| The AKC standard for the Yorkshire Terrier used to state that the dog was to not exceed 7 pounds (3.17 kg). However, the AKC now has an official weight of 4 to 7 pounds (1.81 to 3.17 kg) There is no official breed known as the Teacup Yorkie. The term teacup refers to a dog on the smaller end of the weight standard. A breeder may carefully pair dogs in order to produce litters of puppies, who when fully grown will be at the bottom end of the weight standard, this generally ranges from 4 to 5 pounds (1.81 to 2.26 kg). In doing this, a breeder is in the range of the AKC standard and is not breeding unnaturally small dogs. These dog are often referred to as Teacup Yorkies and this is fine...the dogs are within the standard and not so small as to be overly fragile with health issues. One must remember that a 7 pound dog (3.17 kg) is very little dog. Show VS Pet You will find that breeders who focus on breeding show quality Yorkies will attempt to produce litters who fit the size that the AKC is looking for. Currently, the AKC seems to favor the higher end of the weight scale, 6 or 7 pound ( 2.72 to 3.17 kg) Yorkshire Terriers. Breeders who are aiming to produce litters of puppies who will be loving family members for new owners, will generally breed to the size which is most sought after. Currently, there is a trend of people wanting dogs on the smaller end of the breed standard (4 to 5 pounds (1.81 to 2.26 kg) for pets. Ultimately, a dog will be deemed "Pet quality" or "Show quality" not just because of their weight (one can only estimate the adult size of a puppy); but will be done so by appearance such as coloring, bite, size of ears and more. Even breeders who focus only on "show dogs" will never be able to produce only show quality dogs. The breed standard is very strict and only a few dogs out of thousands will win Championships. There will always be "pet quality" dogs in those litters. If one is looking for a pet and does not have plans to join the "Show World", a pet quality dog is what many are looking for. |
The following is an excert from www.yorkieinfocenter.com You can also get more info from www.akc.org
Back