American Morkshire Terrier History
Written by Anna
The American Morkshire Terrier is a wonderful companion, encompassing the best attributes of several ancient toy breeds from Europe and England.
American Morkshire Terrier
Kisses & Cuddles
There's a time for Play and a Time for Love
A dog breed that's sure to love. The American Morkshire Terrier aka Morkshire or Malki is a fluff-ball of personality, loyalty and love. They are one of the top most popular "rare" breeds. This petite terrier is absolutely adorable, highly intelligent, very affectionate, and overflowing with confidence. Coming from two Toy Parents they are the perfect pooch for Individuals and Families!
Friendly and Social Gentle and Spunky Self-Confident Bubbly and Playful
Friendly and Social Gentle and Spunky Self-Confident Bubbly and Playful
Where did the American Morkshire Terrier come from?
The American Morkshire Terrier 'origin' stories vary in according to the description of the Morkshire Terrier and where they came from, but they originated here in the United States.
The American Morkshire Terrier has been known by a variety of names to include the "Morkshire Terrier," and "Malki," pronounced (Mal-Ki) and "Malkie" pronounced (Mal-Kee) and "Morkie" pronounced (more-Key) with other variations giving the breed a combination of nicknames. The name "Morkshire Terrier" and "Malki" were the original names first associated with the Morkshire Terrier when it first appeared in the United States in the late 1998-1990s. But the breed who has been around for 50 years and possibly longer has never had an official breed name until now.
It was in 2017 when we first acquired our Morkshire Terrier a cute a colorful little female, "Sundae". I found the breed to be unique, exceptionally intelligent and sweet natured with a coat that I found to be hypoallergenic as I suffer from a host of allergies.
We decided to add the Morkshire Terrier to our breeding and the pups we had in our litter where consistent to their characteristics with puppies having up set ears and drop set ears. We wanted to know where this delightful little breed came from and who else may have the same breed, so I contacted the breeder for as much information I could get on the dog. After gathering as much information as possible I decided to google the breed to see what other information I could find on the breed..
In my extensive search here in the United States and abroad, I found this breed of dog really had a lot of inconsistent background information, there were no Club's or Registries for the breed itself and no try history of where this breed's origin had came from. Because of my profound love for dogs and commitment to the breeds I raise I decided to go in search for breeders, here in the United States and abroad to find and gather some true origin for this absolutely adorable breed that we had come to love.
Over the course of shortly under a year I came in contact with several other breeders who have been breeding the breed I found to be called a Morkshire Terrier for many years, and found that breeders had been breeding this breed for 50 years and some accounts from one person stating that the "Morkshire Terrier" are a Maltese/Yorkie blend, which has resulted in many lines of Yorkie parti- colored dogs, and have been around for decades. Another breeder who has been breeding Morkshire to Morkshire for 32 years out of California, and another breeder who had first encountered the Morkshire Terrier when she received a bitch pup for her 30th birthday, Polly that lived to be 22 years old from the United Kingdom, Alison. She recalls that when she received her pup the breed in the UK it had no name and all she knew of the breed is that it came from a Maltese dam and a Yorkshire terrier sire. She also recalls when she started breeding them that the Morkshire came to the UK 20 years after the United States.
Alison said whatever the breed was that she received 29 years ago was the best dog she had ever owned, so much so, that she decided to breed the dogs. She recalls she first started breeding her Morkshire Terrier to a Maltese and from that litter she kept back a pup and bred it to a pup she kept from a different litter and as time went on she had bred her Morkshire Terriers to a Yorkie and would keep a pup from out of that litter and so forth, then she would breed both Morkshires to Morkshires to now she has been breeding Morkshire Terriers for the last 25 years. Alison states "she is glad that they now have a name" and that her Morkshire Terriers "breed to type," saying all her dogs characteristically look alike with the exception of color. She said puppies range from black and tan, apricot (a rich-yellow color) to pure white and average a size range from 4-8 pounds with some puppies can be slightly smaller and on occasion slightly larger. Alison states she knows of "only" two other breeders who have been breeding as long as she has and "we" different preferences and says her dogs look distinctively different but that is due to the background of the Yorkshire presence in the background of their kennels vs hers, as to height and ear set.
Because of our commitment and compassion for the breed, I decided to establish the First Registry for the Morkshire Terrier, the Morkshire Terrier Registry (MHR) in August 2018. The registry was a starting point. Because we, SMM-Ranch are bred with a heart breeders with the American Kennel Club (AKC) and we have to do health screen testings on our breeding dogs and so I felt that we should incorporate some health requirement testing's for the registry and keep the 'origin' of the breed in the name and in early 2019 we established the First Breed Club for the Morkshire Terrier, the American Morkshire Terrier Club, Inc. (AMTC). In June, 2019 the AMTC wrote a standard for the breed and in August, 2019 the MHR was changed to the American Morkshire Terrier Registry (AMTR). In September, 2019 we contacted the American Kennel Club asking how to go about getting a new breed accepted into FSS - AKC. With the recommendation of a wonderful individual from AKC we were pointed into the right direction.
In September, 2019 AMTC wrote a proposal to the American Rare Breed Association (ARBA), established in 1991, they are an association that have been known too except "Rare" breeds that have not been recognized or heard of and have contributed to getting full recognition for such breeds. ARBA has been providing conformation dog shows for 25 years. They not only host shows they also register rare breeds and litters as well as help parent breed clubs for the "Rare Breed" dog. In December, 2019 the American Morkshire Terrier aka Morkshire Terrier or Malki was accepted into the American Rare Breed Association as a new "Rare Breed!" In January, 2020 the American Morkshire Terrier established their own "Distinct Genetic Profile."
EXCITEMENT was an understatement to the news as we were ECSTATIC!!!!! The American Morkshire Terrier now has a place in history were it belongs and we made it happen!
We call our American Morkshire Terriers -Malki, Morkshire or Morkie- for short.
Malkis have a single coat, meaning the breed only has a top coat. You can see Malkis with two different ear set types, down ears and up ears. They come in a variety of colors similar to the Yorkshire Terrier breed, with common coat colors in; black, tan, white and gold (some refer to as rich-yellow) and a combination of black & white and tan. As the dog ages (in some cases) the black coat can appear to look silver/grey due to the European influence. They are an abundantly confident, energetic and loyal breed that's "full of life". Malkis are a very loving and sweet natured breed and make wonderful therapy dogs. They are very intelligent and want nothing more, but to be with and please their owners. As with any breed there are differences in personality from dog to dog and the Malki is no different, but in general this breed is described as above.
For more information regarding this wonderful breed visit: www.amtcusa.com
The American Morkshire Terrier has been known by a variety of names to include the "Morkshire Terrier," and "Malki," pronounced (Mal-Ki) and "Malkie" pronounced (Mal-Kee) and "Morkie" pronounced (more-Key) with other variations giving the breed a combination of nicknames. The name "Morkshire Terrier" and "Malki" were the original names first associated with the Morkshire Terrier when it first appeared in the United States in the late 1998-1990s. But the breed who has been around for 50 years and possibly longer has never had an official breed name until now.
It was in 2017 when we first acquired our Morkshire Terrier a cute a colorful little female, "Sundae". I found the breed to be unique, exceptionally intelligent and sweet natured with a coat that I found to be hypoallergenic as I suffer from a host of allergies.
We decided to add the Morkshire Terrier to our breeding and the pups we had in our litter where consistent to their characteristics with puppies having up set ears and drop set ears. We wanted to know where this delightful little breed came from and who else may have the same breed, so I contacted the breeder for as much information I could get on the dog. After gathering as much information as possible I decided to google the breed to see what other information I could find on the breed..
In my extensive search here in the United States and abroad, I found this breed of dog really had a lot of inconsistent background information, there were no Club's or Registries for the breed itself and no try history of where this breed's origin had came from. Because of my profound love for dogs and commitment to the breeds I raise I decided to go in search for breeders, here in the United States and abroad to find and gather some true origin for this absolutely adorable breed that we had come to love.
Over the course of shortly under a year I came in contact with several other breeders who have been breeding the breed I found to be called a Morkshire Terrier for many years, and found that breeders had been breeding this breed for 50 years and some accounts from one person stating that the "Morkshire Terrier" are a Maltese/Yorkie blend, which has resulted in many lines of Yorkie parti- colored dogs, and have been around for decades. Another breeder who has been breeding Morkshire to Morkshire for 32 years out of California, and another breeder who had first encountered the Morkshire Terrier when she received a bitch pup for her 30th birthday, Polly that lived to be 22 years old from the United Kingdom, Alison. She recalls that when she received her pup the breed in the UK it had no name and all she knew of the breed is that it came from a Maltese dam and a Yorkshire terrier sire. She also recalls when she started breeding them that the Morkshire came to the UK 20 years after the United States.
Alison said whatever the breed was that she received 29 years ago was the best dog she had ever owned, so much so, that she decided to breed the dogs. She recalls she first started breeding her Morkshire Terrier to a Maltese and from that litter she kept back a pup and bred it to a pup she kept from a different litter and as time went on she had bred her Morkshire Terriers to a Yorkie and would keep a pup from out of that litter and so forth, then she would breed both Morkshires to Morkshires to now she has been breeding Morkshire Terriers for the last 25 years. Alison states "she is glad that they now have a name" and that her Morkshire Terriers "breed to type," saying all her dogs characteristically look alike with the exception of color. She said puppies range from black and tan, apricot (a rich-yellow color) to pure white and average a size range from 4-8 pounds with some puppies can be slightly smaller and on occasion slightly larger. Alison states she knows of "only" two other breeders who have been breeding as long as she has and "we" different preferences and says her dogs look distinctively different but that is due to the background of the Yorkshire presence in the background of their kennels vs hers, as to height and ear set.
Because of our commitment and compassion for the breed, I decided to establish the First Registry for the Morkshire Terrier, the Morkshire Terrier Registry (MHR) in August 2018. The registry was a starting point. Because we, SMM-Ranch are bred with a heart breeders with the American Kennel Club (AKC) and we have to do health screen testings on our breeding dogs and so I felt that we should incorporate some health requirement testing's for the registry and keep the 'origin' of the breed in the name and in early 2019 we established the First Breed Club for the Morkshire Terrier, the American Morkshire Terrier Club, Inc. (AMTC). In June, 2019 the AMTC wrote a standard for the breed and in August, 2019 the MHR was changed to the American Morkshire Terrier Registry (AMTR). In September, 2019 we contacted the American Kennel Club asking how to go about getting a new breed accepted into FSS - AKC. With the recommendation of a wonderful individual from AKC we were pointed into the right direction.
In September, 2019 AMTC wrote a proposal to the American Rare Breed Association (ARBA), established in 1991, they are an association that have been known too except "Rare" breeds that have not been recognized or heard of and have contributed to getting full recognition for such breeds. ARBA has been providing conformation dog shows for 25 years. They not only host shows they also register rare breeds and litters as well as help parent breed clubs for the "Rare Breed" dog. In December, 2019 the American Morkshire Terrier aka Morkshire Terrier or Malki was accepted into the American Rare Breed Association as a new "Rare Breed!" In January, 2020 the American Morkshire Terrier established their own "Distinct Genetic Profile."
EXCITEMENT was an understatement to the news as we were ECSTATIC!!!!! The American Morkshire Terrier now has a place in history were it belongs and we made it happen!
We call our American Morkshire Terriers -Malki, Morkshire or Morkie- for short.
Malkis have a single coat, meaning the breed only has a top coat. You can see Malkis with two different ear set types, down ears and up ears. They come in a variety of colors similar to the Yorkshire Terrier breed, with common coat colors in; black, tan, white and gold (some refer to as rich-yellow) and a combination of black & white and tan. As the dog ages (in some cases) the black coat can appear to look silver/grey due to the European influence. They are an abundantly confident, energetic and loyal breed that's "full of life". Malkis are a very loving and sweet natured breed and make wonderful therapy dogs. They are very intelligent and want nothing more, but to be with and please their owners. As with any breed there are differences in personality from dog to dog and the Malki is no different, but in general this breed is described as above.
For more information regarding this wonderful breed visit: www.amtcusa.com
To register your Morkshire Terrier visit www.amtcregistry.com
Pics of Malki's
These examples of different Malki's are not our dogs, with the exception of Sundae.
Brief History of the Maltese
Where did the Maltese come from?
Not surprisingly, the Maltese 'origin' stories vary according to the description of the Maltese and where they came from.
Maltese called the: "Ye Ancient Dogge of Malta" is older than history itself, a living artifact from a time when a civilization was defined by its myths, and when praying to a golden idol of a dog wouldn’t raise an eyebrow. It is stated that the Maltese descends from one of the most ancient dog breeds to be found in recorded history. Estimated that the breed originated around 600 B.C. with some written accounts of being 350 BC. That's over 10 thousand years ago!
The Maltese descended from a Spitz-like dog which was bred for hunting in marsh land areas. Historical evidence leads one to believe that the Maltese may well have been introduced into the gene pools of the Lhasa Apso, the Tibetan Terrier, the Tibetan Spaniel, and even the Pekingese - helping to shape- the eventual evolution of these truly ancient breeds of dogs. The earliest known representations of Maltese dogs on artifacts found at Fayum, Egypt (600-300 B.C.), suggest that the Maltese was one of the dogs worshipped by the ancient Egyptians. Maltese images were found on Greek vases dated around 500 B.C. and the first known written history of the breed was actually authored by the Greek philosopher, Aristotle around 350 B.C., where he attributed the origin of the breed to the "Island of Malta" in the Mediterranean Sea - hence the name "Maltese".
Maltese are a hypoallergenic breed known to be: Trusting, Lively, Docile, Fearless, Affectionate, Responsive, Sweet-Tempered, Playful, Easygoing, Active, Intelligent and Gentle. Males and Females generally weighing under 7 lbs full grown with 4-6 lbs being preferred.
Not surprisingly, the Maltese 'origin' stories vary according to the description of the Maltese and where they came from.
Maltese called the: "Ye Ancient Dogge of Malta" is older than history itself, a living artifact from a time when a civilization was defined by its myths, and when praying to a golden idol of a dog wouldn’t raise an eyebrow. It is stated that the Maltese descends from one of the most ancient dog breeds to be found in recorded history. Estimated that the breed originated around 600 B.C. with some written accounts of being 350 BC. That's over 10 thousand years ago!
The Maltese descended from a Spitz-like dog which was bred for hunting in marsh land areas. Historical evidence leads one to believe that the Maltese may well have been introduced into the gene pools of the Lhasa Apso, the Tibetan Terrier, the Tibetan Spaniel, and even the Pekingese - helping to shape- the eventual evolution of these truly ancient breeds of dogs. The earliest known representations of Maltese dogs on artifacts found at Fayum, Egypt (600-300 B.C.), suggest that the Maltese was one of the dogs worshipped by the ancient Egyptians. Maltese images were found on Greek vases dated around 500 B.C. and the first known written history of the breed was actually authored by the Greek philosopher, Aristotle around 350 B.C., where he attributed the origin of the breed to the "Island of Malta" in the Mediterranean Sea - hence the name "Maltese".
Maltese are a hypoallergenic breed known to be: Trusting, Lively, Docile, Fearless, Affectionate, Responsive, Sweet-Tempered, Playful, Easygoing, Active, Intelligent and Gentle. Males and Females generally weighing under 7 lbs full grown with 4-6 lbs being preferred.
Pics of Maltese Back in the Days
1725 Maltese painting by Duplessis Joseph Siffred.
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Early 1800s painting of Maltese
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1873 Depiction of Skye, Maltese and Cairn Terriers.
Maltese Today
These examples of different Maltese are not our dogs.