Many feel that yorkies are too small and weak to chew bones, some may be, but please let them try!
This is really important for their development from puppy-hood. Please check the article: yorkiesa.com/can-yorkies-chew-bones
Please tell me your experience with bones versus yorkies...

I personally dont like to give bones to our yorkies because Im scared of them choking. We did however recently start buying those big soup bones for our big dog and are introducing it to the yorkies. They love it I must admit, but we still watch them closely and through the bones away when it seems unsafe or if the edges looks too rough.



Thats my opinion on it, but definitely no chicken bones or bones that could break off and get lodged in their throats.

Please give them chicken bones! Make sure they are raw and just watch them in the beginning! Raw chicken bones are so healthy for them and full of nutritious marrow, good for their coats! Cooked chicken bones are deadly for any dog.

It may be a little stressful in the beginning when teaching your yorkie to chew bones, but later you won't be worried at all when you know what he can handle.

I used to only give my Yorkies soft chews, but now I have seen a remarkable difference in my dogs since they have had bones.

Please read the short article on my website Can Yorkies Chew Bones?

I read the article. Thanks for the info. I was always just scared that they would get hurt. Do you take the chicken off the bones yourself or do you buy it like that somewhere? Or do you give them a price of raw chicken on the bone?

I feed my Yorkies bones all the time. I have a batch of pork bones defrosting in the sink as we speak My Yorkies are going to love me tonight!

The golden rule for dogs and bones is: Only raw bones. Never, ever, ever give cooked bones to your dog, especially chicken bones.

Any raw bone is fine - dogs are physically and genetically designed to eat raw bones and they enjoy it a lot. It's great for their jaws, teeth and gums and it's also great for their coordination and development.

The bigger the bones the better. If the bone is bigger than your Yorkie, don't worry - it'll just keep him happy for longer My 2 kg Yorkie girl eats the pork bones by standing on the bone with her paws and tearing off strips of meat. They gnaw at the bones for hours which is absolutely amazing for their teeth. It cleans every nook and cranny.

Just one word of advice: give raw bones the day before they are due for a bath because they bury their faces in the bones.

My Yorkies love bones On very hot days (in summer of course) I don't even defrost them, I give them to them while they are still frozen & they just love them I agree with Marilize - the bigger the better And YES .......... they should be given just before they are due for bath You will not be wanting any yorkie kisses after they've had a day with a bone

So good to hear! Too many seem deprive the lil guys of this most natural doggy thing to do.

QTPie, I agree. I think it's because people often don't think Yorkies can do these things. I've often heard people refer to their Yorkies as their kids and I also love my Yorkie like they are my children, but they aren't human and we shouldn't impose our limitations on our dogs.

Yorkies are real dogs who like to play in mud, drag sticks and stones into your house and they like to chew bones. And they LOVE getting down and dirty, like all other dogs. They aren't our dolls They are just super cute, super small DOGS.

Thanks for clearing this a little. I will try and give them the big bones raw too. We put it in a pot for 10 minutes with water as we did not relly want to cook the bones but we were not too sure if we could give it just like that from the freezer.

Pleasure, Val. I'm going to try Sharlamay's trick in the summer too. I think it's a great way for the dogs to cool down naturally.

I had the same fears and my mom still tells me I'm wrong but I find the bones do wonders for their teeth and general condition.



I chop chicken necks into bite size pieces and ALWAYS monitor those meals in case. They also love the big meaty bones...but Trigger has a small obsession with having both of them and will go and bury his and then steal Taylors! or I find them hidden in the sofa throws!



their poos are always nice and firm, go white and their teeth stay clean!



Just never feed cooked bones!!!!!!!

Chicken necks can be dangerous in the beginning for small yorkies, good that you chop them up! They do learn with time how to eat them properly, but in the beginning they can choke quite easily.

I've given chicken necks chopped and whole and even my smallest Yorkie eats them. She does struggle a bit and because I don't like waiting around for hours while she chews through the cartilage, I started chopping them up. She used to choke, but not dangerously... it's what dogs do sometimes... they regurgitate the food to chew it again. Wolves also do this if they find something hard to swallow.

My rule of thumb for safety with food is that if they are able to eat it in the wild, they should be able to eat it at home. Domesticated dogs have the same tools (teeth, digestive system, enzymes, etc.) that wolves have, and as long as the food is natural, it's not dangerous. According to this rule of thumb, you can deduce that cooked bones are dangerous because dogs wouldn't eat COOKED bones in the wild. Rawhide is dangerous because dogs wouldn't eat it in the wild. Raw bones, however, can't hurt your dog. They can only make them stronger

Agreed! I also feed whole chicken necks to my dogs still, but I have to watch them.
Maybe I'm just a bit paranoid!

Just a quick word on what to do if your dog chokes, (this happened on a chicken neck by the way)

Don't panic if think it is to late because the tongue has gone white.
Stick your finger in and see if you can pull something out, it may be too slippery then it is good to
use tweezers, or in an emergency long nose pliers.

Put your yorkie on a hard surface and straighten his neck.
Put your mouth around his nose & mouth.
Blow air gently into his nose until you see his chest expand.
Wait for the air to leave his chest and then blow air back into your Yorkie's nose (about a breath every 3 seconds).
Once normal breathing begins, stop.

I saved one yorkie this way from a chicken neck. It is good to be prepared!

Thanks for the advice!!! That is why I am so scared to give bones. I will definitely panic!! I will have to tell my husband how to do it as I dont think I will be able to handle it.

I used to give them a whole one at a time - neither of them ever choked but they would take it outside in the dirt and if one finished before the other which generally happened a light squabble would ensue! when i feed chicken necks now i hold the bowl and dish them out one by one. I would say i cut eacj neck into at least 4 pieces. If they ar too big Taylor doesnt know what to do with it.



My vet told me once that feeding cooked chicken bones is as dangerous as feeding glass to your dog. The shards splinter and can cause internal injries.



Marilize is right, in the wild they wouldn't get it cooked. I think their jaws are stronger than we give them credit for

I was always against giving bones to Duncan but December we gave him the leg of lamb bone and he totally loved it that bone was bigger than him and heavy for him to lug around but he guarded it with his life, it was the best thing that could have happend to him, we could not touch it to move it out of the way for us to walk then he would jump to fetch it, lol... I act made a video of him keeping it between his paws and manovouring it to all angles. It most def made his teeth stronger, so we started giving him the bigger bones that he wont be able to bite down and swallow. Basically for to keep his teeth and gums strong with.

We also do that with the yorkies Tammy. We only give them bones that are "bigger" than them!!! They love it and its so cute to watch them trying to pull it around and struggling!!!!

It really helps with their teeth.

What a nice thread to be able to read.

I have never giving my little one's any bones, as I was scared they might choke, did not think of giving them raw bones either ( the fact that it is raw make my stomach turn). WIll they not get sick if they leave this raw bone for a day or 2 and then go back again for it?

Reason I am asking is that my yorkies bury ALL their toys, everytime the gardener cleans he digs out the toys.