[capt_noonie]

I agree, that at 4 1/2 months you still have a lot of training to do. Like Brit, we trained Uni ourselves, BUT also like Brit, we had a lot of time on our hands, were able to bring her to work with us everyday, so people that work regular jobs that can't bring their pups with them really are at a disadvantage as far as training is concerned. Uni used to pull the drywall off too. In our brand new house. That was not fun. But she was a teething puppy! It is to be expected. She also chewed on the bullnose corners of the walls and pulled up the carpets in some spots. However, pups need to do the "bad" things so you can tell them they are bad, so in the future they know they shouldn't do them. Otherwise they don't know it's bad and they shouldn't be doing it.

When did you get the puppy btw?

And also he is way too small to have free reign of the entire house. The younger the dog, the less space they are allowed. If they do well, they get more space. If they start to relapse, they get space taken away. Eventually Uni was peeing in the downstairs pad, then racing upstairs to poop on the upstairs pad. In less than a year old she had free reign of the entire house. However, do not just lock them up in their space and ignore them while you are home. Puppies need constant attention. Have him on his harness tied to your waist so he is always near you. Watch for signs they need to potty, sniffing, circling, etc. I've found that most stop peeing if you pick them up. Some not so much and picking them up just makes a bigger mess. You need to find out which catagory your pup fits in.

don't give treats. Do training sessions during mealtimes. Puppies tummies are so small, if you feed them regular meals then try to do trick training, they won't be interested due to a full tummy. Yorkie tummies are the size of a golf ball, keep that in mind. Uni didn't get a "treat" until she was about 2 yrs old. Every single meal was trick training time. At 5 mos, she had plenty of tricks under her belt already.

So my very long winded post says, no don't get a trainer. Most trainers accessible to regular people like us are no good anyway. You'll learn more for free on youtube.