are toy breeds fragile?

[mandy]

hi,everyone
juz asking out of curiousity...are all toy breeds really really fragile? if not,which one is considered tougher than other toy breeds? are papillons really fragile? to the point of breaking their bone juz from jumping onto the floor from..lets say..a couch?
i would like to hear the opinion of ppl who had experience with small breeds..

 

[Ashlea]

My Pap has really thin little legs, but I wouldn't call her fragile, she jumps off furniture, (which she shouldn't because of her knees) and wrestels with my BF. She is not as tough as my BC but not like glass. I don't know if that makes any sense.

 

[mandy]

so she doesnt get injured from jumping off furnitures?? thats a relieve to hear,since all i've usually heard is that paps are one of the most fragile toy breeds..is that true?

 

[Ashlea]

She doesn't get hurt from doing that no, she is not really all that fragile no. She lived in the bush for about 4 months before she was found by animal welfare, she is a tough little thing.

My BF is quite rough with her sometimes but she seems to be fine with and in fact go back for more. She will squeal if he hurts her but she really does love the rough and tumble.

 

[musky hunter]

my Toy Poodle isn;t fragile at all...He jumps and runs all over the place...He just can't climb stairs...haha

 

[Kathy29]

I have 2 Chis and I wouldn't consider them to be fragile. BUT of course, that depends on what you do and in my case, they just run around and jump up and off furniture. They can jump off low furniture (ones they can easily get up on as well) fine. I don't consider their bones to be easily broken. I'm trying to stop my older one from doing it as much since she has luxating patellas and jumping off things could worsen it.

Then again, I can't really say because I've never owned a dog bigger than a Chi but it's not like I have to be extra careful all the time. I'm more afraid of stepping on their toes (yes, I've accidentally done it before).

 

[Gempress]

Toy breeds are not fragile for their size. But they can't necessarily do some things that a larger dog can do. For example, take a toy breed puppy jumping off a bed. That's equivalent to a German Shepherd jumping off a nine-foot cliff. Not something you'd encourage.

If I remember right, somebody on the forum recently posted about their poodle puppy breaking a leg by jumping off a piece of furniture. The lady who bred Scandal, my mom's maltese, recently lost her best-of-breed Westminster winner from injuries. He fell off a grooming table at a show.

That doesn't mean you have to treat them like glass. But try to be considerate about how much stress those tiny bodies can take.

 

[showpug]

Pugs are FAR from fragile!

 

[RD]

My Papillon is fragile, but not a snowflake. He jumps on and off furniture (especially loves leaping off the back of the couch) and jumps in and out of our big truck on his own. Basically, he usually doesn't do things that will injure himself. I've hurt him a few times by accident and other people have made him yip, too. You have to handle them more delicately than you would handle a large dog. When you take a walk, you can't pull on the leash if you reach over to get something. With my Border Collie, some tension on the leash is just something for him to brace himself against. With my Papillon, that same tension will knock him off his feet or drag him around.
If I step on my BC's paw, he just whines and pulls it out from under my foot (I go barefoot in the house anyway so I don't hurt any doggie feet). If I stepped on my Papillons paw, it could break. You have to be more careful about walking around the house when you have a toy dog.

Overall I'd say yes, most "tiny-toy" breeds are fragile.

 

[~Jessie~]

I really wouldn't consider my chihuahuas fragile... but you do have to be more gentle with them than larger breeds. We always call our 3.5lb chihuahua a "tank" because she is built very cobby and does not look too delicate (Rylie). My three run around and jump on and off the furniture. They can jump on and off the couch, but cannot jump on and off of the bed. As I type this, Chloe is climbing on the back of the couch, lol.
On the other hand, I have heard of many min pins breaking their legs because they are very thin.

 

[Cassiepeia]

Toy breeds are not fragile for their size.

Exactly what I was about to say...very well put.

I wouldn't consider my Chihuahua fragile, he's fallen down stairs, tumbled off chairs and lounges, run into doors head first and yes he has jumped off beds (in his younger days and much to my horror) and he's never had an injury.
But of course, he's tiny and so it's much easier for him to get hurt than...say...a labrador.

But, again...for their size, they're not fragile. You certainly don't have to tippy toe around the house hoping not to 'break' him. lol

Cass.

 

[yoko]

i think it depends what you're compairing them to. i know my grandpa had a little yorkie and it fell off the couch and broke it's neck. i don't know if that's a freak accident or what... but i know that i'm a lot more paranoid of rolling over in bed with a little dog then i do with yoshi who's half my size and if she wanted could push me over.

 

[PoodleMommy]

Gempress is correct. My toy poodle recently broke her leg jumping off the couch.
However, I have another toy poodle who jumps from everything and is fine. A lot of times it depends on the specific dog and not just the breed. Yet in general toy breeds do tend to be more fragile!

Elissa

 

[Whisper]

I have a 38-40 lb. dog and a 9 lb. dog. The 9 lb. dog Lucy is not fragile. She is part terrier so she is spunky and pretty hardy. She can roll around with the bigger dgs and make big jumps, and most definitely not delicate.
I think it depends on the individual size of the dog and sometimes the breed. I have seen solid strong chis and have seen chis that I wouldn't want to sit next to for fear of cracking them.
The only thing in my experience is that I have never met a very strong or solid yorkie. Just my personal experience though. I'm sure they exist. When I got Lucy I was afraid to touch her because I had never had such a small dog before, but once you adapt to being careful it gets much easier to live with small dogs.

 

[~Dixie's_Mom~]

I have 2 Yorkies. One just hit 4lbs, and the other one who is half Silky Terrier is 5 1/2lbs. They are little rockets, and they climb up on the top of the couch, and dive bomb off after each other. Just today Lucy was trying to jump up to me in this wooden chair we have, and she bonked her head on it (HARD) and I was worried, but she just looked around, shook her head, and proceded to licking me all over. lol! They're fairly hardy, but IMO, I think their Diet has alot to do with it, as well as how well they are bred (a well bred dog will have more of a chance of being less fragile than a puppymill or irresponsibly bred puppy IMO). My cousin had a Toy Fox Terrier (I'm gonna say she was around 4lbs) who jumped from my cousin's arms and broke her leg. My dogs, when being held, will climb up the other side of my arm, and jump to the ground from my shoulder, and think nothing of it. I don't know what could've been different, in Sweetie (the TFT) and my girls, but it must've been something. My girls are fed Nutro Natural Choice, and I think it has to do alot with how hardy they are. Maybe I'm wrong. In general, I'd say toy breeds are fragile, but it would really depend on what you're comparing them too. You have to be considerate of their size, definately. My 12yr old brother has stepped on our girls several times. They're always by your feet, and you can be walking, or running, and they'll get tangled between your feet, and trip you. Imagine if you fell on one! :yikes: There are precautions that should be taken with smaller dogs, but I think it's worth it. I love my Yorkies too much!

 

[mandy]

whoa!! thanks everyone for the info!! really appreciate it

 

[~Dixie's_Mom~]

No problem! Are you thinking about getting a Toy breed? They're great, and prepared to be hooked. lol! I used to have labs, goldens, border collies, huskies, and then I got my Silky Terrier, and I haven't been without a small breed since then. lol! They're like Pringles, once you pop, you just can't stop.

 

[mandy]

i wish i'm getting one,but i know my mum wont let.. not that she dun like dogs,but she always say that dogs are cute until they start whining all night,digging up the flower pot,destroying her precious plants and smashing lizards and cockroaches with their body..she means my sis' dog btw oh well,i guess i can always have my own dog 3 or 4 years later,so i got alot of time to think what breed i want,but i'm really interested in the papillon and min pin...

 

[Chrissy&B]

I have a very small Chihuahua and I have to say he's a big dog in a small body! He doesn't know he's small and jumps everywhere and anywhere and he goes jogging with me in the woods almost every day. He's much more energetic than my Labrador was and moch more healthy as well....... I would't say he's fragile, but then again I'm always careful when he's around big dogs. You never know!

 

[deb27]

My chi's are not really fragile either never had them get hurt (and I have kids), but my mother in-laws Pomeranian jumped off the bed wrong and now has a messed up leg. The surgery was $2000.00 and he still limps on it