What happened to my sweet little Nibblet? She's Princess Sassypants now! - YorkieTalk.com Forums

PrincessSassy · 12-13-2011, 07:27 AM

OMG! She's 5 months old and when I got her, I thought she was going to be this sweet, shy little thing that would sit on my lap or curl up on my desk while I work.

But nooooooooooo!

1. She won't wear her coat. I've tried several times to get her to wear her coat, and she won't;

2. She won't wear her diaper. I'm trying to potty train her, and I read that you're supposed to put Yorkies in diapers so that when they start to go, you yell, "NO!" take them to the wee-wee pad or out side, and they go. Thirty minutes to get her into the diaper, she takes it off, wees on the floor, then makes me chase her for twenty minutes;

3. She's destroyed TWO of the portable, collapsible playpens by chewing through the side flap zipper. I tried the anti chew spray (not the bitter apple but the one with pheromones to calm them down in addition to stuff that's suppose to be distasteful) - she developed a taste for it, and now probably would eat it with caviar and champagne;

4. When I shake the bottle with coins in it to get her to stop bad behavior, she barks at it. It used to work before.

Where's my sweet little girl? She can be sweet! I've seen her do it! But I don't like her "sassin'" me.

She's all of two pounds, but acts like she's 40 and the size of a Burmese Mountain Dog. I want the sweet little girl who cuddled in my arms when I first saw her. She is a riot and I love her, but I don't like this Princess Sassypants routine

Roccosmommy · 12-13-2011, 10:55 AM

Too funny! Welcome to the world of Yorkies that rule your life!! I think Princess "sassypants" is displaying typical behavior for a yorkie pup. I'm certainly no expert, but here's my opinion, based on your numbered questions:

1. Forget the coat for now - she will be fine until it's freezing or snowing.

2. I personally have not ever heard of potty training with a diaper. Take the diaper off, and instead of waiting for her to pee in the house then correcting, be vigilant and take her out every 1/2 - 1 hour, and also 15 minutes after she eats or drinks. When she potties outside praise her to no end. When she has an accident in the house you can tell her "NO", only IF you catch her in the act. Then pick her up and move her outside. You don't catch her in the act, you can't scold her - consider it a missed opportunity. Whatever you do, only use positive reinforcement or potty training will be a nightmare.

3. No more collapsible playpens. Perhaps a wire x-pen?

4. LOL! She now knows the bottle does nothing to her for bad behavior, so she just yells at it to shut it up.

Depending on the 'bad' behavior, punish her according to the crime. Eg., nipping is a firm "NO" then turn your back to her until she stops.

Your sweet little sassy girl sounds like she is full of personality. Enjoy her, but take a firm upper hand before she doesn't know how to turn off the sass. Meanwhile, she is just a baby, so with patience and time, this too shall pass. Good luck with her. Would love to see pics!

pandaleigh · 12-13-2011, 11:26 AM

I have a couple of suggestions too , based upon my experiences with my Yorkie and my best friend's German Shepherd (GSD) .. we train them together ^_^

Her GSD would also bark at, and want to play with, the can-o-coins. The only thing that works for him as far as corrective noises is an air canister. You can buy them at petco but not at petsmart. It's called a compressed air training spray. Basically you push the button at the top and it makes this loud "KSSSSH" noise. We used that to teach him not to jump up on people and not to get too rough with Tashi. If he started getting rough with her, we'd "KSSSH" him and take her away until he calmed it down.

Only use a corrective noise for the really bad stuff. I find that a simple "EH EH EH" works well. It's a distraction, not necessarily a scolding. Get the dog's attention and put it to where you want it.

Instead of a playpen, you can use:
-An X-Pen, here's an example:

Amazon.com: Midwest Black E-Coat Exercise Pen, 24... -A wire crate. (Example only.. look around on YT for a good low cost option if you want, I know I've seen several listed

Amazon.com: Midwest Life Stages Double-Door...
Never scold the puppy for "thinking" about peeing :P If you see her considering peeing, kindly take her outside, wait till she goes, and then tell her what a good baby she is.

As for wearing her clothes, for the first several months I had Tashi, if I put clothes on her, It meant she was going bye-bye with me. Now, if she wants to go for a walk, out to dinner, or for a car ride.. she goes as far as to bring -me- her clothes and insist I put them on. I think it's cute, so usually I'll acknowledge that she gave them to me, and put them on a few minutes later and take her for a ride. (Not right away, because you have to keep that upper hand

)

Lastly, and probably most importantly, the best advice I have for you is to begin simple obedience training. Simple things, in short little bursts of training.

Don't feed her treats for no reason ever. Make her work for it

[ Don't have to make her sit, stay, down just yet. You can start with simple "watch me" you hold the treat to your eye and see how long she can keep eye contact.. start with 3 seconds, move up to 15-20.. and then up from there if you want.. this way, you can avert her attention on command] Never try obedience training when you're low on patience with her. It should be fun little sessions for you and your dog that you both really enjoy. For the first year of having Tashi, all she had to do to get a treat was be nearby.. so she's working really hard on learning that treats are now a reward, and not her born right

Also, find a toy that your dog likes, and make sure you not only take her for walks once a day for exercise, but you play fetch.. or "run with me" Tashi likes "run with me" more than fetch.. but sometimes i just don't feel like running in circles around my own back yard

Keep her busy, entertained, and not bored.

If you're putting her in the kennel/playpen, give her somethign to do. Small kongs with mashed yams or peanut butter (you put a tiny bit in and squish it, so the insides are coated, but not filled, then you freeze it) keep their little tongues busy for a while. You can also soak a rope toy in chicken stock and freeze it, that provides an activity for your baby too.

If you're busy and you want the baby to go lay down in her kennel, give her something to keep her occupied for a little while... it's hard for a dog to go from "on" to "asleep" without a little wind down. I know if I was having a nice day and someone stuck me alone in a playpen I'd get right to destroying it :P

Keep your dog's body and mind exercised, she's got these new sharp teethies and she wants to test them out on everything

pandaleigh · 12-13-2011, 11:38 AM

Ok, So that was way more than a few things.. but I want to add:

You have a puppy.. she might be shy/sweet/ whatever but she's still a puppy, she's gotta find a way to channel all of her energy. My dog will sit in my lap for a while, but I know when she starts getting hungry for some exercise or play time, and I try to use her cues to make sure I keep her exercised.

My dog's 3 years old.. so she's a bit calmer than a puppy, but Yorkies are definitely not stuffed animals.. they are full of energy and they need you to help them learn to channel it.

You'll have a lot more luck with her wanting to nap/sit still/etc if you encourage her to release her energy and use her mind pretty often.

Another suggestion I have is to keep her chew toys in a box/chest/bag.. whatever.. somewhere out of reach/sight of your pup. When you give her one, let her have it for a few hours and take it away. This way, she won't get bored of them. They're like children, if it's out of sight, it's out of mind.. and when you give them a toy they haven't seen in a little while, their interest peaks

PrincessSassy · 12-13-2011, 06:56 PM

Thank you so much for the advice and the welcome!

Well, Nibblet is in her new, rigid plastic pen. (That whirring noise is her little brain trying to figure out, "hmmm..... This is different.... What to do; what to do!") She gives me The Yorkie Death Stare every so often, but so far the X-Pen is still intact.

We also went on a loonnnnnggggg walk, and she went wee-wees!!!! No poopage, but she did wee, and I think she was thisclose to making the connection of what outside is for. Mostly I let her sniff around and run (but not too far - I just played out the lead a teeny bit). She slept for about an hour... And now she's up. (Yay...?

)

So here we go! Like Bette Davis said in "All About Eve", fasten your seatbelts; It's going to be a bumpy ride!"

12-13-2011, 07:27 AM	#1
PrincessSassy Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Princeton Posts: 56	What happened to my sweet little Nibblet? She's Princess Sassypants now! OMG! She's 5 months old and when I got her, I thought she was going to be this sweet, shy little thing that would sit on my lap or curl up on my desk while I work. But nooooooooooo! 1. She won't wear her coat. I've tried several times to get her to wear her coat, and she won't; 2. She won't wear her diaper. I'm trying to potty train her, and I read that you're supposed to put Yorkies in diapers so that when they start to go, you yell, "NO!" take them to the wee-wee pad or out side, and they go. Thirty minutes to get her into the diaper, she takes it off, wees on the floor, then makes me chase her for twenty minutes; 3. She's destroyed TWO of the portable, collapsible playpens by chewing through the side flap zipper. I tried the anti chew spray (not the bitter apple but the one with pheromones to calm them down in addition to stuff that's suppose to be distasteful) - she developed a taste for it, and now probably would eat it with caviar and champagne; 4. When I shake the bottle with coins in it to get her to stop bad behavior, she barks at it. It used to work before. Where's my sweet little girl? She can be sweet! I've seen her do it! But I don't like her "sassin'" me. She's all of two pounds, but acts like she's 40 and the size of a Burmese Mountain Dog. I want the sweet little girl who cuddled in my arms when I first saw her. She is a riot and I love her, but I don't like this Princess Sassypants routine

12-13-2011, 10:55 AM	#2
Roccosmommy Donating YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 1,293	Too funny! Welcome to the world of Yorkies that rule your life!! I think Princess "sassypants" is displaying typical behavior for a yorkie pup. I'm certainly no expert, but here's my opinion, based on your numbered questions: 1. Forget the coat for now - she will be fine until it's freezing or snowing. 2. I personally have not ever heard of potty training with a diaper. Take the diaper off, and instead of waiting for her to pee in the house then correcting, be vigilant and take her out every 1/2 - 1 hour, and also 15 minutes after she eats or drinks. When she potties outside praise her to no end. When she has an accident in the house you can tell her "NO", only IF you catch her in the act. Then pick her up and move her outside. You don't catch her in the act, you can't scold her - consider it a missed opportunity. Whatever you do, only use positive reinforcement or potty training will be a nightmare. 3. No more collapsible playpens. Perhaps a wire x-pen? 4. LOL! She now knows the bottle does nothing to her for bad behavior, so she just yells at it to shut it up. Depending on the 'bad' behavior, punish her according to the crime. Eg., nipping is a firm "NO" then turn your back to her until she stops. Your sweet little sassy girl sounds like she is full of personality. Enjoy her, but take a firm upper hand before she doesn't know how to turn off the sass. Meanwhile, she is just a baby, so with patience and time, this too shall pass. Good luck with her. Would love to see pics! __________________ "The little furry buggers are just deep, deep wells you throw all your emotions into." ~ Bruce Schimmel Last edited by Roccosmommy; 12-13-2011 at 10:56 AM.

12-13-2011, 11:26 AM	#3
pandaleigh Donating Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: West Covina, CA Posts: 171	I have a couple of suggestions too , based upon my experiences with my Yorkie and my best friend's German Shepherd (GSD) .. we train them together ^_^ Her GSD would also bark at, and want to play with, the can-o-coins. The only thing that works for him as far as corrective noises is an air canister. You can buy them at petco but not at petsmart. It's called a compressed air training spray. Basically you push the button at the top and it makes this loud "KSSSSH" noise. We used that to teach him not to jump up on people and not to get too rough with Tashi. If he started getting rough with her, we'd "KSSSH" him and take her away until he calmed it down. Only use a corrective noise for the really bad stuff. I find that a simple "EH EH EH" works well. It's a distraction, not necessarily a scolding. Get the dog's attention and put it to where you want it. Instead of a playpen, you can use: -An X-Pen, here's an example: Amazon.com: Midwest Black E-Coat Exercise Pen, 24... -A wire crate. (Example only.. look around on YT for a good low cost option if you want, I know I've seen several listedAmazon.com: Midwest Life Stages Double-Door... Never scold the puppy for "thinking" about peeing :P If you see her considering peeing, kindly take her outside, wait till she goes, and then tell her what a good baby she is. As for wearing her clothes, for the first several months I had Tashi, if I put clothes on her, It meant she was going bye-bye with me. Now, if she wants to go for a walk, out to dinner, or for a car ride.. she goes as far as to bring -me- her clothes and insist I put them on. I think it's cute, so usually I'll acknowledge that she gave them to me, and put them on a few minutes later and take her for a ride. (Not right away, because you have to keep that upper hand ) Lastly, and probably most importantly, the best advice I have for you is to begin simple obedience training. Simple things, in short little bursts of training. Don't feed her treats for no reason ever. Make her work for it [ Don't have to make her sit, stay, down just yet. You can start with simple "watch me" you hold the treat to your eye and see how long she can keep eye contact.. start with 3 seconds, move up to 15-20.. and then up from there if you want.. this way, you can avert her attention on command] Never try obedience training when you're low on patience with her. It should be fun little sessions for you and your dog that you both really enjoy. For the first year of having Tashi, all she had to do to get a treat was be nearby.. so she's working really hard on learning that treats are now a reward, and not her born right Also, find a toy that your dog likes, and make sure you not only take her for walks once a day for exercise, but you play fetch.. or "run with me" Tashi likes "run with me" more than fetch.. but sometimes i just don't feel like running in circles around my own back yard Keep her busy, entertained, and not bored. If you're putting her in the kennel/playpen, give her somethign to do. Small kongs with mashed yams or peanut butter (you put a tiny bit in and squish it, so the insides are coated, but not filled, then you freeze it) keep their little tongues busy for a while. You can also soak a rope toy in chicken stock and freeze it, that provides an activity for your baby too. If you're busy and you want the baby to go lay down in her kennel, give her something to keep her occupied for a little while... it's hard for a dog to go from "on" to "asleep" without a little wind down. I know if I was having a nice day and someone stuck me alone in a playpen I'd get right to destroying it :P Keep your dog's body and mind exercised, she's got these new sharp teethies and she wants to test them out on everything Last edited by pandaleigh; 12-13-2011 at 11:28 AM.

12-13-2011, 11:38 AM	#4
pandaleigh Donating Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: West Covina, CA Posts: 171	Ok, So that was way more than a few things.. but I want to add: You have a puppy.. she might be shy/sweet/ whatever but she's still a puppy, she's gotta find a way to channel all of her energy. My dog will sit in my lap for a while, but I know when she starts getting hungry for some exercise or play time, and I try to use her cues to make sure I keep her exercised. My dog's 3 years old.. so she's a bit calmer than a puppy, but Yorkies are definitely not stuffed animals.. they are full of energy and they need you to help them learn to channel it. You'll have a lot more luck with her wanting to nap/sit still/etc if you encourage her to release her energy and use her mind pretty often. Another suggestion I have is to keep her chew toys in a box/chest/bag.. whatever.. somewhere out of reach/sight of your pup. When you give her one, let her have it for a few hours and take it away. This way, she won't get bored of them. They're like children, if it's out of sight, it's out of mind.. and when you give them a toy they haven't seen in a little while, their interest peaks

12-13-2011, 06:56 PM	#5
PrincessSassy Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Princeton Posts: 56	Thank you so much for the advice and the welcome! Well, Nibblet is in her new, rigid plastic pen. (That whirring noise is her little brain trying to figure out, "hmmm..... This is different.... What to do; what to do!") She gives me The Yorkie Death Stare every so often, but so far the X-Pen is still intact. We also went on a loonnnnnggggg walk, and she went wee-wees!!!! No poopage, but she did wee, and I think she was thisclose to making the connection of what outside is for. Mostly I let her sniff around and run (but not too far - I just played out the lead a teeny bit). She slept for about an hour... And now she's up. (Yay...? ) So here we go! Like Bette Davis said in "All About Eve", fasten your seatbelts; It's going to be a bumpy ride!"