Nightmare of a day!
 

So.... Maxwell is about 15 weeks and we've had him for about 9. Today the thought occurred to me that if he wasn't just so darn cute I'd knock him out! (I wouldn't any way but he's sure been pushing buttons!!!) I realize he's still little (I keep telling myself that anyway), I'm just windwring when can I realistically expect him to behave!
He is absolutely content to sit in my lap and is generally very quiet and still when I hold him. However he eats my kids! I try to get them to correct him (gently my youngest is only 4) but he pays them no mind. He's not being mean just playing but it isn't very fun for my children.
He eats EVERYTHING... I have resorted to keeping him leashed in the house because if a toy is on the floor (and there is almost always something) he will find it.... Which isn't surprising but then he runs away so I can't get it! And he is smart sneaky and therefore hard to catch! This is not only annoying and exhausting for me but dangerous for him. Much less so when he is leashed.
He still messes in the house occasionally which I know takes time and is more my fault than his but still added to the whole frustration today.
Yes I know he's a puppy and it takes time... I would just like opinions s about realistically how long these terrible twos last! Thanks in advance!

Until he's about 2 yrs old !!

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

The first year is the most challenging, and the second year is slightly less so.

How many kids do you have and how old are they?

Your pup needs lots of structure and training.

1) Eating everything -- puppies explore everything with their mouths. This will slow down with age, but vigilance is a lifelong commitment to make sure the dog doesn't choke or eat something toxic. Training to "drop it" or that certain things are dangerous takes a lot of work. I have a very spartan home, two adults, yet my dogs still manage to get a hold of things every once in awhile. Always makes me wonder how these little guys survive in the average home.

2) Always supervise the pup with your kids, which it sounds like you are doing with him tethered. The pup needs to be taught bite inhibition and not to nip.

3) Institute a schedule/daily routine for your pup where you do the basic activities at about the same time each day -- eating, sleeping and napping, play periods, scheduled potty breaks, walks. This will have a calming effect and his body will fall into the rhythm knowing when to expect things.

4) start basic obedience/trick training if you haven't already. If your kids are old enough, involve them too. Clicker training is very helpful.

Watch videos on YouTube on training and start googling positive reinforcement training methods. Also keep in mind that a pup will mirror the level of excitement around him. So if everyone around him is excited or animated, the pup is going to do the same.

Puppies tend to play rough with their littermates, so this probably what he is doing with your kids.

Also, puppies have tons of energy and need a lot of activity to burn off the fuel.

It does get easier, but training is a must. It doesn't happen with age alone.

:lol tears sorry, but I can almost see your frustration! I have a 7 month old puppy and she has her days of mischievous mayham! She loves to run and grab anything that falls on the floor! My grankids can only eat at the table so she doesn't eat any food of theirs. The toys are not a problem as she is not a destructive chewer. It will get easier and some training would probably be a big help to you! Best of luck with your little mischief maker! :)

My baby is 16 months old and sounds very similar to yours. It does get better and just hang in there. They are so very sweet and pretty soon you will look back on this and laugh

My boy is 4 and my girl is 9... He thinks they are equally delicious. I do step in to reprimand him... I literally don't let him out of my sight! If I must he gets crated. Thankfully he is content in his "room" mostly. I am laughing already... I imagine I look quite ridiculous crawling behind the chair trying to cut him off! I was seriously hoping someone would say more like 6 months... My kids want to sleep with him and I'd like to be able to just let him go and not have to run after him every second... But none of that is remotely possible right now...
Here's hoping he's special cause two years of this will definently be rough!

...just a small suggestion, that in no way takes the place of training and scheduling -- but he'll be easier to get to if you 'ribbon' him... i.e., put a halter on him and attach a 6 foot ribbon or very light cord to the halter. At least you can reign him in without getting down on the floor. Don't try this with anything attached to a collar. Too hard on their trachea's.

Definitely takes breaks for yourself during the day by putting him in an xpen or gated off small area -- a safe zone.

The problem with running after him is that he thinks that is a great game of chase. Max learned that one quickly and I played into it.

When your pup has something that he shouldn't, use a food reward to entice him to drop it. Say "want a treat?" and he should learn to drop the item and come running. When he does, praise him.

Also, when he has something naughty, say "That isn't good for you" or "uh uh uh." Establish keyphrases. My boys seem to do better with keyphrases than a simple "no." They also know "you don't want that." It's amazing how much language these little guys can pick up. You don't want to ramble on, just short phrases.

:lol tearsHang in there it gets better, slowly but surely !!

Oh Honey their ALL Special !!

It took me a minute to understand what you meant... This is a clever idea that I suppose I can try... Although I'm almost certain he'll eat the ribbon! Lol
Also I realized quickly how important a harness was... I absolutely can't bring him outside unleashed... He will find something... I.e. a leaf and run under the car or truck where I can't get him... And pulling him out by his collar is definitely not an option!

I don't really have the room for a large pen in the house... But because of the open floor plan we have it is impossible to gate off an area where he won't be alone during the day... I could gate the bathroom, but he would be unable to see anyone... I think he's getting accustomed to being tied up... I have a long retractable leash so he has plenty of room to move much more than he would in a pen I imagine...
You are probably so right about chasing him being a game... I had not thought about that... I will try the treats to get him to come... Funny thing is I think he already knows what is for him and what is not... If he gets a dog toy he'll bring it to his bed... But when he grabs one of the kids things (without me saying a word) he'll take off running! Which in his mind i suppose starts the chase! Just one of the downsides of having such a clever dog!

Teeka use to do the come chase me game! I stopped, clapped my hands, (gets her attention) turn to go in the house & she would slowly come back. I can now, say her name, clap my hands and she comes running at full speed! It will get easier!!! Good thing they are so adorable!

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. :)

when I brought Remy home my shih tuz was such a great baby sitter:) He would play and play and play some more with her and it was great. I had issues but he wore her out by using up her energy and it made it easier on me.

You have received a lot of good advice.. I use the "ribbon" when it is storming or fireworks so I can see it would work 24/7 ... of course don't leave unattended.

As far as the crate or playpen. It does not have to be large. My dd got a really large one and her pup hated it, she then returned and got a small one and it works fine. I used a child's pack and play that I got from a consignment store... it wasn't perfect like new, but cheap and when done I could toss it.

good luck. it is worth it I promiss

:eek::eek::eek:
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!!

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!

And always a harness never a collar.

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!

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!

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.

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 !!

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!

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.

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!

Good to hear that there is some progress!

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!

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.