[Tiskers]

Brody will be 1 year old on March 26. We have had him since Mid August. He is STILL not reliably potty trained, and we are about at the end of our rope.

He has been dual trained -- piddle pads AND outside. He is VERY good about going outside; if we take him out, he will usually go. But we live in the NE and the winter has been HELLACIOUS and he doesn't like being out in the cold or the snow so most of his "business" has needed to be done inside, on piddle pads.

We had been keeping him in his ex-pen when no one was home, and he would reliably pee on the piddle pad in there. About a month ago, we started leaving him out for short durations, and have gradually tried to increase the time, but he still won't consistently use the pee pads. (He WILL use them, though... just not every time. He's about as likely to pee or poo on the piddle pad as he is on the floor. ???!)

We made the hard decision today (after cleaning up THREE pees on the floor) to set the ex-pen back up and sequester him when we aren't at home OR can't be watching him like a hawk.

I have NINE piddle pads around my house, we placed them in what seemed to be his favorite places. I guess I could add more, but REALLY??! I was hoping by now to have a FEWER number of pads out by now -- not more!

His bladder seems fine, he can hold it all night. He does not seem sick in any way. He's cheerful and playful and eating and drinking well. I don't think he needs to see the vet.

I was warned that Yorkies can be hard to train, but I guess I wasn't expecting THIS much trouble! My living room carpet and dining room rug are ruined and our patience is getting thin. Any help or advice GREATLY appreciated. Thank you.

Lynn