A Shorkie is a Shih Tzu crossed with a Yorkshire Terrier. You’ll also see them called a Shorkie Tzu, Yorkie Tzu, or just a Shih Tzu-Yorkie mix. It’s a designer crossbreed, not a purebred, so the AKC doesn’t recognize it, and that’s the starting point worth being clear about: no two Shorkies are quite the same, and the puppy you pick can lean more Yorkie or more Shih Tzu.
I’ve spent enough time around small hairy lap dogs to know the pitch and the reality don’t always line up. Shorkies get sold as tiny velcro dogs that barely shed and rarely trigger allergies, and most of that is true. What the cute photos leave out is the daily brushing, the dental care that toy breeds live and die by, and the barking at every delivery driver within earshot. This guide covers all of it, including the size and lifespan numbers people actually search for, and an honest read on who should get one and who shouldn’t.
Shorkie quick facts
| Other names | Shorkie Tzu, Yorkie Tzu, Shih Tzu-Yorkie mix |
| Height | About 6 to 10 inches at the shoulder |
| Weight | Roughly 4 to 10 lb (some Shih Tzu-leaning dogs hit 12 to 15 lb) |
| Lifespan | 12 to 16 years |
| Coat | Long, silky, hair-like; low-shedding |
| Temperament | Affectionate, confident, alert, people-obsessed |
| Energy | Low to moderate; 30 to 60 minutes a day |
| Good for apartments? | Yes, very |
| Puppy price | About $800 to $1,500 |
| AKC recognized? | No, it’s a crossbreed |
What is a Shorkie?
Take the Shih Tzu, a mellow, affectionate companion dog bred to sit on laps in Chinese palaces, and cross it with the Yorkshire Terrier, a bold little ratter with an outsized personality. The Shorkie is what you get. It’s a first-generation designer mix, which is a polite way of saying the results vary. One littermate might come out looking like a fluffy little Shih Tzu, its sibling like a slightly stockier Yorkie.
Because it’s a crossbreed, the Shorkie isn’t recognized by the American Kennel Club or the other major purebred registries. That doesn’t make it a worse dog, but it does mean there’s no breed standard holding breeders to a consistent look, size, or temperament. It also means you can’t fully predict which parent’s traits your puppy will inherit, so meeting the actual parents matters more here than with a purebred.
If you want to understand where the pieces come from, it’s worth reading up on both sides. The Shih Tzu parent breed contributes the calm, cuddly, low-key side, and the Yorkshire Terrier parent breed brings the confidence and most of the attitude.
How big does a Shorkie get?
This is one of the most-searched Shorkie questions, so here’s the concrete answer. A full-grown Shorkie typically stands about 6 to 10 inches tall at the shoulder and weighs somewhere in the 4 to 10 pound range. Most fall on the smaller end. They generally don’t top out much past 10 inches or so, and even the bigger, Shih Tzu-leaning ones usually stay under about 15 to 16 pounds.
Which end of the range you land on comes down to genetics:
- Yorkie-leaning Shorkies are the petite ones, often 4 to 7 lb, finer-boned and lighter.
- Shih Tzu-leaning Shorkies run taller and heavier, sometimes 10 to 15 lb, with a sturdier build.
They finish growing fairly early. Most Shorkies reach their adult height by around 8 to 10 months and fill out to full weight by roughly a year. If you want a rough gauge of an 8-week-old puppy’s adult size, the parents are your best clue, so ask the breeder how much mom and dad weigh. A puppy from two tiny Yorkie-side parents is not going to grow into a 14-pound dog.
One practical note: because the size range is wide, “teacup Shorkie” listings deserve a hard look. Deliberately breeding for extreme smallness often comes with fragile bones, dental crowding, and health problems. A healthy small dog is great; a dog bred to be unnaturally tiny is a vet-bill machine.
How long do Shorkies live?
Plan on 12 to 16 years. That’s the range authoritative 2025 sources land on for the breed, and plenty of Shorkies reach 14 or 15 in good shape. Small dogs generally outlive big ones, and the Shorkie is no exception.
You’ll sometimes see wider, vaguer numbers floated around (10 to 18 years) because people just stack the two parent breeds’ ranges on top of each other. That’s lazy math. The realistic, useful answer is 12 to 16, and how close you get to the top of it is largely in your hands. The three things that move the needle most:
- Keep them lean. Toy breeds get fat easily, and extra weight shaves years off. You should be able to feel ribs without pressing hard.
- Stay on top of the teeth. Dental disease is arguably the single biggest quiet killer of small dogs. More on that below.
- Don’t skip the vet. Yearly checkups catch heart murmurs, luxating patellas, and dental problems while they’re still cheap to deal with.
Does a Shorkie shed?
Not much at all, and this is a real selling point. Both the Shih Tzu and the Yorkie have hair-like coats with little to no undercoat, so a Shorkie sheds very little. The hair that does come loose mostly stays trapped in the coat instead of scattering across your furniture. If you’re tired of vacuuming dog hair off everything you own, this is a breed that mostly solves that.
There’s a catch, though, and it’s the whole reason the grooming section below exists: low shedding is not the same as low maintenance. Because the loose hair stays in the coat rather than falling out, it tangles and mats if you don’t brush it out yourself. You’re trading vacuuming for brushing.
Are Shorkies hypoallergenic?
Sort of, with an asterisk. Shorkies are frequently marketed as hypoallergenic, and because they produce relatively little dander and shed so little, a lot of allergy-prone people do fine with them. But no dog is truly 100% hypoallergenic. The allergens live in dander, saliva, and urine, not just hair, so a sensitive person can still react. If allergies are the reason you’re considering the breed, go spend a couple of hours with an adult Shorkie before you commit to one for the next 15 years. If you want to compare against other small low-shedding options, the Maltese and the Yorkie-Poo are worth a look too.
Temperament and personality
The short version: a Shorkie wants to be with you, all the time. These are companion dogs to the core, blending the Shih Tzu’s affectionate, cuddly nature with the Yorkie’s confidence and spark. Most of them act like they’re much bigger than they are, and they’ll happily follow you from room to room and park themselves on your lap the second you sit down.
That devotion is the best thing about them and the source of most of the downsides.
Barking. Shorkies are alert barkers. A knock at the door, a delivery van, a squirrel, a neighbor’s cough through the wall, all of it gets announced. That Yorkie terrier streak means they take their watchdog duties seriously despite weighing less than a housecat. In an apartment with shared walls, this is something you have to train early and consistently, because a barky small dog and close neighbors don’t mix well.
Separation anxiety. This is the big one. Shorkies bond hard, and a dog that’s this attached does not cope well with being left alone for long stretches. Left alone eight, ten hours a day, plenty of them develop real separation anxiety: barking, pacing, chewing, house-soiling. This breed really suits a household where someone is home a lot, whether that’s remote work, retirement, or a family with staggered schedules. If everyone’s gone all day, this is probably the wrong dog. You can ease it with gradual alone-time training and low-drama departures, and for tougher cases some owners lean on calming aids, but you can’t fully train away a mismatch between the dog’s needs and an empty house.
Grooming: the real daily commitment
Here’s where people underestimate the breed. That gorgeous silky coat is high-maintenance, full stop.
Brushing. A full-length Shorkie coat needs brushing and combing every single day. Skip a few days and you get mats, and mats aren’t just ugly, they pull on the skin and trap moisture against it. A pin brush and a metal comb are your basic kit. Get in the habit of doing it while you watch TV and it becomes a two-minute thing rather than a chore.
The puppy cut option. If daily brushing sounds like more than you’ll realistically keep up with, get the coat clipped into a short “puppy cut” every few months. It’s the real low-maintenance move, it looks adorable, and it drops the brushing burden dramatically. Most Shorkie owners I’d trust end up doing this.
Bathing. Don’t overdo it. Roughly once a month is plenty. Bathing too often strips the natural oils and can trigger dry, flaky, irritated skin. Use a gentle dog shampoo, not human shampoo, and rinse thoroughly.
Face and eyes. Shih Tzu-leaning Shorkies get tear staining and gunk around the eyes and muzzle. Wipe the face daily with a damp cloth and keep the hair around the eyes trimmed so it doesn’t poke them.
Nails and ears. Trim nails every few weeks and check the ears for wax buildup or odor, since floppy-eared small dogs are prone to ear issues.
The one product category actually worth spending on here is the coat tools. A decent pin brush and a fine-tooth stainless comb will outlast a drawer full of cheap gadgets. You can see the range on brushes and combs for small silky-coated breeds.
Health issues to watch for
Shorkies are generally healthy and long-lived, but they inherit some predictable small-breed problems. Buying from a breeder who does genetic testing on the parents is the best insurance. Here are the conditions to actually know about.
Dental and periodontal disease
This is the number one issue and the one owners neglect most. Small dogs have tiny jaws with crowded teeth, and that crowding traps plaque and bacteria. Left alone, it turns into periodontal disease, which is painful, causes tooth loss, and pushes bacteria into the bloodstream where it can damage the heart and kidneys. Brush your Shorkie’s teeth several times a week (daily is ideal), use dental chews, and get professional cleanings when your vet recommends them. It’s worth reading up on dental care and health monitoring for small pets, because staying ahead of this genuinely adds years.
Patellar luxation
A loose kneecap that slips out of its groove. It’s extremely common in toy breeds. You might notice a little skip or hop in the back legs, or a leg held up for a stride or two. Mild cases are managed and don’t bother the dog much; severe ones can need surgery. Keeping the dog lean takes a lot of stress off those joints.
Brachycephalic and breathing issues
If your Shorkie inherits the Shih Tzu’s shorter, flatter muzzle, it can come with brachycephalic airway problems: snoring, snorting, reverse sneezing, and labored breathing when hot or excited. These dogs are also much more heat-sensitive and prone to heatstroke. On hot, humid days, keep walks short and early, keep them in the AC, and never leave one in a warm car for even a minute. Yorkie-leaning Shorkies with longer noses have far fewer of these issues.
Obesity
Easy to cause, hard to reverse, and it drags down everything else, hardest on the knees and the breathing. Toy breeds pack on weight fast because it takes so few extra calories. Measure meals, go easy on treats, and weigh the dog now and then.
Eye problems
Both parent breeds are prone to eye issues, and the hair around a Shih Tzu-leaning face can irritate the eyes directly. Watch for redness, cloudiness, excessive tearing, or pawing at the face, and keep that facial hair trimmed back.
Feeding a Shorkie
Feed a complete-and-balanced formula made for small or toy breeds. The single most breed-specific thing to get right is kibble size: these dogs have tiny mouths and small teeth, and standard-sized kibble is a pain for them to eat. Small-breed formulas use smaller pieces, and the extra calorie density suits their fast metabolisms.
Portion control is the whole game. Because a Shorkie is so small, a handful of extra kibble or a couple of table scraps is a big deal proportionally, and the breed tips into obesity easily. Follow the feeding guide on the bag as a starting point, adjust to the actual dog, and factor in whether they’re spayed or neutered (which lowers their calorie needs). Your vet can give you a real number based on weight and activity. If you want help narrowing down a formula with the right kibble size, the best dog food for small dogs roundup is a good place to start, or browse small-breed dry food with small kibble.
Exercise and living situation
Shorkies are low to moderate energy. Figure on about 30 to 60 minutes of activity a day, which for most owners looks like two short walks plus some indoor play. They don’t need a yard, they don’t need long hikes, and most days they’d rather be on the couch with you than out on a five-mile trek.
What they do need is mental stimulation. That Yorkie brain gets bored, and a bored small dog invents its own entertainment (usually barking or chewing). Rotate a few puzzle toys, do short training games, and hide treats for them to find. Ten minutes of thinking tires them out more than another lap around the block.
All of this makes them excellent apartment and small-space dogs, with the one asterisk being the barking. Manage that and a Shorkie is close to an ideal city dog.
Training tips
Shorkies are smart and eager to please the Shih Tzu side but can carry a stubborn streak from the Yorkie side. Positive reinforcement is the way: small treats and plenty of praise, kept to short upbeat sessions. Harsh corrections don’t work and just make a sensitive little dog anxious.
A few priorities:
- Socialize early. Expose the puppy to people, sounds, other dogs, and normal household chaos while young so it grows up confident rather than reactive.
- Manage the barking from day one. Teach a “quiet” cue, reward calm behavior around triggers, and don’t accidentally reward barking with attention. This is far easier to build early than to fix later.
- Housetraining takes patience. Small breeds have small bladders and can be slow to fully housetrain. Stick to a consistent schedule and use crate training. Because they’re tiny, some owners also litter-train or use indoor pads.
- Practice alone time. Even if you’re home a lot, teach the dog to be calmly alone for short periods so separation anxiety doesn’t take root.
Who a Shorkie is right for (and who should skip it)
Get a Shorkie if you want a small, deeply affectionate companion, you’re home most of the day or can bring the dog along, you live in an apartment or don’t want a big active dog, you don’t mind either daily brushing or regular grooming appointments, and you want a breed that sheds almost nothing.
Skip the Shorkie if you’re gone eight-plus hours a day (the separation anxiety is real), you have very young or rough-playing kids, you can’t commit to the coat care or the dental routine, or you specifically want a dog to hike and run with. It’s also not the breed for someone who wants a quiet dog, because that alert barking is baked in.
For families weighing similar mixes, the Shih-Poo and Yorkie-Poo hit a lot of the same notes with a bit more of a Poodle brain, and the Maltese is another small, low-shedding companion worth comparing.
What a Shorkie costs
A Shorkie puppy from a reputable breeder usually runs about $800 to $1,500. The wider market ranges from around $500 up to several thousand depending on the breeder’s reputation, the lineage, and where you live. Cheaper isn’t a bargain if it means skipped health testing on the parents. Adoption and breed-specific rescue are also worth checking, and cost far less.
Then there’s the ongoing cost, which people forget. Budget roughly $2,000 to $4,100 a year for food, professional grooming (that coat adds up), routine vet care, dental cleanings, and supplies. Over a 14-year life, that’s real money, so go in with eyes open.
The bottom line
A Shorkie is a fantastic dog for the right home: tiny, devoted, barely sheds, and lives a long time. It’s also a real commitment of daily coat care, dental upkeep, and companionship. The breed asks for your time and your presence more than your money or your energy. Match that and you get 14 or 15 years of a little dog that thinks it’s your shadow. Mismatch it, leave it alone all day and skip the brush, and you get an anxious, matted, barky dog that isn’t having a good time either. Decide which household you are before you bring one home.
Related reading
- Shih Tzu Breed Guide: the parent breed behind the Shorkie’s calm, cuddly side.
- Yorkshire Terrier Breed Guide: the parent breed behind its confident, spirited streak.
- Shih-Poo Breed Guide: another Shih Tzu cross to compare.
- Yorkie-Poo Breed Guide: a similar small, low-shedding mix.
- Maltese Breed Guide: another small, low-shedding companion breed.
- Best Dog Food for Small Dogs: pick a small-breed food with the right kibble size.
- Small Pet Dental Care & Health Monitoring: stay ahead of the dental disease toy breeds are prone to.
- Best Calming Aids for Dogs: help an anxious Shorkie cope with being left alone.