Why do yorkies get sick?

[bentley]

I notice since I started reading this forum that yorkies get so sick, and I don't get it, we take excellent care of them, good food, good vet care, up date shots, lots of loves, and they still getting so many things?

[yorkiepip]

I think all breeds have problems, its just cause we all yorkie talk we hear of so much, wheras if we labrador talked we'd hear all about their problems too

[chachi]

I dont know why they seem to get sick except they are a small breed and more susceptable to illness especially when they are babies. One of mine got sick when he was 7 weeks old and had only been with us a couple of days.

[Olivier]

Because they are living creatures .

[bentley]

Well, all of us are living creatures, we get sick too, and I know all dogs get sick, I had dogs since I'm little and know a lot of breeds, and is my first time with a yorkie and never seem before so many dogs sick till I find out about yorkies....the only one that sound good to me is because they are so tiny....thank any ways

[romeos mommy]

i think all dog breeds have breed specific problems. we just talk about it more so it appears more frequent in yorkies.

[Patti]

I have a Pom who is much healthier than any of my Yorkies ever were.

[hunniebunnie]

because they are living creatures. i get sick more often than my yorkie does. if there's a virus within a 2 mile radius, it'll find its way to me. haha.

[YorkieRose]

Yorkies are thought to be the hardiest of the Toy breeds..a health dog must start out with healthy genes and be well cared for..not much different then a humna baby.

[ldenise]

I notice more when my babies hurt than I do my self.

[GeorgiesMomma]

I think from my perspective I am just much more paranoid. If Georgie has diarrhea I am nervous if he doesn't eat much I am nervous. However, with my boxer I am nervous but no where near as much. I think it has a lot to do with their size, they don't have much reserves and I personally tend to worry a lot more about things that are probably just simple tummy aches. Georgie doesn't necessarily get sick more but his Momma sure thinks so!

[SnowWa]

I got my Yorkie Lecture 101 - from my vet.

He said that he has more "too small Yorkies" for patients than he has any other breed of dog. He said, "A lot of people like to argue with me - but I'm the one who takes care of these sick little guys." He also said that larger dogs and even larger Yorkies can usually get over many illnesses - that are fatal to smaller Yorkies and other very small dogs. He said they just don't have the ability to survive a lot of illnesses and are a lot more vunerable to many diseases --- and, he said that responsible breeding can drastically reduce or eliminate many of these problems.

Yes - I know a lot of us have healthy tiny little Yorkies -- but so many of these little guys start out with such severe problems or get so sick later - it's sad! We have to admit that the Yorkie is one of the few breeds that is sometimes deliberately being bred to be especially small.

A lot of breeds have health problems - but not so many fatal ones... The little Yorkie seems to have more than his fair share of fatal problems. It certainly is sad - and heartbreaking when someone loses their little pet.

I (like all of us) sure hope my little guy stays healthy forever.


Carol Jean

[bentley]

I pray every day for my little one to stay healthy....
So basically so far I will say is size and irresponsible breeders....

[Dawn125]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I got my Yorkie Lecture 101 - from my vet.

He said that he has more "too small Yorkies" for patients than he has any other breed of dog. He said, "A lot of people like to argue with me - but I'm the one who takes care of these sick little guys." He also said that larger dogs and even larger Yorkies can usually get over many illnesses - that are fatal to smaller Yorkies and other very small dogs. He said they just don't have the ability to survive a lot of illnesses and are a lot more vunerable to many diseases --- and, he said that responsible breeding can drastically reduce or eliminate many of these problems.

Yes - I know a lot of us have healthy tiny little Yorkies -- but so many of these little guys start out with such severe problems or get so sick later - it's sad! We have to admit that the Yorkie is one of the few breeds that is sometimes deliberately being bred to be especially small.

A lot of breeds have health problems - but not so many fatal ones... The little Yorkie seems to have more than his fair share of fatal problems. It certainly is sad - and heartbreaking when someone loses their little pet.

I (like all of us) sure hope my little guy stays healthy forever.

I totally agree with this. Yorkies were not originally this small. They have been deliberately bred smaller and are probably prone to weakness because of their tiny size. I always wanted a tiny one but all I have read on YT has convinced me that mine are small enough. I am especially shocked about the constant posts about problems with breeding them. I actually considered breeding my little girl when I first got her. Now there is no way I would risk her health.