New to YT - First Ever Pet & Need Some Advice
 

Hi, my name is Karen and I am new to YT. This is my first post (and it's a long one). Myself, my husband and our two kids (ages 12 & 15) will be getting our first ever furbaby at the beginning of March. We will be bringing home an 8 week old male Yorkie who we've named Rocky. We are so excited and would like to start purchasing all the things we need to prepare for Rocky's arrival. I was just wondering if some of the members here could help me out with some answers and advice.

I've been doing a lot of research lately but still have a few questions and concerns. Since it is very cold where we live in Canada right now, I would prefer to housetrain Rocky instead of having him go potty outside. We have a large deck with lots of stairs and a large inground pool in our backyard so housetraining seems more practical and safer. Our neighbours on both sides have larger dogs who they let out in the backyard quite frequently. Also, a neighbour behind us has a few very large dogs who are outdoor dogs. I think it is best for Rocky to always go potty inside. What do you think?

I was planning on keeping Rocky in the kitchen in one of those petyard containment pens from Petsmart with his little bed for daytime naps, toys, water, food & pee pad while we are not playing with him. I work from home so I can keep an eye on him most of the time. From all I've read, this seems like a good setup until he is out of the puppy stage. When he's older, I have no problem with him having free run of the house. Now for bedtime, our son really wants Rocky to sleep in his room with him upstairs. Actually, I would prefer this over him being all alone downstairs. I'm just worried about Rocky getting out of his bed and wandering around my son's room while he is sleeping. My son's room is carpeted so I'm afraid about potty accidents at night and also I don't want Rocky to get hurt. So, do you think it would be better to use one of those travel kennels (crates) that can be locked during the night instead of his little bed (just until he learns to stay put and sleep through the night). I don't want to confuse him though with two different beds or confuse him further with using a travel kennel for a nighttime bed and then using it also for car travel.

Another question. If we have Rocky go potty just before bedtime, do we need to get up in the middle of the night to see if he has to go potty again. If so, for how long do we need to do this? I do know that it is very important to take him downstairs to go potty as soon as he wakes up in the morning.

Last question. At 8 weeks, will Rocky need to go for regular walks outside? Like I mentioned, it is so cold where we live. Right now we have tons of snow and there is ice & salt on the sidewalks. I'm sure he will get lots of exercise inside playing with all his toys and with our two children. In the summertime though I'd like to take him on regular short walks.

I would really appreciate any advice you guys can give me. Sorry about the long post and all the questions but I just want to do what is best for our new member of the family.

Thanks so much!!!

Welcome to YT I am Vicki and my baby is Bleu Boy .. We are so glad you are here! Someone will be by shortly to talk to you .. One big family here !!

Hugs

hi & welcome to yt...u can house train him by using a crate at first...its probably safer that way since u have a yard with a pool and everything...

u can keep him in the kitchen but u should get a gate to block him from going anywhere else so hes safe and dont have any accidents...then when he is trained u can have him have some leway but at night he goes back to sleep on his bed in whatever room u decide...others will come and give u advice too

Welcome to YT. You will learn lost here. But may I ask you why you are getting the puppy at 8 weeks? They really need to be with their momma for at least 10-12 weeks old. It may take a little longer to train him seeing as though you got him so early...and yes, that may mean getting up throughout the night to check on him, etc. Yorkies can sometimes take longer to potty train than most but training him to use the pp pads is a good start. I have mine trained for both...outside and pp pads just in case they must go inside. Also, I think 8 weeks is too young for walks right now. Best of luck and I'm sure others will reply soon with other suggestions.

Welcome to YT! We are looking forward to seeing pictures of your baby.
First off, yes.. I think that potty training him inside would be a good idea. If you do decide to take him outside, please keep him on a leash. Otherwise.. it'd be hard to keep him near the pool or the other big dogs. The playpen is a perfect idea. Most of us use them and it's a better way to keep your dog safe while you're not there without confining him to a crate.

I really wouldn't suggest letting your dog sleep with your son until he is older and fully potty trained for all of the reasons you've listed. Franklin is about 4 months and we won't be letting him sleep with us for at least another year. That's just my opinion though, maybe others can offer their insight.

Lastly, I don't think at 8 weeks he'll need a ton of exercise. He'll get enough running around playing with the kids. Like you mentioned, it's cold. Also, you should wait until he's finished with all of his vaccines. It's an absolute must. We didn't (and still don't) take Franklin out and he still got Parvo and it was scary. He won't be going out for walks for a couple more weeks... we're also waiting until it gets warmer.

If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask! :)

I would be really leary of the eight week thing as well. I know a lot of people on here get their pups early, but according to the yorkie breeders code of ethics, no responsible breeder will let a pup go younger than 12 weeks. 8-12 weeks is some of the most important socializing time with their mommy!

Also, if you haven't done so already, make sure you do lots of research (check out the health and sick threads) on the health conditions and problems these little guys can have. Just ask Vicki and Blue!! Make sure the breeder has a health guarantee and has done the appropriate screenings on mom and dad.

Welcome to YT- you will learn so much here!

Welcome to YorkieTalk:)

He doesn't have to go for regular walks (especially before he gets all of his shots) but you don't want to totally isolate him either or he won't know how to socialize later in life. I would take him to friends and families houses to interact with people (just make sure their pets are vaccinated). Even this it is still a bit risky.

Pee pad training is fine if that is what you want to do. Some people don't like the method though because it is telling the dog they are allowed to go in the house (which could lead them to going off the pad and on the carpet). It should work fine though.

He can sleep anywhere you want him to.:)
If it were me I would crate him in somebody's room (so he isn't alone). I would do this until he gets big enough to be comfortable with him not getting into things or rolled on. Then I would sleep with him.:) If you crate for the first couple months he won't pee on the floor either. It wouldn't hurt to get up during the night and let him do his business. They can only be expected to hold their bladders for maybe 45 minutes to an hour at that age (longer at night).

Eight weeks is very young to get a Yorkie pup. They are very prone to hypoglycemia, so please watch him closely.

Hi and welcome , this place is a wealth of information and everyone is very helpful. I havent had a puppy for almost ten years but am sure there will be others to give you great advice.

Thanks everyone for the warm welcome and quick responses. We will be visiting Rocky shortly at the breeders so I will see if he can be kept there a bit longer with his mom and littermate . Thanks for all the great advice. I really appreciate it!!! Karen

welcome to YT.8 weeks is to young to be away from his momma see if the breeder can keep him until he is 12 weeks.

Welcome to Yorkie Talk!

I went through exactly the same questions when I got my Bitsy.

Bitsy is my maltese/yorkie and she is 7 months old now.
I brought her home on September 1st when she was 9 weeks old. I took 2 weeks off work and then I did a week of half days at work so I can potty train her.

I decided to use washable pee pads before I even brought her home, so when she did arrive, I started training her on pee pads right away. She was more or less pee pad trained in 2 weeks. I decided to have her pee pad trained because I live in an apartment and didn't want to go outside in the middle of the night so she can pee. So, it can be done.

When it was warmer, I use to walk her an hour and a half a day. Now that it's freezing, we only go for half an hour. I make sure I bundle her up in her jacket and sweater before we go out, and she doesn't seem bothered by the cold at all. I started walking her outside at 12 weeks (she had 2 of her shots at this point), but only on sidewalk, not on grass (until she's fully vaccinated).

As for the playpen, I think it's a good idea. I have a SuperYard XT, which is like a play pen that you can pull apart and put in different configurations. I use the Superyard to gate her off. When I'm at work, she has run of the hallway and the bathroom. Bitsy is a little chewer, and she has chewed through 2 of my speaker cables. All my other cables have been sprayed with Bitter Apple spray, and it works.

The sleeping part: Bitsy has slept with me from day 1, although not with full run of the bed until she was about 4 months old. I bought a tiny popup tent thing from Target made for cats. At night, I put Bitsy in her tent (which is on my bed, beside my pillow) and zip her up. When she does cry, I take her out to her potty area so she can potty, then I put her right back into her tent. For the first week I've had her, she sometimes needed to go pee in the middle of the night. As time went on, she needed to go less and less. Then from about the fourth week I've had her, she holds it all night. When I was 100% confident she can hold it all night, I stopped zipping up her tent. The tent is still on the bed beside my pillow, but Bitsy usually ends up sleeping by my feet. Usually I find one of my cats sleeping in the tent now.

I have 2 kennels for Bitsy, and her sleep tent. I have a pink kennel that stays in the car for her car rides, and I have a regualr kennel that stays in the bathroom for her to sleep in while I'm at work.

Sorry for the long answer.

Good luck!

I really like the tent idea. We are close to Buffalo, NY so we go over the border quite a bit. Next time we go I will check Target for the cat tent. Thanks!!!

Hello and welcome to YT!!! Congrats on a new puppy!!! How exciting for you and your family!

I wouldnt worry about taking him on walks yet, wait till this summer when he is a llil bit older.

Mine still want to get up around 4am to go potty. Yorkies have such tiny bladders.

P.S. I also have a Rocky :)

:wavey: Welcome to YT!! So glad you are asking questions before you get your little one home. I hope the breeder will hang to him for you for a few more weeks. Actually, staying with his momma & littermates longer, should make potty training & a lot of other things much easier on your family. While, I know you're anxious to bring him home, the wait will be worth it.

I would avoid anyone sleeping with your puppy - there are so many dangers involved or potty accidents

When you get your lirrle guy, you'll have to sign him up for our Little Gentleman's Club, you can do so on this thread: http://www.yorkietalk.com/forums/sho...ight=gentleman

Heres what I did...
 

As far as the sleeping arrangements go, whats best is to stop giving your puppy water and food at a certain time before bed. For example, i was advised by my vet to start feeding the puppy at 7am, 12 pm and 5 pm. They can have water in between. If you go to bed at 10 or so, you should take the water away at about 8:30 giving them time to relieve themselves before bedtime, and they should sleep good through the night without having to go again, for best results for awhile have the puppy in whats called 'crate training' this will allow the puppy to understand to hold it until you are up to take him out again. Its worked great for me, but every puppy is different! Congrats on the dog and best of luck!