Excitement - YorkieTalk.com Forums

ale379 · 02-21-2007, 09:34 AM

Here is my dilema.

Boomer is a healthy puppy soon to be 5 months old. He is doing great on potty training but he has his accidents sometimes. Well this is not the issue.

The issue is his excitement. I'm pretty sure some of you are dealing with this or have dealt in the past. This happens all the time and I mean all the time He is so excited when he sees other people or other dogs, no matter how big the dogs are, he thinks he is super yorkie and that nothing would happen when he goes after these big dogs. Everytime I take him outside for a walk he would pull me, whine and do all kinds of stuff just to go after people or dogs, people pet him and everything and tell me how cute he is, but this excitement is driving me crazy. he is the same when I get home. His excitement is outrageous. He is not neutered yet but he will when he reaches the appropriate age. What can I do to stop this excitement? Has anybody dealt with this before? Any suggestions will be appreciate it.

Thanks,

Alex

Betty'sMom · 02-21-2007, 10:02 AM

My yorkie Betty is also very excitable. She is about 4 1/2 months old. She's excited when she sees visitors, our other dog (Border Collie), our outdoor cat, etc. Also, when I play with her, she gets super excited and runs around in circles to work off her energy (which is funny). The down side to playing with her is that she BITES in her excitement!! And it hurts. I try all different ways to get her to calm down or to bite more gently...today I was desperate and I even bit her ear a tiny bit (like our cat does)

I think they understand that better than yelling "NO". It was funny because when I did that, she backed up about 2 feet and stared at me. It was like she understood. Who knows?

lovelilly · 02-21-2007, 10:27 AM

I think it eases up a little with time. My pups were always super excited around people... my female so much so she would pee a few drops. But, they are now almost a year and half and they have calmed way down. Obedience training helped with the pulling of the leash and whining. Good luck!

ale379 · 02-21-2007, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Betty'sMom

My yorkie Betty is also very excitable. She is about 4 1/2 months old. She's excited when she sees visitors, our other dog (Border Collie), our outdoor cat, etc. Also, when I play with her, she gets super excited and runs around in circles to work off her energy (which is funny). The down side to playing with her is that she BITES in her excitement!! And it hurts. I try all different ways to get her to calm down or to bite more gently...today I was desperate and I even bit her ear a tiny bit (like our cat does)

I think they understand that better than yelling "NO". It was funny because when I did that, she backed up about 2 feet and stared at me. It was like she understood. Who knows?

Boomer also bites but he stops the biting after I tell him "NO Biting" and get my fist close to his mouth. Hopefully the excitement will go away with time. Probably his behavior is changing because he's been humping a big stuffed animal (Scooby). It will be a matter of time and training, something that I'll be willing to do for Boomer.

Thanks for the responses

codysmom · 02-22-2007, 11:15 AM

i am going through the same exact thing right now. Cody is 4 1/2 months.
i just enrolled him in puppy kindergarden so hopefully that will help...along with time.

FirstYorkie · 02-23-2007, 12:35 AM

Alex,

A basic rule of training for you: behavior that is reinforced increases in frequency.

How does this apply to your situation? In 2 ways. One, you need to be careful NOT to reinforce behavior that you don't want. Two, you need to generously reward behavior that you do want.

As for the first - You are inadvertently rewarding Boomer's excited behavior when approaching other people and dogs by coninuing to approach them despite his misbehavior. He acts spastic, you grumble, but you take him to his reward (meeting the other person or dog is highly rewarding for him). When he acts in a way that is unacceptable to you, STOP. If he calms down a smidgeon, slowly carry on. Wild again? Stop. You might even have to turn around and walk the other way until he calms down. When he does, slowly try approaching the object of excitement. He will eventually learn that his poor behavior gets him the opposite of what he wants. Does that make sense?

The same is true when you get home. Don't inadvertently reinforce his excitement by paying attention to him when he acts that way. Spastic dog = invisible dog. The second he calms down - voila! - he is no longer invisible. Great him at that point. As long as he is calm, calmly praise him. Spastic again? Invisible again until he calms down.

To be continued....

FirstYorkie · 02-23-2007, 12:41 AM

Part II

More important than focusing on behavior that you don't like is deciding what behavior you do want. Be clear about what you want from your dog and then begin rewarding that behavior.

When Joey was that age, I decided what I liked to see was him laying down calmly whether he was just laying there or whether he was laying there chewing on a bone. I carried small pieces of treats in my pockets at all times. When I caught him doing the above, I walked over, dropped a treat, and very quietly said "good boy". It didn't take long at all for him to start spending a whole lot more time in that position.

I hope all of this helps!

BLowry · 02-23-2007, 05:21 AM

This is normal behavior for a puppy...They do calm down some as adult although, my adult still gets very excited when she sees people..She calms down after a while.

pip'smom · 02-24-2007, 08:59 AM

My girl was pretty much that way when I first took out in public. Trying to hold her when other people approached was like trying to hold a fish out of water. I've started teaching her the word 'settle' which mean she needs to calm down. When she starts to get excited, I tell her 'settle' and if it doesn't work, I get her attention a bit more strongly, and repeat the command. She's not a 100% yet, but I'm seeing definite improvement.

suzysmitt · 02-24-2007, 09:09 AM

It sounds like normal behavior to me. When Skippy sees someone he runs around in circles and he's 3 yrs. old.

ale379 · 02-26-2007, 10:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FirstYorkie

Alex,

A basic rule of training for you: behavior that is reinforced increases in frequency.

How does this apply to your situation? In 2 ways. One, you need to be careful NOT to reinforce behavior that you don't want. Two, you need to generously reward behavior that you do want.

As for the first - You are inadvertently rewarding Boomer's excited behavior when approaching other people and dogs by coninuing to approach them despite his misbehavior. He acts spastic, you grumble, but you take him to his reward (meeting the other person or dog is highly rewarding for him). When he acts in a way that is unacceptable to you, STOP. If he calms down a smidgeon, slowly carry on. Wild again? Stop. You might even have to turn around and walk the other way until he calms down. When he does, slowly try approaching the object of excitement. He will eventually learn that his poor behavior gets him the opposite of what he wants. Does that make sense?

The same is true when you get home. Don't inadvertently reinforce his excitement by paying attention to him when he acts that way. Spastic dog = invisible dog. The second he calms down - voila! - he is no longer invisible. Great him at that point. As long as he is calm, calmly praise him. Spastic again? Invisible again until he calms down.

To be continued....

Thanks for the advice. I'm doing exactly what you wrote and it's working little by little, it's a work in progress though, but If I continue with this, I know he will be a better dog. I know it's going to take time also, so I'm being very patient with him. Once I get settle in my new house, I will continue with training.

Thanks for the advice.

02-21-2007, 09:34 AM	#1
ale379 Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: North Carolina Posts: 34	Excitement Here is my dilema. Boomer is a healthy puppy soon to be 5 months old. He is doing great on potty training but he has his accidents sometimes. Well this is not the issue. The issue is his excitement. I'm pretty sure some of you are dealing with this or have dealt in the past. This happens all the time and I mean all the time He is so excited when he sees other people or other dogs, no matter how big the dogs are, he thinks he is super yorkie and that nothing would happen when he goes after these big dogs. Everytime I take him outside for a walk he would pull me, whine and do all kinds of stuff just to go after people or dogs, people pet him and everything and tell me how cute he is, but this excitement is driving me crazy. he is the same when I get home. His excitement is outrageous. He is not neutered yet but he will when he reaches the appropriate age. What can I do to stop this excitement? Has anybody dealt with this before? Any suggestions will be appreciate it. Thanks, Alex

02-21-2007, 10:27 AM	#3
lovelilly Donating YT Addict Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Henderson CO Posts: 636	I think it eases up a little with time. My pups were always super excited around people... my female so much so she would pee a few drops. But, they are now almost a year and half and they have calmed way down. Obedience training helped with the pulling of the leash and whining. Good luck! __________________ We our yorkie family Tucker, Lilly & Scout! More info on me and my family http://www.myspace.com/99824468

02-23-2007, 12:35 AM	#6
FirstYorkie YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: American in London Posts: 1,739	Alex, A basic rule of training for you: behavior that is reinforced increases in frequency. How does this apply to your situation? In 2 ways. One, you need to be careful NOT to reinforce behavior that you don't want. Two, you need to generously reward behavior that you do want. As for the first - You are inadvertently rewarding Boomer's excited behavior when approaching other people and dogs by coninuing to approach them despite his misbehavior. He acts spastic, you grumble, but you take him to his reward (meeting the other person or dog is highly rewarding for him). When he acts in a way that is unacceptable to you, STOP. If he calms down a smidgeon, slowly carry on. Wild again? Stop. You might even have to turn around and walk the other way until he calms down. When he does, slowly try approaching the object of excitement. He will eventually learn that his poor behavior gets him the opposite of what he wants. Does that make sense? The same is true when you get home. Don't inadvertently reinforce his excitement by paying attention to him when he acts that way. Spastic dog = invisible dog. The second he calms down - voila! - he is no longer invisible. Great him at that point. As long as he is calm, calmly praise him. Spastic again? Invisible again until he calms down. To be continued.... __________________ FirstYorkie We Love Clicker-Training!

02-23-2007, 12:41 AM	#7
FirstYorkie YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: American in London Posts: 1,739	Part II More important than focusing on behavior that you don't like is deciding what behavior you do want. Be clear about what you want from your dog and then begin rewarding that behavior. When Joey was that age, I decided what I liked to see was him laying down calmly whether he was just laying there or whether he was laying there chewing on a bone. I carried small pieces of treats in my pockets at all times. When I caught him doing the above, I walked over, dropped a treat, and very quietly said "good boy". It didn't take long at all for him to start spending a whole lot more time in that position. I hope all of this helps! __________________ FirstYorkie We Love Clicker-Training!

02-23-2007, 05:21 AM	#8
BLowry Loved by Sadie & Lillie Donating Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 2,786	This is normal behavior for a puppy...They do calm down some as adult although, my adult still gets very excited when she sees people..She calms down after a while. __________________ Brenda

02-21-2007, 10:02 AM	#2
Betty'sMom Donating YT Addict Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Georgia Posts: 6,023	My yorkie Betty is also very excitable. She is about 4 1/2 months old. She's excited when she sees visitors, our other dog (Border Collie), our outdoor cat, etc. Also, when I play with her, she gets super excited and runs around in circles to work off her energy (which is funny). The down side to playing with her is that she BITES in her excitement!! And it hurts. I try all different ways to get her to calm down or to bite more gently...today I was desperate and I even bit her ear a tiny bit (like our cat does) I think they understand that better than yelling "NO". It was funny because when I did that, she backed up about 2 feet and stared at me. It was like she understood. Who knows?

02-22-2007, 11:15 AM	#5
codysmom Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Westchester Posts: 34	i am going through the same exact thing right now. Cody is 4 1/2 months. i just enrolled him in puppy kindergarden so hopefully that will help...along with time.

02-24-2007, 08:59 AM	#9
pip'smom Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 34	My girl was pretty much that way when I first took out in public. Trying to hold her when other people approached was like trying to hold a fish out of water. I've started teaching her the word 'settle' which mean she needs to calm down. When she starts to get excited, I tell her 'settle' and if it doesn't work, I get her attention a bit more strongly, and repeat the command. She's not a 100% yet, but I'm seeing definite improvement.

02-24-2007, 09:09 AM	#10
suzysmitt Currently Suspended! Join Date: May 2005 Location: Florida Posts: 2,150	It sounds like normal behavior to me. When Skippy sees someone he runs around in circles and he's 3 yrs. old.