Yorkies and toddlers

[JMuedog]

Originally Posted by ap7dgs

Hello everyone,

This is my first post. My family is strongly considering getting a yorkie. I took my family to a respectable puppy breeder in our area. My wife and kids fell in love with him. However, my youngest, which is 2 years old, tried several times to kick or beat him up. We really love this dog, but I'm just so worried that my toddler would do something to really hurt or injury him. Does anyone have any advice on how to introduce a Yorkie into a new home with toddlers? What are some tips for getting them to coexist peacefully?

Originally Posted by ap7dgs

I'm a little insulted that you would infer there is an issue with my parenting. My child was approriately disciplined and talked to regarding this. Once that was done, there were no further incidences.

You stated in your first post that your toddler tried to beat the dog up several times so I can see why some would be upset with her being allowed to do this repeatedly.

I've introduced my dogs to toddlers as their first experience with dogs several times, and I've never had a child react in this way toward either dog. I'm not a parent so I have no advice on how to correct the behavior toward the dog.

I'd really consider waiting for the child to mature before purchasing any dog irregardless of size.

[jezzabella]

no respectable breeder would sell to a home with a child in it much less one that tried to hurt one of their puppies, that has been rule of thumb since i bought my first yorkie at 18 years old and i am now 35. i am not saying anything bad about your parenting skills or lack there of but i will say this and you can take it how you want. i have had 4 yorkies, my son is 6 and autistic and adhd and he has never hurt one of my dogs. 2 of them lived to be 15 years old before they passed of things not child related. the other is my 3 yr old yorkie named jezzabelle. he calls her his best friend...you can see that as sweet or sad whichever i dont really care but the point is yes children can be in a house with yorkies however my son knows better than to even think about hurting an animal so he would have never done that and we are getting our 4th one tomorrow. there is no way to prepare for this. my son was born into it. the reason i say there is no way to prepare is because you have no idea how your child will react or how jealous he/she will get if any and how they will act out on that, especially when being 2 years old. i am actually a counselor and i would suggest if you have to ask this question then you already know this is not the time for your family to get one....just saying

[mscat]

I use to teach preschool and had done so for 20 years , Two year olds were one of my favorite ages. The thing is with this age a 2 year old is unpredictable , especially one that just turned 2 . The 2 year old wants to be very independant and this can lead to impulsive behavior. You cannot tell a toddler one time to not do something, it has to be taught over and over again with constant supervision. Bringing homw a tiny puppy with already having a "baby" is going to feel like you have 2 little toddlers in the house competing for attention. Even the best parent is not able to supervise 24/7 and know excatly what their children are doing at every minute of the day. Accidents happen , and it will be the puppy who is going to lose out. I have even observed older preschoolers who are very rough with small dogs and watched the puppy bite , then the child drops the pup. that child was 3-4 years old.
I thinkit will be heartbreaking when you bring the puppy home and something tragic happens , their is a high probability of this happening, that is why so many of us are trying to let you know, because we have seen it happen before or read about it on here.
My son was a toddler I placed a Guinnie pig in his hands , he threw it down on the ground... It was terrible, a while later we found out that he was autistic and had developmental delays, evenso I never forgot what he did, and never thought he would ever do something like that. It happened so fast too . Of course you can talk to a 2 yr old , but it has to be consistent , and taught over and over again, and even with that does not mean the child won't drop the pup, hit, or kick the pup, break the pups leg, sqeeze the pup, their are so many things that could go wrong, these are the things to think about , is it really worth the risk?

[Princess10]

When my cousin was over it was three adults total, my teen girl, 7 y.o. and her 2 year old son. With one adult, my daughter, and his sister in the same room while his mom and I were in an adjoining room he tried to punt Princess across the room. It traumatized her for quite some time to be around any aged child no matter how gentle their past was with her. She also had a pocket of fluid build up on her vertebrae that caused concern for a couple months. Never again. I don't even think the child has been back since, but if he does come Princess will not be accessible. It'd be terribly difficult & unfair to keep your child & pup apart every time you want to turn your back for a second.

I'd be very leery at that age. While I know many 2 year olds that know how to treat animals he was the exception & I'll never risk it again. I'd hold off and enforce more positive interactions between your baby and all living beings in the mean time. IMO. Plus, Princess was & sometimes still is the work of a toddler, I can't imagine having one skin & one fur at the same time, though I know it can be done.

[chachi]

Im sorry I called your daughter a son. Im glad though you are open to listening and considering our advice that is all we can ask. We are pet owners and forum members and the advice is coming from experience and the problems people on here have had and wrote about so it is really just considering what is best for your family and the dog

[Ahis_Mama]

I debated weather or not to respond to this.

I myself have young children. 5 and 8 are my youngest and they are girls. They are extremely careful and I am very diligent with the safety of my lil' Ahi. I know 5 is older than 2 but... I also run a daycare out of my home. I have a 3yr. old, a 2yr. old, two 1yr. olds, and a 6 month old. My lil' Ahi however are completely out of reach of these babies. The only time they can actually touch her is when I am holding her or for the 3 year old she can hold/pet her while sitting on the ground between my legs. They however go home at the end of the day.

If you ask my kids or my hubby for that matter. I sound like a broken record. I keep reminding everyone that Ahi is about... or coming their way. She is NEVER out of my sight. There is no running allowed in my home. We can only do the Yorkie Shuffle.(sliding of the feet) There are SO MANY rules in this house and we all stick to them. So I ask...are you willing to go to this extreme. I don't regret it one bit(neither do my hubby or kids) that we had to alter our lifestyle and routine at home. You may think that this is a bit much but I look at my "dog" as if she was one of my kids. I would be devistated if anything happened to her. My baby girl is definitely worth it.

Just think about it and make the right decision for you and your family. Your daughter can be taught but no matter how much you think she "knows better" kids will be kids. Like a previous poster said kids are unpredictable and I know this first hand. Your puppy and daughter will need 100% supervision. Yorkies are extremely fragile.

Best of luck on your decision and welcome to YT. The people here are great...we are just passionate about our dogs and will give you our honest opinions.

[maggiefromnj]

It will be even harder if you've never had a puppy before, yorkie or otherwise.

Yorkie pups are wiggly. My hubby actually dropped Maggiewhen she was young in the garage when she decided to leap out of his arms. I forget what made her jump, but they can be tough to hold when they want down (much like toddlers!). Maggie got stepped on a few times (no injury) she evventually learned to get out of the away and we became more aware of her. Hubby fell down the stairs carrying her one night, but let her go before he would crush her. He fell down to the bottom, and I was worried about the dog! My point is that ADULTS have to be careful so children would put the pup at great risk. Yorkie rescues all seem to say they will not adopt to families with small kids. I think many are in rescue due to expensive injuries caused by kids (accidents).

Finally, I didn't see if this was mentioned...but there is a list of foods hazardous to dogs, including chocolate, grapes, and raisins. Have to be sure the kids don't drop these things and that they are picked up if they do.

Not worth the risk in my opinion. Maybe try a kitten, they might be more durable. (I've never raised a kitty so I could be wrong)

[miabellaamoure]

Isn't it pathetic that on YT there has to be this apprehension to even respond to a thread for the suspect it's a trolling thread to incite "something"...sheesh!

Well, for what it's worth and plenty here have already made it perfectly clear to the OP(...or, whatever?) but, let me just go ahead and dip my feet into the manure here...

Why in the world should a vulnerable Yorkie puppy (no less) deserve to be your families pet just because they would be brokenhearted if they can not have him/her

A responsible (prospective) pet owner would want whats in the best interest for this puppy foremost and I do not see this being on the top of your priority list.

There are too many horror stories of puppies being dropped (even innocently) or stepped on & the list goes on & on...and all at the hands of an unsupervised and "knowingly" much too young family member.

Do yourself a favor and more importantly this puppy and rethink your breed selection that better suits your family dynamics.

A Yorkie is NOT the breed of choice for your family...trust me, I see too many surrendered from families such as yours who went with their hearts in selecting a breed vs. their brains.

Do your research and you will find a better suited pet for your family.

[DvlshAngel985]

Originally Posted by cj125

Hi & Welcome to Yorkietalk!

First of all - bringing "any puppy" (regardless of it's breed) into any home is a major adjustment for everyone - even if you've had dogs all your life. A puppy is a lot of work and can stress out even the best of us. They poop, they pee, they chew and they bite. To bring a puppy into your home with a 2 yr old will be a TON of work. Both need to be supervised constantly. Both are just babies.

Unfortunately, Yorkies come in all sizes. Some are really small with fine bone structure and some are larger and have a more sturdy frame. How big were the parents of the puppy you were looking at? How old is the puppy?

Because of their size many people have had life altering accidents with them. Dropping them, sitting on them, stepping on them - all can cause major damage to these dogs. (broken backs - neurological problems) You should search the internet to see what you can find out about this. I know that a few people who used to be members here had accidents - and they were adults.

It's just my opinion but... I'd wait until your child is older to bring "any puppy" into your home. In the meantime, try to teach your toddler to be "gentle" with animals. Unfortunately, not all children know how to be gentle right off the bat. It's not that they don't want to but they don't realize their strength etc.

Good Luck! Hope you and your family find the right pet for yourselves.

I agree. I'd wait. It's different when you already have a dog, fully trained mind you, and then add a baby. But, have a baby, one that still needs all o your attention, and then add the responsibility of a pup might be much. If I were you, I'd wait. An Brit, I think your situation worked out so well because of one key factor. You are a responsible young adult and Jackson was your sole responsibility; your sweet sister was your mom's responsibility. Imagine having to care for your own little girl, and training a puppy at the same time. I personally would not be able to handle it.

[DvlshAngel985]

Originally Posted by Ahis_Mama

I debated weather or not to respond to this.

I myself have young children. 5 and 8 are my youngest and they are girls. They are extremely careful and I am very diligent with the safety of my lil' Ahi. I know 5 is older than 2 but... I also run a daycare out of my home. I have a 3yr. old, a 2yr. old, two 1yr. olds, and a 6 month old. My lil' Ahi however are completely out of reach of these babies. The only time they can actually touch her is when I am holding her or for the 3 year old she can hold/pet her while sitting on the ground between my legs. They however go home at the end of the day.

If you ask my kids or my hubby for that matter. I sound like a broken record. I keep reminding everyone that Ahi is about... or coming their way. She is NEVER out of my sight. There is no running allowed in my home. We can only do the Yorkie Shuffle.(sliding of the feet) There are SO MANY rules in this house and we all stick to them. So I ask...are you willing to go to this extreme. I don't regret it one bit(neither do my hubby or kids) that we had to alter our lifestyle and routine at home. You may think that this is a bit much but I look at my "dog" as if she was one of my kids. I would be devistated if anything happened to her. My baby girl is definitely worth it.

Just think about it and make the right decision for you and your family. Your daughter can be taught but no matter how much you think she "knows better" kids will be kids. Like a previous poster said kids are unpredictable and I know this first hand. Your puppy and daughter will need 100% supervision. Yorkies are extremely fragile.

Best of luck on your decision and welcome to YT. The people here are great...we are just passionate about our dogs and will give you our honest opinions.

This is what I mean. She has been diligent and has a crazy amount of rules compared to my adult home. (youngest person in my house is 23) Don't get me wrong, we have rules too. Kaji wears a bell for his protection, so we know he's coming; Kaji was taught to sit and wait before passing any doorway; Kaji learned all his basic commands in both English and spanish. (my parents are Spanish speakers only) Everyone at home, even though we are adults, had to be taught how to handle him, what commands are used for what, and what the rules are. We are new to pet ownership, and I just wanted everyone to be on the same page when it came to Kaji's care. My point is, even in an adult home there is adjustments that need to be done, and they mess up too. (my mom gave Kaji veggies from a stew that had onions, poor pup threw up all night) I can't imagine trying to balance training both a dog and a child at the same time.

[miabellaamoure]

Originally Posted by DvlshAngel985

This is what I mean. She has been diligent and has a crazy amount of rules compared to my adult home. (youngest person in my house is 23) Don't get me wrong, we have rules too. Kaji wears a bell for his protection, so we know he's coming; Kaji was taught to sit and wait before passing any doorway; Kaji learned all his basic commands in both English and spanish. (my parents are Spanish speakers only) Everyone at home, even though we are adults, had to be taught how to handle him, what commands are used for what, and what the rules are. We are new to pet ownership, and I just wanted everyone to be on the same page when it came to Kaji's care. My point is, even in an adult home there is adjustments that need to be done, and they mess up too. (my mom gave Kaji veggies from a stew that had onions, poor pup threw up all night) I can't imagine trying to balance training both a dog and a child at the same time.

Omg, how adorable is that...Kaji is a "bilingual" Yorkie...what a smartypants!

Hurry up and foster for YTNR...we need you!

[concretegurl]

My son was 5 he was my youngest, he was already familiar with dogs.

Once he grabbed a friends dog hardly when he was about 2 years old trying to climb to ride the dog.

He wasn't allowed to touch or be near the dog for weeks only throwing a ball holding an extra attached leash pretending to walk the dog too

Later after weeks of his upset over not being allowed to pet the dog he was slowly allowed to.

Train your child first.

I now have another child he is 6 months and already be trained on appropriate animal care & treatment. With a small dog here to do this with-well I wouldn't wish this on anyone.

It has to do with every way to train your child if your child has already show aggression and thinking that behavior is acceptable then NO your home is not appropriate for a dog right now let alone a small fragile dog.

[concretegurl]

I find it odd parents accept violent behavior from their children personally.

[DvlshAngel985]

Originally Posted by miabellaamoure

Omg, how adorable is that...Kaji is a "bilingual" Yorkie...what a smartypants!

Hurry up and foster for YTNR...we need you!

The vet's office always gets a good chuckle out of that. I can ask him to sit, and he won't. But if I say it in Spanish, he knows I mean it! Haha!

[chachi]

Originally Posted by DvlshAngel985

The vet's office always gets a good chuckle out of that. I can ask him to sit, and he won't. But if I say it in Spanish, he knows I mean it! Haha!

That is so cute! He sounds like a little kid that knows you mean business when you use their full name