Quote:
Originally Posted by RockysMommy08  This was very helpful!
Thank you so much! I am going to share this with my husband.
The only thing is...what do I do with Rocky while we're sleeping? |
Loki slept in a crate in our room until we were confident enough he would wake us up when he needed to go outside in the middle of the night. When in the crate he would wake up around 2-3am and need to go out to pee and he would cry and paw at the door to the crate and I would go take him outside and then typically he would then sleep with us the rest of the night. At some point (around 6 months old) he learned to either paw at me or sit next to me and whine (he's 4 and he still sits next to me and stares at me until I open my eyes, like a kid on Christmas morning). We would close the bedroom door and we put a bell by it so he would ring the bell when he wanted to go downstairs and go out. Typically I would wake up when he did, or at least when he jumped off the bed.
We got Sammy when she was 10 months old. She slept with us from day 1 because even though she wasn't housetrained, she was old enough at that point so sleep through the night. I still close the door and they find ways to wake me up (usually around 7:30 if we don't get up earlier)
They are very creative! Standing on me, laying on my pillow, barking... You'll know when Rocky can communicate with you well enough to be able to do that. Your experience might be different with pads since he really doesn't need your help with those.
Oh I forgot to mention - when you take him out of the crate CARRY him ( don't let him walk) to the crate or he will pee on the way there
Plus, first thing in the morning is your BEST shot for a reward because you totally know he has to go. So go straight to to pad before breakfast.
I realize you guys are working all day and have limited options, but I just want you to be aware that with the pads it does teach them that it's OK to go in the house. They begin to mistake rugs, bath mats, etc. as pads. But on the other hand Yorkies really can't hold it for 8 hours during the day. My guys are never left for more than 4-5 hours without a potty break and when we are home during the day they ask to go out anywhere from every 45 minutes to 2 hours. So, you might want to consider putting the pads only in one spot away from other rooms (like the laundry room) so he doesn't think it's OK to pee in the living room. Does that make sense?