help-questions about Yorkie pup and crates

[Charlie_Boy]

Originally Posted by smallmans

I would suggest you wait to have a Yorkie. You are asking a breed that requires a GREAT deal of people interaction to spend hours alone in a crate.
Puppies need to be socialized and loved. These dogs are like "human infants" when they are younger than 1 year. It would be really sad to have a little puppy left alone so many hours of the day. There are so many issues to consider, hypoglycemia, potty training, etc. A dog needs to be a priority. Don't mean to sound harsh, but this breed is not typical.

Charlie is our first Yorkie and your right they need ALOT of attention! He has so much personality and loves to be right by your side but with his picky eating I have to be careful of hypoglycemia. I keep kibble out for him all day then I have to feed him soft food morning & night. He just doesn't eat much! Potty training whew took some time! We also have a little female black lab mix and is so easy! Charlie is like having a baby all over again!

[kjcmsw]

Originally Posted by nurserenee

thank you both for the replies! How about if I came home for lunch (around 4 hr mark)? I could do that for a little while but not indefinately. At what age would it be reasonable to expect her to hold it for 8hrs? I thought about the wee wee pads and a enclosed gate (xpen?), but I would like that to be a temporary solution until she is able to hold her pee/poop for 8 hrs-even in an xpen. What would happen if I eventually took the wee wee pads away?
I know, lots of questions, but my kids (and me too honestly) are so excited about getting this little dog and I want to make sure we are making the right decision

I've always heard and it seems to hold true: you can assume a pup can hold it's potty for one hour for every month old it is. Thus a 3 month old pup could be expected to hold it for about 3 hours. That rough average has been true for all our pups except for one: who, currently 3 months holds it all night but makes a bee-line for the pad or doggie door first thing in the morning.
I would agree with all that 7 weeks is way too young to come home, not to mention being alone for so many hours per day might adversely affect it's socialization skills (??)...become very needy (??)