Yorkshire Terrier

Glamorous Lady’s Fashionable Companion 

Terriers are generically associated with rat hunting. They were primarily kept to curb the menace of rodents whose capability to inflict damage on material resources were formidable. Yorkshire Terrier’s emergence was in response to this menace. Supposedly, the breed developed during the 19th century in Yorkshire, England, an emerging centre for textile manufacturing. The weavers there had to contain the mounting menace of rodents who could hide in the nooks and crannies of the mills. Yorkshire Terriers, named ‘Yorkies’ then, were bred to be small enough to reach where rodents chose to hide.
They are undoubtedly among the smallest breeds of dogs but they are best remembered and noted for their long, silky hair, which is often fine, glossy, and perfectly straight. Their colour is a hallmark of this breed, with the blue a dark steel blue and the tan a clear golden.
But beneath the dainty, glossy, floor-length coat of a Yorkshire Terrier beats the heart of a feisty, old-time terrier. Yorkies earned their living as ratters in mines and mills long before they became the beribboned lapdogs of Victorian ladies. Few of them, curiously, now a day, perform this traditional duty, having graduated into a far more sophisticated job of keeping company to women of stature and substance. 

Appearance
The Yorkshire Terrier is a compact, toy-size terrier of no more than seven pounds whose crowning glory is a floor-length, silky coat of steel blue and a rich golden tan. Among the Terriers, they are amongst the smallest. They rarely stand more than about 8-9 inches tall, have a languorous gait though they can run at a reasonable pace. They can live unto 12-15 years.
History
That this beautiful breed that epitomizes daintiness and sophistication; and an unmatched canine pulchritude has an intimate association with the working class, is difficult to believe. But the truth is that they were bred by working classes and their job was that of a hard-working exterminator, who protected the home from rodents. 
The Yorkshire and Lancashire areas of England were known for having fine animals, and it is thought that the Yorkshire Terrier was no accident but rather the result of purposeful mixing between a variety of terriers, probably including the Waterside Terrier, Clydesdale Terrier, Paisley Terrier, rough-coated English Black and Tan Terrier, and perhaps even the Skye Terrier and Dandie Dismount Terrier.
The Waterside Terrier was one of their early relatives; these were small blue-grey dogs with fairly long hair, usually weighing around 10 pounds, brought from Scotland by weavers.  
By 1880, Yorkshire Terriers had come to America, but the breed varied so much in size that there was great confusion around how big a Yorkshire Terrier might be. Many of these early Yorkies weighed between 12 and 14 pounds. By 1900, people on both sides of the Atlantic had decided that the small size was preferable along with a longer coat. Today, the modern Yorkshire Terrier is one of the smaller and most luxuriously coated dog breeds. These traits, along with their terrier heritage, have placed them as a consistent favourite with families.
The Scots weavers were proud of their tough little terriers, bred small enough to squeeze into the nooks and crannies of textile mills in pursuit of rodents. Jokes were made about the Yorkie’s long, silky coat, inferring that its finely textured hair was a product of the looms. The Yorkie’s home region was a centre of mining as well as textile making, and many Yorkies were employed in coal mines as exterminators.
Yorkies were first seen in America in the 1870s, and the American Kennel Club(AKC) recorded its first Yorkie, a female named Belle, in 1885.

A World War II Hero

During World War II, an American soldier in a foxhole in Papua New Guinea found Smoky, a Yorkshire Terrier, who then went on to save lives by helping transport a communications cable through a small drainage culvert. She also visited soldiers in hospitals and went on to be known as the first therapy dog in history. Smoky’s owner, U.S. Cpl. William A. Wynne, even wrote a book chronicling her many adventures called Yankie Doodle Dandy and there is a memorial dedicated to her honour in Cleveland.

Lady’s Love
Because of their modest roots, the Yorkshire Terrier was initially looked down upon by other wealthier households with dogs. Even the most snobbish could not deny the breed’s obvious beauty, however, and in short order, Yorkshire Terriers were gracing the laps of wealthy mistresses. It became a fashionable lapdog for proper English ladies in late Victorian times, despite its beginnings were distinctly working-class.
The turning point in the breed’s history is supposed to have arrived in 1886, when the Kennel Club of England granted the Yorkie recognition. With this splash of publicity, the Yorkie became fashionable as a ladies’ companion. And, as the Yorkie’s popularity among the fashionable increased, its size decreased to better meet its new job description: adorable, amusing companion sitting in the lap of luxury.
Temperament
The Yorkshire Terrier seems oblivious of their small size, ever eager for adventure and sometimes even trouble! They are busy, inquisitive, bold, stubborn, and can be assertive with strange dogs and small pets. Although some tend to bark a lot, they can easily be taught not to overdo so by proper and patient counselling.
Health and Training
Yorkshire Terriers are among the breeds that tend to remain generally healthy and allowing their owners to groom and beautify them abundantly. They usually exercise themselves within the home, but appreciate and crave a daily walk outdoors on leash and enjoy the chance to explore a safe area, like a fenced yard. Their long coat, their most precious asset, however, needs brushing or combing every day or two.
Yorkies are long-lived and hypoallergenic (the coat is more like human hair than animal fur), and they make fine little watchdogs.

A True Terrier
Don’t let the Yorkie’s daintiness, however, fool you. Tenacious, feisty, brave, and sometimes bossy, the Yorkie exhibits all the traits of a true terrier. 
The Yorkshire Terrier’s heritage thus, has to be seen beyond its bewitching looks dominated by its silky bright soft shining coat of hair. It is manifest in addition to extra-ordinary looks, their sharp, intelligent expression, confident carriage, and compact body. 
Regarded as the most popular dog breed in USA and many other dog-loving countries, Yorkshire Terriers pack lots of big-town attitude into a small but self-important package.

The list of admirers is long and impressive. Famous Yorkie owners include President Nixon’s family, Audrey Hepburn, Kelly Clarkson, Mariah Carey, Missy Elliott, Kirsten Dunst, and Natalie Portman.
This is a true ‘personality’ breed, even when placed in a beautiful lady’s purse, providing years of laughs, love, loyalty and lasting kinship.