 weeks but from normal size parents. The breeder thought she would be about 3 lbs. Cali had a very sickly first 8 months. She is 13 months now and doing much better and she is 4 1/2 lbs and still seems so tiny. I am glad she got bigger than predicted.

[Luk Tan]

very good posting. I'm glad your Mazie is fine now. I hope your story will make people who are looking for tiny think twice before purchasing them.

[paulapoo]

Wow, I can't imagine how scared you must have been. Thank God she's alright. I had a 3 pound boy. I don't have children, but when my neice had just started walking I was constantly worried that she was going to fall backwards on her bottom and squish him.(he loved her) After he passed I got another little boy and that was one thing I was concerned about. I definately wanted my new baby to have a little more weight on him. He's 7 pounds and healthy as a horse. I think the whole idea of wanting a very small dog is wrong. It seems its more about how other people will fuss over it rather than the health and safety of the dog. Just my opinion.

[sukj12]

Thanks for posting! Frodo, my furbaby, is actually a bigger size yorkie - right now, he just made it past 9 pounds, and he's a yorkie mix. But when he was younger, he was TINY, and at 6 months of age, he was about 4-5 pounds, abd he broke his leg just jumping around a bit on the ground, no doubt due to his size. It's incredibly important to keep a very CLOSE eye on tiny pups - we learned our lesson and will be searching for bigger sized yorkies when we decide to get another addition to our family!

[RMKC]

Thanks for sharing your Story,and happy your baby is ok ! It should be bumped up every day so some of our members can see it !

[Annie&Badger]

Thank you for sharing your story. I think you've raised some very valid points. It's sad to me to see so much emphasis (and sadly quite a bit of it on this very forum) amongst people to have the smallest Yorkie without any regard for the myriad health and handling problems these tiny creatures are at risk of. I think it's the height of selfish vanity to want a dog so small just to carry round like it's some kind of fashion accessory so you can say 'I have the smallest!' and for people to knowingly breed them as such. I'm very glad Mazie is okay. Annie x

[TeddyandTiffy]

Who would of ever thought that could of happened? I'm so glad your baby is doing fine and if U hadn't acted quick as U did...Well lets don't even go there! I'm so glad U posted this for US who need to know about the tiny Yorkies. Would U mind if I told U're story to people who want a TINY Yorkie??? Just to let them know this could happen to one so little...I mean it's a prime example...Here there are ads in our local paper all the time about "Teacup Yorkies" it make me so upset to see these for I know from ALL THE TALK here there is NO SUCH thing and yes accident can/do happen and we have little babies, but as one posted on my post...MONEY IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL!!! and she is right it is...I tell the truth about my babies & (I'm not charging no less or no more for a bigger or smaller one of my babies...Prices is ALL the same)and if they don't like that they are a little bigger then U're average Yorkie then so be it! I may end up with a houseful of babies but God richly blessed me with them and no matter their size I love them!! Thanks again so very much on your story!! It really does help us (ME) new breeders to understand about the dangers of having a Tiny Yorkie! OR even breeding for a tiny!! I'll keep U all in my prayers!! God Bless & Hugs, Lee & Babies

[reneesalter6538]

My Girl Is 8 Lbs She Loves To Eat

And My Boy Is 3 Lbs He Is Very Picky

[Maddie-Rudy-Mom]

Great post and so glad to hear Mazie is doing well. I am blessed with four yorkies, two that weigh less then 3 lbs, both came from average size parents. All sizes of unhealthy yorkies come from bad breeders. I think it is a personal preference on what size yorkie you want and with the help of all the YT members with there different sizes of yorkies, you and your yorkie regardless of it's size will be in good hands.

[JiggityJig]

Originally Posted by paulapoo

I think the whole idea of wanting a very small dog is wrong. It seems its more about how other people will fuss over it rather than the health and safety of the dog. Just my opinion.

Ok, again, I want to be really careful NOT to insult anyone with smaller dogs, and why/how could I, when obviously I own one MYSELF! But in many, many cases, I think you're right.

When I'm out in public with Mazie and Kiki, people are understandably always surprised to learn that Kiki (around four lbs now) is the PUPPY, and that Mazie at half that size is almost full grown. I guess it's the novelty of that that captures people, and again, I suppose that's human nature, and understandable.

But it's just gotten outrageous, I think, the sense of competitiveness about the size of a DOG! Over and over here we read the same frustrations about people making SIZE COMMENTS when we're out with our yorkies. And it doesn't matter how small a dog is, someone's ALWAYS got to mention one smaller.

Good grief, when I had Mazie at the vet getting a check up after her accident, a guy turned to me and sd., "My mom has a pom at home that would make that dog look like a giant." I just sort of looked at him like he was an idiot, turned to the lady next to me, and told her why we were there. I'm sure the point was entirely lost on him....all he was worried about was winning some fictitious "world's smallest dog contest" he was running in his head.

It is so hard for me sometimes when I'm out in public with Mazie, and everyone is making such a big deal out of her. Even BEFORE this happened, I always felt like I had to make, "yeah, but you really don't want a dog this small...." comments. But people just don't want to hear it...they just go on and on about how, "Yeah, but I just want a dog that can sit with me on the couch and watch TV". Okaaaaay....well, if that's all you want, a five lb dog can do that! And a 10 lb, and 15 lb, and 20 lb, and up, depending on how far you want to skooch over.

Eh, I know I'm rambling, but I'm just on a tear on this topic. Like I say, I was even BEFORE this, but now I'm just agitated about it, and soooo tired of EVERY person I meet who wants a yorkie saying, "Yeah, but I want a teacup!"

[JiggityJig]

Would U mind if I told U're story to people who want a TINY Yorkie???

No, I don't mind! Another reason why I hesitated to share my story here was because I didn't want it to seem like I was just trying to be sensationalistic to get attention. I'm glad that people are finding it helpful, but it's attention I'd certainly MUCH rather not be getting, you know? I finally realized that the bizarre nature of our experience made a point in and of itself: if THAT could kill a dog, then what else?!

When we got her, an old man told my husband, "My daughter had a little dog like that once, and an acorn fell out of a tree, hit it on the head, and killed it dead". Hahaha, we thought he was just trying to be funny....until this happened to US! Now...you know what....if the acorn was big enough, and hit it just right, I could see it happening!

You'll have to pardon my gallows humor, but it's part of the way we've dealt with this! And it actually sort of serves a useful purpose around the house....like I say, we've always tried to be careful around her, but now the kids are even MORE aware. They'll be messing with something, and say, "Don't drop THAT on Mazie's head! That would kill her for SURE!"

Sooooo (getting back to the point! ), sure, if you think it would be helpful, share the story with whoever you'd like. I know sometimes it TAKES a bizarre story to stick in someone's head, and drive a point home.

[cheryl000]

Thank you for sharing this. I too had looked around for the tinies and was a little bit sad when Brandy grew bigger than I thought she would. Now none of that matters. I think your story will change lots of minds. People are only breeding for tinies because of demand for it. The good breeders give away the tinies to families they know will take special care of them... not sell them to the highest bidder.
I think you're really brave to post this. I think you're saving lives too. I'm glad your little one is doing better. I feel sorry for your son, I hope he doesn't feel guilt from it because accidents do happen. It's like having a 2.5lb baby that can run around.