Yorkshire Terrier: A Guide to Chewing Bully Sticks

Yorkshire Terriers are spirited dogs with strong personalities packed into their small frames. These brave little terriers possess needle-sharp teeth and determined attitudes that reflect their working heritage, but their diminutive size creates unique safety considerations when picking chews.

Miniature Terrier Bite Mechanics
Yorkshire Terriers belong to the dolichocephalic family, featuring proportionally long, narrow skulls that provide efficient leverage despite their tiny size. Their small but well-developed jaw muscles allow them to generate bite forces under 90 PSI, which may seem minimal compared to larger breeds but creates surprisingly intense pressure when concentrated over their needle-sharp teeth. For comparison, while a human bites at 120 PSI, the concentrated pressure from Yorkie teeth can feel remarkably sharp and penetrating.

Their dental structure presents significant challenges due to extreme miniaturization. Yorkies have 42 adult teeth packed into an incredibly small mouth, leading to severe crowding issues that affect up to 98% of toy breeds by age 3. Their tiny teeth are also proportionally fragile, making them susceptible to chipping or breaking on inappropriate materials. Despite their size, their terrier heritage gives them determined, persistent chewing habits that can quickly wear down their delicate dental structure if not properly managed.

In Short—Which EverChew Holder?
Yorkshire Terriers should primarily use the Small Dog EverChew holder. Its flexible elastomer construction provides the necessary safety while offering enough durability for their persistent terrier nature, while being gentle enough to protect their fragile dental structure.  The Plus holder is made from the same slightly flexible material—so it’s good for aggressive-chew Terriers that will chew through the smaller holder.

Understanding Bully Stick Benefits and Why Holders Are Critical
Yorkshire Terriers are natural, determined chewers despite their tiny size, reflecting their terrier heritage and high intelligence. Their chewing behavior serves multiple important purposes: dental health maintenance (particularly crucial given their severe tooth crowding), mental stimulation, stress relief, and satisfying their natural terrier instincts.

Bully sticks are pure protein treats (similar to beef jerky) that provide one of the few appropriate chewing textures for Yorkshire Terrier needs. Their firm but gradually softening consistency allows these tiny dogs to work systematically with their sharp teeth, effectively scraping away plaque and tartar from their crowded dental structure. This dental benefit is particularly crucial for Yorkies, whose extreme tooth crowding makes them prone to early periodontal disease and tooth loss if dental care is neglected.

However, Yorkshire Terriers face extreme risks from the bully stick chew stub. Their minuscule tracheas (smaller than a pencil in many cases) make virtually any swallowed stub a potential fatal choking hazard. Their tiny digestive systems may be blocked by a chew stub that swallows. Additionally, their terrier determination often makes them refuse to release a chew stub—making a stick holder essential.

Life Stage Considerations and Dental Fragility
Puppy Phase (8 weeks - 8 months): Yorkie puppies experience intense teething in mouths that are almost impossibly small. Peak teething typically occurs between 3-5 months, during which their already overcrowded mouths become even more uncomfortable.

Adult Phase (8+ months): Adult Yorkies continue active chewing throughout their lives, often using it as their primary stress-relief mechanism and mental stimulation. Their terrier nature means they can be surprisingly persistent and determined chewers despite their size, requiring safe bully sticks as a chew option.

Senior Phase: Older Yorkies particularly benefit from the dental exercise that appropriate chewing provides, as their crowded teeth are extremely prone to age-related dental disease. However, their potentially fragile teeth require extra gentle chew items that have some give—like EverChew’s green polymer.

Selection Guidelines
Choose the Small Dog holder for almost all Yorkshire Terriers because:

• It's sized well to hole the Regular-size bully sticks
• The elastomer flexibility protects their fragile teeth from damage
• The smaller holder is easier for them to hold and move around

Choose the SafetyChew Plus holder only if:

• Your Terrier is on the large size
• They are a super-determined chewer that chews through the smaller holder