Morkie - Yorketese - TOP 10 Interesting Facts

1) Designer dog breed
The Morkie is a so called designer dog breed, which is basically just a different term for a crossbreed. Unlike mutts, whose ancestry is uncertain, a proper crossbreed is always a mix of two purebred dogs, in this case a Yorkshire Terrier and a Maltese.
2) History
Of course, there could have been unintentional crosses between Malteses and Yorkies for centuries, but it was not until recently when these two dogs were crossed with the intention of creating a completely new dog. This happened few decades ago in the USA. But even though the Morkie is a still young and new cross, its parent breeds have a long history. The Maltese is an ancient dog developed by crossing some Spaniel and Bichon breeds and the Yorkie was developed in 1800s in England.
3) Companion
This is not a guard, hunter or herder. The main and only utilization of this breed is to be a companion dog and it is a very good companion dog! These dogs are very affectionate and they crave for affection from us. The Morkie tends to create a very strong bond with its owners and family and they are also good playful partners for kids. But of course, the kid should be old enough to know how to treat small and fragile dogs gently and properly. The Morkie is fun loving, high spirited and always positive dog breed.
4) Appearance
Just like with all crossbreeds, the appearance of Morkie is little bit unpredictable. Some of them will look little bit more like Yorkies and others like Maltese dogs. But it is always a small dog with average height between 8-12 inches and weight between 5-9 lbs, which is 20-30 cm and 2-4 kg. These dogs typically have shorter snouts capped with black nose, pricked or cocked ears, little mustache and visible eyebrows and alert dark eyes.
5) Coat
Typically the Morkie has typically slightly longer coat which is quite soft to touch. The coat truly looks amazing and it comes in several colors, commonly in black, brown, tan and white and in mixture of these colors. Very often, the coat changes the color as the dogs grow from a puppy to adult.
6) Hypoallergenic
Even though no dog is 100% hypoallergenic, because all of them produce some dander and saliva, the Morkie is very close to be one. Neither of its parent breed does not shed much, actually they are almost non shedding dogs, so as the Morkie. Thanks to that, there is a big chance, that if you suffer from allergies, the Morkie will not trigget the allergy. But again, it is not guaranteed and you should always spend some time with the breed before buying or adopting it, so you are sure that it will not cause any troubles.
7) Maintenance
Speaking of the coat, it is important to mention maintenance and grooming, which is not the easiest. Due to the longer coats, Morkies are quite high maintenance dogs that require regular brushing and trimming. The brushing will keep the coat clean and tangle free, while the trimming will keep the coat in manageable length. Many owners are using services of professional groomers, because it can be little bit too time consuming to groom the dog properly. Many owners also choose to keep the dog in a so called puppy cut, which keeps the coat shorter and easily manageable.
8) Exercise
Even though the Morkie is a small dog, they definitely need regular daily exercise to stay healthy and happy. For a small dog, the Morkie is quite active and energetic dog who loves ourdoors and daily longer walks should be your daily routine with this dog. They will also enjoy good playtime or fun training sessions which will not only exercise them physically but also mentally. Without enough exercise, these dogs can become bored and potentially develop some unwanted behaviour such as destruction.
9) Good for novices
Thanks to the small size, which makes the Morkie easily manageable and affectionate and thanks to the positive, affectionate and friendly perosnality, the Morkie is quite a good choice for novice dog owners. It is true, that sometimes they can be little bit stubborn, which can makes the training little bit harder, but with enough patience and consistency, anyone can teach the Morkie all the basic obedience commands.
10) Health
The Morkie is predisposed to the same health issues as its parent breeds, which may include collapsed trachea, portacaval shunt, legg calve perthes diesase, patellar luxation or some dental problems. The average lifespan of Morkie is around 14 or 15 years.