Yorkishire terrier and Silky terrier, how to tell which is which?

[nameless55]

I read through a few guides on how to distinguish Yorkies from Silkies, but im still at a loss. I bought a puppy from a breeder a few months ago, and she told me that the puppy was a yorkshire terrier, but i have read a few times that the maximum weight for a yorkshire terrier is about 7lbs. My puppy is about 5 months old now, but she weighs 9lbs. And because i cannot tell the difference between a yorkie and a silky, i cannot tell if my puppy is a yorkie or not. If anyone out there could help me out, that would be great!

[MicksMom]

Here's the parts of the breed standards that talk about the size of both breeds. As you probably already know, Silky Terriers are bigger than a Yorkie. Another difference is the back- Silkies have a longer back in proportion to their height than a Yorkie. Chances are you have an over sized Yorkie. While there are some Silkies out there, they aren't as popular as Yorkies. I've seen/met a lot of uncommon breeds in person, but never a Silkie. And, of all the people I know through dog sites, only one has a Silkie.

Silky Terrier:
Size, Proportion, Substance
Size - Shoulder height from nine to ten inches. Deviation in either direction is undesirable. Proportion - The body is about one fifth longer than the dog's height at the withers. Substance - Lightly built with strong but rather fine bone

Yorkshire Terrier:
Body
Well proportioned and very compact. The back is rather short, the back line level, with height at shoulder the same as at the rump.

Weight
Must not exceed seven pounds.

[Bahamutt99]

One thing I noticed, at least with show dogs, is that the Yorkie's coat reaches to the ground. The Silky's does not. Probably not a cut-and-dry method to determine which is which, though, with grooming differences.

[Zoom]

Silkies are about the same size as Yorkies, it's quite possible that your dog is just going to be out of standard.

[FoxyWench]

size is never a good way to judge a breed, ive seen 15lb purbred chihuahuas, (standard calls 2-6lbs) there just badly bred, throwbacks, larger built ect.

best way... when you look at a yorkie from the side draw a box around it visually, the box around a yorki would be more of a square shape.

the visual box around a silky more of a rectangle...

silkies also tend to seem more "stocky" in build whereas a yorkie would be a little more "delicate"

the sikies head/muzzle are also longer and more pointed than a yorkies who has a softer rounded apearence to the head.

its very likley you just have a larger yorkie...not all dogs stay within breed standard.


Silky terrier


Yorkshire Terrier

(images do not belong to me but could not find copyright info)

[nameless55]

Thanks for all the replies! they really did help
but i was comparing pics of yorkies and silkies to my puppy, and my puppy really does look like a silky terrier..
here is a picture of when i just bought her(she looks like a yorkie in this one) :

And here are pictures of her a few days ago(now she looks like a silky) :



If anyone could help me identify whether my puppy is a Yorkie or a Silky, that'd be great

Also, if she really is a yorkie, what could explain her huge growth? (considering she grew twice her original size in a matter of a few months)

Again, thanks for everyone's help

[Sweet72947]

A silky's coat is more silvery, and softer. A yorkie's coat is darker and a little less fine. Although I have seen some yorkies on the lighter side, even some red (chocolate) yorkies. Those were cool looking.

[AnimalLoverCatRescuer]

Just going by the fact that I don't think Silky's areas common as Yorkies, I would say she is just a badly bred Yorkie, wouldn't go back to that breeder in the future

[FoxyWench]

from your pictures hojnestly id say more yorkie than silky, just a badly bred one unfortunatly.
id stear clear of wherever you got her, dont support that breeder again.

fast growth is common in puppies remeber toy breeds will reah their adult height and length by 6-8months old! they continue to fill out in the chest till 2 years however size wise they grow FAST.
what would have caused her to grow so big?! BAD BREEDING, or bad genetics (ive seen some wonderfull dogs throw puppies that ended up larger) what do you know about this dogs parents, her breeder, her breeding, ect.

toy breeds are POPULAR especially right now! this has brought on a BIG increase in bad breeding, petstores and mills focusing on these little dogs and you end up paying big money for a dog thats bred out of standard and ends up looking nothign like the dog its supposed to be...

love her, have fun with her, shes simply a BIG yorkie!

[Sapphire-Light]

I agree with FoxyWench that she's just a badly breed yorkie.
The floppy ears is a proof.

Also if you whant for her to have pricked ears you can shave them (beacuse beein hairless the ear is goin to weight less )
and using tape to make them stand up like people do with dobeman, schnauzer and other breeds.