Yorkshire Terrier

Yorkshire Terriers can do well with children who already know how to be calm and gentle. Expect a toy-sized dog that is moderately active, barely sheds and needs professional grooming on a cycle. The big catch is running cost — this is one of the pricier dogs to keep well.

Source: American Kennel Club breed standard.

Yorkies were not born lap dogs. Scottish weavers took their terriers to the Yorkshire mills in the 1800s, where the dogs earned their keep killing rats in cloth mills and coal pits, and the breed only became a fashionable companion later. The terrier is still entirely intact under the silk: Yorkies are bold, busy, opinionated and very ready to pick a fight with a dog ten times their size. They bark, and they bark with conviction. The coat is genuinely unusual — a single coat of fine hair rather than fur, which is why they shed so little and why it needs daily attention or a short "puppy clip". Their size makes them fragile around toddlers, which is worth being honest about.

Day to day. Moderately active — a proper daily walk plus some play in the garden or the hallway keeps this breed happy. On noise, it is very vocal, so thin walls and close neighbours are worth thinking about.

The coat, honestly. This breed barely sheds and needs professional grooming on a cycle. That is the trade every low-shedding dog asks for: you are not vacuuming hair, you are booking and paying for a groom every few weeks, and brushing between visits or the coat mats down to the skin.

Being left alone. Fine alone for a few hours. A few hours is fine; a full working day, every day, is asking a lot.

Training. Trains at an average pace. Consistent, reward-based training from day one does most of the work.

• You would rather brush and pay a groomer than vacuum every day
• You are short on space and want a dog that fits your home

• Nobody has budgeted for a groomer every few weeks
• You share walls with neighbours who need quiet
• A surprise vet bill would be a real problem this year

Rough running cost: $$$ (one of the pricier dogs on our list) — because it eats very little, which keeps food costs down, and the coat needs a professional groom on a cycle, and that is the bill people forget.

Those are relative bands, not live prices. For real numbers across every pet we cover, see the pet cost study and the cost calculator.

Rescues do have Yorkshire Terriers and Yorkshire Terrier crosses, usually adults whose size, coat and temperament you can see rather than guess at.