NEED HELP with RESCUES ASAP!!!

[Mathteacher]

Please help me train some approx 3.5 year old babies I rescued! Anyone have experience with that? Can you recommend any products that might help?

First of all, the last few weeks haven't been good for me and my family. My 25 year old son went to Heaven 7 weeks ago today.

Subsequently, to help me through my grief, I decided to rescue TWO (came as a pair) possibly Silky Yorkies from a local shelter. This wasn't an impulse decision.....I had been looking for a rescue (or two) for a long time, but they were always too far away.

Anyway, according to the shelter, the vet said they are supposedly 3.5 years of age and they were found as strays roaming on a farm, so I know nothing about their history! MY Mistake.

To make matters worse, the very day after we got them, my father-in-law passed away and we had to make an unexpected trip out of state for a week!

They are an adorable, bonded, very playful pair. I would'nt know they were only 3.5 years old. They chew on EVERYTHING!!!!

The worse part is they are NOT housetrained! I'm trying to use a crate and also taking them outside and doing the praising thingy and all that, but when they are unsupervised in the house, they act like it is no big deal to go whenever and wherever they get the urge.

In addition, I have to train them separately. If I let them outside together in the morning when the grass is still wet, they end up rolling and playing and come back sopping wet. They love to play outside....at least the male does. In fact, I think he might have ADD. When I let him outside, he is so distracted by what is in the backyard, that he forgets he has to go to the bathroom. We have squirrels and ferals out there and he loves it.

I'm having a hard time trying to train them (we've had several rainy days due to the remnants of the hurricanes coming our way),and I am still working through some tremendous grief. Right now, they are more of a burden then a comfort because they are not housetrained.

I could see them bonding and fitting into our family very well, IF they were housetrained. I can't bring them into my home office where I work, because of carpet and plants.

And did I mention we have a two week upcoming vacation which was already planned before we adopted these babies?

I'm still thinking they are here on a trial basis, and I know I can't expect too much too soon, but I need to hear from others out there that have trained rescues. If they don't show progress with the housetraining within a few months, I may decide to return them to the shelter, which I know, would be very difficult for me.

Also, how do I keep them clean when they love to romp and play outside so much? They smell like dogs and get all dirty. Plus, the male LOVES to dig!

Now that I've said all the negative things, they do seem to understand a few commands. The male responds to "COME" and also to the word "No".

The female just does what she wants to, but she loves to lay on her back and let me hold her on her back like a baby, so I know they have had some kind of socialization and training, but they have no clue when it comes to potty training. It is almost as though they were kept in a kennel or something.

At what age do terriers begin to STOP chewing on EVERYTHING?! Today, I put a plastic tag on the females collar (I think it had something to do with the microchip) and she has already almost chewed it to pieces!

Someone please help me!!!

Thank you!

[YorkieMother]

What I seeing is two very stressed out dogs running scared.
So lets see what we can do to drop that as they can not learn when running scared.

First peeing and pooping in a house can be fear as the smell of themselves can be calming and very self rewarding.

Get diapers on them if they will accept them.
I get them into one room and have that puppy proofed, giving them a smaller space with pee pads when out of a diapers and belly band.
Chewing is anxiety too so get the stress level down.. yup I know it tough as nails to do it...
tray a DAP diffuser that will put pheromones in the air that helps calm dogs. Get a few dog calming CD from through a dogs ear.

Get the stress level down then one at a time have them on you by a leash that way they can not sneak off to pee. They learn great eye contact and will learn your their to help.

Get lots of chew toys lots.

Also tons of exercise.
Try Tellington touch and massage.
Try an axiety wrap it like wrapping up a fussy human baby. They are running high and can not slow so it helps slow them by contaning the anxiety.

Also get their brains working 15 minutes of clicker training is a half hour of walking at a fast pass..... Tired dogs are not getting into trouble.

Short of that you may need to talk to a vet and check for UTI and bladder stones or a valve in the female not closing tight enough.

JL

[daniellealberta]

Wow, do I ever feel sorry for these dogs. You don't say how long you've had them, only that it's been less than seven weeks.

I realize that you have been going through a difficult time which has made caring for these dogs more difficult than you had hoped. But reading your post, I can only imagine how frightened these two dogs must be. Regardless of their history, they now find themselves in a brand new home with brand new people. To make matters worse, They day after you got them, you went out of state for a week. You don't say if you took them with you, but no matter what happened, it would be more new people and even more new places. No wonder they don't know what to do.

What concerns me even more is that you have a two week vacation coming up that you knew about even before you rescued these dogs. Again, if you are taking them with you, they will have to go to a new place before they are used to their new home!

It sounds to me that what these dogs need most of all is a routine, and the opportunity to get used to their new surroundings. I am going to assume that they were housebroken before you got them, but even if they weren't, the same can still apply.

If you want to train them to go outside, start by taking them out every hour. Sometimes they will pee, and sometimes not. When they do, praise them a great deal, and then take them inside right away. For me, that helped to teach Spike that outside was where you pee, but also that not every trip outside was for exercise.

If training them indoors, is there a room in your house that has a linoleum or similarly easily washable floor that you can enclose them in, either with doors or baby gates? To start with, put pee pads all over the floor. After a while, you should notice certain ones that they use over and over. Then you can start removing the ones they don't use at all. After a while, they should be trained to use the pads you leave for them in a specific area.

The rest of their behaviour seems like typically doggy behaviour to me. They smell like dogs because they are dogs. If they play in wet grass, they will get wet. Dogs like to dig. He is interested by everything in the backyard because it is new to him, and he's exploring his new surroundings. And they chew. That's what dogs do. Make sure they have things to chew that you want them to chew. Also, dogs chew things when they are bored. Make sure they have things to do.

Until they are comfortable in their new surroundings, they are going to be curious, nervous, and some of their behaviours may seem strange. Until they get used to you they need a routine, and they need to stay in the same place. If you keep taking them out of their new home, it will take longer for them to adjust!

Good luck!

[Mathteacher]

Originally Posted by daniellealberta

They day after you got them, you went out of state for a week. You don't say if you took them with you, but no matter what happened, it would be more new people and even more new places. No wonder they don't know what to do.

What concerns me even more is that you have a two week vacation coming up that you knew about even before you rescued these dogs. Again, if you are taking them with you, they will have to go to a new place before they are used to their new home!

It sounds to me that what these dogs need most of all is a routine, and the opportunity to get used to their new surroundings.!

I know...I feel bad about all that, too, but, as I said before, the week to Louisiana to bury my father-in-law was unexpected. My daughter kept them for me that week.

To make matters worse, we have had LOTS of rain due to remnants of hurricanes coming our way and it has been very difficult to take them out regularly.

When we adopted them, I was reluctant at first, because of our upcoming vacation and told that to the rescue group. The lady at the rescue group offered to keep them for me while we go on our trip. Not sure what to do yet.....but I do have someone lined up to house sit with them. However, because of their behavior, I don't know if the person I have will be able to keep up with them.

I don't know if I even mentioned the cats in my initial post, but the dogs and cats are getting accustomed to each other, so there is SOME progress!

Thank you both for your wonderful suggestions....I will do my best.....

[4doggiemama]

You have received some excellent advice. Smaller area, such as an ex-pen is the biggest key besides routine. I used a timer to remind myself that it was time to go out. If they are distracted outdoors, use a leash. As for chewing, one of mine responded to Bitter Apple and the other I had to use hot sauce. Any type of Kong is a good chew distraction. I don't use the "stuffers" that are for Kongs. I use organic peanut butter and don't put much in. If your babies chew disposable piddle pads then use washable ones. Either get some from some of our YT members or Google it. Good luck. Joanne

[lucyaboo]

When I first got Pebbles, she was going potty in the house & was not really getting the idea to go in the backyard. I, like you, thought 'this is not working'!! & I thought that the woman lied about her being house trained.
It finally dawned on me that she had lived in an apartment & was only used to going potty on her leash. After figuring that out & starting to take her out on the leash, she got used to going in the backyard & now goes out without the harness/leash on. Maybe your babies aren't used to a backyard.
Hope all works out for you & the puppy's.

[megansmomma]

I am so sorry that you are frustrated with your rescues. Many rescued dogs are hard to train, you do not know their history, you did not get them from a puppy and they most likely have many bad habits that need to be redirected.

I am very sorry that you lost your son and FIL. My heart is breaking for you. Although it made your transition with you new dogs more difficult you should not feel that this has caused your problems. IMO it sounds like these 2 have no clue as to what you are expecting from them as part of the family.

First you need to get them under your control. If they are chewing and peeing in the house you need to keep their leash on and at your side at all times when not contained. An xpen, crate or dog proofed room should be their area that they can go into when you cannot supervise them.

Just go back to basics and what I mean by this is to be very consistent in what YOU EXPECT FROM THEM. This is not their fault that they do not understand what is expected for them. Yes, you know and I know that good dog make potty OUTSIDE but they have not been taught what your expectations of them are. All they know is what they have done all along and that is to go whenever and wherever they want. Yorkies are very smart and will learn, but it will take lots of hard work and patience on your part. Don't give up on them just yet!

Put their leashes on them so you have control and do not let them out of your sit even for a split second They cannot have free rein until they no longer have accidents. This take a HUGE amount of perseverance and determination on your part.

If they are romping and playing in the yard you need to take them out on their leash and not allow them to get distracted from what they are suppose to be doing. If you take them out for potty and they are playing and romping and not doing what they need to do, immediately bring them back into the house and put them back into their "crate" for 30 minutes of so. Take them back outside again and say "go potty". If they potty give them a treat IMMEDIATELY and PRAISE, do not wait until you get in the house but right outside after they go and praise, praise, praise! If they do potty then they can have a 30 minute period of free play and then back into the crate for about 2 hours. You need to keep this system of training up until they are not having any accidents in the house.

Treats and praise will get you very far! Even if they potty you still need to bring them back into the house after, they associate going out, making potty and then praise and treats.

I wish you a luck with your 2 little guys. Rescues are always difficult but with a lot of work you should be able to get your issues under control.

[megansmomma]

I just checked your older posts and I remember when you were first rescuing these two, AKA Farmer and Dell. I reread your first post and you said that Farmer (did you rename?) is a marker. I would also like to suggest a belly band for this little guy. Marking is different than peeing since it's a territory issue and not that he doesn't want to pee outside. Get his some belly bands and only take them off when you take in outside to potty. There are several people on YT that sell them. They wrap around the waist and I think you put a pantyliner inside so they cannot mark. This could be an issue that you might never resolve since marking is different that not being housebroken. He just might have to wear a belly band all the time while in the house but I think you can get it under control.

[sweetie3]

I just want to say I am so sorry to hear about your precious son.

[Mathteacher]

Thanks for all the wonderful tips and the condolences. It is sooo Hard losing a child!!!

Anyway, I have already tried many of the suggestions....not consistently because of the constant and over-abundance of rain we have had, but this week is dry.

The one problem I am wanting to address right now is that I leave them each in their own crate at night. The female holds it but the male does not. He does BOTH jobs before morning.

I have them on a feeding schedule so they do not eat beyond 5PM, and I let them out for the last time at night about 9 to 10PM.

The male is soiled every morning and I really don't have time to give him a daily bath. The crate he is in is small so it isn't because his crate is too large for him.

He is supposed to be about 3.5 years old and is much larger than the female, so he should be able to hold it, too, shouldn't he?

Please help!!!!!!

[megansmomma]

Originally Posted by Mathteacher

Thanks for all the wonderful tips and the condolences. It is sooo Hard losing a child!!!

Anyway, I have already tried many of the suggestions....not consistently because of the constant and over-abundance of rain we have had, but this week is dry.

The one problem I am wanting to address right now is that I leave them each in their own crate at night. The female holds it but the male does not. He does BOTH jobs before morning.

I have them on a feeding schedule so they do not eat beyond 5PM, and I let them out for the last time at night about 9 to 10PM.

The male is soiled every morning and I really don't have time to give him a daily bath. The crate he is in is small so it isn't because his crate is too large for him.

He is supposed to be about 3.5 years old and is much larger than the female, so he should be able to hold it, too, shouldn't he?

Please help!!!!!!

IMO is sounds like he probably spent his life in a cage if he is 3 1/2 and will go in his crate and then lay in it. What if you didn't put him in a crate but put up an xpen and puppy pads during the night. You could still put his crate inside the xpen so that he could sleep inside of it.

Other than that I have no other suggestions for you. Even the xpen will not help with the marking because the sides are open and if he is a leg lifter he probably would not use the puppy pad for peeing during the night.

[paulapoo]

Oh, I hope you don't give up on these 2, sounds like you might need their unconditional love, but only if it's really right for you. Is the male neutered? I would suggest putting them in the kitchen with a gate. Belly bands are wonderful for marking as long as you check them frequently.
I agree with the others... Rolling in the grass, and digging, all just doggy things. My boys find the nastiest things to roll in outside. I envy the people who have dogs who go outside to potty. Otis goes out side to play and pottying is just something that he may get to while he plays. Good Luck, if you don't think it's a good match, I would take them back. If you think you can love these babies and things will work out, you'll be rewarded millions of times over.