[QUOTE=schatzie]I can't even pee alone w/out Schatzie by my side. :D She is my shadow wherever I go. From room to room, inside or out...There she is!

That was my Oscar. I used to close the door of the bathroom and he scratched and scratched the door until I opened it. Ohh how much I miss my baby!!!! :(

The only time that I would be concerned about a dog being too attached would be in the case of a dog that won't eat, drink, etc if absent from its owner. That could be dangerous in case of emergency.

Otherwise, I don't think it's a problem UNLESS it's a problem for you. If it is, then try letting your husband control more of the resources. Let him feed, let him give treats, let him introduce new toys, let him play with her, etc.

Naturally, it's also important that you are socializing Pippin (cute name, BTW) to strangers and other dogs...

My friend has a mixed breed that has some Yorkie in her....the Yorkie part is pretty dominant in looks. She was complaining one day that she can't go ANYWHERE without Baby following her......I just smiled and told her that was the Yorkie in her :) . Some are like that more than others. Let me tell you, when there are 4 of them trying to be on you all at once, it can get a little exasperating :D . I LOVE IT though!!!! :p Tiah will jump up on my lap and try to sit on poor little Cowboy (I think her theory is that if she can't see him then he isn't really there ;) ).

I was looking through some things and found this interesting, but I don't know if this applies to your situation or not. :) If your yorkie does fine when you are not at home, then it doesn't seem like a problem to me, but what do I know? I have loved my doggies no end. :p

Anxiety
Many dogs become over attached to one or all of the members of a household and become extremely anxious when they are left alone. This can result in quite extensive damage which is usually found around the door that the person leaves through and any escape route the dog may discover such as cat flaps, open windows and gates. These dogs usually become hysterical on their owner’s return and take several minutes to calm down. The behavior only occurs when the dog is separated from the household members to whom they are attached. In some cases, dogs that can cope when left in the home will become destructive when left alone in a strange environment. Dogs that are destructive because of anxiety tend to follow the people they are attached to around from room to room and try to maintain physical contact or eye contact as often as possible. Often barking, howling, toilet training problems and, in extreme cases, self-mutilation accompany this type of behavior.

There are many different reasons for anxiety in dogs which can result in destructive behavior. This can range from the hormonal swings caused by seasons in female dogs, to insecurity in elderly dogs. The most common type of anxiety is cause by over attachment to owners.

It is very flattering for some owners to have a dog that worships them and adores them. Unfortunately, this sort of dog finds it distressing to be parted from the object of his adoration. To resolve the problems with a dog like this, it is important that the owner is able to cool their relationship with the dog whilst building the dog’s confidence when being left alone.

Things you can do to make your dog more independent and less anxious when left alone

He will need to be left alone for short periods in the house whilst you are out. Until he can happily stay in one room while you are in another part of the house, there is no point in trying to get him used to being left alone while you are away. Get him used to being in one room, or perhaps acclimatise him to an indoor kennel, covering it with a blanket to make it a den type area.

He must be discouraged from following you from room to room and making constant physical contact. You should be aware of this and close doors between yourself and your dog. In addition, you should be firm with him and encourage him to sleep in his bed and not be constantly underfoot.

Other household members and friends should be enlisted to assist by taking him out for walks, playing and feeding him. This will avoid him becoming dependant on one individual or certain people in the household.

When he is left, the light should be turned off, a radio should be playing softly and items of the owners clothing can be left in his bed and on the other side of the door. This will also help create a restful environment which still sounds and smells reassuring to him.

You should ignore him completely for 20 minutes before leaving him and for 20 minutes upon your return. The dog should only be greeted when he has calmed down.

A special chew or toy can be left for him during your absence although this should be removed on your return. Also ensure he is well exercised at least half an hour before leaving him.

http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:...ed+puppy&hl=en

Have you spoken to a professional trainer? Loki is stubborn and both needy and independent. We are so lucky to have found our trainer, who offers classes, consults, and most importantly doggie daycare! The socialization is great and because we work with Loki so much we have really bonded and although he wants to be in charge, he knows he is not. Good luck.
Our trainer is a certified pet dog trainer, there might be one in your area too:
http://www.apdt.com/trainers-and-own...ner-search.php

Both my girls are like this - At meet-ups they turn into total mama's girls and HAVE to be held - usually it's only around crowds they are like this - this just shows me they need to get out a bit more -

In the house they are always with me & will play all over the house.... but know exactly where I am at all times.

the weird thing is - take them on a window shopping trip to Petsmart and they skip thru the aisles :D

thank you ALL for your great advice. And Yorkieusa, I was concerned about anxiety, too, but after reading some posts here about that, I have found ways to combat that. I think she is just a normal Yorkie and the past two nights she hasn't been so clingy. I am the Alpha and she looks to me for most of her care. You guys are great and thank you for being patient with me when I wasn't too patient with you. :)

Tooooo Attached!
 

Hi Pippins mom. YOU ARE NOT ALONE!! I thought I was. I have an almost 2yr old yorkie and she is super adorable, sweet, protective, loyal and yes....WAY TOO ATTACHED!! It drives me nuts and like you, I have no idea what to do to break that. It's so annoying and it's far from cute, like it was when I first got her and just thought that was a "baby stage" kind of thing. She's gotten older and gotten worse. She literally follows me EVERYWHERE and I do mean EVERYWHERE!! I can simply walk to the trash can and throw something away and she'll jump out of a deep sleep just to be at my feet. I get annoyed tripping over her, as if she's not tiny as it is. She's 5lbs. She's needy, demands attention and way too clingy. I don't mind it but I wish she would tone it down just a tad. It's like if I'm on the couch she can't just come find a spot on the couch and relax, she has to be in my lap or somewhere literally glued to me (like she is right now). I feel smothered by my own lil pup. I am going to lose my sanity.

Welcome to YT, for starters this thread is 12 years old. You really should start a new tread "smothered by love" or something like that. Yorkies are ppl dogs, they must have their human in their sight at all times, they love snuggling into your body, they crave human contact, and yes, once you have a yorkie you'll never pee alone. Did you not read up on yorkies before buying one? Did you not read up on a yorkie's Characteristics, personalities? Like a woman's first child, they are doted on, spoiled, demands are always met, then the child is 5 yo and has temper tantrums, moms calls the child a brat, says the child is spoiled, well, who created that? YOU the mom. Same with dogs, any breed. Yorkies are very easy to spoil, they are to cute not to give into them, to tote them around, smother them with smooches. What as a puppy was cute, you now find " annoying". And who created this " annoying" baby, YOU did. Having a yorkie is like having a toddler for life. They need human contact, need to be with their humans, have them in their sight. I don't mean to sound harsh, I am sad that you feel smothered and feel you will lose your sanity over a wee lil baby that loves you too much.

As you can see I am new to this whole site as of yesterday and though the thread is 12yrs old, it's still listed I posted a response big deal! Secondly you know nothing about myself nor my pup other than what I posted about nor do u know what has taken place between my pup and I or anyone else in the family or even who where or what she came from and how I deal with her. You have your opinion, which ur entitled to and sorry (not sorry) if I may sound harsh but that doesn't change how I feel! Even if I did or did not do my research. I run my life and my household. Not a puppy!! She gets love and attention and I take very care of her but what she will not live to believe, is that THE WORLD REVOLVES AROUND HER! Thank you good day!!!

Welcome to YT. SWAT! You were a bit harsh to a stranger/newbie. You might not have meant to be, but you were. If I were her, I'd leave the board with bad feelings about the board and never look back. I might even speak badly about the board to others.

She had a problem and asked for help. Your solution wasn't helpful; it was to blame her for the problem.

Im ROFL at this!
When my Cali was at a Service Dog school one of the main things they spend a great deal of time on was distraction issues. I had not had her very long before she left for Service Dog School and the trainers there had very little experience with small dogs, but the thing they kept telling me was that when I went out there for my part of the handler training they had never seen such a focused pup. She never took her eyes off me the whole training time.

That was 8 year ago - And when we go for her every 3 to 5 year assessment, that focus is always commented on. Since they had not trained many Yorkie’s the behavior assessors say they have never seen another like her. I just say it is Yorkie behavior!

Enjoy you baby, and you do get used to not going to the bathroom alone:D

I felt a little sad too, unless I was reading it wrong. It's like hearing about someone complain they're being loved too much! :eek: That poor baby to be considered not cute and just pure annoying, breaks my heart!

I don't find it annoying they are my babies and I am lucky they love me so much. Callie is my doggy soul mate she know me better then anyone so if I am stressed that is when she is right up against me. She used to follow me every where but now its mostly if I'm having a panic attack or bad anxiety or sad or when we are out or if we have company. Joey follows me every where he goes into the bathroom with me but he was rescued way to early at 9 weeks old so he has a bit or separation anxiety. Penny just doesn't want to miss anything so she will follow. We are sooooo lucky to have this babies so being attached to me is definitely not annoying to me. My only concern would be if I got sick and had to stay at the hospital or something other then that I don't leave them. I would not go on a vacation unless they could go so maybe I'm too attached lol.