My yorkie spills her water dish
 

Can anyone help me? My previously perfect 13 month old Yorkie is now going through some sort of phase. The biggest issue right now is that she 'plays' in her water dish. Puts her front paws in it, pushes it around and therefore the water is all over the floor. I pick up the dish after yelling at her A LOT, but, when I put it back down and she notices it or needs a drink, she starts in again!
Has anybody had this kind of thing happen? Any suggestions on how to make her stop? HELP!!

Thanks,
Pam

I put their water on a tray that has a waterproof mat on it followed by a cotton placemat. They spill some and it's not big deal. Joey did that more when he was a puppy.

Thanks, maybe I'll give that a try.

Some people use ice cubes, but Joey carries those off and makes a mess in another part of the house. Oh well, it's harmless fun.

Maybe she's trying to tell you she likes the water and needs her own kiddie pool.:)

Is there any design in the bottom of the bowl that she is seeing or is it an aluminum dish that she may be seeing her reflection? Just a thought.

I guess I'm lucky. Mine doesn't play in the water, but she is a messy drinker. I just needed a waterproof placemat under her dish and no more water problems. Good luck!:)

I always put crushed ice in Kacee's water, but just to make it nice and cold.:)

My little Hailee thiks she is a Port. Water Dog! She climbs into the water bowl....it is large to accomodate all my babies....and splashes around like a kid in a tub! She has a ball! I think it is adorable, so I get a kick watching it, then when she gets tired, I just wipe it all up and put her fresh water down. Thank goodness she only does that about 3-4 times a day...but now, she has started taking a toy to the water with her...so I guess it isnt as funny and cute...stuffed toys soak up lots of water, and then she drags the water logged toy off to the other room...so this has to stop with the toy! I think I will get one of those elevated dog food stands.....maybe that will help....

Maybe a different type of bowl... glass vs stainless vs porcelain, etc... or you could get her a water bottle.

I would suggest a ceramic / porcelain bowel or possibly a food and water elevated feeder / holder thingys! There are many differect kind and sizes to choose from.

Stoneware Pet Food and Water Crock 9 Inch#


Petco Stainless Steel Diner at PETCO

I think maybe next time she tries to play in her water bowl you should try a different reaction. By yelling at her, you may be reinforcing a negative behavior. I think I would try to not give her attention for the behavior, but calmly ignore it and distract her in a different way. For example, you could have a treat handy and call her over to you and reward her for coming to you and leaving the water. If you can do this with a clicker, that is even better, because that will help reinforce the good behavior.

She may be doing this partly for attention. I know that if there is a time that my dog thinks he needs attention that he thinks he is not getting he will grab the nearest thing he can find at his level that does not belong to him and run. The "stealing" game gets him attention. It might not be good attention, but it is still attention. I have handled his little thievery game by not getting up and going after him and chasing him around to get it back (because that is the fun of it for him and reinforces the bad behavior) but, instead I ignore him for a few seconds and then calmly go and get a toy he likes or ask him if he wants a treat. He'll then drop the item, I say, "good leave it!" and he becomes more interested in the new thing. He gets rewarded for leaving the bad behavior.

I agree that a water bottle would also be a good alternative. Snickers seems to enjoy the one he has. However, I would still try training her like I mentioned above. It's an opportunity to teach her something in a positive way, which is always good to strengthen the human-dog relationship, I think.

Hey thank you for all the great suggestions. I did think that maybe she was having 'issues' with the stainless bowl (after all this time) so, I switched it to glass and she did the same thing, then, I switched to a hard plastic-the same thing. I guess I'll be going to Petsmart to see what they have.

I did think that maybe all the yelling was giving her the negative attention. I know I was not happy to have to be doing it. So, I stopped and just kept pulling her away.

I think a lot of things she does are funny and let her get away with it, but, the kitchen floor full of water just isn't. Even though her mat as a lip on it, she will push the bowl onto the floor. So, if I'm not aware of the puddle, it could be dangerous as her dishes are right by the sink.

Anyway, I so appreciate the help. Thanks a million.

Pam

This really could be true, I know kids really pick up on it, and most Yorkies are pretty smart. I've found diverting their attention sometimes works, getting a toy or something else they like and playing with them.

Beware of using plastic as it can cause contact dermatitis. That can show up as white spots on their black noses. I know. There's a problem with everything!:D

Hey, thanks for that info. There's always something, isn't there?

I have a dog bowl with a lid on it. It has a hole in the centre and they drink through that's it's to stop the water spilling when traveling or if it gets knocked over. She couldn't get her paws in that. I think I found it on a search of non spill travel dog bowl