New to house dog

[suziq]

Hi Yorkie lovers! I just got a house dog for the first time a couple of weeks before Christmas. I picked up my 9 week old Yorkie on Dec 9th. I live in the country and have had outdoor animals all of my life but have never had a dog in the house. I picked the Yorkie because I am hoping to have him for alot of company. (Which he is). I love him so far but will be glad when he gets over many of his puppy behaviors. I work a 12 hr night shift so when I am gone, he is locked in my kitchen. I take him out when I am home and not sleeping to potty, which he has done pretty well. He has a potty pad with holder when I am gone or sleeping. He is doing great going potty on it but seems to love to poop on the floor and play in it! Also the last few days he is chewing up his potty pads into a hundred pieces and also chewing my the cubbards in my kitchen. He has many chew toys available for him to chew on. (I am sorry this post is so long!) Any suggestions?

[Deb1]

Congratulations and welcome to the world of a puppy! He is very young and it can take a while to potty train them. I have a 6 month old and she still has accidents in the house! As far as chewing goes, try Bully Sticks to help with teething. It sounds like he is bored.....

[Yorkiemom1]

Invest in an ex-pen....set him up with his bed, food and water and his pee pad in the ex-pen, which you want to keep away from walls or cupboards...when they get bored, or left alone for any length of time, they will happily entertain themselves, chewing up walls and base boards and cabinets! Kind of try to arrange your sleep time around the pups sleep time....he has been sleeping and alone all night, so when you get home, plan on taking him out to play and potty and interact with you for several hours...he is still very young, so he will tire out soon, when he starts to wind down, THAT is when YOU get to go to bed!

[AZYorkieDad]

Originally Posted by suziq

Hi Yorkie lovers! I just got a house dog for the first time a couple of weeks before Christmas. I picked up my 9 week old Yorkie on Dec 9th. I live in the country and have had outdoor animals all of my life but have never had a dog in the house. I picked the Yorkie because I am hoping to have him for alot of company. (Which he is). I love him so far but will be glad when he gets over many of his puppy behaviors. I work a 12 hr night shift so when I am gone, he is locked in my kitchen. I take him out when I am home and not sleeping to potty, which he has done pretty well. He has a potty pad with holder when I am gone or sleeping. He is doing great going potty on it but seems to love to poop on the floor and play in it! Also the last few days he is chewing up his potty pads into a hundred pieces and also chewing my the cubbards in my kitchen. He has many chew toys available for him to chew on. (I am sorry this post is so long!) Any suggestions?

Sounds like she needs to be exercised more. My dog loves to misbehave if I leave her alone for a long time and come back and don't walk her. It's like her way of getting back at me.

[littlesev]

Congrats on your first Yorkie! As others have suggested, he sounds bored and needs more exercise / interaction. What about leaving him some Kong toys? Put his dinner inside and seal it with cottage cheese / peanut butter and then freeze it. Perhaps don't leave all his toys on the floor. Rotate them to keep it exciting. Also, try to walk him / do a short training / teach some tricks before you head out for work to tire him out. All the best!

[suziq]

Thanks for the suggestions!

[yorkiemini]

I would be cautious about leaving thing like bully stick for him to chew on unsupervised. They can choke if they get a big piece off of them. He is at the chewing stage of his life!

[MikaTallulah]

Can anyone puppy sit for you or stop into see him a few times while you are at work. I would definitely get an X-pen. A puppy with +12 hours of time on their paws will find tons a trouble the least of which is shredded paper?

I work 12 hour shift, too so mine go to visit Grandma/Grandpa or their Uncle!

[Ldyrev1]

Hey congrats on your new baby! So happy for you and welcome to YT!!

[MishyMish]

I would say he is bored. Does anyone come by and check-in on him while your away for those 12 hours? As far as the shredding and destroying your cabinates, I say to invest in washable pee-pads. They usually aren't abe to shred those and since your gone for long periods of time, you do not have to worry about him shredding and possibly ingesting them. With your cabinates, I would use the spray or enclose him using another method. Possibly a pen because you are gone too long for a crate. That way he can't even get to the cabinets.

[Jacksmom052709]

I agree with having someone come in even at least once during that time for say 1/2 an hour to an hour and spend some time with him. 12 hours is an eternity for a little one and they do get bored very quickly. Good luck to you!

[Nancy1999]

So glad you're enjoying your new baby, he can be a wonderful addition to your life. These first few months they are teething and will chew on everything. I use bully sticks like someone mentioned, but only when I'm home and can supervise. They have lots of dog teething toys you can buy, I found some at Target that you can even pop in the freezer and the cool gel helps their gums feel better. You want to find something that's big enough that they can't choke on. Regarding chewing on pee pads, I had to switch to washables, and that worked for me, but many people have said they just tape the pee pads down with duct tape. Best of luck!

[suziq]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I really appreciate it! Things have gone a little better the last few days I almost hate to say anything & jink myself. I think part of the problem was that I had been sick for almost 2 weeks and so hadn't spend alot of extra time with Gizmo (my puppy) because I had felt so horrible. I also saw on the internet that I could either put rubbing alcohol or white vinegar on the wooden areas, which I did & so far it has helped. I also got Gizmo several more things to chew on of different textures, to hopefully help with his teething & chewing. I also started putting his toys in a container (one he can't chew up) and put the toys back in the container a couple times a day & it gives him another thing to do. As far as him chewing up the pee pee pads, that hasn't changed so I think I am going to check into the washable pads & try to go that route. He is still pooping on the floor much of the time & playing in it, but occassionally not now. As far as the 12 hr shifts and having someone check on Gizmo, unfortunately, no I do not have anyone that can check on him most of the time. My husband is gone out of town all week & only home on the weekends. When he is home, of course he checks on Gizmo, but most of the time, that is not the case. I live in the country & don't have anybody that is close that can stop by unfortunately. I know it's a long time, that is why I don't leave him in a carrier. Yes, I am gone the long shifts, but because of that I also have more days off I can spend with him. I am going to look into the x-pen also. Thanks everybody!

[Nancy1999]

Originally Posted by suziq

Thanks for all the suggestions! I really appreciate it! Things have gone a little better the last few days I almost hate to say anything & jink myself. I think part of the problem was that I had been sick for almost 2 weeks and so hadn't spend alot of extra time with Gizmo (my puppy) because I had felt so horrible. I also saw on the internet that I could either put rubbing alcohol or white vinegar on the wooden areas, which I did & so far it has helped. I also got Gizmo several more things to chew on of different textures, to hopefully help with his teething & chewing. I also started putting his toys in a container (one he can't chew up) and put the toys back in the container a couple times a day & it gives him another thing to do. As far as him chewing up the pee pee pads, that hasn't changed so I think I am going to check into the washable pads & try to go that route. He is still pooping on the floor much of the time & playing in it, but occassionally not now. As far as the 12 hr shifts and having someone check on Gizmo, unfortunately, no I do not have anyone that can check on him most of the time. My husband is gone out of town all week & only home on the weekends. When he is home, of course he checks on Gizmo, but most of the time, that is not the case. I live in the country & don't have anybody that is close that can stop by unfortunately. I know it's a long time, that is why I don't leave him in a carrier. Yes, I am gone the long shifts, but because of that I also have more days off I can spend with him. I am going to look into the x-pen also. Thanks everybody!

Glad you are finding some solutions to your problems. Playing with their poop is kind of normal, mama pup would actually lick it off them in the early days, and some people have problems with them eating it, just be glad that's not a problem! Hopefully you find better toys for him to play with. There are also some interactive toys, where you can put some kibble in the toy and they will roll the toy on the floor and get the kibble out. Make sure you leave food out for him all day, the early months they can get hypoglycemia. Wish you the best of luck with Gizmo.

[Chodges]

Personally I think 12 hours is way too long to leave your dog alone. Someone needs to stop by after 6 hours and take him for a walk. I would not want to be locked in a room for 12 hours. He is bored and lonely.