Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi everyone, my name is Marvin and my wife and I are very happy with our couple of Yorkies, they are so cute, and are learning new things everyday.

Our male Yorkie is 6 months old and our female Yorkie is 5 months old.
We'd like to know what is the age a terrier can become pregnant , we are not looking to get new puppies yet, so we need to watch out and take measures.

So all info about this subject, would be really appreciate, thanks for your help.

Greetings.

Marvin.

NEVER,ever before the age of 2, however, long before you even THINK about breeding you need to consider the following and make SURE that you have a mentor who has years of experience in breeding yorkies.

1. Why do you want to breed?
2. Where did you get the dogs from? A Reputible Breeder? A Back Yard Breeder? The Newspaper? Internet?
3. Have you had them tested to ensure that they don't have Liver Shunt, Legge Perthes, Thyroid Problems, Eye Problems, Heart problems, etc?
4. Do you know what's behind the dogs? Size wise? Health wise?
5. Have any of the dogs in their backgrounds either tested postive for or produced Liver Shunt, Legge Perthes, Thyorid Problems, Eye problems, Heart problems, etc? How about any of the offspring these dogs produced? Remember, you MUST go back a minimum of six generations.
6. Who, besides you and your breeder, has evaluated these dogs and told you that they are of breeding quality?
7. What do these dogs have to offer the breed?
8. Do you have enough money in the bank to cover a possible C-Section?
9. Do you have an area where the bitch can welp her pups in quiet, out of drafts and away from everyone and everything? And a place where the pups can be kept away from EVERYONE and EVERYTHING until they've had three shots?
10. Are you going to be able to Stay with her pretty much non-stop for the 3 weeks before the litter is due, and the 6 to 8 weeks AFTER it gets here?
11. Have you ever whelped a litter of toy dog pups before? Do you know what constitutes and emergency during whelping?
12. Are you prepared to spay and neuter any pups that you intend to place before the leave your home?
13. Are you prepared to take back any pup that a new owner cannot keep or does not want to keep 1, 2, 3 or more years down the road?
14. Are you prepared to deal with dead or dying puppies during whelping?
15. Are you prepared to deliver and possibly put down a defective puppy?
16. Are you prepared for the aftermath of the mother who may turn on her pups? And eat them? Or Worse, tear them apart and leave the mess for YOU to clean up?
17. Are you willing to keep these pups for a MINIMUM of 12 weeks before placing them in new homes?
18. Are you willing to put out the money for three shots that they need BEFORE they leave your home?
19. Are you prepared to tube feed (run a tube into a puppys stomach) if you should lose the bitch during whelping?
20. Are you prepared to lose your bitch should something go wrong?
21. Are you ready to have the dog mark your house for the rest of his life once he's been bred?
22. Are you prepared to pay for the vet bills from one of the pups you've produced when the new owner comes to you and says that this pup has liver shunt? Or Legge Perthes? or any of the other health problems inherant in yorkies?
23. If you don't assist the new owners with the above, do you have a good lawyer to defend you should you be sued over this?

This is a short list of things you need to be SURE you have good answers to BEFORE YOU EVEN THINK of Breeding.
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Joan
Responsible Breeders spay/neuter Pet puppies.
Statistically, the average breeder remains in a breed for five years. The mark you leave on that breed, good or bad, is entirely up to YOU!

nm

No problem. I just tell it like it is.
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Joan
Responsible Breeders spay/neuter Pet puppies.
Statistically, the average breeder remains in a breed for five years. The mark you leave on that breed, good or bad, is entirely up to YOU!

WOW!!

Your words of wisdom gave me goosebumps!!

Well said!

One last thing I forgot to mention...

Just because a dog is registered with AKC does NOT make it automatically breeding quality.

You must remember that AKC is a registry only. This means that according to AKC both parents were purebred. It does not mean that either or both parents were healthy or of breeding quality.
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Joan
Responsible Breeders spay/neuter Pet puppies.
Statistically, the average breeder remains in a breed for five years. The mark you leave on that breed, good or bad, is entirely up to YOU!

Marvin,
To answer your question without scaring the living daylight out of ya and to answer it straight forward. However, keep in mind that yes i know alot about yorkies, but I do not know everything.
Yorkies goes in heat just like any other dogs. From the age of 8 months on, keep your eyes out of the male. The male is your best sign if your female is in heat. The female usually go in heat twice a year about 6 months apart, this varies from dog to dog regardless of breed. I breed my yorkie on her first heat at the age of one year old and she produce the cutest babies regardless of what others might say otherwise. You can also Google "dog in heat" to learn more on this topic and the signs of the female in heat.
Also there are many many people of different motivation that you will come across on this internet. Keep in mind that YOU are the one who know what you want to do. Others will voice there opinion but you have to filter out for those that will help in your endeavor.