7 Reasons Why Your Yorkshire Terrier Stares at You

Those beautiful beady black eyes! When they look at you it seems as if they are staring into the very depths of your soul! Are they judging you, are they trying to tell you the secrets to their universe? What are they trying to communicate?

Oh, how I miss the probing eyes of my dear sweet Yorkie Katie. My Yorkshire Terrier Katie passed away when I was 17 and I still miss her sweet stare. Do you ever wonder why your Yorkie stares at you as I did? I would sit and contemplate it for hours some days. Well, now I finally know.

Your Yorkshire Terrier will stare at you as a way of communicating with you. They will often stare at you looking for cues of what is going to come next. They stare when they want something from you, such as attention, or food, or even when they are just trying to show you admiration and affection.

So how do you tell what the different stares mean? Why is it sometimes feel uncomfortable when your Yorkshire Terrier stares at you so intently? ….And of all things, why on earth does he stare at you when he eats or poops! Consider this article your one-stop shop for winning the Yorkshire Terrier stare-down!

Reasons Why Your Yorkshire Terrier Stares!

1. Your Yorkshire Terrier Wants Something

We adore our dogs and want to take the very best care of them that we can. This can sometimes be to our detriment though if our dogs know that we will spoil them and give them anything they want they can leverage those adorable stares to make you give in to their every desire!

If you have found yourself in this trap you may notice your Yorkshire Terrier staring at you with an accompanying whimper or whining. When this happens he’s most likely trying to communicate that he wants something from you.

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Learning how to read your dog’s body language can go a long way in helping you bond with your dog as well as helping them to be better behaved.

Your Yorkshire Terrier how may be asking for you to let them outside to use the restroom, he may want you to play with him, or maybe he is dying for you to share some of your delicious chicken sandwich you are eating.

When a Yorkshire Terrier stares at you while she is eating it’s because of the ancient natural instinct for dogs (and their ancestral wolves) to look at the pack leader during meal times as a sign of submission and asking for any scraps that they are willing to share.

Either way, pay attention to not only his eyes but his ears, tail, and how his body is positioned and you may soon discover how to understand your dog’s secret language.

Other Yorkshire Terrier owners have said that if their dog is staring at them to get their attention then they better give them some attention! If they are on the computer or the iPad and they don’t put it down and pay attention their dog will start getting more insistent with its stares using nose bumps, followed by strange whining noises, and possible barks in the face.

If you are thinking of getting another Yorkie or another dog to give your pup some company read this article first!

When Should You Get Your Yorkie a Friend? (A Guide to Yorkie Pairs) – Paws and Learn

2. Your Yorkshire Terrier is Communicating Love

Another reason your Yorkshire Terrier is staring at you can simply be explained that he loves you!

When a new mother holds her new baby and they look into each other’s eyes it has an amazing effect of releasing a powerful hormone called oxytocin. This hormone is often called the love hormone as it helps us connect and bond with one another.

If you let your Yorkshire Terrier sleep with you, you may be getting more benefits from oxytocin.

Should I Let My Yorkie Sleep With Me? (Safety Tips) – Paws and Learn

Eye contact is a big thing to us humans, and dogs may be the only species that really understands that. A study shows that dogs and their owners alike both experience an increased release of oxytocin when we stare amorously into one another’s eyes. Dogs are the first and possibly only species besides humans that have been observed doing this.

So even though your Yorkshire Terrier may at times be wary or nervous around strangers, his bond with you can be unshakeable! This explains why your Yorkie may just be your best and most loyal friend.

This release of hormones will actually help you and your dog build a stronger bond and build more trust with each other.

Here are some other ways to tell that your Yorkshire Terrier loves and trusts you.

Curls up next to you or in your lap (Do Yorkies Like to Cuddle and Be Held? (What Owners Say!)
Greets you enthusiastically while wagging his tail
Pushes on you with his nose
Relaxed body language around you
Gets excited when he sees you after you’ve been separated for a time
licks you or wants to kiss and lick your face
Sleeps on his back and exposes his belly when he’s close to you
Leans against you, or lying down next to you
Sleeping with or carrying around your dirty smelling laundry or shoes
Wants you to play with him
Follows you everywhere
Stares at you lovingly
Brings things to you
Wants to lick you all the time (Find out all about Yorkie kisses here!)

So next time you are feeling stressed and need a pick me up, try having a staring contest with your sweet Yorkshire Terrier and see if that helps you both feel a bit better.

3. Your Yorkshire Terrier is Trying to Read Your Cues

One of the biggest reasons your Yorkshire Terrier will stare at you is to gather information about the cues you are sending him.

Yorkshire Terriers make wonderful companion dogs who want to be connected to their owners and understand them. Yorkies crave the attention of their owners and are very loyal they have the ability to bond to their owners quite strongly.

Dogs instinctually look to their pack leaders for guidance on what to do next, Yorkies are no different, and you are their pack leader.

Yorkshire Terries can be energetic feisty and domineering! Working to Establish yourself as a strong and confident leader in their presence is the key to teaching them as well as gaining the ‘Alpha’ status so that they will know who is in charge and not try to overtake the household.

When they stare intently at you they are looking to you for that confidence and guidance as the alpha member of their pack.

Because Yorkshire Terriers are so loyal they often pick up on subtle things that other dogs might miss. They are good at understanding you and they can often feed off your emotions and know when something is off. They may be looking to you to figure out how to fix it.

This is one reason Yorkies can make fantastic service and emotional support dogs!

They may also be staring at you as they try to decipher your body language and figure out what might be coming next in their daily routine.

Fun Fact: Your dog is not only drawn to look at your eye movement and track your face in order to read your social cues, dogs can use their powerful noses to smell the emotions of their owners. These two amazing abilities explain why our dogs are so great at being a man’s (and woman’s) best friend!

4. Your Yorkshire Terrier is Trained to Look at You

When you bring home a new puppy and first start teaching and training it, one of the most important things to teach them first is to look at you.

Teaching them how to sit, stay, heel, settle and all the other important commands is so much easier when your dog first knows to look at you.

Dogs often recognize visual cues much easier and sooner than they can figure out what you want them to do purely by speaking the command. When your Yorkshire Terrier is trained to look at you are able to see your movements and interpret whether you want them to sit, stay, come, or something else.

So for training purposes, if your dog looks at you a lot that will make your job a lot easier. Take advantage of all that attention and see what fun tricks you can train them to do.

This attentive stare may also explain why your Yorkshire Terrier looks at you while he’s pooping. He’s not doing it to gross you out, but most likely when you trained him to go poop in his spot outside you gave him lots of praise, attention, and maybe even treats. He may continue to stare at you because he’s expecting more of the same.

5. Your Yorkshire Terrier is Confused

If your Yorkshire Terrier is looking at you and you’re are confused as to why that may just be your answer as well. Sometimes we humans do funny and unpredictable things.

If you Yorkshire Terrier is looking at you with his head tilted to one side and his ears perked at the attention he’s probably confused and wondering what you are doing or trying to communicate to him.

Another sign of confusion in your Yorkie may be licking of the lips or a quick shake of his body. This could show that the confusion is causing a bit of stress in your dog.

Your Yorkshire Terrier may be asking for more clear directions and understanding of the behavior you are looking for from him.

Unfortunately, as your Yorkshire Terrier ages and becomes a senior, his confused stares could indicate something more serious such as cognitive dysfunction. If you have an older Yorkie and they are also forgetting basic commands, wandering aimlessly in circles, or having accidents in the house it’s time for a visit to your vet to see what can be done.

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6. Your Yorkshire Terrier is Confrontational

Yorkshire Terriers generally get along well with other people and animals, but you will still need to socialize your Yorkie to make sure that it won’t become confrontational with other animals. If your dog has had a bad experience in the past it could cause your Yorkie to become warry or confrontational with other dogs.

Yorkies can also be somewhat protective of their owners! If your Yorkshire Terrier is not well socialized as a puppy his stare could be confrontational and a warning that something bad is going to happen.

If your Yorkie has an icy hard stare accompanied by a low growl or baring of teeth, proceed with caution. Pooles are unlikely to show this behavior to their owners but may do this when feeling threatened.

Situations, where your Yorkshire Terrier might feel threatened, can include:

Resource guarding a treat, special toy, or food
Any situation where he perceive his owner is being threatened
Being approached by a stranger or someone that makes them feel uncomfortable
An unfamiliar animal that is invading his space
Any interaction that is unfamiliar, unsettling, or startling

Other signs that your Yorkshire Terrier staring could lead to confrontation may include a rigid or stiff body, holding very still, tail tucked or not wagging, and ears laid back on his head.

If this is your Yorkshire Terrier or any other dog that you may be approaching break eye contact and back away. Give your Yorkie some space to calm down and evaluate why he may have reacted that way. You will also want to work on training him to not be aggressive in order to avoid potentially dangerous situations in the future.

Final Thoughts

So next time your Yorkie is staring you down, and your first reaction is to think about how creepy it may be, or that he’s judging you and found you unworthy, think again. Most likely that intense stare means that your dog is your lifelong companion ready to please and protect you no matter what.