Too late to crate train?
 

When we got Tia at 9 weeks old, we didn't feel comfortable keeping her locked in her crate (which is kinda big for her...borrowed from someone else's dog) while we were at work. She would be alone 5-6 hours per day, and we figured she would never be able to "hold it" and soil her crate. So we would leave her in the bathroom where she learned to use her pee pad.

Eventually we decided we wanted our bathroom back :p so I bought an expen. The idea was to put bedding and toys at one half and a peepad on the other half. Well, during the night, and now even during the day, she does not use this pee pad. Is she learning that the whole pen is her "bed"?

When I let her out in the morniing I bring her to another pee pad thet we have set up near our patio door (eventually we would like her to go in or outdoors...we'll see). She'll pee there every morning no problem. The problem is that she cries in the morning because she has to go. Good...that means she's holding it....but pooping is another story. She'll randomly go whenever and wherever she pleases! I wait with her up to 10-15 minutes some mornings for her to do #2, and she just looks at me like "what? can't I go play now?"

Also...I know that her expen isn't enough of a den like a crate is. I would like her to get used to being in a crate so that eventually we can not use the expen but have her sleep in her crate (this will make it easier to bring her with us when we visit family out of town).

She is 13 weeks old today. Should I buy a small crate and keep it in the expen? She hates going in the expen...we always have to carry her there...and I know dogs are supposed to love being in their "den" because its' their safe place.

Not sure what to do. Any ideas? Opinions? Similar experiences?

Also...we've had her for a month now and she cries pretty much every night at bedtime (the expen is in our living room). Breaks my heart and I want her to feel comfortable in her bed.

I let mine sleep in their crates right next to my bed at night. During the day I put the crates in the x-pen and they go in there to sleep and use the potty pad when needed. I do take the gates off the crates during the day since one of mine likes to climb on the top of them to get away from his sister and I worry he'll catch the side of the gate when jumping down.

crate training is always the best way to train a yorkie, keep in mind smaller dogs are always harder to train becasue they are so sneaky and little they can get away with accidents easy. I had realized it was way to hard for my hammy to hold his potty at such a young age. So at month 6 1/2-7 we started crate training where it took him two weeks to get completly used to staying in there without waking me up, he can now sleep throughout the whole night and i take him outside in the morning time and he goes 1&2. he still has accidents but it will take some time till they are completly trained. stick with it, trust me i know its hard it is. I was so frustrated I contemplated giving him away(he pee'd allover the carpets :thumbdown ) but i stuck with it and now things are so much better

I don't know that crate training is always the best way, but it works for some people. Didn't work for us.

They should not have free roam of the house until they are completely potty trained. If you're worried about them "sneaking away" and pottying out of sight, leash them to you.

Bentley is 7 months, and I think that I'm going to have to start over with the potty training in the kitchen thing.