Yorkies

Whispered

It looks like I'm going to be looking after a yorkie for a little while until he's homed. I'll hold my hands up and say I have absolutely no experience with these dogs. I'm fine with larger breeds but a toy breed has me worried.

Are they as delicate as they look? Should I worry about him trying to climb on the couch in case he hurts himself? Should I keep him absolutely away from harley (my own dog) in case he gets hurt, or do dogs tend to tailor their play to the dog they are playing with? I was thinking of bringing him in and crating him almost immediately to give him time to get used to the sounds and smell of the house. With a larger dog I would usually bring both on a walk by way of introduction, but surely the pace and length of a walk with my own dog would be very unsuited for a smaller dog? How do I judge how much they eat? How long a walk do they need?

star-pants

Well we don't have yorkies - we have Lhasa Apsos, and they're a small breed.


Just to show the size.

Daisy - the smaller blackish one - is a daredevil... she'll jump from wherever and get in wherever. Whether she should or not!
you do have to be careful with steps as technically they're not designed for them and can hurt their backs if they're not used to them. Jumping from couches - depends on the height of the couch and the size of the dog, our two have no problems jumping from the couch (or the bed for that matter).

What age is the yorkie? and if you can get the weight of it too - you can check the back of the dog food bag to see how much you should be feeding him.
Crate to get used to the place might be a good idea, obviously you know to let your dog *let* the new dog into the house. Meet at the front door etc.. (that's what we did so Lily (the white one) wouldn't feel as threatened.

Regarding playing... I'd just keep a close eye for the first while, till they get used to each other so there's no serious fighting.
My aunt has a cocker spaniel and a rottweiler... they played when the cocker was a pup, my aunt was terrified he'd eat her lol, but he didn't. In fact, *she's* (the cocker) the dominant one. So they'll balance themselves out. Your dog may wish to put the yorkie in his place to show who's boss so just keep an eye, it's ok if your dog dominates gently.

Walking - well I walk our two round the block - bout 80-100 houses long to the end of our road, then back around the far side. Usually we do it in 15+ mins (they've gotten into running part of the way). So depending on the size of your dog, your dog probalby needs maybe a longer walk, so the yorkie may not be able to keep up.

Hope that's of some help

PetrovthePrat

We had them for years when I was young. They're fairly hardy from what I remember,not too keen on the cold tho. Our ones went mental running around if they weren't walked. I'm sure you'll get the hang of what it needs.

Whispered

Thanks a lot. I have to walk to the vet to collect him so I think I will have my OH bring Harley on a run then we can meet at the top of the estate and walk down together.

I think Harley is a bit too silly to try be dominant tbh. He seems to have no concept of manners around other dogs and at a year old still acts as an excited puppy. I have not seen a dog dominate him before because he just ignores the warnings and continues to play, I usually step in there as it's unfair to allow him harass another dog.:mad:

I know it seems that I'm a bit OTT on this but I've never been so nervous about having a dog in the house! I've had very young pups, greyhounds, restricted breeds and other big dogs here and I wouldn't think twice about it. I suppose I'm just not used to the smallies and I'm a bit woried about doing something wrong and upsetting/damaging him.

fishfoodie

Had A Yorkie when I was young & they're tough as old boots.

Remember they're a terrier first & foremost, & a ratter at that. Its a more recent thing to have them become lapdogs.

Ours had a terrible reaction to an anesthetic for an op when he was pup & his skin on one whole side was red raw (wet), from the reaction. My father wanted him PTS as he could believe he wasn't a gonner, but the Vet talked him out of it.

Beyond permanently loseing all his hair down one side of his body & having a bad comb-over for the rest of his life it didnt effect him one bit.

One of the funny things about them is I don't think they realise they're a small dog.

I'd second the idea about getting them a coat for winter walks, but you'll be surprised with their stamina, ours used to do the full loop of Marley & then flake out in the back of the car for a nap, but by the time we got home he was running around again.

cosnochta

helena.ryan wrote: »

It looks like I'm going to be looking after a yorkie for a little while until he's homed. I'll hold my hands up and say I have absolutely no experience with these dogs. I'm fine with larger breeds but a toy breed has me worried.

Are they as delicate as they look? Should I worry about him trying to climb on the couch in case he hurts himself? Should I keep him absolutely away from harley (my own dog) in case he gets hurt, or do dogs tend to tailor their play to the dog they are playing with? I was thinking of bringing him in and crating him almost immediately to give him time to get used to the sounds and smell of the house. With a larger dog I would usually bring both on a walk by way of introduction, but surely the pace and length of a walk with my own dog would be very unsuited for a smaller dog? How do I judge how much they eat? How long a walk do they need?

Yorkies are sturdier than they look. I would imagine if he is used to climbing onto beds and couches then he will have no problems and you needn't worry.

I've both small dogs and big dogs in the past. Our small dogs always did the same walks as the big ones and never had a problem. I think you could bring him along and see how he gets on. If he struggles with a long walk, you could always carry him for part of the way till he gets a second wind.

My Shih Tzu is 13 this year and it was only this time last year that she began struggling with longer walks. Up till then, she had an hour in the park most evenings and 2+ hours in the woods/mountains at the weekends.

This was the same for the three small dogs I fostered, a Chinese Crested (8 years old), a Yorkie (2 years old) and a Westie X (3 years old). None of them struggled at all with this amount of walking and actually it helped them to burn off any nervous energy and I found they settled in very quickly.

With regards to amount of food, I would also recommend checking the guidelines on the bag. Bear in mind though that these are often a bit generous, so keep an eye on the dog's weight.

It's a great idea that you are meeting on neutral ground. That's definitely the best way to approach things. It's probably best if you let the dogs sort out things between themselves, though you may need to step in if things look like they might become dangerous. Also, probably best to crate the little one if you have to go out, or leave them in seperate rooms, just in case.

They should be fine to play together, but keep an eye on them to make sure the playing doesn't get too rough.

Best of luck

cmf86

I am sure you will be fine with it as they are all different. But I will tell you what happened our little yorkie Bailey. When he was a pup ( he was tiny) he jumped of the bottom step of our stairs (not a big height) and he broke his leg, and to go into the hospital and he had a cast on for a few weeks. So that was ok until months later he was outside playing with another dog and whatever happened he hurt his leg again, was probably really weak from last time. He had to get a pin put in it then. When he was 3 years old an Alasation came into our back garden and broke his neck. We still miss terribly.

I dont want to scare you with that story because that was just the unfortune little pet that we had, but i would still be under the impression that they could be quite fragile. Bailey loved his walks, even with the bad leg, he would do an hours walk a day and would be really annoyed if he didnt get out for his walk. It never put him off.

The Black Oil

You'll be alright. Our lad (a mini) is 12, has some leg problems, but he was a lot more mobile when he was young so now he can't go upstairs himself or onto couches. They're generally very alert, too.