 House training Yorkies
If you will read in books from library and go to places on the Web about house training a small dog....they cannot even start to have any control over their eliminations until they are around 4 months old. Just think of them as a baby in diapers....can they hold it or know when or where to potty? No, they go when they have to where ever they are, but they have a diaper on. A puppy isn't any different. If yours at only 10 weeks is peeing outside most of the time....that is a miracle!!! Our little Yorkie, Ellie, will be 4 in May. She was not mostly housebroken until she was 9 months old. Our Vet in SC at the time told me to start being very aggressive in training her starting around 4 months and that she most likely would not totally get it until she was around 9 months. He also said, the smaller the dog, the longer it usually takes, as they have such small bladders. Also Yorkies are known for being stubborn...very smart, but stubborn. Ellie weighs only 3 1/2 lbs. full grown. So we confine her in our laundry room with her potty pad, bed, toys, food and water...with a baby gate....when we are gone. That way if she can't hold it she will go on the pad. Confining them in small areas with a potty pad is one of the best ways to train them. When you can't watch him...confine him in a small area. Dogs do not like to mess up their dens.
And, yes, most good breeders do not allow their Yorkie puppies to leave their Mothers until around 10 to 12 weeks. Some do let let them leave at 8 weeks, but the experts say that this is too young for the small breed dogs. I tend to agree. We got Ellie at 11 weeks old.
Hope this helps. I have house trained three dogs, so any questions, I will try to help.
Judith |