Greetings! Acorn Manor is a small devoted breeder of the Yorkshire Terrier, breeding solely Yorkies for over 30 years. All of our little dogs live in our house and play in our one acre garden in Wilmington, North Carolina. We strive for
quality in our Yorkshire Terriers and are
committed to excellence. In addition to breeding traditional Yorkshire Terrier I also have chocolates, partis and goldens, and all are A.K.C. registered. All our Yorkies and their puppies are shown in their natural state with no special grooming, as we allow them to run and enjoy being a dog!
We have been working on the genetics of our Yorkshire Terrier for 30 years to ensure a quiet, laid-back, tough little dog between 4 and 6 lbs. Also of import is their beauty and expression. Our breeding stock is sound with no known genetic defects. Having said this, all dogs carry what is known as "genetic junk." These are faults and genetic problems that affect the dogs health and well being. The job of a good consientious breeder is to try to eliminate as many of these problems as possible, while at the same time trying to preserve beauty and good temperment. This is a real challenge to say the least, and I have spent a good part of my life to this end.
Our Yorkshire Terriers all run together and it is only when a female comes into estrus that she is seperated from the pack. She is then hand bred at the proper time and allowed back with her family of dogs afterwards. She will continue to run with her family till the last 2 weeks of pregnancy, at which time she goes to her nest to whelp her pups. I hand feed each female for the first 5 days after she delivers her litter since she is reluctant to leave her babies. She is then hand-carried from her nest to relieve herself several times a day. When the pups are approximately 3.5 weeks old I spoon feed the babies one at a time Gerbers newborn baby food mixed with Gerber baby cereal and some powdered esbilac.
We are now breeding rare colored Yorkie puppies including parti yorkshire terriers, golden yorkshire terriers, and chocolate yorkshire terriers. We will continue to improve on these blood lines by breeding heavily into proven Champion lines so they will continue to conform to the breed club standard. All our dogs are A.K.C. and D.N.A'd to prove parentage. The A.K.C. will now register rare colors, which strengthens the breed as a whole.
As a concientious breeder and loyal follower, I feel it is my duty to the breed to say a few words about the so called "new colors of Yorkshire terriers to come on the scene in the last few years. First of all, Parti, chocolate and golden colored yorkies are a fact of life. They do exist, and they are becoming very popular. Secondly, the American Kennel Club of America is accepting them for registration. In order to successfully register these colored dogs, three photos of the dog should be sent to the A.K.C. along with the necessary paper-work required.
Now, the next question that comes to mind would be, are these dogs healthy? Well, why wouldn't they be healthy? After all they are just another color of the breed, are they not? Well, we know that most Yorkies are born all black with tan or gold markings, but from time to time, a different color appears in a so called "normal" litter. These pups are either Liver and tan (chocolate) or Parti colored, which is a white coat with patches or spots of black or possibly some other color like brown (chocolate). A mask on the face is highly desirable, but not always apparent. Similar to the St. Bernard markings.
The third question is, why wouldn't a so called colored Yorkie be healthy? Here is what we know to date. Any Yorkie that is born all blue, is generally not a good thing. There is a gene present in these pups that causes the coat to fall out. It's a lethal gene, that is to say, the animal will most likely die within a year after losing all of it's coat. Needless to say, do not buy Yorkies that are born all blue! Now the other colors are fine, they have the same health issues as the traditional Yorkies, no more or no less! Here is another analogy: Take the cocker spaniel, or the poodle. Both breeds come in chocolate, parti colored and tan or buff, along with many other colors. Do they have any more health issues than the black color of these breeds? A resounding NO!! So why would the Yorkie be any different? There are different colors in all the breeds, and anyone that tells you they are inferior, or carry bad genes simply do not know what they are talking about!
I have investigated this at length, and am a genetic nut, and I cannot find any correlation between the colored Yorkies and severe health or unusual genetic problems with the exception of the born all blue Yorkie. I hope this, once and for all, will clear up the bad rap the fear mongers are putting out on their web-sites about these extremely unusual and beautiful yorkies. Hopefully the breeders will breed them with the same loving care that went into breeding the traditional colored yorkies. Finally, are the colored yorkies better than the traditional Yorkies? No, they are not better, just different, but as more are bred and we see more of them, they will become the norm.
Please feel welcome to contact us. We would love to provide you with a new best friend you can be proud to show off. Thank you for visiting our website! Whatever color you decide on, just make sure you are buying from a breeder with a stellar reputation. There are many terrific breeders out there so here's wishing you a very happy puppy hunt!
Kindest Regards,
Acorn Manor, Wilmington, N.C.
