This puppy stage is not easy!

[Bentleysmommie]

Am I the only one going crazy between the teething process and potty training? Bentley has lots of toys yet I cant seem to get him to let go of my hands!! Its honestly painful, the teeth are very sharp. Then for the potty training I'm trying to teach him to use the wee wee pads the same way I taught my Chihuahuas to with positive reinforcement. As a Psychology student I was always taught that if the dog has already finished going the bathroom even if you tell him no he will have no idea what he did wrong because they are not capable of connecting the action to something he did wrong. So unless I'm catching him in the action I don't tell him no. I don't know if this is wrong or right because I'm not being consistent every time he uses the bathroom. Just want to know how you guys potty trained your yorkies? And what you guys did to cool down the teething?

[Cha0t1c]

for the the teething I bought nylon bones, I used to give my dogs rawhide bones but theres too many issues with swallowing pieces whole or choking and random things. they worked perfectly with the nylon bones. Have you tried the spray that shows them where to potty? that worked with my females, but my males were very stubborn. We have them on a timed training and on top of that they wear doggy diapers around the house in case they have an accident. You would get plenty more tips on the training board as well. I learned many tips and tricks there

[richards6402]

Have faith Bentleys Mommie.........we have all been in your shoes. When Macy was a puppy and my hands were becomming raw meat, I sprayed some bitter apple on my hands and feet and let her bite me. After 3 times of getting a taste of bitter apple, she stopped and never tried again.

As for the potty pad training.....it took Macy until she was a year old to use her potty pad consistently. Hang in there, be consistent with the reward immediately after using the potty pad. Ignore and just clean up the mess if you don't catch him in the act. I'm sure more knowledgeable people will post with more ideas.

Just don't give up and don't lose hope!!! When they finally connect that they are supposed to use the potty pad instead of your floor it will be an awesome feeling for both you and Bentley.

[yorkietalkjilly]

Regarding the hard use of teeth during playing and rough-playing with puppies dogs and the hard-biting they do with those sharp little teeth, I just posted on another thread about hard-biting and hurting. I do rough play with dogs - especially terriers - and they love it. But I teach them boundaries for what is allowed during that play and they are smart and learn how to rough-play. One of the quickest ways to get a message through to a nipping, play-biting dog is to get up and walk away from them the moment you feel a hard bite. In time, they learn exactly what it is that caused all play to stop - a hard bite. Young dogs would rather play than eat so removing yourself and your attention from them is a huge statement from you that hard bite = stopping all play. I know it is tiresome to keep doing this but in time the puppy "gets it" and starts to connect a hard bite with your stopping all play. Amazing how fast - within weeks to a month - even a young puppy can learn to get a soft mouth. But remember, to keep teaching - dogs forget and revert to their old ways if you don't keep up the teaching until they have committed the lesson to their permanent memory. And still, because they are dogs, one will occasionally playfully hard-bite as an adult during rough play or very exciting play. Just say "no", stand up and walk off. Always remain a teacher with your dog.

Redirecting them with other toys, saying "uh oh" or "no", pushing your hand or arm further back into their mouth than is comfortable for them and takes control from them, squealing out in pain are all effective, too, with some dogs. Other dogs get excited by the squealing and bite harder - I had one of those! Tibbe loved the squeal. I personally don't recommend squirting them with water or scents, etc., as it can cause some nervous dogs to become fearful of you and/or squirted/sprayed things or water but works for others.

[MomtoJasper]

You're not alone! Jasper is going through the same issues. And those teeth!!! OMGosh those teeth!! Lol last night I started tapping his nose once and telling him no and immediately giving him one of his toys. I've been doing the same today. I do think it's better. Has anyone ever tried the Bully Sticks? I've thought about getting him one but wanted opinions. What do y'all think?

[EvaNoel]

I've got three potty training and I feel your pain, but I must say they are all doing very well with the pads since I put up a gate and gave them limited access to the house. No more free range Yorkies for now ...

On the biting, Eva was the queen of mean when it came to biting on the hubs, she was relentless! He loved to play with her and for the first month or two he let her bite on him. It was so funny, at any given moment (when he was home) I would hear him shout, "OUCH! dang, Eva" .

To stop this behavior I finally convinced him to say, "no bite, Eva", and then it shortened to just, "no bite". It took about a week of being constant with her, but it worked!

Good luck!

[ilovejoel]

I was probably bad with Joel when he was a puppy, I rather let him chew all over me and when he got about 10 months I officially taught him no biting which he learned faster since he was older, lol but it worked out fine since he only play bites when I want him to now

[Deb1]

As far as the biting goes.....I play with my pups until they bite too hard. When that happens, I say ouch....then move away and not play. It has really taught them not to bite hard. Being ignored is not fun for them! Pad training Tatiana is going great here....she is now 15 weeks and going majority of the time by herself! I began by taking her after every meal, immediately upon waking and after playing. I always say "potty" and give her time. If she tries to leave without going, I repeat the process until she goes. I do watch her close and yes, she does have accidents! She is only 15 weeks and that is to be expected. I do not get upset, just clean it up and wipe the area with vinegar. Praise for good behavior with some play time is her reward. I do not use treat but others do and have good results. It will get easier with time. Hang in there!

[Beth Boofa]

As far as the pee pad training goes, I have quite a ways to go w/that. But, Bella mouths everything. She constantly bites my hands.. I have picked up a few pointers that I've noticed a difference now after trying them. I took a facecloth & cut it up into thick 3" long strips & soaked them w/water. I freeze them and when she's biting a lot, I give her one to chew on..I think it does comfort her gums some. Also consistency is important, I say no or no bite when she puts her mouth on my hands..I say it kinda loud but def don't yell it. If she bites me after that, I put her in time out. That's in her crate left alone.. She still bites me but honestly I am noticing a difference finally. It was nonstop before & now I see her thinking about it. So good luck & he will understand soon enough that he can't use your hands as a chew toy!

[Verbena]

You are not alone. Oh Galen and his needle teeth. They hurt. I got him nylonbones and rubber squeaky toys. He is only allowed to play with under supervision. He kills them lol. I have been using the schedule from the book "How to Housebreaking your Dog I n 7 Days" it works well. Here a link with the schedules. It might help. It is working for us. Knock on wood

http://www.leecharleskelley.com/imag...sebreaking.pdf

[Starlette]

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[Bentleysmommie]

Thank you guys!! love the freezing cloth idea!! Im trying that tonight!! Thank you guys for taking the time to help me!

[joeyyy2010]

I have young children, so I taught the "no biting" thing from the beginning. I gave Joey plenty of chew toys (kong, softer plush toys, nylon) and of course he had Carley to chew on. Sweet girl, she didnt care and when he got too rough, she let him know.

[Starlette]

HOUSEBREAKING:
This is what I did with Julie and it was a matter of time before she was housebroken. If she had an accident, the majority of the time it was due to lack of attention. Seldom it was due to her fault.
When I initially brought her home, I took her out to “get busy” at the “potty spot” outside every hour on the hour saying “time to get busy”. The treats went as follows:

#1) Exact location: Three liver treats
#2) Close to the location: Two liver treats
#3) On the grass: one liver treat
#4) Now, mostly praise and random treats

NOTE: #1 - #3 Lots of praise mixed in.

As the others have stated, if she had an accident and I did not catch it, I would just go clean the mess without saying a word. If I did catch her in the act, I would quickly pick her up and say the word "outside". When we got outside, I would say, "let's get busy".

If I got confused on the time, I would then set the alarm on my iPhone to go off every hour on the hour, so I would remember to take her out, then change the span of time on the alarm as time went on. At the beginning of her housebreaking training, this is how I started:
45 minutes
1 hour
1.5 hours
2 hours
2.5 hours
3 hours
3.5 hours

I would also take her outside to get busy under these conditions:
Waking up
After eating
After napping
After playing
If she was crated for any length of time
Driving: Before and after we reached our destination
Before going to bed

Keep in mind that this is the first time in my life I've had a dog as early as eight weeks. I have read a lot of material in reference to housebreaking. What I've read, I’ve mostly used as a guideline to train Julie.
There will be times when both you and your baby have “accidents in training.” Keep in mind that there is a learning curve for both of you so give yourselves some space and grace. I think if there was one word that I would use towards housebreaking (as others have said) it would be the word "consistency".

I will also add that when I go to my parents’ house and we leave the house, I put Julie in the bathroom with a bowl of water and a potty pad.

As for the house boundaries, I keep her on the same level where I am located. She's a wee little gal and I don't feel comfortable leaving her alone.

BITING:
I'm still working with Julie with no bite.

What I have heard to decrease biting is after their first shot. You can take them to places like Petco for puppy playtime. They will learn more about biting with their peers in one day than they will with their owner in a week.

NIGHT POTTY TRAINING:
My mother-in-law and I are learning about puppies pretty much at the same time. Julie is four months older than her first puppy, Frosty (male). I don't know where she learned this from, but she offered me a suggestion on how to train Julie at bedtime. And this is how it went for me to wake Julie up to get busy the first couple of nights:
1st night: Every two hours
2nd night: Every three hours
3rd night: Every four hours

After the fourth night, we both were doing pretty good. Then several nights later, she was able to sleep the whole night with random wake-ups. Needless to say, I was very tired that first week.

WATER BOWL:
I was trained to do this with Sabu when I initially adopted him, and I have proceeded to do the same with Julie. Put up the water bowl in the evening at 8 PM.

CUES:
Julie has also showed us by her cues when she is ready to go outside to get busy. When she sits there and looks at us and gives us a few quick barks, it is her way of saying "I need to go outside to go potty”.

BELL RINGING:
My mother-in-law has been training Frosty to ring the bells on the doorknob when he is ready to get busy. I must add, she is having some success in her training. I was told about this when we initially adopted Sabu. I tried with Sabu, but it just did not seem to work out for the both of us. Once again, I am attempting to train Julie with the bells. We are at the beginning stages of this training.

LAST NOTE: I wish training a husband was this easy! I know…another thread.

HOUSEBREAKING: @Verbena - thank you for posting that PDF. Great information!
BITING: @MomtoJasper - Julie loves her bully stick. Their awesome!!! I also highly recommend those twirly beef tendons, especially for the smaller dogs.

[Sami_girl]

No advice, I am going crazy right along side you....SIGH