Meet Sophie!
This is Sophie, the Yorkshire Terrier. Although the breed is better known as a Yorkie! If you want to get to know more Yorkies like Sophie, keep reading!
History
Although you might typically think of Yorkies as fashionable, girly dogs, their origin was actually anything but the stereotype associated with them today. The breed was created by Scottish weavers in the Northern English county of Yorkshire. The Yorkies are a mix of many small, tough terriers, who often worked in mills catching rats. In general, the size of the terriers made them the perfect breed to fit in all the small spaces to find these rodents. When the Yorkie came along, the workers mocked their long hair and felt that they would not be able to perform the same work as other terriers. Regardless, Yorkies spent several years catching rodents in coal mines before the English Kennel Club recognized them as a breed in 1886. After becoming an official breed, Yorkies quickly gained popularity among the fashionable English ladies.
Care
Height | 7-8 inches |
Weight | 7 pounds |
Life Expectancy | 11-15 years |
Yorkies’ beautiful hair comes at a cost: it requires a lot of upkeep. In fact, experts claim that Yorkies’ hair is very similar to human hair meaning it requires daily brushing and at least weekly washing. Much like with the Shih Tzu, if you desire to keep your Yorkie’s hair long, their hair at the top of their head should be put in a topknot or trimmed to keep it from irritating their eyes. The Yorkshire Terrier Club of America website provides specific details about how to best manage your Yorkie’s hair.
Even though Yorkies are small and known for being spoiled dogs, they still require daily exercise! Normally, two short walks a day should be sufficient exercise, but they also enjoy playing fetch or other activities that require short busts of more intense energy. Yorkies, particularly more than other breeds, have also been known to enjoy agility training or obedience classes. Don’t be fooled by their beauty! Yorkies are also extremely intelligent!
Famous Yorkies
As I previously mentioned, wealthy, fashionable people have often been attracted to Yorkies. As a result, there are countless famous people with Yorkies including President Nixon, Audrey Hepburn, Johnny Depp, Natalie Portman, Paris Hilton, and Missy Elliot to name a few!
Although all these famous people have Yorkies, that doesn’t mean you can’t have an adorable Yorkie to spoil too!
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I would never think that the Yorkie had such history. They were basically created to act as cats for the Scottish. Today we certainly do pamper these dogs as they require a lot of care like you mentioned. I think it’s so cool that their hair is similar to ours!
I love your blog so much! Dogs are definitely the best part of my day and I’m glad that I get to read about them on your blog. Yorkies are so cute, and its so cool that their hair is like ours!
KARA! All of these doggos are so cute and I want them all. I feel like I stereo-typically consider Yorkies to be the dogs of rich ladies who also kind of look like their dogs, but tbh all doggos are good doggos.
I love your blog and yorkies are one of my favorite breeds. I always find it interesting to read about where a dog came from and what their original purpose was. I does not surprise me that yorkies used to be kept in mills to catch rats, as they kind of remind me of cats because of their size.