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07-20-2009, 09:51 AM | #1 |
Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: ireland
Posts: 24
| feeding my baby? and a potty question please!! hiya when i got ella at 8 weeks old the breeder was feeding her 4 times a day with dried food (puppy kibbles) soaked in a small jar of water overnight to soften the food. I have been doing this for 2 weeks now. She had her first vet appointment today and i asked him if this was ok, he said to give it to her dry as it would be good for her teeth and she will take longer to eat it which is good. He also said to take her food away at 6pm as her bowels and bladder would be empty at bedtime as i would be taking her out to go potty every hour on the hour until its bedtime.(what if she doesnt go potty when i bring her out?Do i bring her back in after 5 or 10 mins? Im finding myself out in my back garden anywhere from 5 mins to 45 mins waiting for her to go!) And what if shes not finished her food at 6pm? do i still take it away? At first she was eating her feeds all in one go but now she is going back and forth eating tiny bits at a time and taking ages. I know he is a vet and hes advice should be taken but id like some advice from yorkie owners too |
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07-20-2009, 11:26 AM | #2 |
Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Johnson City, TN
Posts: 49
| I can completely feel your pain! I had a similar problem.. when I brought Ollie home, he was eating science diet, and his breeder just left it out all day. I was also told to take his food away at 6 also... so often, Ollie wouldn't eat all day, and I was afraid to take his food away! I asked my vet, she said to mix a little wet food from a can in with his dry food.. and this worked! He ate all of his food in one sitting, the little bit of wet and all of the dry! As with going out with him every hour, that passes.. my Ollie is 15 months old now, and I hardly remember those days. The best piece of advice is pay attention to your dog, if you think he has to poopie outside, you can notice the signs of this. My husband and I call it "the poop dance" because he starts sniffing around the house, really quickly, and then starts circling. It did take a while, but we are about 95% housebroken on the poopie part, 99.9% on the pee part. One large piece of advice, when you go out with your dog, keep treats in your pocket. as soon, I mean AS SOON as the deed is done, reward, reward, reward!!!! It needs to be immediate, so that your dog knows why you are rewarding. At first, I used to wait until I would bring ollie back in the house, but I learned that he just associated going outside with a reward, so he thought that everytime he went outside, he got a reward for coming back in. NOT SO! He only got rewarded when he got busy, and I had to do it as soon as he performed... URGENCY is the key.. as soon as I started doing this, it only took him days to get the hang of it. Good luck, I hope this helps, and I am happy to help again if you need me to Sara |
07-20-2009, 12:49 PM | #3 |
Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: ireland
Posts: 24
| hi Sara thanks for your help Did you wait for long periods of time when you were out waiting for Ollie to ''go'' Do you actually stay out there until its done no matter how long it is? |
07-20-2009, 12:59 PM | #4 | |
Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Johnson City, TN
Posts: 49
| Quote:
AND I KNOW HOW EXHAUSTING THAT IS! It makes me wonder why i want a second one!! but you know, know that he is fairly housebroken, i don't even remember that being a burden. Honestly, the best thing I can tell you is crate train. and reward IMMEDIATELY after he pottys, keep treats or something in your pocket, and as soon as they hunker down, go ahead and verbally reward, and then when he is done, give a treat. give two. sometimes ollie would get 4 treats for poopin outside i was so excited! I hope that helps. i talked to 2 different vets, and we did the puppy class at petsmart, which the trainer there was great, and answered a lot of questions too | |
07-20-2009, 01:13 PM | #5 |
Donating YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Chicago Suburbs
Posts: 3,306
| I would wait outside as long as you can - if dinner is burning or the phone is ringing, put your puppy in a crate or keep him on his leash and take him inside with you for 10-15 minutes and try again. If you CAN stay outside, stay out (walk around a bit, mine ALWAYS go if we walk, even just to the neighbors house and back) and wait. An empty dog is a GOOD dog After just a few weeks of this hassle, you'll learn your dog's signals, schedule, etc. Trust your judgement and if you end up with accidents, then go back to what you were doing before Don't soak the food overnight. Only let dry food be wet for less than 30 minutes and then throw it away. You don't want bacteria to form. If you are worried about your puppy not eating, like if he isn't gaining weight, feed him a GOOD quality canned food. It's *extremely* important you only use a HIGH quality wet food, OK? Like: Merrick Nature's Variety Innova There are others, but you need to find a store that carries those brands and they will have many other good brands. You can't get this stuff at Petsmart, OK? You have to find a small store like a boutique or a feed store. They will have high quality dry foods too, which is good too (and more convenient) It's OK to feed wet food if you brush their teeth (high quality wet food is actually less processed than kibble, therefore better for them) but kibble is more convenient. Mine get both, mostly kibble, occasionally canned because they like it. If your puppy is growing but just isn't interested in each meal, cut down to 3 or 2 meals. If you want him to eat on a schedule (you do, for potty training) then take the bowl up after 20 minutes. Once he misses a meal, trust me, he will eat the next one!!! You are doing good with the potty training - it will feel like forever but in 6 months he will be on auto pilot and all of your hard work will pay off. Mine ring a bell to go outside - I no longer have to keep track of their schedule, they let me know when they need to go out. But I put a good 6+ months into training each of them, making sure they were empty, etc. before they got it EDIT: LOL I just saw you are in Ireland - so those brands may mean nothing to you. So pick some canned food out and READ the ingredients, stay away from by-products and try to find a little shop with someone who knows their brands and can help you. Stay away from the pet supermarket type stores for food. Last edited by Erin; 07-20-2009 at 01:17 PM. |
07-20-2009, 01:17 PM | #6 |
Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: ireland
Posts: 24
| i was using my sons old baby playpen for the last 2 weeks for bedtime. Ella had her bed, a bowl of water and a pee pad in there.In the morning when i would get up she would have went pee and poo on the pad during the night. I purchased a crate type bed for her today, (one of those travelling material crates) just enough room for her to lay down and move around a little. It seems to be working fine at the moment, she loves it, went straight into it today. I wonder will she go pee or poo in it tonight though? there is no pee pad in there!! |
07-20-2009, 01:21 PM | #7 | |
Donating YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Chicago Suburbs
Posts: 3,306
| Quote:
I would wait outside with her that last trip out at night. Make sure she is empty before bed. Work on a potty cue so she learns to go when you tell her. Mine are 3&4 and if they get distracted outside I just yell for them to hurry up and they pee and come back in. | |
07-20-2009, 01:26 PM | #8 |
Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: ireland
Posts: 24
| hi Erin thanks for your help lol yes im in Ireland so i dont think i can get those brands here. The breeder was feeding her royal canin vetinary puppy kibble but the vet did not stock this when i brought her there so i had to get science plan kibble (dont know if you heard of these foods) thanks for the advice on the training |
07-20-2009, 01:32 PM | #9 | |
Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Johnson City, TN
Posts: 49
| Quote:
Unfortunately every dog is different. Ollie had no problem pooping in the morning, but refused to poop in the evening. I would be outside all day, and he would not go. But as soon as I would bring him in, he would poop in the floor. I even used to walk him at a local park and bring him home to poop in our yard (he is a bit of a shy pooper) and he still wouldn't go. So, even if none of this helps, keep asking, someone will give you an idea that you haven't heard of or tried. Good luck! | |
07-22-2009, 12:38 PM | #10 |
Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Johnson City, TN
Posts: 49
| how is it going with Ella? |
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