YorkieTalk.com Forums - Yorkshire Terrier Community - View Single Post - Potty training a 6 month old AND 18 month old!

tiffygirl2003 · 04-04-2014, 04:29 PM

Lynette,
It sounds as though you gave the puppy too much freedom before he earned your trust. I would recommend going back to crate training and confining him. The kitchen is still a big area for a small dog. Roaming free in the kitchen area should be more of a reward for the puppy, something that he earns over time.

When my new puppies come to my pack, they are immediately crated as the beginning of training. They are only allowed out with supervision. You may need to revert back to very basic housebreaking. It sounds as though you are away from home during the day so you might consider hiring someone to allow the puppy out to potty around mid-day or you can put him in doggy daycare. At 6 months the puppy should be able to hold its pee-pee for several hours so a mid-day break should be enough. If he's immediately directed outside when he's released from the crate then you won't need wee-wee pads. Some puppies just like the satisfaction of tearing them into little pieces when they're bored. I wouldn't give him a pad if his reaction is to destroy it.

I have 3 Yorkies and a Terrier mix and they are all potty trained. My youngest Yorkie is 11 months old and she no longer uses pads. When she stopped using them I no longer laid them on the floor and now she does everything outside. When I do leave home for an extended amount of time, I leave a pad out but none of the dogs use it. My dogs have just outgrown using the pad.

Try starting over with the housebreaking by using a crate. I don't get the newspaper thing that the trainer recommended. If the floor smells like pee then the newspaper won't stop the puppy from relieving himself. The goal is to get him not to pee on the floor, not even on newspaper. Once the smell of urine passes through the newspaper, it's on the floor so what have you accomplished? I only use newspaper if my dogs are sick or have diarrhea. The goal should be to get the dog trained to hold it until he's in the proper place to relieve himself. He's not yet mature but he's old enough to know not to pee on the floor. Some people believe Yorkies are stubborn when it comes to housebreaking but I think that happens more because we tend to baby our Yorkies because of their size. Yorkies can be trained just like any other dog.

Don't give up on him. He's going to surprise you one day when he goes to the door and asks to be allowed out to potty. He may need a little more time. I also use the treat rewards for potty training. But I would definitely put him in the crate to facilitate his training.

04-04-2014, 04:29 PM	#3
tiffygirl2003 Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Highland, Ca. USA Posts: 96	So sorry! Lynette, It sounds as though you gave the puppy too much freedom before he earned your trust. I would recommend going back to crate training and confining him. The kitchen is still a big area for a small dog. Roaming free in the kitchen area should be more of a reward for the puppy, something that he earns over time. When my new puppies come to my pack, they are immediately crated as the beginning of training. They are only allowed out with supervision. You may need to revert back to very basic housebreaking. It sounds as though you are away from home during the day so you might consider hiring someone to allow the puppy out to potty around mid-day or you can put him in doggy daycare. At 6 months the puppy should be able to hold its pee-pee for several hours so a mid-day break should be enough. If he's immediately directed outside when he's released from the crate then you won't need wee-wee pads. Some puppies just like the satisfaction of tearing them into little pieces when they're bored. I wouldn't give him a pad if his reaction is to destroy it. I have 3 Yorkies and a Terrier mix and they are all potty trained. My youngest Yorkie is 11 months old and she no longer uses pads. When she stopped using them I no longer laid them on the floor and now she does everything outside. When I do leave home for an extended amount of time, I leave a pad out but none of the dogs use it. My dogs have just outgrown using the pad. Try starting over with the housebreaking by using a crate. I don't get the newspaper thing that the trainer recommended. If the floor smells like pee then the newspaper won't stop the puppy from relieving himself. The goal is to get him not to pee on the floor, not even on newspaper. Once the smell of urine passes through the newspaper, it's on the floor so what have you accomplished? I only use newspaper if my dogs are sick or have diarrhea. The goal should be to get the dog trained to hold it until he's in the proper place to relieve himself. He's not yet mature but he's old enough to know not to pee on the floor. Some people believe Yorkies are stubborn when it comes to housebreaking but I think that happens more because we tend to baby our Yorkies because of their size. Yorkies can be trained just like any other dog. Don't give up on him. He's going to surprise you one day when he goes to the door and asks to be allowed out to potty. He may need a little more time. I also use the treat rewards for potty training. But I would definitely put him in the crate to facilitate his training.