Connecting With Other Yorkshire Terrier Owners

Yorkshire Terriers are special and adorable. These fascinating dogs do, however, require a high degree of care. For this reason, it is important to learn as much about the breed as you possibly can, including experiences that others have had with their Yorkies. This means that you need to make it a point to connect with other Yorkshire Terrier owners.

Start finding other Yorkshire Terrier owners first through your breeder. Your breeder will know other Yorkshire Terrier owners in your local area, and even if they won’t give you those owners contact information, they will happily pass yours along if you ask them to.

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Weight pulling can be a fun activity you can enjoy in the comfort of your back yard or you can take it to the trials. It is simply about how far you would like to go with your dog. You don’t necessarily have to have a bully breed to practice pulling with you dog, it’s just an activity for you, your family, and your dog to do and it is a great way to burn off a little energy for the both of you.

For example carting is simply when a dog pulls a cart carrying a small load, for example gardening tools, firewood, or maybe a bail or two of hay. When you add more weight, it’s called “drafting.” At pulling trials you may see a dog carting or drafting with two wheels , four wheels, a travois (a platform dragged along the ground on two poles that support it), or a sled. Some drafting clubs are breed specific and others like the Rottweiler events are open to all breeds. I have learned that ARC offers three competitive levels: Carting Started, Carting Intermediate, and Carting Excellent.

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Dog Training - Training Show Dogs

Over 130 different breeds compete in major dog shows, such as the Westminster in the US or Crufts in the UK. But there’s a good deal more to developing a show dog than simply acquiring a dog of one of those breeds and teaching it to sit or stay.

Within any breed there are dogs that are closer to the ‘ideal’ than others. This ‘conformation’ is an important first criteria. Conformation refers to the specific arrangement of parts - legs, tail, head, ears, etc - that determine the dog’s appearance. Since this is difficult to judge in young puppies, show dogs are often the offspring of other show dogs.

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Breed Standards for the Yorkshire Terrier

If you have a Yorkshire Terrier, or plan on getting one in the near future, you know how special these energetic little dogs are. However, not all Yorkshire Terriers meet the breed standards that have been set by the American Kennel Clubs (AKC). This, however, does not make them any less purebred than those that do meet the breed standards. Meeting the breed standard for his breed means that your dog is essentially ?perfect.’ He doesn’t have any flaws. You might compare it to having the perfect human body as compared to being out of shape, or having a nose that is too big, or eyes that are set too far apart.

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Dressing Up Your Yorkshire Terrier

Many people who are not knowledgeable about the breed simply cannot tell one Yorkshire Terrier apart from another Yorkshire Terrier of the same age and size, with the same haircut. Although Yorkshire Terrier lovers around the world can easily tell the difference between two seemingly identical dogs, owners do enjoy dressing their Yorkshire Terriers up a bit.

Most Yorkshire Terrier owners do a topknot on top of the Yorkies head, and put a bow on it. This is acceptable for male and female Yorkshire Terriers, and it helps to hold their long hair up out of their face, and out of their food. Therefore, it has a utility purpose other than just looking cute. You should have a variety of hair bows for your Yorkie, and put a fresh bow on his topknot, or just above both of his ears, each day.

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Highland Canine Training, LLC is proud to announce that we will now be offering training and classes for the American Kennel Club S.T.A.R. Puppy program. This course is designed to develop well-trained, well-rounded puppies and adult dogs. The course promotes socialization and responsible dog ownership. We have a S.T.A.R. Puppy course beginning January 10th, 2009 in Mooresville, NC. We will also be offering these classes at later dates at our Matthews, NC and Harmony, NC locations.

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When searching for a new member of your family rather it be by purchase or adoption, it is best to research the certain breeds you are interested in to make sure they are a good fit for your family. For example some breeds are not good for those that live in apartments or have small yards, other breeds are to laid back for active families, others have to many health issues and families are not able to financially stay on top of the issues. The different breeds and catagories is simply a guide to help you select your new pet, they can be broken down into; Northern Breeds, Gun Dogs (or sporting group), Herding Dogs, Gaurdian Dogs, Scenthounds, Sighthounds and Pariahs, Terriers, and Companion Dogs.

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Dog Training - Training Rescued Dogs

Normal dog training requires patience that is greater nowhere else but childrearing. Training rescued dogs takes even more.

Though sterilizing dogs - spaying (removing female organs) and neutering (removing male organs) - has been common practice for decades, birth rates continue to outpace ownership. Add to that a percentage who are lost or wander away and the problem grows larger.

The inevitable result is a large number of dogs who often end in facilities where they’re either adopted or terminated.

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Dog Training - Training Non-neutered Dogs

Not every dog gets spayed (removal of female reproductive organs) or neutered (removal of male organs). Whether through an intention to breed or other motive, many individuals leave their companions intact. Left with a full complement of nature’s hormones, these dogs can react differently than their surgically altered counterparts.

Males with the normal amount of testosterone tend to be prone to seek alpha (leader) status, and when exposed to a female in heat will often ignore commands. Licking behavior increases, the male will gently head butt a female in the neck, and eventually try to mount.

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The other day I received the following question from Chris (USA):

What do you feed your Akita?

I’m having a problem finding a food my Akita “likes.”
He never seems to WANT to eat only if I force him too.
He gets plenty of exercise just doesn’t like the foods I’ve had him on (Solid Gold, Innova).
Do you have any experience with the newer foods that have high protein levels “40%” and no grains?

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