Help! My Yorkie is Bad
 

I'm in love with Cosmo, he's the cutest bravest little thing, but I made the mistake of knowing nothing about his breed, I just fell in love and went for it. He pees everywhere, he attacks my poodle viciously and he does whatever he wants.

He was kicked out of obedience school for fighting. He's not welcome at the groomers for fighting. He pees everytime I turn around and he's caused thousands of dollars in damage to my floors.

I'm sure I'm the one who's bad at training him, but I just don't know what to do. My poodle was perfect, he wants to please, he's smart, never barks and does everything I tell him. He was just born that way, I never did much. So I was ignorant when I got the Yorkie. Now he is 5 and I'm about to spend a few more thousand dollars changing my floors upstairs.

If there was someone who would love him like I do, but actually knew how to train him and take care of him, I would let him go. I'm just so frustrated because I have tried crating and so many other things. He even knows how to pee outside the crate when he's in it.

Any thoughts

Good luck, one of mine, 2 1/2 yr old girl, is recovering from surgery she had 5 weeks ago....She has been confined mostly to a corral in the house so she rests...Or we carry her around....Anyway, she's been peeing for 5 weeks straight on the wee wee pad in her area, and each day she gets a bit more freedom as not to reinjure her knee...However, out of her corral, not 5 minutes away from a wee wee pad (there are 4 around the house) she pees on the padding of our carpet that we are removing and putting down new flooring !! 5 minutes , we were even outside for at least half hour !!!
They are just stinkers, good thing I love her !

I am sorry you are getting frusterated. Is he nuetered? I know that Bobby would mark his territory and was a little aggressive prior to his surgery. I would also try contacting several trainers and explain your situation. Maybe they could train him 1 on 1 so he will not be distracted with others....
I hope you find your solution.

If he is not neutered then I would suggest that you do that and work from there. Aggression and alot of bad behaviours in males an be stopped by neutering.

I agree that a Poodle is totally different than a Yorkie!! I too had a little Poodle and she was so good always!! Lily is total different in every way!! She is better than she was and she is FINALLY going on her pee pads most of the time but she still will not let me brush, comb, blow dry, barely bath her in kitchen sink and she bites me then!! She sleeps w/us and has never pee/pooped in our bed so I guess it could be worse??LOL I love her to pieces but she is the most expensive and time consuming dog I have ever seen!!

Can't neuter him
 

Cosmo has very severe collapsed trachea and sounds like a duck when he breathes. He can't undergo the anesthesia because they have to stick a trachea tube down his throat. I can't afford one on one training now. I'm spending a lot of money keeping him healthy with his trachea condition. The condition only sounds awful, but it doesn't slow him down one bit.

I guess I'll try the pee pads again. I have a trunk full in my car since they've never worked. I'm just beginning to feel like there is someone who can take better care of him than I can. But then again, I don't think he's unhappy. I work from home and I'm with him all day everyday. I hike with them, play with him, feed him treats, meet all his needs. I'm the one who isn't happy in the relationship, but I think "rehoming" him would break my heart and make me feel like a failure. I don't quit at anything and I am loyal. My poodle is 11 years old and had some expensive scary medical problems, but I worked my butt off and even took medical training to help him get better.

I just don't know what to do.

Try going to this website... AllExperts Questions & Answers

They have people for various reasons, but they have a section for pet training. Maybe consult one of the trainers and see what they would suggest. Tell them about every problem you have with him and see what they suggest. It's completely free.

Have you tried belly bands? You wrap them around his belly and put a disposable feminine pad inside it so he can't mark in your house. Also I would confine him to smaller parts of the house until he can learn to respect it. Are you walking him for at least 45 minutes minutes before he gets any kind of run of the house or before he goes to the trainer? This might help if you aren't. Good Luck!!

Maybe try one of the indoor potty systems to give him a place to go when he is in there. This one got really good reviews and it has a small hydrant that goes on it to give him a target. Also the belly bands are pretty good help as well.

DoggiePotty Indoor dog bathroom. Doggie potty a training solution.

It's rough but you can always come on here and whine to us...we have all had potty issues.

My Yorkie Gucci is almost 4 months now and I have to say, I had pee pee problems and control problems with him at first. He though HE was tha alpha dog and it seems that is what your little one thinks too.
I tried everything, but nothing was working and my last ditch effort was an ebook. I bought it and read it, so you dont have too! :)

The main thing to do first is show him who's boss. Do this by taking his food away 30 minutes after you place it down. WHEN you place it down, make sure he sees you do this so he knows that you are in control of when he eats and drinks.
Next, and this is so little, but it worked! When you take him outside, you have to walk out first. This way he sees that YOU lead the way. And take him out on a leash, this also shows that you control where he goes. It is also good to show him that he should do his biz in one spot all the time.

Once you have established that you are the boss, then he should listen to you. So when he is peeing in the rug and you firmly give him a sharp "NO!" he should stop and you pick him up and take him to his outside spot.
This should hepl with all the damage he is doing too. Keep telling him no when you see him doing it pick him up and remove him from that area and give him other things to chew on.

I tell ya, my little stinker has come a long way in just a month of doing this. I think that once they learn that you are in control of everything, they listen to you. Makes sense right?;)

So we are still working on Gucci's accidents but they are now by the door, which means I missed the signs. It really is alot of work, but I am sure once he is trained it is all worth it.

I hope I helped! Let us know how it goes if you try it!

He was kicked out of obedience school for fighting

Please don't be mad at me, but this is just hilarious

Belly Band.....Thats what I use....Check out the Dog Whisper books I love that man...You can make this work....Or maybe someone will take him that knows about Yorkies....Good Luck....

Belly Band

That's what I'd try.

Belly band is a Great start. Some of our YTers sell some cute ones.
I trained Zander by taking him outside to tinkle 1st thing in the morning, as he is peeing OUTside, I would say Good boy Pipi, immediately give him a treat, I chose cheerios, I would play with him for 20 minutes, then put him in the crate, take him out, play crate. I read all I could about Potty training, with crate and other ways. While he is Not potty trained HE should not have the run of the house. When he picks on your other furbaby, tell your yorkie, NO, then put him in his crate or time out. Watch Cesar Milan dog whisperer, online or on tv. he is great, I also like the lady from It's me Or the Dog.

You have to show your dog, discipline, boundaries, you Will be so proud and happy of your Good boy, arm yourself with knowledge and help Your Cutie be the best lil Furboy. ;) :thumbup:

YOu said he's 5...months or years? If years, has he always been like this or has he gotten worse. I missed it, did you say he is or is not nutered?

Cosmo
 

Thank you all so much for your encouragement. I have read the Cesar Milan books, walk ahead of him outside, make him sit for food. You guys have Yorkies, you know how incorrigible they can be. He was born like this. He was the runt of his litter and he was bullying them when I met him. At the time, I thought it was irresistable, but I'm not embellishing, he locks his jaws onto my Poodle when he attacks him. I pull him and it would literally pull my 8 lb Poodle off the ground. I have to pry his jaws off. He is just a little gangster. His best friend is a Rottweiler named Capone (and he dominates him).

Cosmo is my heart, but I suck at being his leader. It's almost like owning a fighting breed where everyday is battle of the will (and bladder). He's like crack though, I know he's bad for me, but I just put the pipe down.:):)

I will try the belly band.

I agree with many of the other suggestions. You should definately give the pee pads another chance. Whenever he goes on the floor just say no firmly then place him on the pad. Obviously this must be repeated over and over and over again. Showing him who is in charge by removing food, training frequently and ignoring unwanted attention will all help in showing him who is the boss. When he does go on the pad make sure you make a big deal about it. Let him think he really accomplished something great. Dont crate him! Confining him to a kitchen area or bathroom with a pad is ok but crates are not the answer. As far as the aggression goes it is simply an issue of socialization. He needs to be around other dogs and people as often as possible. Also, read up on teaching methods. Yorkies for dummies is a good book to start with. He'll turn around but it takes time and a lot of repetition.

A good point is also the "ignoring unwanted attention." My Maltese Chloe used to be evil, as we called her. She was always growling and bit me and my boyfriend pretty bad a few times!!! Now I know I have to let her know I'm the boss, including ignoring unwanted attention. If she cries and wants me to pick her up on the couch (cause she can't jump up on her own), I ignore her and will only pick her up when she's not asking... Good luck!!!

I tried the belly bands at one point too. Seb didn't like them. Everytime I would put it on him he wouldn't move. I thought it was funny at first but then I realized that it really bothered his skin. He did try to mark his spot a couple of times but then he always smelled like pee. I was constantly washing him and the belly band. I guess it's better than him peeing on my carpet but eventually I got tired of the bands and really stayed consistent with the pee pads. That seemed to work for me. Now he knows if he absolutely has to go in the house, he has a designated area where his pad is. It took some time but we are definitely making progress. Good luck!!

memeof4
 

Hi, I didn't have any problems training my little Izzy. I stay home all the time so I spent alot of time with her. I watched every move she made she is 10 mos old and is completly potty trained. I took her outside when she woke up and every 15 min. Also never leave food or water out. Never give her treats unless she pottyed outside then she got a treat. Just in case I left 1 potty pad in my hall for accidents. I have hardwood floors and I mop them with a solution of water,vinger and alchol. She doesn't like the smell and finally went going on the pee pad. I also went to the door and said outside go potty. She now comes to me and barks to go outside. Hope this will help some ideals.:)

BELLY BANDS! I can't recommend them enough. They've saved my carpet.

Cosmo the Terrible
 

Ok I haven't tried ignoring "unwanted attention"....probably because I almost always want to love on him, but I have noticed that he will knudge me until I respond if I'm busy. That sounds like a good idea.

Belly Bands are awesome! Try those your carpets will thank you

potty prob's
 

I am not by any means an expert but depending on where you live the thing that we love is our automatic doggy door that goes outside to an enclosed kennel area, equiped with toys and fun. We used the potty pads first with the crate and then made our way to the automatic doggy door.:animal-pa This thing is the greatest invention ever. Our dogs love it and we do too and I would never own another dog or house without it. Good luck!

I am so sorry that your baby is an alpha doggy. I to have an alpha doggy but I told her that I was going to be the head bit**! We went round and round but being firm with her and repetition helped alot. I too had poodles and found them easier to train than yorkies. I litter trained Kinsey and it took 4 weeks but she finaly got it. I am sending you a website that I used for training her. Maybe it will help you with the pads. http://www.litterboxdogtraining.com/ The litter works best for me because Kinsey tears up paper. She even chews on the litter pellets. But it works for me.

I think you have to be very attentive and reward Cosmo whenever he's not picking a fight with your Poodle.

Get Cosmo on a leash (definitely use a harness because of the trachea issues) and approach the Poodle. As soon as Cosmo shows even the slightest sign of acknowledging or going for the Poodle, correct him with the leash with a quick tug--just enough to divert his path and his attention. Then, if he looks up at you, give him a treat--not just any treat, but something that he really, really likes. I know they can sometimes have laser vision if there's another dog nearby, but correct him until he looks at you, at which point give him the treat.

Keep doing this until he's more interested in you than in your Poodle, and be prepared to really dole out the treats. Once he gets the hang of it, you can move him closer to your Poodle and let them interact . . . but as soon as he gets even the slightest bit aggressive, correct him with the leash and give him a treat when he responds to you.

I know it's not that easy, but you have to try to work with him. You said you've read Cesar Milan's books. His show, the Dog Whisperer, is helpful, too if you haven't seen it. Be careful not to try some of the techniques he uses on the "red zone" dogs he encounters, such as pinning the dog by the neck, which I truly believe should be left to a professional. But his show is great for showing 1) how important it is to quickly correct your dog at the very first hint of unwanted behavior, and 2) how the dog owner needs to be more stubborn and consistent than the dog he's training for the training to be successful.

Eventually, he'll begin to associate good behavior with good things, but you have to be 100% consistent and work with him multiple times a day for this to work. If you have success with your Poodle, work with Capone, too, or any other well behaved dog that you can "borrow" from a friend for anti-bully training purposes.

Good luck!