How to Groom Your Teacup Yorkie
Teacup York puppies earn the Teacup part of their title when they are the runt of their litter. A Teacup Yorkshire Terrier is just as much a purebred dog as a regular-sized Yorkshire Terrier puppy. These dogs have amazing personalities, although they need a little extra care when it comes to Yorkie grooming.
Teacup Yorkie Breed Overview
The Teacup Yorkie is an excellent companion dog as they get along well with children, older adults, single-family homes, and other dogs and cats.
When you have a Teacup Yorkie, you get to experience their love and loyalty firsthand. This dog breed has plenty of desirable traits that make them good pets. For example, these dogs are very intelligent and eager to please their owners. When dogs want to please their owners, they're easier to train and a better fit for novice dog owners.
Even though these dogs are social butterflies at their best, they need plenty of socialization to help them develop their friendliest and most gentle nature possible. A Teacup Yorkie can be a very outgoing pet, or they can develop fearful reactions to new people or places if their owners don't socialize them correctly.
Teacup Yorkie Size
These dogs are very little and only weigh up to seven pounds maximum. Although, most Teacup Yorkie puppies are below even four pounds of weight. The majority of these dogs will not grow past seven inches tall at their shoulders, but most of these dogs make it to at least five inches tall.
Because of their incredibly small size, these dogs can be easily injured if they're mishandled. It's very important to take extra care when letting others hold your Teacup Yorkie. Try to ensure they understand how fragile these little babies can be.
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Health Overview
Teacup Yorkie puppies are at risk of a few different health conditions, just as all dog breeds are. This breed is at risk of a few joint dysplasia issues in their knees and hips. Sadly, the Teacup Yorkie is at risk of many more serious health conditions than the regular-sized Yorkshire Terrier. Teacup dogs are more likely to have collapsed trachea, respiratory problems, heart defects, and digestive problems. The average lifespan of a Teacup Yorkie is only five to seven years, which is considerably short for a dog this size.
These dogs have very low exercise needs and only need a short walk a day. Sadly, in addition to the physical health issues this breed suffers from, many of these dogs are also super anxious.
One of the reasons Teacup Yorkies are so popular is because of their non-shedding specialty fur. These dogs have almost human-like hair and are considered to be hypoallergenic. Their fur can come in bicolor, tricolor, or blue and tan patterns. In fact, the dogs of this breed can have any mixture of brown, liver, cream, black, blue, gray, and tan fur. Most often, these dogs have blue and gold, black and gold, or black and tan fur patterns.
How to Groom Your Teacup Yorkie
Thanks to their special fur, Teacup Yorkie puppies require some extra grooming care than other breeds do. However, any Yorkie owner knows that these loyal little sweethearts deserve all the extra pampering they need.
Step 1 of Grooming: Relax Your Teacup Yorkie
Before beginning your grooming session, the first thing you should do is try to relax your dog. While dogs love being pet and getting attention, this love usually runs out the second your start cutting their hair, bathing them, or brushing their teeth. As it turns out, dogs aren't a huge fan of being clean.
You can help your Teacup Yorkie relax by giving them calming supplements or dog CBD about 30 minutes before you intend to start your regularly scheduled grooming session.
Begin your grooming session then by giving your pet a few treats, a whole lot of verbal praise, and plenty of soft pets. Take this time to try to examine your Teacup Yorkie's skin and check for fleas, ticks, rashes, or any other skin irritants. If you find anything, make a note of it and talk to your vet.
Step 2 of Grooming: Brush Your Dog's Fur
One of the easiest parts of grooming is brushing your pet's fur. Often dogs enjoy getting brushed, it's soothing, and while it detangles their fur, it also spreads their natural oils evenly around their skin.
A special aspect about Teacup Yorkie puppies is that they have almost human-like hair. When these dogs are between 6 and 18 months old, your dog's hair will change from the fur of a fluffy puppy to the silk or wiry coat of an adult Yorkie. When this change happens, your pet's hair is more susceptible to tangling and matting, so you should brush them almost daily.
Owners can choose what type of brush they want to use on their Teacup Yorkie. Because Yorkie puppies have special hypoallergenic fur, some brushes might be better for them than others. If your Yorkie has that smooth, silky coat, then you might want a soft bristle brush to remove any dead hairs from your pet's coat. While a soft brush can also work for a Yorkie with a wire coat, a pin brush is much more likely to be more effective on these more textured and thicker coats.
Sometimes owners go above and beyond their Teacup Yorkie's basic needs, start brushing them with a soft brush, and then work their way up to a pin brush to remove any dense, tangled areas of fur. The less you groom your dog, the more difficult it will get. Upkeep is the best way to care for their coats, so just ensure you give your dog a brush once a week, but use this carefully planned grooming time to really take care of any debris or matted fur they might have.
While many owners use pin brushes, many professional groomers swear by using a slicker brush to treat your dog's coat.
Don't hurt your pet by using a pin brush to help your dog's matted fur if it's too tangled. Instead, simply cut off the fur that is too tangled to be salvaged.
Matted fur can cause your dog to develop skin irritations and infections, which is why regularly brushing them is so important, as this can prevent matted hair altogether.
Step 3 of Grooming: Style Your Yorkie's Coat
You're ready to begin styling their fur after you've brushed any knots or matted fur out of your Teacup Yorkie's coat. It might seem scary to give your dog a haircut, but remember that these pets do not care what they look like. If you do a bad job, it will be a learning experience. Plus, you might get a good chuckle out of your dog's bad haircut every now and then until their fur grows back to normal.
The best way to trim your Teacup Yorkie's fur is to start with little trims at a time. Try to make the fur on their body between 1 and 1.5 inches long. This does not have to be an exact measurement, and you can let it be longer if you like that scrappy look. No matter what length you choose, you'll have to trim your pet's hair every five to seven weeks.
When cutting your Yorkie's hair, you need to be extra careful around their face. You can do this by purchasing scissors made for dog grooming; they're likely to be shorter and duller to prevent more accidents from happening.
You'll have to hold your dog's face still with one hand while you trim their fur very carefully with the other. Many owners choose to let their Yorkie puppy's fur be a little longer on their face and ears than the rest of the body. If you're nervous or extra cautious, you can always leave that hair a little longer until you feel ready to cut it similarly to the rest of their fur.
Step 4 of Grooming: Bathe Your Yorkie
Some dog breeds need to be groomed more often than they need to be bathed, but the Yorkshire Terrier is not one of them. These dogs have remarkably similar hair to humans, and although you don't need to wash their hair as much as you'd wash yours, you should bathe your Teacup Yorkie every four to six weeks.
Teacup Yorkies should be bathed after you brush and trim their hair; this way, you can be sure to remove any excess dead hair from their coats. Dead hair is the thing that causes matted fur, and that is what you want to avoid with hypoallergenic dogs like the Yorkshire Terrier.
Be sure only to use dog shampoo on your pet and allow them to shake while bathing if they have the urge. Dogs shake to dry off, but they might also shake to relieve stress, and as many dogs don't like baths, your dog could very well be doing both.
Step 5 of Grooming: Wash Your Dog's Face
Cleaning your dog's face in the bath can be hard, which is why you shouldn't do it. Instead, wait until you are done bathing your dog, and then take a warm washcloth to wipe their face carefully.
Take this time to examine their face and look for any signs of tear stains, extra eyelashes, or debris in their eyes. Dogs are excellent at cleaning themselves, but they can't lick their face clean, so it's up to you to take care of this part of their health for them.
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Step 6 of Grooming: Trim Your Dog's Nails
Many owners overlook the importance of trimming their dog's nails. When dogs itch themselves, they do so with their paws, and if their nails are too sharp, they can accidentally cut themselves or cause brush burns on their skin.
Owners can prevent this from happening by trimming their dog's nails once a month. It's a good idea to do this task every time you groom your Teacup Yorkie, and this way, you have a nice schedule to adhere to.
When you go to cut your dog's nails, check to see if you can see a pink part of their nail inside. You do not want to cut this pink part of their nail, it won't seriously injure them or anything, but it will hurt them. It isn't a huge deal if you accidentally do this, but it might make your dog begin associating negative feelings with grooming, making it more difficult to groom your Teacup Yorkie every six weeks.
Some pet parents don't feel comfortable trimming their dog's nails, and in these cases, you should consider purchasing a dog nail filer. These filers are great ways to keep your dog's nails back without risking clipping their vein. The only thing is they are slower, and they often get nail residue everywhere in the air, so you'll want to do this outside or wear a mask, so you don't breathe in your dog's dirty nail filings.
Step 7 of Grooming: Brush Your Dog's Teeth
One of the most important parts of your dog's grooming is brushing their teeth. Many small dog breeds experience periodontal disease more intensely than other dog breeds. This is because their small mouths often force their teeth together, making their mouth more crammed and creating perfect spaces for plaque, tartar, and bacteria to live.
When dogs experience dental disease, they'll have swollen gums that might bleed when you brush their teeth. While the first stage of dental disease isn't that harmful, this condition can progress if you don't do anything to care for your dog's teeth.
Poor oral health can lead to other issues like heart disease and respiratory disease as well. All the harmful bacteria found in your dog's mouth can travel down their body, causing them to develop internal health issues, and all of this can be avoided by brushing their teeth regularly.
You should give your Teacup Yorkie a brushing every week, if not multiple times a week. However, most owners find that even brushing their teeth once a week can be hard, and they use dental chews and oral health treats to take care of their dog's teeth in between brushing sessions.
You should use this extra time while grooming them to provide even more care and use a finger toothbrush to really try to remove tartar from your dog's mouth. Remember only to use canine products on your dog, as human toothpaste can be poisonous to them.
Step 8 of Grooming: Clean Your Dog's Ears
Another part of grooming owners often overlook is cleaning their dog's ears. Pets like the Teacup Yorkie with hypoallergenic fur are somewhat more at risk of developing ear infections than some other breeds. A large part of this is because while their fur is great at protecting them, it is also great at keeping oils in. The fact that it can keep these oils in can make it easier for their hair to trap bacteria and inhibit proper airflow. All of these things are key ingredients in your dog developing ear infections.
However, if you overclean your dog's ears, you risk them developing infections just as much. Overcleaning your dog's ears will make them extra vulnerable to any dirt or bacteria.
It would help if you only clean your dog's ears once a month, so it's a good idea to do it at the same time you do the rest of this grooming stuff.
Clean your dog's ears by purchasing a dog ear cleaning solution and using cotton balls to wipe the outside of their ears. Never put anything inside your dog's ears, and absolutely never use a q-tip to clean your pet's ears. Your dog's ears are very vulnerable, and if anything goes inside their ears, it can easily rupture their eardrums.
The best way you can clean the inside of their ears is by letting two or three droplets of the ear cleaning solution slide down your dog's ear canal. You can then use your hand and gently rub your dog's ears to try to massage the liquid in their ears. Many dogs hate getting their ears cleaned, so it's important to give your dog plenty of treats.
Conclusion
Grooming your Teacup Yorkie at home might seem like a lot of work, but giving your Teacup Yorkie puppy their grooming at home is excellent to bond with your pet more. Teacup Yorkshire Terrier dogs have amazing hair and will benefit from a puppy cut every now and then. There are tons of options when it comes to deciding on a Yorkie haircut, and providing grooming sessions at home is a way you can experiment with your dog without making them too uncomfortable.
