Yorkshire Terriers are the second most popular dog in the United States, with the Labrador retriever being the most popular. This essentially means that the Yorkshire Terrier is actually the most popular small dog in the United States. Is this popularity why they cost so much?

Yorkshire Terriers can cost as little as $450 and as high as $5000 or even $6000. For such small dogs, those are pretty steep prices. Usually, the females cost more than the males, and puppies that are parented by champions cost thousands of dollars, if they also conform to all of the breed standards and have the markings of a champion.

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Thanks to the United States Humane Society and Mary O’Connor Shaver from Columbus Top Dogs for this information. 

The U.S. Senate at the end of last week followed the lead of the House of Representatives and overrode President Bush’s veto of the Farm Bill, ushering in key new protections for animals.

The final bill (which is now considered law) - except for one section excluded due to a technical glitch - bans the import of puppies from foreign puppy mills for commercial sale in the U.S. The law spares young, unweaned and unvaccinated pups from harsh, long-distance transport during which they are exposted to extreme temperatures and often die in cargo holds — and will keep foreigh breeders from the tragic overpopulation of pets in this country.

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The US pet care industry is a $40 billion a year industry which is growing rapidly with 10% a year. Last year, Americans spend $38,5 billion on their pets, which is an 83 percent increase as compared to the spending pattern last decade. Pet pampering, pet humanization, demand for convenience, one person households, working couples without kids, elderly persons living alone,…. all these trends contribute to having more dogs in the nation and spending more money on them.

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