The Morkie has grown in popularity in recent years as more and more individuals fall in love with the breed and decide to add a morkie to their family. Morkies are a cross between the maltese and the Yorkshire terrier, and while there are other Yorkshire terrier mix breed choices, morkies are by far the most popular. The breed is also known as the morkshire terrier, however for the sake of this article, we will refer to it as a morkie because it is the more widely used term.
Morkies are a fantastic little pet with a tiny size and very few inherited health concerns, but they might have a varied disposition. Morkies, like other dog breeds that are a cross between two more established breeds, can inherit qualities from both paternal lineages, despite the fact that the Yorkshire terrier and the maltese have quite distinct features. Fortunately, the great majority of respectable breeders would not sell a morkie puppy unless it is derived from at least three generations of morkie parents, rather than being a first, second, or third-generation descended from straight Yorkshire terrier or Maltese parents.
Fortunately, breeders can easily ensure that the morkie dogs they sell have a better balanced temperament since they have been able to use selective breeding over the three generations to try and encourage good personality qualities. This generally results in a very well-rounded dog with a nice disposition, comparable to that of other small dog breeds.
However, there is no assurance in the personality of your morkie, and because it is such a new breed, there is still a good chance that it may get features from either the Yorkshire terrier or the maltese genes. We’ll now go through what you may anticipate from your morkie, as well as how to prevent undesirable habits if they do appear.
The Parent Breeds’ Temperament
To comprehend the morkie temperament, you must first comprehend the common personality features of both parent breeds. The morkie dog, like many other mixed breed dogs, can inherit both positive and bad characteristics from its purebred parents. As previously said, those that breed the morkie bloodline use selective breeding to attempt to generate the desirable personality qualities of the parent breeds, but it will take decades before the more negative traits have a chance of appearing.
First and foremost, we shall discuss the Yorkshire terrier dog breed. As most people are aware, Yorkshire terriers are highly active, intelligent dogs with huge personalities, with many being quite curious while also having a fiery side. Yorkshire terriers make wonderful companions and are one of the most popular dog breeds worldwide if properly socialized and trained. A Yorkshire terrier enjoys being the center of attention while simultaneously being fiercely protective of its owners.
Moving on to the typical Maltese bloodline personality qualities that most morkie breeders try to nurture in their pups. The Maltese dog breed was developed to be spoilt lapdogs rather than working dogs like the Yorkie. This has resulted in a very gentle, sweet-natured, friendly, loving, and tranquil canine breed that may make an ideal companion owing to their loyal and dedicated attitude to their owners.
Advantages of the Morkie Personality
Because the morkie is a cross between a maltese and a yorkie, it can have any of the excellent qualities described above while still having its own distinct personality. The more desirable qualities and characteristics of a morkie are the intellect and inquisitive temperament of the yorkie combined with the loving, kind, and quiet attitude of the maltese lineage all in one puppy. This can result in a really sociable, charming, and lovely little morkie puppy that can make a terrific family dog, but it is quite unlikely that all of these characteristics will be present in your morkie.
Almost all morkies establish deep attachments to their owners and the family that they adore. They like being played with and will actively attempt to entice you to do so at times. A morkie is also one of the more sociable dogs of the smaller breeds, being extremely exuberant, active, confident, and devoted. Depending on what you desire from your new dog, a morkie may be a perfect new addition to your family because they form close bonds with their human family members fast.
We’ve saved the most frequent feature for last since it may be either a positive or bad quality in the breed depending on what you’re searching for. A morkie may be highly distrustful of strangers, which is a typical feature inherited from the yorkie lineage and appears to remain in morkies as well. They will do everything in their ability to notify their family of a stranger or simply an unusual sound, and while they are not great guard dogs owing to their small size, they are an excellent early warning system.
On the other hand, we’ve received a lot of stories from morkie owners claiming that their dog can bark for five to ten minutes simply because it heard a neighbor coughing. Although this tendency can typically be taught out of your morkie, it can be an issue if you live in a small apartment with thin walls and unexpected noises on all sides that your morkie may take some time to adjust to.
The Morkie Temperament’s Drawbacks
Moving on to the more negative aspects of the morkie personality, because a morkie can quickly form a very strong bond with the human members of its family, it often wants a lot of attention, and depending on your other commitments and the time you have available, you may not be able to give your pet morkie all of the attention that it may want. If your morkie does not feel like it is getting enough attention, it may exhibit destructive behavior, like as chewing on household things.
Unfortunately, the morkie breed can be prone to separation anxiety, and separation anxiety can be difficult to teach out of dogs. If your morkie is left alone for a lengthy amount of time, anxiety may set in, resulting in your dog barking for extended periods of time when alone. Again, this will depend on your house and your particular situation, but if you live in a tiny apartment with thin walls and have to leave for work or school, your morkie may bark for extended periods of time.
Although this is less frequent in the morkie breed, they can suffer from tiny dog syndrome as well as have a diva attitude. This can result in your morkie forgetting its size if it takes a dislike to another dog while out on walks or at the dog park and barks violently at much larger breeds. Fortunately, this is typically much easier to train and discourage in your morkie using standard dog training techniques, although it does need consistency to train the habit out of your morkie.
Although a more prevalent train, a morkie’s intransigence can generally be broken with a reward. Another feature acquired from the terrier lineage is the ability to be obstinate and only do things on their terms. If your morkie is obstinate and refuses to do what you want, much like many other dog breeds, flashing its favorite reward may frequently convince your morkie to perform what you want without difficulty.
Do Morkies Make Good Pets?
This leads us to one of the most often asked questions we receive when individuals inquire about adding a morkie to their household. Morkies, in our opinion, make fantastic companions and are a wonderful small dog with the enthusiasm and inquisitiveness of a terrier as well as the loving and playful character of the maltese lineage. If you are prepared to put in the time and effort to train your morkie’s bad qualities, they may be wonderful additions to your home.
Are Morkies Good Family Dogs?
Morkies, in our opinion, are wonderful family dogs and will likely adjust well to live with families as well as little children. As previously said, the morkie breed is a dog that rapidly bonds with its owners and sees itself as a member of your pack. This can frequently result in your dog wanting to play with your children and can be a method to get both your dog and your children out from under your feet while at home if you have other things to do.
As previously said, many breeders will strive to instill maltese characteristics in a morkie’s disposition, and the maltese dog makes wonderful family pets. Even if your morkshire terrier inherits more features from its yorkie ancestors, they make wonderful family dogs.
Is it true that Morkies are aggressive?
The great majority of morkies get along well with other dogs and household pets if they were raised together or are introduced to each other as family members rather than being locked in a room and kept alone. Although it is uncommon for a morkie to be too aggressive, they can get protective if threatened or if their little dog syndrome comes in, but as previously mentioned, this is typically trainable out of the breed.
Do Morkies Like to Be Cuddled?
We notice a lot of potential morkie owners contacting us and wondering if the breed likes to cuddle. Because your morkie was bred as a lapdog, it is quite possible that it will love snuggling if it inherits the majority of its features and personality traits from the maltese lineage. Having said that, even if your morkie inherits the majority of its qualities from the yorkie lineage, there is a good possibility it will love snuggling.