Nightmare of a day!

[Yorkiemom1]

Originally Posted by Maximo

If you don't mind the leash, it is great to use.

Bathrooms -- if you ever need to pen him in one, be sure to close the toilet lid and maybe even use a child safety latch. There have been a couple of tragedies on YT where the pup drowned in the toilet. Best wishes. It does get easier.

OMG!!! One of the Yorkies jumped into the toilet?????!!! I would have never guessed they could do that!!! Good to know! I dont ever use a room to block off a Yorkie anymore, since a puppy chewed up custom made cabinets all around the kitchen.......then there was the baseboards and wall paper in the master bath....I use crates and ex-pens now and keep them AWAY from walls or cabinets!!

[dawn27]

I learnd the hard way year ago, and isnce then I have always use a cage for my babies. Less destruction that way. My pups will go in their cage without even being told, just to nap or on command. A teething or a pup with anxiety issues can and will more that likely destroy anything in its path!

[beachdog]

And always a harness never a collar.

[gemy]

Well in my opinion an open house plan is perfect for a small play pen or Xpen. And again while no one has said this, a four year old should not be correcting a puppy Yorkie. Gently or not. Four year olds, do not have the co-ordination and balance, after all they are still themselves getting their feet under them.

Your pup needs to be kept in their play pen, until you walk, exercise, play, train with them. And that needs to happen for a pup a whole lot over the day. Puppies needs tons of exercise in short bursts, and then safe nap time.

Of course you knew this when you decided to get a pup of any breed. How-ever as I am sure your research high-lighted small Yorkie pups are not the best mix with small human children. Yorkies are very vulnerable given their small size. After all the standard calls for 6-7 lbs, a human child at 4yrs old weighs thrice that.

Puppies of any breed require for the short term a very large commitment of time and training. When they grow up they require only a large commitment. Exercising daily, training daily, being a part of your household.

I wish you well with your pup

[Candy5198]

Originally Posted by gemy

Well in my opinion an open house plan is perfect for a small play pen or Xpen. And again while no one has said this, a four year old should not be correcting a puppy Yorkie. Gently or not. Four year olds, do not have the co-ordination and balance, after all they are still themselves getting their feet under them.

Your pup needs to be kept in their play pen, until you walk, exercise, play, train with them. And that needs to happen for a pup a whole lot over the day. Puppies needs tons of exercise in short bursts, and then safe nap time.

Of course you knew this when you decided to get a pup of any breed. How-ever as I am sure your research high-lighted small Yorkie pups are not the best mix with small human children. Yorkies are very vulnerable given their small size. After all the standard calls for 6-7 lbs, a human child at 4yrs old weighs thrice that.

Puppies of any breed require for the short term a very large commitment of time and training. When they grow up they require only a large commitment. Exercising daily, training daily, being a part of your household.

I wish you well with your pup

Thank you for the well wishes first of all.

First to address the pen idea. Just because we have an open house plan doesn't mean we have room for a pen. Our house is quite small and quite full with the little furniture we have already. Aside from putting a pen in the middle of my kitchen which would leave no room for us we just don't have the space. I chose to keep him on his leash rather than locked in his kennel when I can't focus on only him. He is within reach of his food/water his bed and his kennel if he chooses to be left alone.
Second we got max for my children. Both are quite advanced for their age (I'm really not just a boastful mom) otherwise I would not have even considered the idea. I do keep a close eye when they play with him. He doesn't bite me except accidentally when going to get a toy. But I have corrected him every time. He will attack my children however in a playful way but its still not acceptable. I do correct him myself but I have been stressing to both of them that they cannot allow him to do it and they should push him away and give a stern "no bite" if it comes from them he won't think he can get away with it if he thinks I'm not looking.
His size was intimidating at first... He was only 6 weeks when we got him... But I think he's a perfect fit for us. I have spent just as much time training my kids to handle him as I have training max. No wonder I'm exhausted!

[ChibiLuv]

Sorry to say but it is going to be a long road. Sounds like your Max is a lot like my Molli was and still is. She is very mischievious and eats everything, she knows when shes got something shes not supposed to have and runs and tries to hide with it. I've pretty much had to keep my house "baby proof" and give her lots of things to play with. She can even open cabinets and has eaten: soap, shampoo, hair spray, electrical cords, computer equipment and more! She is the most loving dog but is especially mouthy and plays rough, I dont have kids but if I did I would also teach them to tell her "No bite" and sometimes she needs a 'timeout' or a special run around the block to get her excessive energy out. My other yorkie is nothing like this- I think it's just a personality thing. My Molli just turned 2 and has calmed down a little, training classes helped a bit but I do have to tell you she is still in her 'terrible twos' I wonder if it will ever end.
I love my little girl more than anything but it is a lot to take on, good luck!

[Candy5198]

Well of course I'm hoping he out grows it... Mostly for his sake. My intentions weren't to keep him caged forever and certainly not to have him leashed in the house but for his safety I don't have a choice. I try to keep my house clear (even before we got max) but it is an impossible task with my little ones. So far he hasn't gotten himself into much trouble with eating things...only because I watch him constantly! The only thing he's managed to actually swallow are the cane flies.., he loves chasing them and I'm NOT digging bugs out of his mouth! Lol
The fact that he seems to want to devour everything in sight worries me the most. Not so much cause he'll destroy something but because its so dangerous.

[dawn27]

I might help his chewing habit it you make sure he has all types of toys. Hard, soft sqeaky, rubbery ones and maybe get him some raw hide or a kong ball filled with peanut butter or some frozen yogurt of something. It will keep him busy for a fairly long time period and tire him out. You do have to watch the raw hide to see to it that if he chews a big chunk off that he doesn't swallow it. You want to be prepared for when he starts teething or gets bored. They tend to mouth everything incl the kids !!

[DexterBoy]

Originally Posted by Candy5198

Oh sweet Jesus! I'm going to lose my mind!

I'm going through the same thing!
Luckily I don't have kids (thus he is the only one).
Good luck to both of us!

[gracielove]

Oh my! The puppy months are very challenging. My Gracie was a hand full for the full first 12 months of her life! They are just babies you know. Just like you baby proof a home when your kids are crawling you have to also puppy proof the areas where your puppy will be. The first year is all about exploring and tasting everything.

When your puppy is not in the pen, or where ever you confine him, keeping him on a leash with it attached to you is a very good idea. That way you know when he has to potty and can get him there in time and you can keep him from destroying things.

You got him at a very young age. The first 3 months of a puppy's life is really the infant stage. You basically have to be a mom to the helpless little thing. Right now you have a toddler that needs to taste everything as that is how they learn what things are. Of course it is very dangerous and so it's up to you again to protect him from himself.

There are articles on YT about bite inhibition. Puppies that leave their mom and litter mates early tend to have more of a problem with the biting issue. You might want to do a search for those threads as there was some very good advice.

Just make a plan for yourself and the other members of you family about how you are going to face the coming months. It does take a lot of time and dedication to train a puppy to be a good family member. There is no quick fix. You just have to keep at it with consistency, and lots of love and encouragement.

[Candy5198]

Originally Posted by gracielove

Oh my! The puppy months are very challenging. My Gracie was a hand full for the full first 12 months of her life! They are just babies you know. Just like you baby proof a home when your kids are crawling you have to also puppy proof the areas where your puppy will be. The first year is all about exploring and tasting everything.

Thanks for the encouragement. I'm the type of mommy that didn't even need to childproof my home..(but I did anyway) because I never let my babies out of my sight... I feel the same way with Max except I can't ignore the needs of my children on his account. I was expecting him to be a terror for the first year but hopefully not much longer than that. He's really not THAT bad... Just very tiring sometimes I just feel like I'm running all day... It has been a better couple of days having him leashed when I'm busy. And I have been getting him to come to me when he does get something by offering a treat instead of playing chase.. It's working!
I just really hope you are right that its because he is so young... My daughter is dying for him to sleep with her. I'm just really hoping that one day I can trust him to!

[dawn27]

Good to hear that there is some progress!

[Hrossen11]

I also have a four year old and our puppy lives to tug on her ankles. I have an empty soda can with a few pennies and she shakes it when the puppy grabs her ankles. I also have an open floor plan so I use a hearth gate that makes a u-shape around the patio door. My four year old is not supposed to pick up the puppy (3lb) but again she is four so I constantly watch her or puppy is in his blocked off area.

[Candy5198]

Originally Posted by Hrossen11

I also have a four year old and our puppy lives to tug on her ankles. I have an empty soda can with a few pennies and she shakes it when the puppy grabs her ankles. I also have an open floor plan so I use a hearth gate that makes a u-shape around the patio door. My four year old is not supposed to pick up the puppy (3lb) but again she is four so I constantly watch her or puppy is in his blocked off area.

The soda can is a great idea.. I think that would work well for my daughter (age 9) also. However i am not too sure my 4 yr old son would use something like that appropriately... He may just drive everyone nuts! Thanks for the idea!

[dawn27]

Originally Posted by Candy5198

The soda can is a great idea.. I think that would work well for my daughter (age 9) also. However i am not too sure my 4 yr old son would use something like that appropriately... He may just drive everyone nuts! Thanks for the idea!

I love a shaker can, I used it to train our pups too. You can find directions on how to make one and use them properly on my site under training tips. Some people do not agree with using them, but if done right there is no harm done. I hope your little guy is doing better. Its not easy but it worth it.