On the drive down to Durbs today Hubby surprised me by saying it was time to "expand our passel of dog babies." We generally limit ourselves to four dogs...the max we feel we can adequately feed, groom and vet without breaking our budget (and yes, that includes expensive vet stuff like surgeries...we had five dog surgeries in the past 18 months: 3 for cancer, Puddin's baby teeth, and Nashie's extractions). At present we have only 3 dogs (Puddin and the two rescued Maltese) and he is ready for a new baby.

I am home all day, so she will get plenty of attention and supervision. We are fully equipped and I used to breed Collies and Persian cats, so I am well experienced in caring for even the youngest babies...I hand reared orphaned/abandoned puppies and kittens from birth with excellent results.

We want a KUSA registered female and we do have breeding in mind if she develops to standard well. (If she doesn't, she will remain a beloved pet...by the time I know for sure that a pup is suitable for breeding, I'm besotted and wouldn't let her go for the world!)

We live in Sandton, which is one of Joburg's northern suburbs, and Hubby says we can go as far as a place we can make a round trip in one day...he reckons we can go as far as Bloemfontein area and since his mum lives in Durban, I know he won't rule Durbs out.

I prefer very young pups (I got Puddin at 6 weeks) because I prefer not to have to "unteach" a puppy things learned at the breeder's hands. I understand that many people think that is essential for a pup to stay with its mother and sibs until as much as 12 weeks, but I disagree. Of course, I am home full time to put in the nurturing and teaching I want my pups to have. Puddin' is well socialized, both with people and other dogs, and a real delight to be around. A new puppy would have the advantage of having her as a surrogate parent/sibling, plus the two Maltese.

So, if you have puppies about ready to go or have some coming soon and think I might be the kind of doggy mama you'd like your babies to end up with (did I mention the HUGE walled garden, the baby gates to keep pups from disappearing outdoors unsupervised and a maid who loves Puddin like her own?) let me know and I'll make a plan to come see. We like spunky, cheeky puppies, so please keep me in mind if you know of one!

Sorry I can not help. You sound like the perfect mommy of these little babies. Hope you find your little princess soon.

Thanks! If you know of anyone who might have a suitable pup, please let me know!

What great news sweetviolet........... you must be soooooo excited I will let you know if I hear of anyone who has a suitable pup for you I do hope you will reconsider trying to get a pup at 6 weeks - if you saw these little one's at that age with their mommy you would know how crucial this stage of their development is and they learn so much from their mommy and their litter mates, and even though they are eating on their own they are still drinking from mommy The first Yorkie I ever bought I got at 6 weeks, and I will never get a pup that young again. Please give it some more thought - it is so much safer to wait until the pup is 8 weeks. I think you are a wonderful Yorkie mom

I used to breed dogs when I lived in California, Sharlamay, so I am familiar with pups from birth onward. I used to keep my pups until 8 to 10 weeks, but that was because most people do not have the time (or knowledge/interest) to care for a really young puppy with the intensity needed. Once they get teeth (around 6 weeks) the dam actively begins to wean them...my collie bitch used to climb up on top of the patio table to get away from her puppies...all those sharp little teeth!

I do not recommend a pup going out that young to most people simply because they lack the time and knowledge to care for a baby that young. But six to twelve weeks is the puppy's most receptive learning stage and I prefer to have my pups for as much of that time as possible. It is the fact that they learn from their mothers and littermates that I would care to avoid...if the dam is not properly socialized, housetrained, or has other unfavourable traits, I do not want them passed on to my baby. If there are very aggressive littermates that pick on my puppy, she will learn fear, which is damned difficult to UNlearn. My preference is to take a puppy as soon as it is weaned and take over the nurturing and teaching process myself.

We do not punish dogs at our house. Punishing a puppy or a dog accomplishes nothing but to instill fear and damage the spirit. We gently correct, distract, praise and reward to get the behaviour we want. Once a puppy is at the receptive stage, this is all I want my puppy to experience. We have a wealth of toys and Puddin' will make an excellent playmate...she loves other dogs and has been very sweet around the puppies she has met.

Again, I don't think sending puppies out at 6 weeks is for everyone, but there are some of us who can devote the time and have the knowledge to raise a happy, healthy puppy from that age. You should meet Puddin'...full of spunk and life, well socialized both with dogs and people, but well behaved and positively adorable...I got her at 6 weeks and she has turned out beautifully!

I think it all depends on the individual puppy and their development. I got Taylor at 6 weeks and I nearly lost her that same night due to a few issues. First she did not have a SINGLE tooth in her mouth and was NOT weaned like the breeder said she was. The breeder rushed the sale because she wa going overseas. Additionally she suffered a lot of stress in the car for a full day while her siblings were delivered and she was the last to go. By the time I got her home she was so hungry that she swollowed her food whole and was later so ill that I had to rush her into emergency and they had to put a drip in her because her white blood cell count was so high and she was lifeless and weak.

After that I swore i would never get another puppy of any breed so young but I got Trigger at 7 weeks old. Trigger however had all his teeth and was eating solids on his own and has never once had to visit the vet for anything besides innoculations. He was strong, vibrant and healthy. In his case I monitored his progress before I got him and the breeder was quite happy to keep him as long as i wanted him to stay with is mommy. perhaps it wasnt ideal and I should have waited (the waiting is a killer though!) but he has been fine and I have never regretted getting him that age!

Both of my dogs are well adjusted, obedient, full of fun and happiness and very social with people and animals. Taylor just developed physically slower than Trigger in my opinion.

Sweetviolet, unfortunately these days KUSA means very little to the actual quality of the dog. every second person has registered dogs. The best thing to do is look at their parents and grandparents if possible and see their quality which you will have to do in person as a lot of these advertisers use OTHER people photos as their own!!! shocking but true!

If you look at the back pages on magazines such as Animal Talk and Dog Directory there are a lot of breeders in JHB and Pretoria. In fact, I battled to even find a puppy at all in Durban. I was almost ready to drive to JHB to find one and collect! it will be much less stressful if you dont have to travel with a young puppy all that way and could find one in JHB. A lot also depends on what you are willing to pay.

A high white count is indicative of infection. It is a very good thing you took her to the vet when you did...you saved her life!!

Because I am an experienced breeder, I can handle most things with even the youngest puppies and kittens. I know how to tube feed, and I always have a tube of Nutri-cal (or the South African equivalent...I can't remember what it is called) on hand for blood sugar or low appetite crises.

I know what you mean about the KUSA registration...I am trying to find a show kennel that will sell a female without breeding restrictions. So far, no luck. I am even considering buying a dog from overseas and have some feelers out in that direction (I belong to a small dog forum that has an international membership and some of them have bought Yorkies from overseas, so I would take advice from them).

I would prefer to find one here in SA, though. We DO have champion-quality dogs in this country and it is one of their pups I would like to have!

So, if you or anyone else hears of something, please let me know. I would take a "below standard" pup if I fell in love with her, but I would never breed her, so I have to be very picky about my parent dogs as I want to leave the breeding option open until I see if the dog is suitable for breeding or not!

Thanks so much for your input!

Taylor nearly died - there is no nice way of putting it. I was not concerned about the money I had just spent on her, just that my baby had finally come home and I now stood the chance of losing her the very first night. My fiance was in Mozambique and hadn' even seen her yet and she was a gift from him because he had known for years how desperately I wanted a Yorkie and how much research I had done on them. The vets also had to put her on antibiotics which for me was terrible at her young age. She bounced back quicky though and by early hours of the morning she was much more alert.

But it was a tough road nursing her back to health. Even though I was brought up on a farm most my life and had plenty of experience in bottle feeding lambs and calves and other random animals, i was always the child and took instructions from mom! this was the first time i had my OWN puppy and I never in a million years thought it would be like that. Luckily I worked a few kms from home and I had the chance to stop in at home every hour and check on her. I only noticed she was so ill that night because a friend of mine had bought her sister and phoned me frantically to ask if Taylor was ok becuase the sister was very ill. I had innocently put her to sleep in a quiet spot to rest for the night because she had come home late in the afternoon and I didnt want to cause her too much stress in a strange place. When I did go to her she was lying in her bed in her own vomit everywhere and I just about died. The vet said if she didnt eat or drink anything in half an hour she must go in - I took her regardless. it cost me over R800 to save that little life and I would do it all over again if i had to. My friend sent the sister back to the mother and she pulled through on her own somehow. Taylor continued vomiting yellow bile for weeks afterwards and my vet was on high alert at all times in case. I would rather spend the money and have her be fine than have anyting happen to her! He said if I hadnt taken her in she would have died.

I DID buy Trigger from the same breeding stock (different lines though) but the woman who had bred Taylor was overseas and her wonderful daughter in law has taken over. I have the utmost faith in her and when I told her what had happened she was straight on the phone overseas to give her mom in law a blast from hell!

The good news is that if you see Taylor now she is as strong as an ox and LOVES life! after our scare i put her straight onto medical aid and i have never had to use it! I have been tempted to cancel it but that would be tempting fate! They have such a strong fighting spirit these little dogs!

Im sure our country could do with show quality dogs - I would just be worried about such a long flight for them and the anxiety you would face worrying about the trip. But a lot of people do it successfully I dont think you will get a show quality dog in SA very easily, they have all got restrictions on them! Even then, from what I have read, most breeders expect you to be mentored, work with them and learn from scratch before they will entrust one of the quality dogs to you. I may be wrong!

I've said it before and I will say it again - everyone who wants to breed and who has that burning desire to do things tp the best of their ability has to start somewhere. You have the advantage of having bred before, and although Yorkies will probably teach you a thing or 2, im sure you will be great at it and I wish you all the best.

And I must just add, that second ONLY to a Yorkie, Border Collies are one of the greatest dogs on earth! We had one on the farm and although she couldnt herd sheep she sure tried! She would have taken an adult sheep if you gave her half a chance, and she tried once or twice when left to her own devices but when we had our orphans they would climb into her kennel to sleep and she would snuggle with them and not let them out of her sight. What a magical, loving dog she was

My grandmother had Border Collies and Australian Sheepdogs on her farm. I raised the big golden collies (they are also sheep dogs). My collie bitch used to herd kids!! My youngest kid was a bit of a wild card and if she caught him doing stuff he shouldn't (like climbing over the garden fence) she would grab him by his pant legs and drag him down, then nip his heels until he ran into the house to get away from her (which was her plan...to herd him back into his barn!).

Collies are gorgeous dogs that are wonderful with children, but their coats are a LOT of work. Once my kids were grown and gone and the Collies had gone to doggie heaven, I moved to small dogs...I've had a Peke, Maltese, and now I have discovered Yorkies. Lovely little scamps!

Our Collie would pull us out the pool by our heads if she could reach! and often fall in trying to get us! She was a bit of a wild card but very clever! loved to chase sheep. We found her once guarding her prey in the dam - she had torn it's stomach and throat open and dragged it into the dam to drown the poor thing! But in her defense she was obedience trained, not sheep trained! and it's only normal that when they ran, she chased! The sheep lived so all was ok! yet so loving with kids and baby animals! The only herding she got right was the ducks, too slow to get away from her and the only rest the got was when they got to the dam!

She had been bred with a slightly shorter coat than most Border Collies and was not much work at all thankfully. She was high maintenance with exercise and training though and had many days when she would jump the fence and chase the postman for miles into the sugarcane. But she was just a lovely dog that we inherited from my Gran who was given her and lived in a tiny flat with a yard 3m x 3m. My little Panda, miss her huge Would love another one one day if i had a farm!

Sweetviolet, A lady called me today, she has a 7 week old female yorkie for sale. The baby is Khusa registerd and has a soft, caring personality. She wants R3000 for her. The only thing is that she stays in Springbok but is willing to bring the baby to Cape Town, maybe if you are interrested, you can contact her? Her name is Veronique and her number is
0728045657. Unfortuneately we cant take her right now, so thought of you, looking for a female baby. Hope this helps. L

Sorry, she just phoned me again, the puppy is sold now.... Will keep my eyes and ears open for you.

Hi,

I was reading your page today and I saw that you are looking for a female yorkie. I have 3 females if you are interested you can give me a call, my number is 082 266 9829