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Yorkie - chihuahua mix - Oliver

Oliver is a wonderful dog, but difficult.

His father is a yorkie, and his mom is a yorkie/chihuahua mix.

When we went to look at the puppies, the breeder let us meet the dad, but said the mom was "around" somewhere.

Eventually the mom appeared, and she was clearly nervous and bitey, with us and her puppies.

But by then i had fallen in love with oliver, and also didn't understand what a warning sign the mom's behavior might be; the breeder said she was just "tired."

Now oliver is 3 yrs old, and is so much fun; cheerful, tail-wagging, curious.

He loves going on walks, loves chasing and returning toys, etc.. He is very smart.

But he is a little nutso. He can be very affectionate, and then if a trash truck or other sound startles him he will instantly try to bite whoever is closest, even the person whose lap he is sitting on.

It is an instinctive reaction, and happens so fast, and he goes into an over the top barking/biting frenzy.

He is also afraid of hats on people, and will attack. He is a dog that needs a lot of careful handling. He does not get along with most other dogs, and so can not go off-leash at the park, as he is very aggressive with dogs even 10 times his size.

I have spent over $2,000 on trainers. But many of them had a severe approach that didn't work.

They said oliver was overbred and should be put down. So i have ended up training him on my own, in a firm but gentle, positive way.

He is now very potty-trained, walks on leash, obeys "sit" and "down," and "bring," and finally is making a lot of progress on obeying "hush," altho not perfectly.

Oliver is my dog, and i love him so much. I accept him as he is, he is a good dog at heart, and enriches my life so much.

But i would caution others about this breed. make sure you meet the parents. Meet some full-grown chorkies, don't just fall for a cute puppy photo.

I have heard scarey stories about other chorkies unexpectedly biting their owners when startled.

Hopefully many chorkies are more easy-going; i just think it is important to find out about the breeder and parents.