too much attention?

[tumblnstar]

my oscar is with me 24 hours a day... i cant even remember the last time that i went somewhere without him... i carry him to work with me everyday...he goes grocery shopping... and even to church in his puppy carrier(of course no one knows he's in there i just dont know if maybe im giving him too much attention? he does get a little upset when i walk out of the room and he can't come with me.. and he will sit with his daddy and be ok...but instantly come to me when im in the room... i was just wondering if im hurting him in any way by having him by my side all day every day...anybody have any help? thanks

[klncdw]

I don't think its bad...I wish I could Tiny everywhere with me!! Tiny is pretty much the same way about being in the same room with me too...And if I walk outside without him he starts bouncing on my trash can in order to turn it over and his dad could be right there beside him...They really latch themselves to 1 person....and I mean 1 person, and they are only out to please you.

[Lexi Rae]

lexi is so attatched to me too, but not as much as your baby is.. i think
that might be just alittle too much attachment...me personally dont think
its such a good thing cause someday you might not be able to be around
him for a period of time and hes gonna have a hard time with that...

[tumblnstar]

i guess i am a little concerned about what happens to him emotionally when i CANT take him with me... when i work out and things like that...its only for an hour but he is with his daddy. and he seems fine but as soon as he sees me, he is done with his dad. he says that they have fun and play... i just dont know if hes being hurt by me ALWAYS bringing him everywhere.

[irishawk]

For his well-being you might want to start building up his tolerance for how long he can stay alone or without you. You never know when an emergency is going to come up where he can't be with you. Imagine how traumatic it would be for him if he was suddenly without you. JMO.

[stedmansmommy]

LOL you sound just like me!! Stedman is guled to me 24/7. In fact, I posted about this a few months ago asking if anyone elses Yorkie was like mine I don't take him grocery shopping with me though, haha...the stores of course won't allow dogs and there is no way I could sneak him in because he'd be yapping his head off However, when we are at home he is MY SHADOW. If I get up to do ANYTHING - ANYTHING AT ALL, he is RIGHT behind me AT ALL TIMES lol. Even if I jump up to get the phone or something and then sit right back down, he follows me. It is NUTS! Everyone calls him a mamma's boy (well they're right) lol. We do take him in the car with us alot, but not if we are getting out anywhere (escept PetSmart, or other local "Pet Stores"), but other than that we can only take him with us if we aren't getting out anywhere (running to the bank, going to pick up food, etc.) and he absolutely LOVES going for a car ride. He gets soooo excited. So anyway, to make a long story short, heck no...you are not giving him too much attention, in my opnion anyway. If you want, and are able to take him everywhere with you, so be it!! I think it's great

[tumblnstar]

oscar LOVES to go anywhere with me... i walked right into walmart the other day with him in my arms (no carrier or anything) and they just laughed and smiled... bacially my whole town knows where i go ...oscar goes... he loves his little puppy carrier and it looks just like a purse so no one ever knows...i did leave him home completely alone for an hour and when i got home i thought he was gonna die to get out of his cage...he was jumping and scratching at the door.... he was fine when i let him out.. but i think it was even more traumatic for me to leave him!! i just cant!! he honestly jumps in and takes a shower with me every morning...he loves it!

[doortego]

How do you ever go out to eat or take a cruise? Little Bit loves everybody and I am grateful because there are just some places she can't go, such as hospitals, restaurants, grocery stores, tours, cruises. I love her to death but there are still other things I need (and want) to do with my family.

[tumblnstar]

Originally Posted by doortego

How do you ever go out to eat or take a cruise? Little Bit loves everybody and I am grateful because there are just some places she can't go, such as hospitals, restaurants, grocery stores, tours, cruises. I love her to death but there are still other things I need (and want) to do with my family.

oh oscar def goes with us out to eat... he loves his carrier and just sits right there beside me quietly..(occasionally i sneak him a treat he went on the monticello tour about a week ago and loved it lol...but other than that i cant imagine going or doing anything without him...to me it would be like not bringing my child!

[Marcellacml]

Everytime I take my pup with me she gets kicked out consider yourself lucky lol

[FirstYorkie]

Originally Posted by tumblnstar

..but other than that i cant imagine going or doing anything without him...to me it would be like not bringing my child!

I don't think that it's healthy for dogs (or children, for that matter!) to be too dependent on you. They have to learn to stand on their own. However, you sound like you're already pretty convinced otherwise.

Here's a recent thread on the topic:
http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53410

[alaskayorkie]

Originally Posted by FirstYorkie

I don't think that it's healthy for dogs (or children, for that matter!) to be too dependent on you. They have to learn to stand on their own. However, you sound like you're already pretty convinced otherwise.

Here's a recent thread on the topic:
http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53410

That's a great link, FirstYorkie. I had missed that!

[tumblnstar]

i absolutely agree with everyone who says that i need to let go a little! i know that its not good for oscar to be with me 24-7...but at the same time he's such a baby (not even 3 mo old yet) that i just dont feel comfortable leaving him by himself!.. i did branch out and let his daddy babysit him yesterday and he was perfectly ok with it! so im very happy... hopefully i can continue to allow him to find out things on his own and not shelter him too much. thanks for everyone's advice.... but i do think that i will still take him everywhere with me...including restuarants(we had mexican last night..they love him in there lol) and grocery shopping

[RMKC]

My two are clued to my butt, Rosi is pretty quiet, she just sulks and my Mom has to hold her, Poli is very verbal and whines as soon as i walk out the door...worries me too as you never know if you have to go somewhere..

[JiggityJig]

First of all, let me say that I UNDERSTAND why you want to take your puppy with you everywhere! There are still times that I hate leaving mine at home, and I'm soooo happy about seeing them again when I get back.

However, no offense (you did ask! ) I do think what you're doing is a little much, and not fair to your dog.

I got Mazie when she was nine months old, and she had been in a situation where she'd been "alone" most of her life. Then she got to my house, and it was the other extreme. At that point in my life, I was home most of the time, and many of the places I went, I was able to take her.

She became really abnormally, I believe, obsessed with me. I know we all love our little yorkies following us everywhere around the house like our little shadows, but there was a difference between her and Kiki. Mazie practically couldn't take her eyes off me, didn't bond as well with others, and became anxious if she thought I was leaving the room.

My life has been busier lately, and the dogs are often left alone for a few (or several) hours....and I really actually think it's been good for her. She's been able to learn that, yes, sometimes I "disappear", but that doesn't mean I'll never come back. I think she's developing a much healthier sense of security.

Think of it this way....what if you knew someone with a CHILD, who refused to ever go ANYWHERE without that child....or to let the child go anywhere without them? Obviously we all spend a lot of time with our young children, but as they grow out of babyhood, they slowly become more and more independent on us. If they didn't....what would happen if suddenly they HAD to be separated from us?! They wouldn't be able to handle it.

And I think that's even a worse scenario for a dog, because you aren't able to EXPLAIN to them, "Oh, I need to go take care of this sick person", or, "A friend of mine is getting married", or whatever. And God forbid anything should happen to YOU, and you weren't able to be home for days! The dog may even stop eating, or have long-lasting trust issues. You know?

Again, I'm not attacking you. I absolutely know where you're coming from! But I think it is important for us to occasionally reflect on whether our "spoiling" of our animals is really for their own good, or whether is it selfishly fulfilling our OWN needs.

PS....oh, also....I think you'll find that as he gets older, and isn't a "baby" anymore, people will be less inclined to break store and restaurant rules and let him in.