Our Puppy MAX (do we need to give him away?)

[LILBIT1]

Originally Posted by 107barney

You bought the dog. I think you owe the dog a nice, safe and hopefully long life. Train your kids and the dog and you will have a nice family companion. Good luck.

Agreed! You made a commitment to this pup when you bought him/her. Its for the life of the pup. Not for the amount of time the pup fits perfectly into your family.

[MaxWalker]

If you were in Maryland I would take him off your hands. I have a male Yorkie named Mac and I he is my heart. He is a member of our family.

[MandiesMom]

Originally Posted by ZekeAbraham

Just a quick look at wherewe've been keeping Max since we got him. (While we aren’t playing with him)

I’m feeding him Dick VanPatten's Natural Balance® L.I.D. Limited Ingredient Diets® Lamb Meal &Brown Rice Small Breed Bites™ Dry Formula. About three teaspoon’s at a time andthe food and water tray stay in his pen at all times.

He barely eats though if heeats one of the three teaspoons we are lucky. Is that normal? I worry.

If I put a piece of the dryfood in my hand or fingers I can get him to eat one at a time but that’s alittle tedious.

We also have Natural Balance®Ultra Premium Beef /or Lamb or Liver Canned Formula and I mix in a teaspoon ofthat and he seems to like it better but we worry about diarrhea.

We try to give him vitaminpaste 2-3 times daily too.

How do we get him to eatmore?

Does the pen look right?

Are these foods just "small breeds" foods or are they "Puppy" formulas?
At his age, he needs the extra nutrients of puppy food. If these are "all stages", then that is fine. It's good that you are giving him extra vitamins (not sure you need to give him that much daily..did the vet recommend that?)

Puppies need to eat as much as they can. If feeding him by hand for a while will help, then do it (you and the members of your family can take turns). I wouldn't worry too much about diarrhea unless it happens. If he'll eat with the wet food mixed, by all means do that.

I'd still suggest an xpen for him..it just has more room and you can get a bed, water, food, potty pad all in there and still give him room to move around (this and safe from little feet..win/win).

Do you have puppy Nutrical? I can't find it in stores where I live so I have to order Nutrical online. I highly recommend you have that on hand. Any sign of hypoglycemia and this can be a life saver. Other than that, my girl always liked it as a little treat

[concretegurl]

1-3 table spoons of kibble for a pup his age is fine, especially if you are giving a vitamin suppliment paste.

The pen looks great but he will most likely outgrown that one soon.

Are you scheduling or free feeding?

Here's a recent thread but also please check out this section.

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/yor...ur-yorkie.html

[Chas W]

If I put a piece of the dry food in my hand or fingers I can get him to eat one at a time but that’s a little tedious.

That's not at all unusual. I had to do the same thing, many times, with our Graysee when she was a puppy. Even now, at 5, she often gets "bored" with her regular dry food, especially if I've been mixing in some "wet" food, which I do around the holidays as a special treat (like she had any idea what a holiday is!). If she turns up her nose at her "plain ol' dry food", than I'll sit down on the floor next to her bowl, and pick out a piece at a time, and she'll take it from me and eat it. Usually, after about 6 or 7 pieces, she'll give in and go back to the bowl and finish it up.

[concretegurl]

Originally Posted by Chas W

That's not at all unusual. I had to do the same thing, many times, with our Graysee when she was a puppy. Even now, at 5, she often gets "bored" with her regular dry food, especially if I've been mixing in some "wet" food, which I do around the holidays as a special treat (like she had any idea what a holiday is!). If she turns up her nose at her "plain ol' dry food", than I'll sit down on the floor next to her bowl, and pick out a piece at a time, and she'll take it from me and eat it. Usually, after about 6 or 7 pieces, she'll give in and go back to the bowl and finish it up.

Elvis was 2yrs old when I got him, I put him on kibble, I think he had wet food before, I had to hand feed him for about the first year.

[Belle Noir]

Just to soothe you a bit, I got my Pixie at 8 weeks old and she is a perfect dog. She pad trained completely within a month, she has perfect manners, is well behaved, and did it with 2 kids in the house, granted they were 11 and 14 at the time.
She is a bundle of love and very much a people dog.

Sabre, on the other hand, whom I got at 12 weeks is cool and stand offish, and at almost 8 months, is not completely housebroken.

Yes getting a toy breed early can cause the kind of issues mentioned, but it's not a promise of future bad behavior. Just remember, size not withstanding, it's still a dog. Do not accept behaviors from a toy breed that you would not accept from a giant breed. This and being constant is the key. For sure socialization is going to be a must, since no one likes a snappy dog, no matter what their size.

The two things I liked the best, keeping to the rule that if puppy is in Ex Pen, no one is to play with puppy, and having a cat bell on puppy, so no one steps on puppy while every one learns to do the yorkie shuffle.

Good luck with your new puppy. Even with the criticism, this forum is like All-State... You're in good hands here.

[Shelby&Seymour]

Originally Posted by ZekeAbraham

Just a quick look at wherewe've been keeping Max since we got him. (While we aren’t playing with him)

I’m feeding him Dick VanPatten's Natural Balance® L.I.D. Limited Ingredient Diets® Lamb Meal &Brown Rice Small Breed Bites™ Dry Formula. About three teaspoon’s at a time andthe food and water tray stay in his pen at all times.

He barely eats though if heeats one of the three teaspoons we are lucky. Is that normal? I worry.

If I put a piece of the dryfood in my hand or fingers I can get him to eat one at a time but that’s alittle tedious.

We also have Natural Balance®Ultra Premium Beef /or Lamb or Liver Canned Formula and I mix in a teaspoon ofthat and he seems to like it better but we worry about diarrhea.

We try to give him vitaminpaste 2-3 times daily too.

How do we get him to eatmore?

Does the pen look right?

The pen set up looks great!!! You are doing an awesome job & obviously want to do right things for your Yorkie! There are many good dog foods out there and also many bad ones.... just do your homework. You'll figure it out... we ALL had to! At this time my 3 eat Fromm food. When they were puppies I fed Royal Canin for small breed puppies, and between those I fed Innova & Blue Buffalo..... (changing foods for different reasons, including wanting grain-free for my adult dogs).

If you are worried about your puppy not eating enough, can i suggest Nutrical. It can be found in a tube at Petsmart. Sometimes puppies get low on sugar when they don't get enough to eat an it can cause hypoglycemia. A little Nutrical will really help. You can read about this if you "google" yorkie puppy hypoglycemia or you can search it here on YT. Is the vitamin paste you are referring to called "Nutrical"?

Hope things are going well for all of you.... can't wait to see some pics of that little guy!!!!

[Sukey]

Hi, I'm new on here, but not new to yorkies

I successfully had both yorkies and young children. I had gotten my 2 yorkies before my first child was born, so my 3 oldest children grew up with the dogs. We never had any issues, other than one time my adult cousin tripped over the one dog. The dogs were pretty good at making sure they didn't get under-foot, and my children learned to be gentle.

I now have a 9.5 & 6.5 yr old at home and am looking at getting a new puppy. My kids have had hamsters for the past 1.5 years so I know they know how to be gentle. The biggest issue (for us) would be reminding the kids to watch out for the dogs when they are playing, and to not leave out small toys. Pretty manageable I think

[cindersellie]

Originally Posted by KendraE

It definitely can be done! Suggestion... For now get a little bell from the cat section and put it on his harness. We keep a bell on our 2 1/2 pounder at all times so we can be alerted to where she is. Just explain to your children just how fragile your little guy is right now. Good luck to you!

We bought a cat collar just for the bell. We have almost squashed our girl! ( we need training!) You should be fine with your pup, just give lots of supervision!

[cindersellie]

Originally Posted by furbutt

I understand what you are saying and you are 100% right, but this guy was not to know. What's done is done. I think your post could have been worded a little differently.

Yes when you buy a Puppy its always best to take it for a check up within 48 hours. This is for a health check up and if you didn't get it from a breeder then I would advise booking your Puppy in now for one just to be on the safe side and you can find out how much your pup weighs too.

Every dog should have at least some sort of pet insurance as they can be quite expensive if god forbid something should happen. Sadly things do happen so its always best to be prepared. I find that Petplan is the best but u might want to shop around

It is advised puppies should stay with there mother till they are 12 weeks old to help with socializing, potty training and the mother helps them learn not to bite. You might have to work a little harder now to teach the puppy this, but it sounds like you are willing to give this little guy your all

I think if you put in some hard work you can train your children and your puppy to all work together. No matter what puppy you have in your house some amount of hard work will be going into this puppy. You always have Yorkie Talk to help this site is amazing!

Not the best idea to buy from a shop but you was not to know... i'm sure u will read a lot on this site about it and you will learn. I don't think many people do know when they buy there first Yorkie about the dangers of pet shops and BYB... I know I didn't!

Good luck with your Puppy xxx

Nicely put!!!

This is a great site for advice and info, the people are very caring too. Welcome to YT! Maxx is adorable!

[hugz4all4]

My son was 3 when we first brought our at the time 16 ounce toy poodle home, she is now a whopping 4 pounds. He was raised with animals and was taught at an early age how to be around animals. Have your kids alwsys sitting while holding the pup and no running or horse play while the puppy is around and ALWAYS supervise never leave the puppy alone with the kids. Good luck with your new addition!

[TwoforFun]

What a cute baby. My three pound baby holds her place around my three children so as long as everyone is careful.

I wouldn't worry about trying to make him bigger since obesity can cause issues. If your kids love your puppy they will be careful.

[AlwaysTexas]

Originally Posted by 107barney

You bought the dog. I think you owe the dog a nice, safe and hopefully long life. Train your kids and the dog and you will have a nice family companion. Good luck.

:

[gemy]

Your set up right now looks just great, but as he grows up you will want a larger set up.

The learning curve is a steep one with a new puppy and especially a toy breed one.

Any questions just ask. And the library here is great too