What if my yorkie doesnt like me?
 

I don't want to sound crazy, But I'm in need of some advise. Chloe is 6 months old now, And I have had her now for 3 months, But had reg visits with her once a week at the breeders since she was a week old.The minute I was told to pick my girl I knew it was her. Now Chloe is very rebelious and is always getting into something, And is very destructive as well as not even close to being fully potty trained. latley I swear she is pushing the limits more and more to test me. Now I know that those are training issues, And we have her enrolled in the next available obediance classes that start the end of Feb. But my main and real concern is that she doesnt want to come to me if i call her, And unless shes sleepy/or tuckerd out she doesnt want anything to do with being held & generally seems to not really have any interest in me unless i'm leaving the house, feeding her or playing fetch. I bought my mom the boy from the same litter and he's so lovey dovey, and so calm that I just cant help but wonder..I picked her but maybe she didn't pick me? I hate to think this and it makes me sad and a little teary eyed to even write this, But I thought maybe someone out there has gone through this and could help.

Sounds like she's going through ther 'terrible twos' to me. Adolescence.
Keep up with the rules and the potty training. Some Yorkies take longer.

Good luck love.

Hugs Shirl x x

I'm sorry you feel that way:( I really don't have any advice but they all have different personalities. I'm sure she loves you..maybe just spend more time with her, do new things..take her to the park, ya know lots of 1 on 1. The training class will also help

Hi. Sounds like she's gone alpha on you. You need to show her that you are the boss, and that you have all things under control. Do little things like always feed her after you eat. Have her sit and be calm before you give her her food. Make sure you lead her out the door, not her leading you. Basic obedience should help too. She may calm down some when she turns 1 YO. Try to spend a minute or 2 with her, maybe hold her and give her a hug, and praise her. Gradually increase the time held as she gets comfortable with it. Patience is very important. hope this helps.

Thanks for the advise im gonna try everything, when you said she has gone alpha it made sense, She definitly thinks she's running the show, And has even started this new thing where shell jump up on me and lunge at my face and basically punk me So I flinch. I decided I wasnt going to flinch the other day and she nipped my lip..And the hard part is shes an angel to my partner, and he thinks I'm crazy. I talked to my friend this morning as well who owns 4 yorkies and she told me that she has heard of people having to bite the dogs ear? Not hard like you wanna do damage but enough to say I,m the one in charge as that's how dogs communicate..lol not sure about that tho.

I do not think I would bite the dog , but a poke with your finger gets their attention .
Nothing hard just a quick touch , the obidiance thing is a great way for you to get your Alpha status .
These lil ones definitly have minds of their own , its the really smart ones that are the biggest challenge and delight .

She is total alpha! Sounds very independent and stubborn. She is a yorkie and thinks she is the boss. Hang in there and gain back control. Obedience classes will be a start but you have to be willing to put in the work and take back the leader role. She loves you but will love you more when you lead her!

Yep, Sounds like you have a Sassy bossy pants on your hands..LOL You need to show her you are the boss. She will still get into things because she is a puppy and will grow out of that soon enough but def. you to let her know that you are the leader of the "pack":)

You'll get there. You've gotten some good advice. Don't give up and please don't think you've chosen the wrong puppy. Years from now you're going to say you couldn't live without her and tell people how perfect she is. Yorkies are both independent and stubborn. That's just yorkies for you. Training, training, training. Just don't break the spirit. The other suggestion I have for you is to make sure she receives huge amounts of exercise - walks when you can. Long one's. A tired yorkie is a good yorkie and won't be as destructive. They have energy to burn and if you don't help her burn that energy in a positive way, then she's going to find ways to burn that energy and that is where the destructive behavior comes from.

Ahhh...the true female yorkie personality. Chloe sounds like my first female, hang in there with her, pretty soon she will only have eyes for you. Hope you both enjoy obedience school, it's really a blast!

It just sounds like your pup is an active puppy still she will get more lovable as she ages

They never want to come to you when you want them to, at that age. Even if they want to come to you, they won't come.

Levi, 8 lmolnths old, got out of our fence cause the snow was over the fence. I tried and tried to coax him back to where he got out, he would get within and inch of me reaching him then back away. He was cold and shivering and wanted to get back in, but played hard to get, I finally managed to grab his tail as he turned to get away.

they do outgrow that eventually.

Hang in there. It will work out. The good thing is that you are addressing this now. These are two books my trainer suggested I read, The art of raising a puppy and How to be your dog's best friend. Both are written by the monks of New Skete. Good Luck.

Know what I did when that happened to me? I have two different options.:D
1) I bend completely down and make a big fool of myself by letting them know how happy I am to see them. Mine would almost always come running.

2) I bend completely down and start crying. This always works.:D

Try sitting on the floor an doffering litle toys to your puppy , and see if she will play with you. I know when my Suzi was little she would alwas want to play with me when I got down at eye level with her.
This morning I got akoken by my 10Lb shih tzu pup pouncing on top of me bright and early wanting me to get up. She did not bite me though . Litte bugger.
Suzi does not want to come to me and hides when it is time to be groomed though. SHe always knows . my son has to get her and bring her to me. But, other than that she is a very sweet little yorkie. In time, your puppy will be loving too. Don't take it personally .

I don't think that you should compare dogs for the same way you don't compare children. They all have different personalities.
You just need to bond with your dog more and find things about her that you do love and stop looking at the things you don't. She is a puppy and they do naughty things sometimes. That is why we are here to train them.
I know it would be nice to have a cuddle bug but all dogs are not and she will calm down once she gets older.
Have play time with her so that it helps with the bonding. We also have a time where we practice tricks every day and both dogs look forward to it.
Having a schedule makes them feel more secure and doing these things helps with the bonding. It would be nice if they always did what we wanted them to do, but then again how much fun is that? I like the surprises of laughter once in a while!!

My Pixie is a live wire she is always looking for things to get into but I find myself laughing at some of it. The size of her, she drags my grandsons couch across the living room. She gets into toilet paper. She tries to jump in the trash can, I caught her trying to drink my husbands glass of wine. She steals socks and hides them, etc puppy behavior!!
Love your puppy for who she is and she will love you back;);)

this sounds like my rex! he is the same age too and when i call him he will come ( sometimes) but never will come close enough for me to pick him up. and if i try to pick him up he bolts in the opposite direction. i need to enroll him in an obedience class ! i love him to death but nothing i do it working. your not alone!

Aww...I can only imagine what that must make you feel like. But like other's have said, don't give up. She's definitely testing you to see how far she can go. And I know its probably hard given her current behaviour, but try to have calm and positive energy around her. She can pick up on it when you're annoyed and that just makes it worse because dogs don't trust or respect someone who is uneasy or unsure. From what I understand, they actually view it as a sign of weakness, therefore think they NEED to assume the "alpha" role. Good news is, you can totally break this behaviour. First, like other's suggested, definitely exercise her and wear her out. Then, maybe set aside a few minutes a day in a quiet room, just the two of you and simply love on her, massage her, tell her how special she is to you. She'll pick up on your loving vibes. I think this will help with the bonding stage.
Also, to reclaim your "alpha" status, try some of these things and be consistent :

1. When ready to feed, always make her sit and stay calm before dropping the food in the bowl. And tap your fingers in the food several times while she's eating so she know that its OK to have someone close while eating. This shoud prevent her from becoming territorial over her food later on. Or at least it worked for mine :)

2. Never ever let her enter through a door before you. I taught mine to "wait" and until both of my feet were inside, she waited. Still to this day, she will wait until I ask her to come in...she nevers rushes ahead of me.

3. If you're not crate training yet, start. It makes the potty training MUCH easier. Harley was fully trained within 4 months. But I was tough:p In fact several family members called me "the warden"...haha. But it paid off and now she's such a joy. When I would come home from work, I'd open her crate and pick her up to take her outside. Literally, her feet never hit the ground until we were in the grass. Then I'd say "go potty" and she would...then lots of praise immediately after. Every now and then she would be stubborn and after waiting 10 minutes and not potty, I'd pick her back up and back in the crate she went. I'd wait another 10 minutes and try again. Before long she realized that she didn't get any play time or interaction from mama until she went potty outside.

4. Put her on a strict feeding schedule. This will help you determine when she needs to be taken out.

5. Don't let her have free roam of the house until she respects you and abides by your rules. Limit her space and make sure you keep a close eye on her at all times.

6. Do not allow her to get away with anything that a big dog wouldn't be allowed to do...for instance, jumping on the furniture, jumping in your face, nipping, etc. This isn't to say that you should never allow her on the furniture, but not until she's older. I didn't let Harley jump on the couch unless I invited her too. Now, she's always on it with me, but she knows that a privilege. If she nips your nose or hand, say "OUCH" loudly and get up and go to another room. Cut off all attention for a few minutes.

Sorry this has been so long..haha. I could go on and on about what worked for me, but I know that every dog is different. I'm not an expert but these are some of the things that helped me through the puppy phase. And now, I could not imagine my life without her. And she's spolied, but also knows who's boss. Rarely do I have trouble.

Good luck and hang in there! You can do this!! :thumbup:

Thank you everyone!! And a special thank you to HarleyHoo, You all have given me some very sound advise, And I appreciate it all!..I just wanted to ensure that you know although I was venting and sad I would never give up on Chloe, I think after reading all of your advise, that I am definitely the one to blame not Chloe. I do spend alot of time with her, I don't work I'm a homemaker and really only leave her to go to lunch or shopping, But I think I spoiled her rotten, And gave her free reign of most the house right away.We do play allot to but maybe i need to find more challenging play then fetch, And we will definitely be checking out the dog park. So I am going to start all over, And take the time to follow all the rules. I will also look into those books YorkieSchmalz!

LOL - Sassy bossy pants totally describes my Rio! I agree with everyone - I think your furbaby is acting like many female Yorkies. Rio is 11 months old, has gone through her puppy class and knows sit, stay, come, down etc. But she remains very independent and will pretty much do all her commands if she's in the mood. Otherwise she can be aloof like a cat. She is moody too (even though she is spayed) - sometimes she is a lovebug (usuallyl in the morning) and other times she is a loner and wants to do her own thing.

I have yet to see a yorkie that isn't a total love bug, but you have to remember they all have different personalities. Some dogs can be more independent and don't like to snuggle or be held for longer than 5 mins. Just thought I'd throw that out there if after all the training she still doesn't allow you to cuddle her for too long. You're baby girl is still so young and curious that I bet she feels she has more important things to do than be held. :rolleyes: I bet she'll grow out of it and be your cuddle bug!:)
The lunging thing you mention does sound like something you should nip in the bud. My boy lunges at me too. He shows his teeth and looks semi-vicious. But when I don't move I actually get a tiny lick! Weird huh???
Do you have a correcting method yet? If you don't, pick one now! You might have to try a few but once you find one that works for little Chloe stick to it and she'll quickly learn what it means.

Hang in there mommy, it does get easier :). One piece of advice, I know you have her enrolled in training classes down the road, but right now is a prime time to spend on training. 5 minutes a day commit to training, you will see results.

Have you heard of clicker training? I would highly recommend it, especially with the "come" command. Training one on one with your furbaby every day is a great time for bonding, and teaching.


http://www.clickertraining.com/

I agree with the posters above that are saying yorkies can all have such different personalities. I have Missy (16 months) and Dora (4 months). They have the same Mom and Dad but were from different litters of puppies. Both have been raised at the breeders and my place in exactly the same way, but somehow they are TOTAL OPPOSITES personality-wise. Missy is an independant little Diva. She never comes when called and doesn't at all crave any kind of attention or affection. She's kind of a snob :p Dora however, ALWAYS comes when called and LOVES attention, cuddles, and is extremely social. Dora is far more outgoing and Missy has always been pretty reserved.

My point being, you may never get the cuddles and affection that you want from Chloe as it may just not be a part of her personality, but you should address the training issues. I wouldn't get too uptight about the potty training aspect. Yorkies can sometimes take a year or longer before they are fully trained.

rofl

...[sigh]...

What does that mean? Frisco has done this to my partner, who happened to meet another yorkie today and apparently that yorkie did the same thing to him.

???

Completely agree. Our trainer told us was that after you put the food in her bowl pretend like you are taking food out and pretend to eat it. It definitely commanded respect almost immediately. Another thing I noticed was that they need to be stimulated mentally. We bought interactive games and he would have to figure out how to get his meals. This was completely supervised of course and in the begininng I would help him after a few attempts. I had to laugh when you wrote she won't come to you. He has me very well trained here. He only comes when he knows I have food. Our trainer told us in the very beginning to ration out his food (to prevent from over treating him) and keep some in a bag in your pocket. We were supposed to give him a treat every single time he came to us for about three weeks. We failed to follow through here which could be part of the reason he doesn't always come now. When you call her try to use an extremely peppy and happy tone and give immediate praise and treat. Another tip is that don't ever call her and then do something she doesn't like...such as grooming or giving medicine...a bath...bc she will associate coming to you as a trap. One last thing is that she is definitely picking up on your emotions. You need to try very, very hard to remain calm and cheerful even if you get frustrated or sad. -- These are just my opinions...just things that worked for us. Best advice on this thread is that a tired puppy is a happy puppy--and mommy too! With time and patience you will see that it all falls into place.

Well, I've had my laugh for tonight now.:D

Why? What does it mean?

:thumbup: :thumbup: