Basset Hound vs Yorkshire Terrier: Which Suits Your Home?

There's no gentler way to say it: a Basset Hound can weigh ten times what a Yorkshire Terrier weighs. The Basset runs 40 to 65 pounds; the Yorkie runs 4 to 7 pounds, standing just 7 to 8 inches tall against the Basset's 12 to 15. This is less a comparison of two medium dogs and more a comparison of two entirely different categories of pet -- one you can carry in a tote bag, one you can't lift with one arm.

Exercise need is actually tied here -- both rate 2/5, low for their respective sizes. Energy level tips slightly toward the Yorkie at 3/5 versus the Basset's 2/5, but in practice a Yorkie's energy burns off in short indoor bursts, while a Basset's lower energy is more a function of its build than its temperament. Neither dog needs long runs, but for different physical reasons.

This is the Yorkie's steepest cost: 5/5 grooming need against the Basset's 3/5, driven by that long, silky coat that mats without regular brushing and needs a real haircut on a schedule. In exchange, the Yorkie barely sheds (1/5, versus the Basset's 3/5) and is often marketed as hypoallergenic. You're trading a vacuum-cleaner problem for a scissors-and-brush problem.

Both dogs handle apartment living reasonably well, though the Yorkie edges ahead at 5/5 versus the Basset's still-solid 4/5. The real difference is noise: Yorkies rate 4/5 for barking, a genuinely vocal small-dog trait, while Bassets rate a low 2/5. If thin walls and a barking-sensitive neighbor are a concern, the quieter Basset is the safer bet despite being the bigger dog.

The Basset rates higher for first-time owners (4/5 vs. the Yorkie's 3/5), which surprises people who assume small automatically means easy. Yorkies rate slightly better on trainability (3/5 vs. 2/5) but are notoriously prone to small-dog stubbornness and selective hearing of their own. Neither breed is a natural obedience-class star; both reward patience over drilling repetition.

Here the Basset pulls well ahead. It rates 5/5 with kids against the Yorkie's 3/5, 5/5 with other dogs against 3/5, and 5/5 with strangers against a notably low 2/5. A Yorkie's small size makes it more fragile around rough handling from young kids, and its wariness of strangers is a real trait, not a stereotype -- this is a breed that tends to bond tightly and stay guarded elsewhere.

These two breeds don't share a single condition on their health lists, which tells you their risk profiles come from completely different places -- the Basset's from its long back and heavy build, the Yorkie's from being a tiny toy breed (collapsing trachea, hypoglycemia, portosystemic shunt). The Yorkie also lives notably longer, 11 to 15 years against the Basset's 10 to 12, which is typical of the size-to-lifespan pattern across dog breeds generally.

The Yorkie actually costs more overall despite being tiny -- it rates 4/5 on the cost scale against the Basset's 3/5, and its monthly cost of $100-$190 runs close to or above the Basset's $80-$150. Grooming is the main driver: regular professional trims add up in a way that a Basset's occasional bath doesn't. First-year costs land close together, $1,300-$2,300 versus $1,400-$2,900.