Patience Running Out
 

I have a 5 month old little girl & she is a bundle of hyperness. She chews on our pants legs & growls mostly in the morning before work or after work while we are trying to play with her. She gets up on our dining room table if we leave the chair out. She attacks my 8 year grandson everytime he comes over & that is quite often since he lives across the street from me. He digs in our backyard constantly. Chews the garbage on our basket in the kitchen if we forget to put it up when we leave to go somewhere. You name it, she does it. We have a 32" gate which she climbs over & have added a 24" gate on top & so far she cannot get over both of them. I have kept her in the kitchen till she was 4 months old than introduced her to the living room. In that time in the kitchen, she had a permanent puppy pad in a tray when we were not home (she chewed the disposable ones) & when we are home she was taken outside. Now she just goes wherever she darn well pleases, even on our recliners. The new thing is to run out the front door when someone comes. When you try to hold her, she wiggles all over the place you can barely hold onto her.

I am a very patience person but when my daughter, nieces & nephews saw the "LOOK" they knew! Yorkies don't know the "LOOK"!

I am seriously thinking of finding a new home for MacKensie. My husband & I are 59 years old & we think we are to old for this youngster. I have an appointment to get her spayed in November & I am hoping this will settle her down as other people have told me.

I have talked to the other three people who have puppies from this litter. Two families have other dogs & are doing quite well. One lady gave her puppy back cause she couldn't deal with it.

We have gone to puppy class & she follows command such as sit, stay & come great. It is just the wildness which is a problem.

I am having out of town company next Monday evening for dinner & I made an appointment at the groomer to be bathed just to have her out of the house so she won't be jumping & biting on the guests. How sad it that!

I am sure she rebels because we are not with her all day. I am a partner in a catering business & cannot take her to work because the heatlth bureau would not appreciate her being there which is understandable.

Since I have been writing this I have stopped to take my telephone bill which she jumped to get off of the desk out of her mouth, took our portable phone out of her mouth & repluged the adapter into the socket & now she is after my computer wires.

Bedtime is the best! I put her to bed in her crate, which is beside my bed at 8:00 each night just like you would put a baby to bed at the same time each night. This is when we can relax. And with all this turmoil during the day, she goes to bed without a wimper & sleeps all night till I wake her at 5:30 AM.

Please tell me this is going to get better cause I am not sure how long we can last.

My daughter who loves all animals & has a dog & cat agrees she is out of control & could not deal with her & she is only 35 years old.

Any reinforcement would be wonderful. I really want to keep her & hope once the puppiness is out of her & the spaying is done she will be the dog I was looking for in our retirement years.

Do you take her for daily walks? Maybe if you tire her out with a long walk, she will have less energy.

I hope you can work this out, so she can stay with you.

Hi, I had the same problem. Our Lacey was bouncing off the walls. She would constantly bite my feet and hands. Thankfully, once she was spayed (at six months) she has really calmed down. She is now 8 months and even allows me to put bows in her hair. Just be consistent with the boundaries. Hang in there, it will get better!! :p

Thank you Monicabrook, I need to hear that!

Ok, i hope i don't sound to harsh. That is entirely not my intention so please don't be offended. Here goes.

First of all, she is just a puppy. Puppies get into much mischief and have to be watched 24/7. That being said i will tell you the best statement i've ever heard and is 100% guarantee - "A tired pup is a good pup". I'm not sure of what kind of exercise you give her but something as simple as tossing a toy across the room and her retrieving it. A couple times will wear this little one out. They are very energentic and need to release that hyper energy.


Second. Way too much freedom for 5 months. Dolce is 1 and Peyton is 7 months and neither have free roam of the house unless we are there to supervise. Yorkies are known for stubborness when it comes to potty training and you need to go back to the basics and start over. I had to do this with Dolce. Started in an exercise pen and graduated to the kitchen. If she missed in the kitchen it was back to the pen. Always in the same area for the potty. i just put the pen in that area.

Third.... NO, NO, NO........every time she does something you don't want her to do simply say no and take her off the table or chair or whatever she is doing. No yelling, eventually she will know what NO means.

It is very sad that you mad an appt. to have her out of the house. Maybe you need to utilize a crate for when company is over and she needs to have quiet time. I use a bathroom that mine go in when we have family functions just because they are tiny and i don't want anyone stepping on them or the younger kids pulling at them. They know its quiet time and they go to sleep. The pen is good but you need a top not a higher pen. She may get hurt if she falls off. Peyton is a climber and the higher you make it the higher he goes. Every time he started to climb up and went over and said "No". He doesn't do it anymore. He knows he isn't allowed.

I wish you the very best with your little one but it takes a lot of work and a lot of patience and a lot of repitition. You can work thru these things if your willing to give it the effort. A 5month old is a puppy and you haven't even reached the teens yet. If you put the work in eventually you will have a well behaved, adjusted dog but not at 5 months.

Good luck.

The above poster is completely right. You need to give it time. Obviously a 5 month old puppy is going to be energetic. What exactly did you expect? Just do a little bit of research about puppies and even Yorkies (on this site or in books) and you should find some helpful ideas.

I believe that she will get better after she is spayed. however you have other issues going on besides her high energy.

How old was she when you got her? if she was 8 weeks old or less, chances are she had not learned proper dog ettiquet from her mother and litter mates. the reason that the person who has other dogs is not having the same problem is because her other dogs have taught the puppy proper dog ettiquet.

The dog does not respect you or your things. You need to establish who is the pack leader. Because, right now, I would guess it is the dog.

Do you get the National Geographic channel? If you do then I sugggest that you watch the dog whisperer on Friday nights. If you don't get it then you might want to consider buying his DVDs.

Also I would go back to limiting the dogs area until she has learned some manners.

I feel bad that you are not enjoying your baby. My dogs, all 5 of them, cannot wait for evenings when they get to come into the living room and sit on my lap until bed time.

I feel bad that I cannot let them have the run of the house all day, but my husband is in a wheel chair and I just worry that they will get under the wheels and get hurt.

:goodpost::goodpost: Excellent post! I also suggest two books, Before and After Getting Your Puppy by Ian Dunbar and Cesar Milan the Dog Whisperer.. bottom line puppies like children have to be trained and puppies like babies are going to act their age! :aimeeyork

hugs to you.

She is still a pup and doing the things pups do. My Chachi was a hyper pup too and he calmed down alot about 1 1/2. Just be patient she will be the perfect dog for your retirement years in a little while

I watch a lot of the show, It's me or the Dog & have gotten some tips from there.
When they nip it because they see you as a toy. On the show, when the dogs do that, she turns her back on them. I've done that with my Clarence (he was barking at food time) & it worked. He finally realized that his barking stopped the whole process instead of speeding it up.

I have said this before, but here goes. We read in one of our training books that you should keep your pup on a leash attached to you. That way you have control at all times. Eventually, you can let her go with leash on for a little ways but can step on that leash if you need to stop her. Ours was on the leash for over a year, but our lives were much happier.:D We could stop bad behavior before it started, and she knew that she was not in control. Our vet told me that giving her the run of the house was like us playing on a football field. Too big. Best of luck to you. We are in our fifties, and our baby is now 7 y/o. We love her to pieces, and she is a calm little girl.;)

My Baxter was like that for a while, and it seemed that I just couldn't get his attention. As he was just a little tazmanian devil lol, in a constant whirlwind. He stayed in a penned area for about 3-4 months in the kitchen. And when I could trust him out of there, then he only had freedom in the kitchen for another month or two. Whenever I had to leave he was put in his kennel. The one thing I had to do to get his attention, as he was moving to fast to even hear me, was get a can with marbles in it and shake it. He would stop and sit and look at me then, so then I could correct the behavior that I didn't like. He just had his first birthday Sunday, and he is free to roam the whold house, except at night as he sleeps in his kennel. At first I really thought that OMG did I make a mistake at getting this puppy, but he is such a little love, and he hardly ever gets told no anymore. Also walks are important, even if you are dog tired at the end of the day. That is one thing that will help save your sanity. Good luck with your baby, it will be worth all the hard word.

I have a Baxter too and that is the age where i seriously thought about giving him away. He also cries every time I leave the room and won't sleep in his crate. He is now 10 months old and greatly improved. Starting to sleep through the night. Walking him did not help so I'm not going to give that advice. It just seemed to pump him up more. I finally decided that I had to calm down because he wasn't going to. I think it is just a stage they go through. Just be glad you are getting to sleep through the night. I used to dread going to bed!! Hang in there. She'll get better. Don't expect spaying to be a quick fix either. Neutering slowed Baxter down a couple of days and then he was ready to go. I think age is the only thing that will slow him down. Good luck.

I think you should send her to me.....PM me and I will send you my mailing address. Just put her in a crate and ship her to me and Maya.:D

I totally agreed with every aspect of this - best post! Note: ALL puppies need lots of training and attention and LOVE. Hopefully you thought it all through before getting her and are willing to committ yourself. Yorkies are extremely smart and very willing to learn. Best of luck and please keep us posted.

Is there a doggie daycare around you? If she had a place like that where you could take her even a few times per week and she could get out all her energy I think she might be a completely different dog. Rory goes everyday and is a better dog because of it. As an added bonus, it helped with her housebreaking - she goes on pads at home, but learned you can go outside at daycare. Not only does she love it there, but she is much calmer in the evenings. Even after a full day of daycare sometimes we take a walk to the park which can end up being close to two hours of walking!

:love::aimeeyork:animal-pa Hey you Guys, I am about to get a 5 month old puppy, I have a 5 yr old who is NO TROUBLE AT ALL!!!... but now I'm reading your posts and realize I better GET READY ... Again!!! for LIFE WITH A PUPPY!! ... YIKES!

However I feel good because I have read "Before and After Getting Your Puppy" by Ian Dunbar... which also recommended keeping the puppy attached to you to help with the houstraining and behavior issues... I've already bought the chest carrier so between that and the leash, Toby (the puppy) and I will be attached at the hip so to speak!! Thank you all for the realistic eye opener!!:eek:

I :love::aimeeyork:thumbup::animal-pa

Maximus is 1 year and 5 months and still a furball of energy! People told me he would slow down when he was neutered. I was a bit sad and thought I would miss his energy b/c it's one of the reasons I love him so much, but when I brought him home, he was jumping from couch to couch and bringing me his favorite toy for fetch. We walk anywhere from 1-4 miles daily. He still comes in ready to play with anyone who will.:)

Yea...exercise...exercise, mental stimulation. They were afterall bred to be somewhat hyper. Well atleast have energy.

Thank you to all! I have read & tried some of your suggestions. Walking always made her more energized. I throw a frisbee to her each day & that seems to work better but not much. The puppy biting seems to have increased more that it was before. I am trying real hard to just keeep saying no & with time this may be the answer. She is more attached to me than my husband since I am the one that caters to her every need. I am getting my husband more involved with her. He thinks she is just adorable & calls her sweetheart all the time but never was really responsible for taking care of her needs. As for as my grandson, for now she will always be a toy to her. I have tried the can with the "coins or marbles" in it, no good. It does not stop her at all. When you say you keep a leash on your dog, does your dog not chew on it? When I take her out in the morning, (I have to take her out at 5:30 AM & it is still dark & we have skunks & groundhogs in our area even though we are in the city) I must put a leash on her & she chews on it after she goes potty. I would love to keep a leash on her all the time because she is very hard to pick up with all her jumping all over the place.

Thank you all again. You may find this hard to believe but I am a really patient person, that is what makes this so hard for me. She keeps pushing buttons I never knew I had!

deffinatly check out the dog whiperer cesar milon..his theory is EXCERISE, DISCAPLIN, THEN AFFECTION..pay close attention to how you are acting and feeling when arround her,,they tend to mirror us. most of all what ever you do, NEVER pet her when she is misbehaving. if you pet her or give her any type of affection when she is doing something you dont like, she is going to think she is getting rewarded for that bahavier! also she needs to earn any affection she gets, even if it is something small..for example,,in the morning I get Riley out of his crate and make him go out side to pee, I dont act excited to see him( even tho its very hard to do) I get him out, I say come on time to go pee,(no excitement in my voice) I use a tone more like a command, I take him outside, and say "go Pee" if he puts his paws up on me to be petted, I move away and say "go pee" in a very matter of fact tone! once he sees that im not going to give him any attention he will go and do his business, after he goes, then I pet him and tell him.."Good boy Riley" then I will let the excitement show in my voice, after that I take him inside and give him his breakfast, food is a reward and they must earn that as well,,he must do something for me! before he gets to eat...try watching your energy,..she wll pick up on exactly how you are feeling..if you are tence and uptight. or aggravated. she will pick up on that and react accordingly..if you are agravated she wll be too..if you are calm she will pick up on that and be calm as well. and most importantly..you should try and visulize the outcome you desire,,because if you imeadiently think,,oh god I know she is going to do this or I know she is going to misbehave,she will go just that!!!you must have a calm accertive energy..they can deffinatly sence things in us! and if she sences you are feeling defeted, she is going to take full advantage of it,you must take on the role of the pack leader, you have to be the alfa dog,,,just keep in mind the way the mother dog acts toward her babies, the mother does not shower the litter with affection, and the mother dog does not take no crap..lol..and the mother dog always has an air of authority about her..it sounds to me like your baby just needs some disiplin so she learns her place in your pack..she is a puppy afterall and she is still learning, and she needs to expell some of that puppy energy..they are just like childern, and they need structor. I would limit her access in the house, and work alot on sit and stay, things like that.(even if she already knows the commands) its getting her to do what you say when you say and then giving her affection.follow through is the key. make her earn your affection and her food. just tell yourself that you are the boss and that is all there is to it! stay calm and in charge,create ways and situations for her to obay you and as soon as she does give her affection. call her over to you and when she does give affection, it can be things as easy as that, the key is her doing what you say. and always use a firm tone of voice when you say NO...she is a baby yet and they do want to please. but they have to be taught how first. and dont worry about being mean. ( the mother dog doesnt worry about it does she?) ;)..if you make yourself feel like an authority figure. she will pick up on that and start seeing you as one. good luck, dont give up. you will get there. but it takes time and dedication.(on your part).and remember Cesar Milan says, that its not the dog that needs to change its us..the student is only as good as its teacher!

To MyMackensie
 

She's going thru her second teething stage so she is going to chew on anything near her mouth. My puppy did that when I started attaching the leash also...you stop it - not by taking the leash off, you tell her NO or STOP IT as soon as she starts. She will quickly learn the word. But you have to use a firm tone or she will ignore you. Dogs understand tone of voice, not English. So it is the tone that makes the difference. I get the impression that you and your husband may be babying and spoiling your furbaby...which I understand is hard not to do!! But she has to respect you and your grand and mouthing at him is disrespect.

If you do not get the National Geographic Channel, please get or borrow from your library Cesar Millan's Dog Whisperer DVD's. His show The Dog Whisperer comes on the National Geographic Channel. Another post told you about him also. He is EXCELLENT and he shows it does not take long at all to get rid of bad behavior. He also have several books out, but I think you will most benefit from seeing him in action.

Also a very good book is "Before and After Getting Your Puppy" by Ian Dunbar. To avoid the walks in the dark, have you tried using puppy pads instead? My 5 yr old is trained to potty pads and does not use the bathroom throughout the house, only where I place the potty pad (even at my office I keep the pads and when she goes to work with me, she know's that's the only place to go). It's not too late to re-train your furbaby to the pads. Dr. Dunbar's book discusses that also.

Final thought the various Pet supply stores Petsmart, Petco etc offer training classes for puppies and adults...very inexpensive, in my hometown it's $109 for 8 weeks. That will be very helpful. :thumbup::aimeeyork:animal-pa

puppy monster
 

I too have a 5 month old puppy monster. Recently I read on one of the posts about the pennies in a can trick. I tried this and so far it has been most effective . He was barking and jumping on the table at mealtimes, getting into everything he could put his teeth on. As soon as I shook the can he backed off. He didn't like the noise at all.

Now I don't even shake the can, I just show it to him. He keeps his distance from the table now. It seems to work for other things to. If he gets out of hand I just pick up the can. As soon as he sees it he stops. It has been a wonderful tool! He's still onery, but much improved. I just wish I had tried it earlier. Best of luck!:)

Keep On Trying!
 

Your little bundle of joy sounds like my little bundle of you! I'm a little older than you - haven't had a dog in 15 years or a Yorkie in 30. Each and every day I see a little improvement in my almost 4 month male Yorkie named Bennett. But, exercise doesn't seem to be the remedy. (At least - most times!) I don't seem to be able to wear him out no matter how much walking and playing we do. Bennett is in socialization class on Thursday and "training" on Saturdays. He, also like you mention about your Yorkie, is very smart and knows all the tricks - it's the behavior of mouthing and tugging and lunging that are getting me down. But - please don't give up! If you need support - send me an email and I'll try my best to tell you what has worked for me.

Pennies In A Can!
 

I tried pennies in a can with Bennett and he thought it was the funniest thing going. The next step after shaking the can - is to throw the can for more noise..not at the dog on the floor. Bennett pushed the can around like it was his new favorite toy. I bought an air horn - party noise makers, etc. to no avail. I'm happy it worked for you - I'm going to try again.

1. Give her at least 2 walks that are 15-30 min per day.

2. Take dog training classes.

I agree with the others. Exercise. And try to find something puppy friendly that she will chew on. Kong, bully stick, natural bone, just keep trying til you find something that keeps her attention. I know your frustrated, but after she gets a little older and is spayed, hopefully she will be a joy to be around. I remember the potty training phase with Otis...It lasted 2 years. I remember being frustrated, but he's 4 now and I can't imagine not having him. Both my boys are so low maintenance. Hang in there! The puppy stage doesn't last forever, Thank Goodness!

I think puppy class would help, and yes it will get better. I took chester to class when he was only 4 months old, you can get some tips. Puppies are work, it is like having a kid. You need to show them you the leader is, they are stubborn and smart.