Yorkies and Coat

Twix without any coat product

The silky texture of the Yorkshire Terrier coat depends on three factors:
+genes
+diet (the pdf link is not really to promote but somehow gives us understanding about how diet affects the coat)
+care

Although the breed standard call for a silky coat texture, not all yorkies have silky coats. It actually got me quite a long time to understand this as most materials available on the books and online only talks about different textures. To give you a clear picture of the other coat textures, see the photos here...

woolly-cottony

wooly


soft coated/heavy dull coat
on adult yorkie

When a yorkie's coat is not genetically silky textured, it would really be impossible for the coat to be altered through other means to be silky. The only thing can be done, which requires more grooming effort, is to improve the texture for manageability and to keep it free from tangling and mats. Most owners with incorrect coat texture yorkies keep their dogs in cut down coat. Keeping your dog's coat short makes grooming easier and yorkies are still cute without the long coat.

Diet and supplements are also important in keeping the coat healthy. A healthy coat means your dog's coat gives off a sheen (not necessarily a silky shine for other textures) from your dog's natural oil glands plus a healthy skin condition. Sometimes a poor coat condition signifies a health condition or allergy. Make sure that you note the nutritional value of your dog's food before giving him or her coat supplements. Usually, premium dog foods are already equipt with the right amount of nutients for your furball. When you give additional oil-soluble vitamins (which are usually present in coat supplements) you might put your dog's health in danger as they become toxic when administered in more-than-normal amounts. Yorkies only have small livers and gets easily affected by toxins. You may also add a small amount of healthy, all natural ingredients in their kibbles to function as coat supplement. Kelp, seaweeds (japanese nori), flax seed oil, olive oil and peanut butter are just a few examples. Coat improvements with diet maybe seen after 4 weeks.

Care through grooming is really important if you want to keep the coat in its optimum condition. A show exhibitor usually makes alot of hard work to keep his or her yorkie really beautiful. For a pet owner, it is important to always keep the coat clean as dirt and dust are the main culprits in damaging the coat. Daily brushing is needed to stimulate the skin for hair growth and oil production. A good brush without the ball tip is recommended for the yorkie coat to prevent the brush from tugging the hair and breaking it. Spritz a bit of coat protector on your brush before brushing the yorkie coat as dry coats are prone to break than a protected coat.