crate training not working out...

[snickers mom]

wow i post alot of questions...i'm sorry everyone! i dont know anyone else w/a yorkie to ask
i have been trying to crate train and only put snickers in her crate at night last minute before i go to bed and we have children so i am always up earlier - in other words - she isn't in there forever
i know she is tiny and must have a small bladder etc but i see other people are able to crate train and the general consensis is the wont go where they sleep - but she does
i made the crate smaller as suggested but this morning for the 3rd time she is covered in her own poop... i can't stand to think of her having to sleep in that it makes me want to NOT crate train her because i dont want her to have to sleep in it - it seems cruel
what should i do?

[Hannah]

What time do you feed her? When does she get put in for the night and what time do you walk her in the AM?

[Thorsmomma]

I am no expert, but I was under the impression that their crates (when crating them to help with potty training) should be only big enough for them to turn around in. That way they don't have room to pee/poo in one spot and lay in another. So maybe her area is too big still? Another thing is that maybe you should cut off her food/water a few hours before you decide to put her to bed. Make sure she has a poo before bed. (I'm not a big fan of taking their water away but I know that doing that has helped some people.) And the last thing that I have to say about that is give it time. She may stop pooping in her crate on her own. Good luck with her!

[snickers mom]

right now her eating isnt fantastic and not on schedule so i am thrilled when she eats at all... i am going to be changing her food though i think she may have an allergy to what im feeding her so that may help with her eating to get her on schedule
she is still a puppy how do you get them to go when you want them too? i know that sounds silly but really dont know how to get her to go
she is an indoor puppy as she is still really small and its been 7degrees here i am training her as an indoor dog
im not sure if the crate goes any smaller altho i can try it is pretty small now i think but possibly still too much - i keep feeling guilty like i dont give her enough space
maybe i should pick up the food and water an hour before bed you think? she goes down usually around 10pm-11pm...

[chachi]

If you are training her to be an indoor dog you want a crate or xpen big enough to put a peepad and her bed in it. The only time you use a small crate like that is when you are training them to go outside and you want them to hold it untill you let them out.

[snickers mom]

Originally Posted by chachi

If you are training her to be an indoor dog you want a crate or xpen big enough to put a peepad and her bed in it. The only time you use a small crate like that is when you are training them to go outside and you want them to hold it untill you let them out.

thats why i had bought the crate i got but then i kept getting told i was supposed to make it a tiny space!! there is room in her crate (once i take the divider out) for both a pee pad and her bed....
so if that is ok to do for nighttime then i would prefer that i feel SO bad right now and guilty putting her in at night and getting up to find she had to sit in it all night...

[Yorkie3]

All three of my Yorkies are inside dogs, they potty on pee pads and are crate trained. For each of my little ones, I start by putting them in the crate for about 15 minutes 3 times a day. As soon as I take them out I walk them to the pee pads and say "go potty". Yes, this is time consuming, but I wait until they go. Then I give a very small treat and praise like there's no tomorrow. I continue evey 45 minutes to 1 hour go get them to the pee pad. Even if they just go a drop, another very small treat and praise. Gradually work the 15 minutes to 20, then 30 minutes continue to take them to the pads right from the crate and lower the crate time to 2 times a day and then one and so on. Mine have all done great within a week to a week and half. I feel inside dogs need to be crate trained also, for your piece of mind and their safety when you are away. Hope this help you.

[SnowWa]

Training can be hard no matter how you go about doing it.

I have a little boy - and he has full run of the house. But when he's running around the house, he wears a belly band -so, he can't pee and do any damage.

When I go to work - my pup is in the kitchen with a pee pad (and everthing else he needs) and uses it most of the time.

When I'm home and he's running around the house, I check his belly band often - and remove it and take him to his pee pad at least every hour. If he hasn't gone for a long time - I shut him in a small room with his pee pad --which he'll use if he has to go to the bathroom.

Because my pup wears a belly band a lot - I can tell every time he pees (on or off the pad) - and I have learned a couple things doing this. I have learned that sometimes he will pee three or four times in an hour and other times he will go 4 to 5 hours without peeing. He is almost 6 months and as he has gotten older, he is definitely going longer periods of time without peeing.

My belly bands are just little washcloths that I wrap around him and pin. I have dozens of these and they go right into my wash.

As soon as it gets warmer - we're going to spend more time outside. I want my pup to use the pee pad inside and go outside also.

PS: Even with his belly band on - I'll catch him starting to pee on the carpet once in a while. I jump up and tell him no no - pull his belly band off and run and take him to his pee pad.. Often I get him in time - and he uses his pee pad after all.

Isn't training fun fun fun!!!!

Also - don't worry about a diaper rash - my pup is never left wet.. he is constantly checked.

Carol Jean

[chachi]

Originally Posted by snickers mom

thats why i had bought the crate i got but then i kept getting told i was supposed to make it a tiny space!! there is room in her crate (once i take the divider out) for both a pee pad and her bed....
so if that is ok to do for nighttime then i would prefer that i feel SO bad right now and guilty putting her in at night and getting up to find she had to sit in it all night...

I think whoever told you to get a smaller space misunderstood and thought you were outdoor training. When I pee pad trained I had the peepad and bed in the xpen. I also had peepad outside the xpen. for when they were out of their Xpen.

[Yorkie3]

I'm so sorry I forgot to mention that when Emilee came into season, Joey started having accidents frequently, and understandably, so I made his belly bands out of light cotton material with Disney characters on them and they fasten with velcro. I use panti-liners cut in half on the bands that way I'm not washing the bands all the time. He did real good on pee pads until Emilee's heat, but the belly bands are great!!

[josie girl]

I have an xpen that you can change the size. I put that one in our bedroom and it is just big enough for her bed and a pee pad. So when she goes to sleep, she will sleep in her bed, but she will get out of bed to use the pee pad,(it covers the rest of the floor inside xpen) That way, you don't have to wake up in the middle of the night and your puppy doesn't have to sleep in her potty! Josie can usually hold in through the night now, she is 16 months, but occasionally she still uses the pee pad in the middle of the night. Good Luck!

[Patti]

This is what worked for me. When I got Cali at 9 weeks old she was use to being in a playpen with her wee wee pads. I bought a dog playpen with an open top and the one side zips open. I put her in there with her bed and blanket at the far end and her wee wee pad in the front. She never went on her bed always went to the wee wee pad and when she was out, which was most of the time since I am not wroking now, I would watch for signs she had to go and put her on the pad. She caught on so quick. Now she sleep with me but will go in her playpen sometimes if she wants to take a nap and whenever she has to pee. I use teh Jump Start pads from Petsmart and they worked great. More expensive but worth it. This is the first dog I have crate trained and it has worked well.