Gabby got out of playpen...now what??
 

My 12 week old yorkie got out of her playpen (baby pack and play) while I was gone to church this morning. What do I do now? I am contemplating putting her in the bathroom tomorrow when I leave for work. Would this be suitable? I am a teacher and leave at 7 and return home around 3:45 or 4. I don't think crate training is an option at this point due to her not being able to potty. She has had trouble sleeping through the night since I got her. I am at my wits end. She has been with me over 2 and half weeks. Any help would be appreciated. :):animal-pa

Your schedule sounds like mine, and our puppy is just a few weeks older. We use a pen with her food, open crate, and pee pads inside. She is learning to use the pads (finally) and her crate doubles as her bed. We only close it when needed for her safety (in the car) or our sanity!

For tomorrow, put her in the bathroom and expect the worst!;) At least their messes are small!

There are lots of good threads on here about using pens/crates to potty train. In a few more weeks you will be able to crate her during the day, and in a few months she will be able to have the run of the house.

Hang in there! The first few weeks and months are the hardest, and the rewards last for years.

Pen
 

What kind of pen do you use? We have a pack and play and she jumped out of it. We even covered the top with a blanket and clamped the blanket down. She jumped so hard she broke the clamps.

Bathroom is fine. Make sure the toilet lid is closed and that nothing is within reach to chew or eat.

Crate training is not advisable for small dogs who do not have potty access for 8 hours. I highly recommend piddle pad training her. Disposable piddle pads are often a chewing hazard for pups who are not supervised during training. Washables usually solve the chewing problem.

Playpen
 

Should I try the popup playpens or just try the bathroom for a while? Thank you for all the help. I am new to this and this is my first inside dog.

The question is how much of a climber is she? Some pens are easily climbable, like the white plastic ones. I have the metal pens from Tractor Supply (also sold at PetSmart and Petco), but some Yorkies are capable of climbing even the 4 feet tall ones.

This is the pen I have: Midwest Black E-Coat Exercise Pens - Dog Exercise Pen and Dog Pens from petco.com

The bathroom is fine. As I wrote above, just make sure to put everything well out of reach: toilet paper, toiletries, towels, etc.

How much does she weigh? With small Yorkies, hypoglycemia can be an issue. She should have drinking water available and ideally a little food. Do you work close to home such that you check in mid day or have someone else check her?

Trained
 

She is puppy pad trained. She took to potty pad training quite quickly.

:thumbup::thumbup: That is excellent.

dog
 

I wish you could fence her in the kitchen area or somewhere not so confined as the bathroom. My boys are fenced in the kitchen area when I leave the house. I have an extended fence with wood going up and down and they cannot climb or jump over that. If she climbs I hope she won't fall. These Yorkies are so smart we have to be one step ahead of them. I would get a round fence that she cannot climb or jump out of. Our Petsmart carries them

I have a big exercise pen for the boys. Ricky can scale a baby gate. but this is much taller. It's so big that it takes up the whole kitchen even. I usually just put it up in the kitchen, but I've also used it as a gate in the kitchen so they have the whole kitchen to run around in. I love the exercise pen because I can shape it the way i want it.

9 hours is a really long time to leave a puppy alone...it's a long time to leave any dog alone. Sectioning the pup off in the bathroom or a room, IMO, is way better than keeping them locked in a cage for that length of time. Do you hae a dog walker that can come by and walk her once a day or a doggie daycare she can go to??

Definitely make sure everything dangerous is up in the bathroom...the tp, the toilet brushes and the toilet cleaning chemical etc etc...make sure the toilet seat is down too and that she can't eat any rugs you leave around. I am sure she will get bored and want to get into michief...add a puppy that's teething in there and you could have a chewing frenzy. I personally wouldn't leave anything to chew on in her cage unsupervised unless it was something like a kong toy. The kongs are great because you can put something like peanut butter inside so they can try to lick that out, but they can't bite a piece off and choke on it.

She's probably not sleeping well at night because she's snoozing all day and when you get home "it's playtime"! You could try to put a clock in with her to mimmick moms heartbeat?? It may sooth her. You could also leave the tv or the radio on for her.

You could also look into getting a Ritchell Pen with a top on it so she cant climb out. If I had a puppy, that is the pen that I would be getting. They have a big pen and I love that they've got a part that's a designated potty area...and it's made out of wood and is a lot nicer looking than the metal pens. It's a bit more expensive than a regular crate, but I think it's well worth it.

Bathroom didn't work
 

Well, the bathroom is not an option anymore, seeing as she chewed my water line from the wall to the toilet. UGH! YIKES! Husband is quite angry with her at this point. I do not live close to my job so I can't go by there and check on her at lunch. I couldn't even if I lived close, as I am a teacher and can't leave in the middle of the day. My dad is going by at lunch to check her everyday. We are really frustrated. Her not sleeping and her lack of ability to stay in a pen is becoming very frustrating. Last night, we played and kept her awake from 4 to 10 pm. She went to sleep right away and woke up at 11:30 and then began to destroy by bathroom and chew the water line. She weighs 2.5 pounds and is 12 weeks old. Thank you again for all your help.

I use a Richell pen for Kimberly. Her's is a bit big because she's on the larger side, but they make smaller sizes. It has a door in the front, and it comes with a cover for the top to ensure there's no possible way for her to get out, unless I want her to :)

http://i62.tinypic.com/290tvkh.jpg

http://i62.tinypic.com/30iyopc.jpg

Richell pen
 

Does this have a place for her to potty?

:( I can really, really feel the frustration in your posts - and I'm so sorry.

It's so difficult to totally puppy-proof a room - however much you think you've got it covered, it seems they manage to find the vulnerable spot.

Harry was very similar when he was tiny - Mr. Houdini could escape from anything. I tried a large, enclosed, wooden crate - but little by little he worked at it, and managed to chew his way out....

We ended up buying a BIG, completely enclosed crate - and I mean big....enough to hold all of his 'bits and pieces' with plenty of room to spare, enough for him to practically run around in. It took up a huge part of our lounge - but it was only for a few months - and it was worth it.

We used that only when one of us wasn't there - really until he was potty-trained and past the chewing stage. He had to be protected from himself.

I truly wish you luck - I know exactly how you're feeling - but I promise, it does pass!! Sally + Harry :aimeeyork x

Kimberly only potties outside. I'm very strict with her. The pen is large enough, however, to fit a wee wee pad.

Check out this thread...

http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/gen...chell-pen.html

And here is a pic of her pen...

IMG_0055_zpsf370ea61.jpg Photo by cdra1 | Photobucket


This pen is expandable. You can buy the top for it. I believe you can also buy a room divider for it so you can put the pee pads in one side and the puppy can't drag them into the other side where their bed and food is.

Try to see things from your puppies POV. She's been with her littermates and mommy her whole life. They have soothed her and kept her company and been her security blanket. Now she's alone in a crate or confined space all by herself 18 hours out of the day. A lot of yorkies don't do well by themselves . They are happiest when they are with their pack. She is most likely chewing out of boredom, frustration and anxiety because she does not like being alone and she doesn't like being confined.

If you have a small enough crate and enough space in your bedroom, perhaps you could put her on your nightstand while you sleep or if you can't put her on your nightstand, you could put her right next to your bed. If she can see and/or smell you, this may soothe her enough to sleep better. You could also put one of your t-shirts that smells like you in her crate during the day. That might help soothe her.

I know having one sounds like a handful, but have you thought about getting her a playmate?? My 10 year old had separation anxiety and we got him a little brother and it made a world of difference. If your little girl had another brother or sister to play with and keep her company, she may not act out as much as she is right now.

It will get better!! Just hang in there!! This is a huge adjustment period for both you and your puppy!! Pretty soon, she will get accustomed to your schedule and she will start to self-soothe.

Oh...also, if your puppy starts chewing things you don't want her to chew, they've got a product called Bitter Apple and you spray it on those places you don't want her to chew on. It tastes yucky to most dogs so typically one taste of it and they won't go back for another.

I wish you lived closer as I am selling my richell. Jess doesn't need it anymore. I got the medium one with the top and a door she has to walk through to get to her potty side. It was a lifesaver. Unfort as she got older she didn't like being in there and although she poo'd in the potty side she would get anxious and run through it and get it all over the pen. Luckily it has a floor or Im not sure if we would have been able to keep her as much of my home as white rugs (not my idea came with the house lol)She now goes in the mudroom when we are out as my home is big and she could get into too much and has run of the house when Im home (which I most of the time) the richell is worth every penny.. I got mine on wayfair. They have coupons and had the best price..oh and it expands up to 60 inches long!!

I have a medium size crate that she goes into at night and if we are gone for just a couple hours. It has enough room for her bed on one side, and a pee pad on the other. She has never used the pee pad.
Our kitchen is gated off so if we are gone for more than a few hours she is kept in there. There is access to her pee pad and water and food (if necessary). I did have to buy some yucky tasting stuff to put on the corner of the kitchen cabinets as she started to munch on them. I had to end up getting taller gates cause she learned how to climb over the ones that are 18" high.

I wish I lived closer too. I would so buy yours. LOL! Thank you for replying.