CARING FOR YOUR YORKIE PUPPY

Yorkie Puppy Care

Grooming & Bathing

You should accustom your YORKIE Puppy to being groomed and bathed at an early age. Grooming is a good opportunity to spend quality time together. YORKIE Puppies can be low maintenance if you choose to keep their coats trimmed short, commonly called a “puppy cut”. If you choose to let the your YORKIE Puppy's coat grow out, it will require daily grooming to keep the coat free from tangles. You should bathe your YorkiePuppy as needed, don’t “over bathe” them because this can dry out the coat.

Teeth

You can clean the YORKIE Puppies teeth with a wet cloth or a dog toothbrush. Most YORKIE puppies won’t like this at first so you will want to introduce this early on. We recommend having the YORKIE Puppy teeth professionally cleaned by your Veterinarian at least once a year. We also recommend dental chew toys to help remove tartar build-up on the teeth. It is common for Yorkie Puppies to retain their baby teeth. If this happens, have your Veterinarian extract the extra teeth so that the permanent teeth will grow in naturally and not crooked.

Nails

Occasionally you will have to trim the YORKIE Puppy toenails. The nails are black so it’s sometimes hard to determine where to cut. We find that the best guide is to cut where the nails begin to curve. If you accidentally cut a nail to short, apply some styptic powder to the nail to stop the bleeding. If you don’t feel comfortable trimming the nails yourself, you can have your Groomer or Veterinarian trim them for you.

Ears

Most Yorkie Puppies will have their ears standing up by the time they are 3 months old, although some may take longer than others. The bigger the ears are, the harder it is to get them up. I know of two techniques that will usually get them to stand.

First: The hair on the ears will weigh the ears down and keep them from standing. You can shave all of the hair off the outer side of the ears to take the extra weight off. Second: You can tape the ears up in the standing position using either masking or scotch tape. Most puppies don’t like this at first and will manage to get the tape off. Remove the tape after 3 days. If you see the ears starting to fall again, repeat the process, only leaving the tape on for 24 hours at a time. Some puppies will only need the 3 days while others may need 3 weeks. This is a Video of me "Amy" and "Fiona-yorkie puppy" on how to tape a yorkie puppy's ears for correct "ear stance". Each veterinarian or dog breeder may have their own style for taping ears. This is my technique and it has worked for me for over 17 years.

Vaccinations

YORKIE Puppies should be given 4 “Puppy Shots” in 3-week intervals, at 6, 9, 12, and 15 weeks of age. All YORKIE  Puppies will have their first and second shots (and sometimes their third depending on age) before going to their new homes. The Rabies vaccination will be needed when the puppy is 3 to 5 months old. Your Veterinarian may suggest additional vaccinations depending on the area you live. YORKIE Puppies will also be de-wormed before leaving our home.

Please do not allow any LEPTO in your YORKIE 'Puppy's Vaccinations!!!!!!

Feeding

We FREE FEED all of our YORKIE ADULTS & YORKIE PUPPIES. 
This means that they can eat whenever they want.

After you get your new Yorkie puppy you can change the feeding schedule to 4 times a day. You may want to wait about a week so that the Yorkie puppy can adjust to its new environment. You don’t want the YORKIE puppy to become stressed because of to many changes at one time. Feeding your Yorkie a quality brand dog/puppy food will help them grow into a strong, healthy adult.

We feed the puppies a combination of canned puppy food as well as dry with these brands: EAGLE PACK-Small & Medium Breed puppy, ROYAL CANIN Baby Dog 30 and Puppy Dog 33 small breed & WELLNESS Puppy.

Each litter is different from the next and we have to figure out what food BRAND each will eat best. We have done extensive research into each of these brands. We know that the better quality foods provide the nutrition that a growing YORKIE puppy requires to thrive. If you choose, you can gradually change the puppy food by slowly adding the new food to the old food over a 10-day period; this will prevent any digestive upsets. Whatever brand you decide on, we suggest the hard kibbles because it helps prevent tartar build-up on the teeth. Make sure that water is available to your Yorkie at all times.

Housebreaking

Housebreaking will probably be your first training concern once you bring your YORKIE puppy home. We believe that consistency is the best housebreaking tool. Praise your YORKIE puppy when he or she goes where you want him or her  to go. Never punish your YORKIE puppy for accidents. YORKIE Puppies sometimes learn from going outside with other pets. Don’t let the YORKIE puppy have the run of the house at first. We suggest confining the YORKIE puppy to a small area when left alone, such as a bathroom or Playpen or a LARGE CRATE. We prefer the EXTRA LARGE  or BABY PLAYPENS  because they provide a safe, quiet place for the puppy. This LARGER PERSONAL ENVIROMENT will not change either the TEMPERAMENT or PERSONALITY like a tiny crate will. A tiny crate is the equal sitiation as if you were to put a small child in a closet and shut the door, that child will have suffered permenant harm and changes to their personality. "This is my personal philosophy "  . A LARGE CRATE or PLAYPEN should allow for it to be well ventilated and the YORKIE puppy doesn't feel as secluded from the family. YORKIE Puppies don’t like to mess where they sleep but they will if they are not let out regularly. Don’t be discouraged if your YORKIE puppy takes a while to catch on, every YORKIE puppy is different. Be persistent and most of all be patient with your puppy.

Children and Yorkies

Yorkies can make great playmates for children of all ages, provided they are taught to respect each other. Adults will need to supervise small children around Yorkies at all times. Because of the Yorkies small size, accidents will happen!!! It’s very easy for them to get underfoot.

Toys

We give our  YORKIE adults and YORKIE Puppies Nylabones because they don’t splinter, chip or break off in pieces. The bones create a toothbrush-like surface that cleans the teeth. These are great chew toys for teething puppies. We recommend the rope toys and the stuffed toys with squeakers in them. Our YORKIE Puppies really like the smallest stuffed toys you can find. They are very fond of small toys with long limbs that they can pull around or play tug with. We don’t give our Yorkies any rawhide products or the cheap thin vinyl toys because we’ve found that they will chew off pieces and try to swallow them, creating a choking hazard. Instead of rawhide, you can give your  Yorkie Puppy the edible beef sticks. Toys will keep your puppy entertained and they will help prevent any destructive behavior that can develop because of boredom. Give your YORKIE Puppy a variety of safe toys and he will pick out the ones that he likes best. We also recommend leaving a radio or television on when you're away from home. Your YORKIE Puppy has been raised in our very busy home so it will adjust to his or her new home better if it hears a constant soothing sound.