Parti Yorkshire Terrier Magazine
PYTC
Magazine
March 2010
Feature Story
The Parti Yorkshire Terrier
What is a Breeder?
The Lab Herder
The Parti Yorkshire Terrier Club
The beautiful Parti Yorkshire Terrier is quite a remarkable sight to behold and making a huge impact in the USA. The Parti is a colored version of the standard Yorkshire Terrier.
Mystery seems to surround this little terrier of a different color. Some claim the dogs are not purebred. Those who breed the colored terriers will disagree and want the public to know they are purebred and were produced from two standard Yorkshire Terriers.
The Yorkshire Terrier is a man-made breed. The original breeders of the Yorkshires were weavers, miners and factory workers, who were illiterate. No records were kept to truly verify which breeds were bred in to the dogs. The Paisley, Clydesdale and Dandy Dinmont are among the dogs that are thought to make up the Yorkshire Terrier. Some think the Maltese was added later on for the long silky hair.
History suggest that crosses of other terriers were bred into these dogs by the original breeders, prior to the start of the dog show era when breeders started selectively breeding to produce the blue and gold color we see today.
Many books have been written noting references to these White Yorkshire Terriers since the 1800s. Earnest Hemingway even wrote about his grandfathers white Yorkshire ,Tassel.
When the show era started, people began selectively breeding to produce the blue and gold colors we see today and the white terriers, when born were considered inferior and were either put down or discreetly given away. This practice has been followed through the years and even today some show breeders still use the cruel culling process to destroy the parti-colored pups when born. Breeders did not want it known that a highly prized show dog had sired offspring that produced a color fault.
The problem was that many of the normal looking Terriers harbored the hidden genes and were considered carriers. Those carriers went on to produce other carriers with the same hidden genes.
Genes can lay dormant for many years and only be expressed when bred to another dog with the same hidden genes, when this happens the results can produce various coloring in Yorkshire Terriers.
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In the 1980s one show breeder refused to destroy the tri-colored pups when born but instead sold them out the back door unregistered. In 1999, AKC did voluminous DNA testing on this kennel, along with studies of the breeds history. This process took 18 months and when completed, it was determined by AKC that the dogs were purebred and the various colors can be produced in otherwise normal litters of Yorkshire Terriers. The dogs were correctly registered as Blue or Black, White and Tan parti-color in June of 2000 .
A misconception is the YTCA states the dogs are not standard, which leads people to believe cannot be AKC registered. The AKC is a dog registry and does not deny registration on color alone.
Parti Yorkshire Terriers can be AKC registered as long as both parents are also AKC registered.
The YTCA is a club who governs the show standard for the Yorkshire Terriers to compete against in AKC dog shows. In Oct of 2007, YTCA elected to add a disqualification to the Yorkshire standard stating that Any dog of color or combination of colors other then blue and tan or any white markings other than a small white spot on the fore chest that does not exceed 1 inch at its longest dimension.
The Parti Yorkshire Terrier can compete in AKC agility but are disqualified from showing in AKC sanctioned dog shows due to the white coloring.
Reputable Parti breeders are coming together to preserve and protect the Parti Yorkshire Terrier .
These reputable breeders are determined to take this Parti Colored Yorkshire Terrier to the forefront,
where he can shine and take his rightful place beside his standard counterpart and one day be able to be shown in AKC sanctioned dog shows. No matter what, the Parti Yorkshire Terrier is here to stay.
Sherry McSwain
Photo courtesy of Fantasy Yorkies
A Breeder (with a capital B) is one who thirsts for knowledge and never really
knows it all, one who wrestles with decisions of conscience, convenience, and commitment.
A Breeder is one who sacrifices personal interests, finances, time, friendships,
fancy furniture, and deep pile carpeting! She gives up the dreams of a long,
luxurious cruise in favor of turning that all important Show into this years
"vacation".
The Breeder goes without sleep (but never without coffee!) in hours spent
planning a breeding or watching anxiously over the birth process, and afterwards,
over every little sneeze, wiggle or cry.
The Breeder skips dinner parties because that litter is due or the babies have
to be fed at eight. She disregards birth fluids and puts mouth to mouth to save a
gasping newborn, literally blowing life into a tiny, helpless creature that may be
the culmination of a lifetime of dreams.
A Breeders lap is a marvelous place where generations of proud and noble
champions once snoozed. A Breeders hands are strong and firm and often
soiled, but ever so gentle and sensitive to the thrusts of a puppy's wet nose.
A Breeders back and knees are usually arthritic from stooping, bending, and
sitting in the birthing box, but are strong enough to enable the breeder to Show
the next choice pup to a Championship.
A Breeders shoulders are stooped and often heaped with abuse from
competitors, but they're wide enough to support the weight of a thousand
defeats and frustrations.
A Breeders arms are always able to wield a mop, support an armful of puppies,
or lend a helping hand to a newcomer.
A Breeders ears are wondrous things, sometimes red (from being talked about)
or strangely shaped (from being pressed against a phone receiver), often deaf to criticism, yet always fine-tuned to the whimper of a sick puppy.
A Breeders eyes are blurred from pedigree research and sometimes blind to
her own dog's faults, but they are ever so keen to the competitions faults and
are always searching for the perfect specimen.
A Breeders brain is foggy on faces, but it can recall pedigrees faster than an
IBM computer. It's so full of knowledge that sometimes it blows a fuse: it
catalogues thousands of good boning, fine ears, and perfect heads... and buries
in the soul the failures and the ones that didn't turn out.
The Breeders heart is often broken, but it beats strongly with hope everlasting...
and it's always in the right place !
Oh, yes, there are breeders, and then, there are BREEDERS!!!
Parti Yorkshire Terrier Club
partiyorkshires_gmail.com
