Frustration & Tears

[knlboss]

I am getting so frustrated with my 5 month old yorkie ,I have to actually take something to calm me down. He won't potty outside. He won't use pee pad to stinky. He doesn't want to be 5 foot awat from me at all times. This is the first yorkie I have ever owned. I raise Beagles, Boykins. I have 12 dogs in the kennels, soon to be 13 if I can't learn to deal with Riley! When I am bust doing something and I miss him , sure enough he's somewhere tearing something up in the house. Like 3 pairs of eyeglasses, wallpaper off wall, holes in socks, shoes you name it he has eaten it. Now I know what you are going to say but it is impossible to keep everything away from him all the time. He has alot of chew toys. But he likes mine better. He sleeps with me which I don't know if I should of allowed this or not. Sometimes he goes with me in the car but not always. I have an area in my mudroom in which to keep him in but when I am here he won't stop barking if I put him in it. My nreves were on edge before I got Riley now I don't even have any left. Sitting here on the computer he is laying down behind me. A must for him obviously, because he barks until I pull him up in the chair. He has been the same ever since I got him at 6 weeks old. He is not afraid of anything! My horse does not even scare him. The larger dogs in the kennel bark at him but he is not scarred of them either. In fact, I have not found anything that scares him yet. I do spank him but he just gets madder.
How do you people deal with these little creatures?
knlboss

[Britster]

I hope you don't take this offensively, but you, as the owner, seem to be guiding Riley in the completely wrong direction. First off, 6 weeks old is VERY young to be taken from his mother and littermates and since it's too late to change that now.. he probably missed a great deal of education from his mother and siblings about biting, among other things.

Just because he has a lot of chew toys doesn't mean he knows what they are for. You need to catch him in the act of chewing the wrong things and place a GOOD thing in his mouth for him to chew. YOU have to let him know what is right and wrong. As of now, he has no idea. He is also probably teething so that is why he is biting so much. Have you tried giving him Bully Sticks? They help out a lot with their chewing and teething. And they're 100% digestible.

Barking.... try getting an empty soda can and filling it with coins/pennies. Shake it loudly every time he barks and repeat "Quiet!" or "No bark!" He will soon learn he does NOT like that obnoxious sound and he'll realize every time he barks, he has to deal with it. Eventually you will be able to simply say "quiet" and he will stop. This takes a great deal of time and patience. And you will be having to have a can ready to grab at ALL times but it does work if done properly.

When he barks at you to get up on your lap... DO NOT pick him up. Completely ignore him. He's probably began being such an excessive barker because every time he barks, you pay attention to him and give him what he wants. He barks, you pick him up.. of COURSE he is going to continue barking at you. Let him know that barking is not going to get him what he wants. You can use the pennies in a can in this situation as well.

Potty training... you can use a crate, which is probably better than a mud-room. During potty training, it's very important that the dog is in your eye at ALL times. If you cannot watch him, in the crate he goes. Dogs usually naturally will not go to the bathroom in their crate because they don't want to go where they sleep. Let him out every hour or so to go potty and PRAISE and TREAT like crazy when he goes in the proper place. He will catch on. However, remember Yorkies are known to take 6 months -1 year to be fully potty trained. You can search the forums here for "potty training" and find a gazillion threads on potty training tips, etc.

Spanking.... big NO NO. He has NO idea what you are spanking him for. He is not going to respect you or listen to you by you spanking him. You can squirt him with a water bottle or shake the pennies in a can when he does something wrong.

YOU need to become dominant and in charge of your dog. Because currently, Riley is ruling your life and believes to be your pack leader. You need to make it the other way around. Respect and trust is what you need to have a great relationship with your dog.

Jackson, my Yorkie, sleeps in bed with me but he is trained and pretty well behaved for the most part. In your case, I would suggest having him sleep in a crate or an ex-pen if you'd prefer.

Training takes a LOT of time and if not done properly, it could result in having a bratty, spoiled dog forever.

Try teaching him some obedience tricks... does he know sit, stay, down, come? Those are some vital tricks for him to know. It also helps with being able to communicate with your dog better.

And I'm going to sound very much like Cesar Millan here... but Excersize comes first, then disipline, THEN affection. And only in that order. Too many people give their dogs affection, affection, affection. And that's NOT what they need to become a balanced dog. /end Cesar Millan rant.

How much excersize does he get during the day? And not just running around outside without a leash... dogs need that leash walk and the dog always needs to be behind you, showing you as a pack leader. Take that weight off of Riley's shouder because right now - he feels like he's in charge and he shouldn't be.

[QuickSilver]

Great post by the Britster.

We always say that yorkies take a lot of work, and it sounds like you confirm this since you are having more trouble with him than your other dogs.

I would do three things:

- Take him to an obedience school. Talking with a trainer there should help a lot.
- Address overall emotional / intellectual development. Assess if he is getting enough exercise and stimulating his brain exploring new things. As Britster said, obedience training can bond you together, stimulate his mind, and teach him to mind you.
- Break down each problem you describe - teething, barking, potty, etc - and look for training on each one.

For teething dogs, I've heard that putting a chew toy in the freezer can help numb their gums.

For barking: if your dog barks and barks and barks until you JUST CAN'T STAND IT ANYMORE and you give in... you've not only taught your dog that barking works, you've taught him that he needs to be really persistent about it.

If your dog has developed a monster barking habit, you have to steel yourself to ignore him. He may bark for as long as twenty minutes. But at some point he has to stop, and at THAT POINT you reward him with attention.


Okay, four things - read up on yorkie temperment if you haven't already. They are known for being fearless, stubborn, clingy, and barky, just like you describe.

[Britster]

Originally Posted by QuickSilver

Great post by the Britster.

We always say that yorkies take a lot of work, and it sounds like you confirm this since you are having more trouble with him than your other dogs.

I would do three things:

- Take him to an obedience school. Talking with a trainer there should help a lot.
- Address overall emotional / intellectual development. Assess if he is getting enough exercise and stimulating his brain exploring new things. As Britster said, obedience training can bond you together, stimulate his mind, and teach him to mind you.
- Break down each problem you describe - teething, barking, potty, etc - and look for training on each one.

For teething dogs, I've heard that putting a chew toy in the freezer can help numb their gums.

For barking: if your dog barks and barks and barks until you JUST CAN'T STAND IT ANYMORE and you give in... you've not only taught your dog that barking works, you've taught him that he needs to be really persistent about it.

If your dog has developed a monster barking habit, you have to steel yourself to ignore him. He may bark for as long as twenty minutes. But at some point he has to stop, and at THAT POINT you reward him with attention.


Okay, four things - read up on yorkie temperment if you haven't already. They are known for being fearless, stubborn, clingy, and barky, just like you describe.

Very good point!

[QuickSilver]

Oops, I missed something in your post - please don't kennel your yorkie outside. They are inside dogs, and it causes them a lot of distress if they can't be close to their owners most of the time.

I hope this doesn't feel like everyone is coming down on you like a ton of bricks. Training can be very tough and stressful, we've all been frustrated at some point. The thing is, the dog won't improve on its own, so that leaves you to take charge and figure out how to guide him in the right direction.

We would love to help you develop a better relationship with your boy.

[JoeyP]

Yorkies are not your run of the mill "DOGS"

They have special quirks and needs to them
and some people like these traits and to some they can drive you to drink
But if you catch them early
you can head off the really bad ones at the pass

Yorkies might be small but they are terriers and they LOVE to dig chew and explore
That might be bad news for your house
A yorkie puppy can be a one dog wrecking crew if you let them
You MUST put anything and everything that he can get to out of reach
and you have to watch them like hawks
It's never too early to start the drop or Stop training
Meaning when you say No! or Stop! or UH! or clap you hands They immediately stop what they are doing
With a small puppy ... the way you do this is
give him a toy .... say UH! and see if he looks at you
If he does and drops the toy
GOOD BOY ... and treat him
keep repeating that
Barking is the same thing .... you have to get their attention
a noise the UH! command and GOOD BOY
But with such a small pup you have to corral them
giving them free rain is just asking for trouble ... leave them in one room from the start and as they grow and learn the rules of the house then you can let them roam more
Good Luck

[Jacklynn]

Originally Posted by JoeyP

Yorkies are not your run of the mill "DOGS"

Our Yorkies are soooo different any any other dogs we have ever had.