How To Get A Yorkie From Wandering Away When Let Outside
 

Ok, so my 2 1/2 year yorkie, when he's let outside, he wanders down the street, sniffing, and peeing on basically everything (he is not fixed) my question is, we've tried everything to get him to understand, he can't wander out of his yard like that, but nothing has worked. Is this just his personality, and it's not correctable?

can you put him on a leash?

For the first two months of so of having Kingston I put him on his leash and attached it to me. Everywhere I'd go, he'd go. This helped for two reasons: 1) It made potty training really easily since he couldn't go sneak away from me! and 2) He learned to become my little shadow and not get into mischief :D

Now when the BF is out fixing his car or mowing the lawn he just sits in the driveway and waits like a good little boy :)

Oh gosh, I hope he doesn't get stolen! We don't allow our yorkies outside alone at all, even though we have a 6-ft adobe, solid fence. Owls and eagles can easily pick them up and take off. To keep him safe, why not watch him and/or tie him out in a safe area?

You need to take him out on a leash. There are people that steal yorkies. There are also preditors like coyotes, hawks and owls that will kill and eat a yorkie. And yours that is so small is especially at risk

Oh, also - I forgot to say - since he is not fixed, if he smells an in-heat female a mile away, he'll be GONE. :(

He is on a leash when he goes outside, I'm meaning sometimes when I get home and hes in the car with me, he runs down to mailbox, he then takes off down the street, hes NEVER outside a lone, im always running after his little furry butt! Just wondering what the deal is, I talked to his vet, and he says his male yorkie does the same thing and nothing can be done but keep him on a leash always. Yes, I know people steal yorkies, I never let my eye off him.

Teach him the come and stay commands with treats

the reason he's doing this is because he's not neutered. They can smell a female in heat a mile away. If you're not going to use him for breeding, I would suggest getting him fixed, may keep him safe also, as they have been known to dash off in front of cars. My sons little male was neutered at 5 mos. he takes him outside without a leash, and that little guy stays right by my son.

My pom will stay by me outside. I can be gardening for hours and she will just lay in the shade and not walk off. I don't trust my yorkies not to run off so they are always on leash when I am outside with them. I think you can train him to not run but I wouldn't take a chance since he seems to like to run off and he is not neutered.

I alway's bring Jeter's leash with us when we take him out and about with us. I don't take any chances with him because he is so tiny, so if he is not in his puppy purse, then his leash is on him. He can't jump out of the car and take off then:) Also does your boy know commands like Sit and stay? that comes in handy too,because once my son had the front door open and Jeter went onto the porch, I yelled Sit and Stay and was able to scoop him up fast!

Is yours neutered though? That makes a big difference. You can have the best behaved male, but, if they smell a female in heat, do you think they're going to sit and stay or go get a piece of the action??;)

Before I even open the car door, I hold whoever is with me with my fingers wrapped through the harness for extra support...Take her into the house and then do what needs to be done outside....Heard too many sad stories about hurting , stolen or runaway yorkies...It just takes a second for any of these to happen...

Plan on mating him which is why he hasn't been fixed yet.

Well, he'll start wandering even more after he's been used a stud. He'll be driven to search for a mate by the scent of any female in heat within a mile. Other males will fight with him over females and he as at risk of being hit by a car.

It's also very irresponsible to let an intact male wander at large. :(

:thumbup::thumbup:

He doesn't wander at large.....he's never left wandering at large. And also, there is NO ONE he can get pregnant anyway, NO ONE. All the dogs around here are 4X his size so there is no worry of him getting someone elses dog pregnant. ALSO it's not responsible to let ANY dog wander male or female.

My male schnauzer mix Toby (r.i.p.) would take off wandering any time he could manage it - and he was neutered. He loved to sniff anything and everything! So I always had to keep him on a leash, even just from the car to the front door. Funny story - he got out the front door one day and headed down the street. I grabbed his leash and stood in the doorway saying "Toby - wanna go outside? wanna go for a walk?" - believe it or not, he came running full-speed back to me and sat there so excited, waiting for me to put his leash on him so we could go outside! LOL

You're right, but, what I'm trying to say is that dogs that have been neutered, don't have any reason to take off running when there is a female in heat(up to a mile away). It doesn't matter how big a female dog is that is in heat, they can just smell it, they dont' know how big the female is by the smell.

Yep. The biggest fear here is the coyotes and hawks. At least if there is a leash..you have a chance. Never, ever, go with out a leash..there is a sad sad story about a dog and how wonderfully re-call trained he was. Until the ONE day, he saw something and went after it. Dog lost his life by car. Never forget they are animals and will react like an animal at the worst time.

my mom's yorkie and boxer mix will both stay in front of her house(yard, driveway, etc... she lives on a cul-de-sac) if she, or someone else, is in the garage, out front, or something like that.. ;)
they will not run off and are really good about coming/staying when told.
..my two girls, however, i don't trust to just stay there.. i have never tried-but don't plan on it either... ;)

i think you just have to work with him/train him..i would keep him on a leash, while doing so, though ;) and it is hard because if he smells a female in heat he will take off.. :(

good luck! it can be done.. i just don't know how you would go about doing so, except being consistent/training. ;):)

Is your Yorkie aware of his territory i.e. have you walked him along the boundaries of your yard and taught him what his space is? Even when these little guys know what their own yard is, and even when they are trained to stay by your side, and their behavior seems predictable, I have to agree with the previous poster that they can react in a way at a moment that gets them into trouble or worse. Even if you train your little guy to stick around, keeping him on a leash or pen at all times is the way to go. This is especially so if he is anywhere near traffic. I occasionally walk Ruff off-leash on a very quiet beach, but I know even this can be risky. Good luck to you.

i would advise using a leash...and never leaving them outside alone....so many things can happen in a second

We never let our yorkies out unattended....ever. You need to put him on a leash and train him to stay with you.

I think even the best trained yorkie will wander.... they tend to be led by their noses.

Even if you get him neutered I doubt that will stop him from wandering...Just do what you can to protect him ....I put a leash on my babies before I even open the car door...that way there is no taking off on me.

If you have a fenced in yard...I would suggest putting him on a leash and attatching it to a stake in the ground or a "run". But like others have said...I wouldn't ever leave him alone....too many dangers. Good luck...

No he is not neutered, he still listens quite well to his commands. Also I do not let him wander around off leash, Jeter did get out our door ONCE this summer when my 11 year old son was standing at the front door talking to his friend. He had the door wide open:eek: Jeter went out the door and was still on our porch, Lucky for us we did teach our Yorkies their basic commands and when I yeld SIT, Jeter did just that,thank goodness! I also say Stay once they sit for me, so I am able to scoop them up. We got a pet/ baby gate that I keep on the porch now as extra caution. Like I said I do not like to take chances with my dogs:)

I suggested to the OP that she use a leash when getting out of her car, that is when her little Yorkie took off on her, I suggested teaching him basic commands because she said she chased after him. Some dogs think you are playing when you chase after them. Basic commands Do come in handy when mastered, and one can never be too safe when it comes to our puppies safety.

I believe any dog can be trained off leash it really just comes to the attachment and trust the dog has in you. If your dog gets plenty of excersice he will not feel the need to wander.

Make sure you walk him a good 30-45 minutes every day.

Then get a training leash, a LONG line. Let him wonder down the street, call him back if he doesn't come reel him in, once he gets it and starts walking towards on his own stop pulling, let him walk to you and say "Come." Give him a treat then let him go again. If every time you call him back you immediately take him inside he will see coming to you as a negative. If you run after him screaming he will see you as playing with him or see it as scary behavior and run further and faster.

Let him wander call his name "come," pet him. Tell him "GOOD BOY!!!" Throw a party and let him go again. Then call him back pick him up, give him some kisses, again "GOOD BOY!!" and throw a big party again. Let him go. Then do it all again and pick him up and take him back inside, give him a really special treat he loves. So he sees going inside as a pleasurable thing.

Do this many times about 10-20 minutes every day. But if he seems to get irritated with the training stop and just play with him. If you make the training too long and he gets irritated he will just want to get further away from you. Sooner or later he will learn that coming to you when called means he gets lots of loves treats and more fun or maybe inside with a special treat.

Good Luck to you, until you know you can trust him do NOT open the door without a leash on him. He could get stolen or worse killed!

Oh i didn't mention my Bridgette will not leave my side when we go outside, but Teddy will. But he's only five months old. He doesn't even go outside except to play unless I am with him. Because we have local feral cats 3 times his size, coyotes, hawks, and owls.

But we have just yesterday actually started off leash training him. I have 6 dogs and 4 of the six will follow me everywhere off leash. We are still working on Harley and Teddy.

It is NOT impossible, it just takes time and determination. Again, Good Luck!

I believe that to some degree this depends on the dog. Some dogs are naturally more adventurous, and they usually become more so if they get a chance to go free - they realize how much fun it is not to be attached to a human all the time.

I agree with the posters who say to make recall a game. Ideally, your dog will always think there's a great reason to come back to you -- praise, great treats, some petting, etc. My baby and I practice this regularly and it's great fun. He usually runs in a giant circle around me and gets a treat when he returns. However, if he finds something to eat in the grass, or he approaches someone he shouldn't, I call him back. Then he really sprints, because he knows he gets an even bigger treat if I call his name.

Some people go so far as to say you should never call your dog to you for an unpleasant task, so if you are grooming, go get him, rather than call him.

I also agree with posters not to run after your dog, because he's likely to think you're playing.

I don't know if it's practical to keep a dog on lead ALL the time -- if we're playing fetch, my dog can be up to fifty feet away from me. However, he's pretty much on lead anytime we're not in a park. Even in the car he's leashed. If I didn't leash him, he would insist on sitting in my lap while I drive. :)

If all the dogs around you are 4x his size, thats even more reason to keep a tight rein on him. If a big dog attacked your little one, it could have devastating results. Put his lead on before you open the car door...dont give him the chance to race off down the street, even for a minute.