First I'd like to introduce myself and my new puppy. I'm Miranda and his name is Chewie, he just turned 3 mo on the 28th. We have had him since 11 Jan 2014. I'm not only new to having a Yorkie, I am new to the whole puppy experience. I've never had an inside dog, when I was a kid all our dogs were "farm dogs" and lived outside. I never really had a connection with them. They were just kind of there. I was taught that dogs don't belong in the home. So this is all foreign to me.
I am a little frustrated because I am having a hard time potty training but I have found some helpful discussions about training on this site. I'm a little concerned because Chewie doesn't really bark except when he is playing with our cat. I guess this is a good thing but I never know what he wants. He doesn't whine either which is good at night when we're sleeping but if he needs to go potty he will not let us know. It seems like a lot of people say that their dogs let them know when they need to go outside by barking or whining. Chewie does not. Is this something that requires training? We get up a cpl times a night to take him out because the first night we had him we didn't and he soiled his crate bedding. That was completely our fault and we haven't made the same mistake again.
Also. All his potty slips have usually been in front of me and the cat. Is this considered marking? Most of the time he runs to the outside/patio to his pad and does his business but occasionally he'll have an accident in the house. Like I said, it tends to be in front of the cat. I'm worried about this behavior. Can this be resolved by having him fixed? We will eventually have him fixed. Is it indeed marking or just an honest accident?
I was told by a Petco employee that if you catch them in the act tell them NO, and put him in a time out in the bathroom or tub. I was a little confused by this because all the books say take them directly to the spot where they are supposed to go potty. By putting him in the bathroom, isn't that saying "go potty here?" Then, if I take him to the pad first, then punish him in the bathroom isn't that pointless because at the point he has probably already forgotten why he's being punished? At the point wouldn't he associate the pad with banishment to the bathroom? I'm so confused lol. I do want to point out that we ALWAYS praise him and give him treats for doing the right thing.
This is all I have for now. I have so many questions but I will try and do some more research on the site to see if I can find the answers. This is a great site, I am so glad I found it. Thanks!
