The Yorkie is one of the most popular lap dogs in the UK and US. They were first bred as beautiful lapdogs of English women in the mid-1800s. Having an elegant Yorkie with a beautiful haircut quickly became a status symbol!
These days Yorkshire Terriers cannot be mistaken for their long and silky coats. People everywhere love this little dog, but no Yorkie is complete without a beautiful haircut.
Want to know which haircuts might be the best for yours and how to maintain their beautiful hair? Keep on reading to discover the most popular and best yorkie haircuts.
Yorkie Haircuts 101
Yorkies have long flowing, silky hair that has a texture similar to human hair. Their smooth, elegant coats can be a lot to maintain!
When uncut, the hair of a Yorkie is floor length. To avoid their smooth hair from becoming matted and filled with knots and debris, they need to be brushed daily. They should also be bathed about once a week to keep their hair looking clean and shiny.
Yorkie coats are single-layered and shed very little because they have no undercoat.
Though their hair is ideal for people with allergies, it does mean that their coat grows very quickly and can get tangled very easily if not brushed.
So while a long flowing yorkie hairstyle is very beautiful, it does require a lot of maintenance. This is why a lot of owners decide to cut their Yorkie’s hair short.
Short haircuts need much less brushing since they won’t get much hair or debris trapped. In fact, many breeders recommend short yorkie haircuts because of how easy they are to maintain.
There are many short haircuts for Yorkies that will make them look incredibly adorable and elegant. Cuts like the Puppy, Teddy and the Lion are all popular.
Short haircuts are great for owners because of their ease of maintenance and they also help these lap dogs keep cool in the summer. Having lots of hair can make some Yorkshire Terriers quite hot when the temperature is high outside.
Yorkshire Terrier hair can grow very quickly! To keep an elegant appearance you will want to cut the hair frequently.
Grooming a Yorkie requires skill and it isn’t for everyone. If you do wish to give your Yorkie a haircut, then you should expect to visit the groomer at least every month.
Some owners might choose to trim their own Yorkie. If you do learn how to groom a Yorkie, then you will find that it gives you a chance to bond with your best friend too.
Best Yorkie Haircuts
1. Teddy Bear Cut
Style
- Hair over body cut to 1-2 inches in length.
- Hair around head left twice as long to shape into round, teddy bear face.
- Ears smoothly merge with the round head.
- Beard and mustache follow the circular pattern.
- Hair cleared from eyes.
This haircut makes a Yorkie look like a teddy bear because the hair around the face is cut into a rounded style. Many people love this hairstyle because of how adorable it makes a Yorkie look.
To start with the hair over the body is trimmed evenly with clippers to about 1-2 inches from the skin. The hair on the ears is cut short and the hair is cleared from the eyes. The mustache and beard are also cut short so that they perfectly blend with the rounded shape. No stray hairs are left around the face, or on the ears, to truly give a circular pattern, though the hair on the face is still an inch or two longer than the body.
The teddy bear is one of the most popular for the summers because of how short and practical it is. It is also very low maintenance at home, though visits to the groomer will need to happen every month to maintain the hairstyle.
2. Puppy Cut
Style
- Hair over body cut 1-2 inches in length.
- Hair over face cut to same length as body.
- Hair over ears cut short.
- Eyes cleared of any hair over them.
- No long mustache or beard.
The Puppy Cut is one of the most popular haircuts, ranking second in our list. It is the easiest to maintain and still gives an adorable, cute look. With this haircut, your Yorkie will be transformed into a cute little puppy. The hair around the face is cut in such a way that any Yorkie will look cute, no matter what age they are.
A Puppy Cut will cut the hair on the body to about an inch from the skin, similar in length to the Teddy Bear Cut. The difference is that a puppy cut also cuts the hair on the face to the same length. The hair is then scissored into the shape of a puppy’s face.
The Puppy Cut is a very good choice for the summertime because of how short the hair is. It is also one of the easiest haircuts to maintain, you can probably get by with brushing your Yorkie only weekly with this haircut.
You won’t ever have to worry about long brushing sessions untangling knots with his cut. Some owners are even able to keep up with trimming their Yorkie’s Puppy Cut, as long as they have some clippers.
3. Kennel Cut
Style
- Hair on the body is trimmed to 1/2 an inch.
- Hair on the ears, mustache and beard are trimmed down significantly.
- Hair on the face, legs and tails are left slightly longer.
- Hair around the paws is cut out.
- No hair covers the eyes.
If you want an extra-short haircut, the Kennel Cut is just what you are looking for!
This hairstyle is a great summer choice as it keeps the hair on the body very short and needs minimal grooming. The idea behind this haircut is to not make your Yorkie look like a puppy, but to be completely practical and give a more mature look.
The Kennel Cut trims down the hair on the body to half an inch from the skin. The hair on the legs, tail and head are left a bit longer to add a little glamour to the hairstyle. Owners love how easily they can stylize the head, by adding a bow or tying pigtails.
If your Yorkie likes to be active, then this is the haircut you want to go for.
4. Schnauzer Cut
Style
- Hair over back, neck and tail is trimmed short to the skin.
- Hair on the is legs left longer and feathery.
- Hair on chest forms a ‘bib’.
- Mustache and beard hair is left long, like a Schnauzer.
- Hair around eyes and on ears trimmed short.
A Schnauzer Cut will make your Yorkshire Terrier look like a tiny version of the miniature Schnauzer. This haircut works best for Yorkies who have flopped ears.
The hair on the back, neck and tail are trimmed down to the skin with clippers, while the hair on the legs is left longer to form a ‘skirt’. The hair on the face is also longer and the beard and mustache are left a bit longer, so that your Yorkie looks just like the Schnauzer. Finally, the hair on the chest is left slightly long to form a ‘bib’.
This haircut is also another relatively easy one to maintain as the hair on the body is trimmed really short. However, you will need to groom your Yorkie’s legs and face so that it looks wise and poised.
5. Westie Cut
Style
- Hair around the face appears pentagon in shape.
- Hair over the body is cut to around 2 inches.
- The hair on the ears is cut short.
- Mustache and beard hair is trimmed to conform to the pentagon shape.
- Hair over the eyes is trimmed to clear them any hair.
This hairstyle will make your Yorkie look like a West Highland Terrier. This is one of the best parti yorkie haircuts as the white base coat will make them look closer to a Westie!
With the Westie cut the hair is trimmed to around 2 inches over the body. The hair around the head is cut with scissors so that the face appears almost like a pentagon when seen from the front.
Owners love how fluffy the hair looks with this haircut. It is short enough to stand up, but not long enough to fall down like a traditional long-haired Yorkie. This cut will need a little more brushing and grooming, but the coat is still kept short enough to be manageable.
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Male Haircuts
It is all about the face with the Lion Cut for a Yorkie. The hair around the chest and face is left long and cut into a lion’s mane. Even the ears are shaped to look like that of a lion’s with the rounded edges. The hair on the rest of the body is trimmed short. In the picture above, the hair on the legs has been left longer for some flare.
For this yorkie haircut the hair is cut very short and close to the skin over the back. The hair on the legs is left long to form a type of ‘skirt’. The hair around the face is also long and cut in a way that looks like the face of a Schnauzer.
In a Squared Head Cut the hair around the head is cut to look like a square. In the picture above, the hairstyle has been paired with the Puppy Cut so the body hair has been trimmed down evenly.
This little puppy has had its hair trimmed a little bit longer than the average Puppy Cut, but the head is square. The hair of the beard and mustache has been cut more in straight lines than rounded.
The hair over the body has been trimmed down, though the hair on legs is slightly longer. The hair around the head and ears has been cut in the style of that of a Westie.
Female Haircuts
This Yorkie has beautiful flowing hair that reaches all the way to the ground. Everything from the tip of the ears to the tail has been left long. To keep the eyes free of hair, hair on top of the head is pulled up in a top knot and held with a bow. The rest of the hair is brushed and blow-dried so that it seems smooth and silky.
The practical show cut is very similar to the show cut, where the hair is left floor-length over the entire body. The difference is the hair on the head is tied up into a pony tail, instead of a top knot and it isn’t as sleek.
On the top half of the body the hair is trimmed close to the skin. The hair on the legs is left long so that it appears as if they flare out. The hair around the face is also left long and cut into a square shape.
This haircut is characterized by three graded layers of hair. The hair over the paws is cut the shortest. The hair on the legs is slightly longer, and the hair over the body is the longest. The hair around the face is also left long to match the long hairstyle.
This Yorkie has a bow tie that keeps up its medium length hair out of its eyes.
This adorable fluffy hairstyle is cut pretty short over the body, but it has a bit more fluff than the average Puppy Cut. This Yorkie’s head has been rounded, but the hair on the ears has been shaved off.
Cute Yorkie Haircuts
There are many different haircuts for yorkies because of how straight and silky their hair is. Short, medium and long hairstyles all look very cute on this lap dog.
- Teddy Cut
- Kennel Cut
- Bejeweled Kennel Cut
- Pony Tail Style
- Teddy Cut with a Ponytail
- Flared Legs with Sideburns and Ponytail
- Kennel Cut with Ponytail
With a round head and a fluffy body, this Yorkie looks cute, just like a teddy bear. The hair around the face is left long enough to create that big round shape. The hair on the ears is cut short, and the ears poke out from the round head.
To add a little more flare to the Kennel Cut, the hair on the paws is left longer. The hair around the face is long and shaped in a square pattern. This Yorkie also has a pony tail over its head tied with a bow.
Who said the Kennel Cut couldn’t be cute? This practical style has been made cuter with a jeweled collar and a white bow holding up a ponytail. The hair over the body is trimmed down near the skin, but the hair on the legs, tail and head is left longer.
The hair on the head is long enough for a pony tail style so that it can be tied over the head with a hair band.
This Yorkie has the classic Teddy Cut with a rounded and fluffy face. His dark eyes shine eye out from his spherical head and the hair over the body is cut evenly to a short length.
In this picture, the hair over the body has been trimmed close to the skin. The hair on the legs has been left long so that it flares out. The hair of the beard has been trimmed really short, but the hair from the side of the face and part of the mustache has been left long so that it gives the impression of ‘sideburns’.
This kennel cut is similar to the summer cut, but with an added touch! The hair on top of the head is tied with a band to make a ponytail that stands up.
Final Thoughts
Keeping a Yorkie’s coat in its natural, long-haired state requires a lot of grooming!
Many owners choose short yorkie haircuts because they need very little maintenance. They are also are great for the summer months. Some of the most popular are the Puppy Cut and Teddy Cut.
If you like styling your Yorkie’s hair with bows and clips, then you will need to pick a medium or long style. Just make sure you are ready to brush their coat every day.
Some people might want to cut their own Yorkie’s coat. Styles such as the Puppy Cut that trim the whole body are good for owners to try and learn the basics. Cuts like the Schnauzer, Westie, or Lion require more technique and scissors to achieve the right look.
Which haircut do you think would be best for your Yorkie? Share in the comments below!
