 When do they calm down?
My 10-year-old granddaughter's Yorkie, Sammy, is almost 9 months old now and is still wild and out of control. I expect a puppy to be wild and excitable, but want a puppy to calm down a little as it gets older and learn some manners. Sammy still bites fingers and toes and jumps up and nips fingers when you're walking around her. She walks right in front of you backwards and is a tripping hazard and gets stepped on a lot. She won't walk on a leash and is almost impossible to groom. She has never been to a professional groomer. My son bathes her because she is very hard to handle. The only way you can brush/comb her is to let her chew on your thumb! Sammy is very sweet and has a great disposition. She loves to play and she goes in her crate when told to. She sleeps with my granddaughter. She isn't quite potty pad trained.
Is this normal Yorkie behavior or is it because they haven't been strict enough with her training? I think she needs firmer handling and some gentle discipline. I mentioned to them that they should start taking her to the groomer as soon as she had all of her puppy shots to get her used to it. My son and daughter-in-law both work and my granddaughter is in school, of course, so they have limited time to spend with Sammy. But I have raised puppies while working and I never had one that was so out of control at that age. I've never had a Yorkie, so maybe I'm expecting too much.
This is their first experience with a dog. My son grew up with dogs, but he wasn't responsible for their raising and training. My daughter-in-law never had a pet in her life until she married my son and they got a kitten when my granddaughter was little.
I also mentioned that they should have Sammy spayed at about 6 or 7 months of age. She weighs 6-7 pounds. I think my daughter-in-law (secretely) would like for Sammy to have puppies. She has never raised puppies and doesn't have any idea how to go about it or how to raise them and I think it's a very bad idea. They have friends who have a Yorkie that has puppies every year or so.
I hesitate to say much about Sammy and raising/training her or grooming or puppies, but do have some thoughts about it!
This is a picture of my granddaughter, Brianna, and sweet Sammy at my house. |