First time Yorkie owner...a few questions??
 

Hi all! I just have a few questions about our new Yorkie, Sam.

After years of deliberation and begging from our kids, my wife and I decided that it was time to make the leap and get a dog. We researched many breeds and narrowed our search every time we found out more details about different breeds. Ultimately we decided on something small that would not shed, had plenty of energy...maybe even a little attitude, and had some independence but also enjoys being around people. Our search led us to Sam.

Sam is four months old, which leads me to my first question. It seems like we have a behemoth on our hands. I checked the size chart and it's safe to say he is off the chart...way off! At 4 mos he is already 6 POUNDS! The vet was a little surprised the day we got him at his size and said he will likely be over 10 lbs. The breeder said his parents are 6-6.5 lbs each. What do you all think about how big he might get? Have you ever heard of a Yorkie this size??

Next, one of his ears folds over. Should I tape it up or will it eventually perk up on its own?

Lastly, we got him two days ago and he has done well eating and sleeping, but today he threw up. We have not done much to change the food the breeder gave us, but we have given him some dog reward treats that don't specifically say they are made for puppies. Might that be the problem?

I have lots of questions but I don't want to be a menace on this site my first time on. In due time....

Thank you in advance!

Welcome to YT! and Congrats on your new puppy Sam!

As far as his size goes, yorkies come in all different shapes and sizes. My lucy is 6 months old and weighs 6 pounds...but my mom has a full grown yorkie that is 4.5 pounds and another one that is 15...so it's perfectly normal...

And the ear thing is common, it happened to my Lucy too when she was teething, I didn't tape her ear but I did take her to get groomed and I asked the groomer to trim her ears so that I could get some of the weight off of her ear and after that it stood up on its own.

Not sure why she is throwing up, is she eating really quickly or eating while she is playing because that could be a reason. if she continues to do it I would def. take her to the vet to get her checked out.

And if you do a little research, you will find that this board is very helpful and is a wonderful source of information on all things yorkie. And don't hesitate to ask I have found everyone on this board to be more than willing to help!

Welcome to YT.


First we have quite a few larger yorkies here, and we love them all. I think the biggest was 18 pounds.

His ears may be flopping, because he's teething. You can tape them up, as this will not hurt them.

As far as the throwing up I'd keep him strictly on the dog food you have, because he's in a new place, and the treats might be giving him a belly ache.

Hope this helps.

Welcome to YT. And the size is Ok yorkies come in all sizes.

Welcome to YorkieTalk.:) Your pup is probably just fine if he only threw up once, however, you should check with your vet because it could be so many things causing it and they can get very sick quickly. If an adult Yorkie threw up once I would say wait but not with a puppy just in case. What food is he on?

Welcome
 

Welcome to YT, I wouldn't worry about the size. Yorkies are everywhere between 2- 8, 10 pounds:eek: :eek: ..... He's just gonna be a big healthy boy.:)

His breeder was combining several different brands together to help with the transition when he was adopted. We have him on Purina One Puppy formula and we are just adding it to the food the breeder gave us. I really think it is the treat food causing the stomach problems, which is Pet Botanics Reward. Comes in a little loaf. For now I am going to take him off that and see if that helps. If he does throw up again I'll call the vet immediately. He is still urinating and his stool seems normal so I'm not too worried yet. Thanks for all the reassurance, everyone! I'll keep you posted on his size and see if he can win some kind of title for biggest yorkie!

Welcome to YT!! I see you have a big boy too!! My "little" boy as I call Max is 10 lbs and he's only 7 months. So don't worry about the size thing you'll get use to it. It will better too since you have kids and they will be playing with him. About the throwing up mine did that when he first came home but I think it was the change in enviroment and his getting use to being in his new home.:welcome4:

Thank you so much! I really don't mind a larger size as well for the point you made. We wanted something fairly "substantial" so he won't be too delicate. I appreciate the reassurance as well about the throwing up. I suspect he'll be fine going forward.

Love this site!!!

Even a 10lb dog is very small. Although the AKC standard says 7 lbs and less, yorkies actually come in all shapes and sizes as mentioned by others already. I have an 11lb yorkie, and we love him so much!! :) Bigger yorkies are sturdier anyway :)

well hello there and welcome to yorkie talk,,im gina and im so glad you
found this site. its just wonderful and let me tell ya, you will learn so much
just from the people here... my lexi is the way she is today because of the
wonderful people here.. the advise is great. stick around and ask as many
questions as you would like, thats what we are here for...i knew nothing
when i came here about yorkies, now, i know just about everything i need to know and i thank this site...enjoy ... so start asking questions

:welcome4: Glad to have you here.

Sounds like your boy, no matter his size, will be well loved.

I'm wondering if the pup received any shots or treatments at the vet that might have irritated his stomach? Also, I would recommend that once his tummy settles down, to try a higher grade food than Purina. You might want to check the Yorkie Health & Diet forum on here for some information on high quality foods.

Don't worry about asking questions - this is a great place to look for answers.

welcome to yorkie talk:welcome4: and cograts on your new furbaby:congrats: love to see some pics :aimeeyork

Hi Sam welcome to YT - I wouldn't worry about his size at all -especially with the kids - can't wait to see more pics of Sam!!:wavey:

lst time Yorkie owner
 

Congratulations on your new Yorkie.

My male Yorkie is 13 lbs, my female is 7 lbs. My male is big boned and stocky.
I walk him,and feed him good dog food. He's always been that weight.

As for the throwing up. Did your dog throw up in the morning? Sometimes they have a lot of acid in their stomach, if they havent eaten for along time. My female used to throw up a lot in the morning. Then I figured out she had an empty stomach and the acid made her throw up. I solved the problem by giving her a dog biscuit in the evening around 9:30.

Also, dogs eat just about anything they can get their paws on outside, so maybe your dog is eating something in the yard.

Good luck.

Wow! This site is amazing! Honestly, this is probably the best forum I have ever encountered! Other forums, you might get one or two replies and have to wait a week to get them. It's like I'm in a room with 10,000 Yorkie affectionados all wanting to share their experience and advice! I love it!! You are all so genuine and helpful!

Periwinkle, he did throw up in the morning and now he has eaten quite a bit more food and seems to be feeling fine. I'll try the late night snack and see if that makes a difference for tomorrow.

Yorkiesmiles, good suggestion to check out the Health and Diet forum. I'm sure that just like not all humans like/tolerate the same foods, the same rings true for dogs.

I really am excited about this site! Thank you all so much! I'll post some pics soon.

Welcome to YT. You're in for a lifetime of love and fun with your yorkie.:D

:welcome4: You will love this site. Get ready to become addicted! The people I have come in contact with on this site are so friendly and extremely knowledgable. They have given us so many good tips! (Our Bella is almost 4 months). I love coming on here and seeing what everyone is talking about!

Don't foget to post pics. We love seeing Yorkie pictures!! :)

As the for ears, I know everyone has mentioned this, but during teething it is totally natural for ears to flop. Bella's change daily it seems! ;)

You will find all different sizes of Yorkies on here! All are totally adorable!!! I know I have never seen 1 that isn't super-cute!!

I'll be looking for pictures! Welcome! :)

Just also wanted to say hello and welcome! You know, you live in one of my favorite cities! Looking forward to getting to know you and your family and seeing more pictures of Sam. Sounds as if Sam has a wonderful, caring family and forever home. Glad you're here!

Hi & congrats,
I have only had my yorkie for 2 months so I can't give much advise, but he 2 is 4 months and 6 pounds. I also have a 76 pound boxer and my little yorkie terror beats up on him ( he seems to think that my boxers big saggy lips chew toys). Anyway, I also have three children my youngest is 2 & oldest is 7 and I think it is great having a little (although big for the breed) yorkie. My Yorkie is AKC registered and is almost bigger than his parents. About the ears, my breeder sent him home with infant formula and cottage cheese. I don't know if anyone else has used calcium rich foods for ears. His ears were floppy at 8 weeks but by 9 weeks they stood up without taping or trimming hair. Let my know how your puppy is growing, sounds like ours are a lot a like.

Alice

Welcome to Yt fellow Washingtonian :welcome4: I have a big boy too ! More to love ;) You going to love it here ! And ask away, you will get plenty help ! And CAUTION, this site is very adicting :D
As far as being sick, what food is he eating , what treats ? Keep in mind, everything is new to little guy if you only had him a couple of days, and got a clean bill of health from Vet. As far as his ears, just shave his little ears , invest in a little trimmer, like the Wahls Penut, a little spendy if its not on sale, he might be teething ! :D

And forgot to say : We looove pics :D

One thing I never considered when we brought Gizmo home was the water. My vet told me to transition him slowly to city water. We started off with bottled and added a little more tap water every day until he was on total tap water.

The vet told us this could cause some stomach upset. Just FYI.

Welcome to YorkieTalk! :D

New Pup
 

Welcome to YT. The standard for the Yorkshire Terrier is 5 to 7 lbs. You can find Yorkies in all sizes, very very small (never a good idea), to quite large. If your pup is a pet, the size doesn't really matter. For show, he would be too large. He's also too large for breeding. It sounds like your pup is going to be the size of a Silky Terrier.
As to the vomiting, your baby may be over eating. Be careful not to feed too many treats. If he is eating his regular food and everyone in the family is feeding him treats, his tummy may be too full.
As for the ears, the top third of each ear should be shaved. Taking the weight of the hair off may help the ears to stand. Sometimes it just takes time for the ears to stand, and other times they remain floppy. Take him to a good groomer and they can shave the ears if you are unfamiliar with grooming.
I highly recommend this website: yorkiepassion.com
There are many links there that have lots of information on Yorkies. Enjoy your baby. I have had Yorkies for years, and I get so much pleasure from our two babies, that I just love them to death. :animal-pa

Welcome to YT!

I do not know what food are you feeding him, Be sure is a good quality one, not those found in Vets or regular grocery stores. I would probably not rush into change it but after a while when he is really comfortable to his new home. I use Canidae
One thing I can not stress enough to new Yorkie owners is "Do not ever use a collar" Their neck is a very fragile area for them and can develop a Collapsing Trachea, which can not be reversed, and will cause difficulty in breathing and eventually death. The smaller the dog the more chances there is to develop it and it happens at any age. So being a little bigger than usual could be a good thing! just be sure that his weight is always in proportion with his size.
They sure are dogs with an attitude!!! they will guard you as if they were a Doberman!!! It seems that they have not idea how small they are!

Usually your Vet will tell you if the ears need to be taped. Mine didn't I just kept the tip of the ear (1/3) trimmed.

After 9 years i still have lots of questions.. never feel ashamed to ask, everybody has had different experiences and you are always learning new things. This forum is a great experience!

Gladys

Welcome, and feel free to ask as many questions as you need to!

It does sound like you have a larger yorkie on your hands, but that often ends up being better with kids. They are more sturdy, have more energy, and can participate in more romping and fun! :D

Judging by your original criteria, it sounds like you made a GREAT choice going with the yorkie breed! :D

WELCOME! As everyone else has warned you, this place is very addicting...

My "baby" boy is a wonder 16 lbs and is a super boy! My baby girl is only 5.5 lbs. and I get very nervous around small children with her.

I love both of my babyies, size difference and all.... Have Fun!
d

sounds like you have the most gorgeous TEAPOT (opposite to the Teacup!) on your hands! :p

A warm welcome to YT! :)