Dog FAQ

The little Yorkshire Terrier, hailing from that great English county famous for cricket, industry and green hills, is considered to be a very intelligent dog. Psychology professor Stanley Coren, well known for his research into the intelligence of dogs, considers the Yorkshire Terrier to be an above average working dog, and in fact ranking 27th of 132 breeds that were tested.

Professor Coren found that the Yorkshire Terrier could learn a new command after only fifteen repetitions, and has a good understanding of communication from the handler. Yorkies have good word recognition, and can associate a good number of words with the objects that they are associated with.

So how did the Yorkshire Terrier and his perspicacity come about? The industrial revolution started in the north of England, with mines and factories starting up particularly in the northern counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire. A number of people flocked to Yorkshire from the farming areas in search of work in the new industries, and brought with them their terrier dogs, working dogs from their agricultural villages, with a number of terriers being brought from Scotland. It seems that at some point these Scottish terriers bred with the Maltese Terrier, and by the late 1880’s the Yorkshire Terrier became recognized as a specific breed.

It seems that the fact that the Yorkie is descended from the agricultural working dog, is the factor that accounts for his intelligence and quick learning. The charm of the Yorkshire Terrier has made him one of the most popular dogs, not just in his home of Yorkshire, but worldwide.

Filed under: Dog Breeds