please help us....
 

Hi everyone. My husband & I are at our wits end, & honestly don't know what to do. We have a baby on the way, & I have some concerns about how hard it is going to be taking care of a newborn, & the situations with our dog. Here is a little history: We got our yorkie 4 years ago. She is definitely our baby. She is 95% potty trained...she usually only has accidents when her schedule/routine has been changed. We crate her during the day when we are at work, & she does just fine(meaning she doesn't go potty in her crate). We have been crating her for over a year now, & everytime we put her in there, she barks like crazy...EVERYTIME. She hates the crate. She hides under the bed, runs away, anything to avoid it....which brings me to our next problem....At night, she has been getting down from our bed (yes she sleeps with us) & if it is storming or sometimes for no reason, she pees & poops all over our bedroom (we keep the door shut so she can't have the run of the house). She also shakes & gets up & down off the bed a million times. She also does this if she is ready for us to be awake & we aren't. She has been doing this more often & I am losing my mind because I am not getting any sleep, & I don't want to sleep in the guest room away from my husband because a dog is controlling our lives. I was thinking about starting to crate her at night, but don't know if it is too late to start that. I am also afraid that she will just bark continuously & not ever get used to it (like she does with the day crating). I know that I cannot continue to have a dog keeping me up all hours of the night, especially with a baby on the way. Once the baby is here, I will be a stay at home mom, & she won't be spending near the amount of time she is now in the crate. I know having her in there during the day & night is a lot, but I feel like she has too much freedom. Would I keep the crate in our room or another one? Any advice is welcome. Thank you so much.

Here are a few suggestions:

-Make sure she is getting walked in the morning before you leave and in the evening (I know this might be difficult but it can really help)

-Start crating her at night. You can hide a treat in there so she will get a reward for being in her crate (so that she doesn't hate it as much).

-As for the barking...the squirt bottle trick really seems to work. Put her in her crate in your room and if she barks, squirt her with the water and tell her no. Do this everytime she barks. She will learn quickly not to bark. You can also use a tin can full of coins and when she barks, shake the can and tell her no.

I'm sure others will have some more suggestions but thats all I can think of right now! :)

I'm not a believer in crating a dog for hours at a time. Dogs were not meant to live like that and is why she is so nervous and unhappy. We don't sleep with our three at all. They have their own bed in the kitchen dining area (large area) with doors closed to the rest of the house. They have pee-pads, water and chew sticks to keep them happy all night, and also if we go somewhere that we can't take them. My suggestion would be to find a place for her other than your bed. Walk her before you leave then have someone come over to walk her around noon, then walk her again in the evening.

Instead of crating her during the day could you block her off in one or two rooms of your house? I block mine in the kitchen/dining area so at least they have some room to roam and play and a grass mat to go potty and food and water but they can't get out and get into trouble that way either. Maybe then it wouldn't be so bad to crate her at night if she will stand for it? Maybe you could put the crate right up on your bedside table so she could see you? I guess I can't blame her if she hates the crate if she spends alot of time in it. Maybe if she had more room to run and play during the day, she wouldn't mind it so much. That's my suggestion anyways.... Good luck!

We're not crate fans either - although it was necessary for potty training. I think either blocking off a room or an expen is best for when you're gone. I gave Bailey a treat when she entered the expen - she always entered it cheerfully - so at least I didn't have to chase her around the house. After she gulped the treat, she wanted back out - lol. Bailey is a smart dog, I don't understand why she never caught on to this little trick? I guess, she didn't hate the expen! :) It was our routine and she came to expect it.

As far as at night and in bed - yes, Bailey had the same issues. Her internal alarm clock is set at 4:30 - ours is set at 5:30. We taught her to lay back down until our alarm clock goes off. Just be stern and inflexible about this rule at all times. Inconsistency leads to confusion and bad behavior. That said, Bailey can't jump off our bed - so she's stuck with us.

Before Bailey slept with us, I kept her next to my side of the bed in a small gated off area - approx 3' x 4'. This is Bailey's room - complete with an ottoman converted into a bed, throw blanket, a stepping stool, pillows and miniature pic's on the wall - sooo cute!

These are my experiences - I hope they help you.
Good luck!

When my yorkie was little, I used a playpen for him. It was in our room and so he slept in there. As he got bigger, he figgered out he could jump out of it, so I went to a crate at night. During the day, he is in a large crate that is wire. He can see out, and it is big enough that I can put his bed, food, water and toys in there. I use to put puppy pads at one end of it but now don't have to as he does not go in there. I give him a treat every time he goes into the crate. Now, I don't have to use the crate at night as he just sleeps with us and stays on the bed. But when he use to wake up at night, the crate was a life saver. I have to have my sleep and with him in the crate, he learned that night time was not play time. Now he is only in his large crate when we are not home.
Theresa

I agree with the others. I think you def need a crate during the night, but not during the day. Get an ex-pen instead ex pen - Google Product Search here are a bunch! That way, she wont feel so confined all of the time, and you will get some sleep! I also agree with the others about lots of walks, & treats.

Keep her in the same room with you in the crate for bedtime, she will like it better. Pick something and stick to it and it will work out!!!! Good luck

I agree that she should not be in a crate in the day and at night. It would be too hard on her. When we go out we put our two year old and our 13 week old in the kitchen closed in with a pee pad water and food. doggie bed etc. They sleep in their carrier beds at night and love them.

Also the walking is great for them to wear off some energy and they sleep better.

Also want to suggest that if she has just started the shaking and restlessness with the peeing and pooing at night in your room maybe she has a health issue? Sometimes when they have parasites(worms) they do that.Maybe a vet visit could help.:)

I would try an ex-pen. Hot Rod has been in one from the 2nd week we've had him. At first he was in it during the day but as time rolled on he got his freedom room by room. They go into the pen at night still but are able roam on the first level all day. Their expen is downstairs also.

Can you take her out for an extra walk or spend a bit of play time with her so she gets tuckered out at bedtime? Just a suggestion. Best of luck with her and your upcoming baby. :)

Coco dislikes her kennel at night, she will whine and drive us nuts until we let her out..but she will pee and poop the floor at night time, only at night time...why im not sure, because she can stay 10 hrs in her kennel and never have an accident.
anyway, we tried everything...taking her food and water away at 6pm, walking before bed...still, she would have accidents...so i came up with this idea..it works and no more accidents on the floor at night..

buy baby diapers..(they are super cheap than doggie diapers) cut a slit in them for their tail. Next if they remove the diaper (like coco did at night time) buy a baby onesie, put it on backwards, and put their tail through the snaps..(i leave the middle snap unbutton and her tail fits perfectly through.

it works for us and she hates wet diapers, so she is peeing less at night time and letting us know she has to pee in the morning..

I'm definitely thinking an exercise pen would help a lot. I think she's bouncing around your bed at night because she still has energy because she was crated during the day. Get her some good exercise during the day, whether it's fetch or a good walk and she will more than likely not jump around.

The pooing and peeing in the middle of the night could probably be helped with a pen to if she sleeps in it, she probably will not potty in it.