Care for new Yorkie
 

I just bought my wife a Yorkie today. We were told the puppy was ready to go home and was 8 weeks old. But when we got home and I reviewed her CKC papers, her birthdate is 5/9 so that means that she will be 6 weeks tomorrow 6/20. I understand that this is way to early to be from the mom and litter mates. This isn't my first time raising a young pup. My cousins Pit Bull had puppies 2 years ago and I raised the one that I have when she was 5 weeks old bc mom quit taking care of her. But this is my first time with a toy breed. The puppy won't be left alone for long for a couple months. We are both teachers so we are home most all of the day. I understand that this is going to be tough but I was looking for advice. We can't just go back to the breeder bc we live over 3 hrs away from them. The breeder told us she was feeding the pups Puppy Chow but I bought Iams ProActive Puppy for Toy breed. I looked in the pups mouth and she doesn't have many teeth. So I soaked her some food in milk and she ate a little. I also bought 2 cans of Puppy food the moist kind. Do I need to get her some Milk replacement formula like I did for my Pit pup when she was young? I am looking for any advice on how to make sure this pups has a healthy life. My wife has been wanting one for years. If I would have known she was so young I wouldn't have gotten her.

Oh bless your heart this is going to be a long road for you. There are some replacement formula's here on YT. I helped with one real young and she had to be fed chicken baby food mixed with ground kibble and water from a syringe for a while. Also make sure she is getting plenty of water. I would feed every 3 hour the first week or so. Hopefully some breeders will be along to help. Also keep nutri-cal or white karo syrup on hand in case of a sugar level drop. Don't let her over play. She needs lots of sleep time at this age. Wishing you the very best and welcome to YT.

If she will eat moist food forget about the milk. If she wont eat the food you got her try Caesars, its not the best food as far as ingredients and you will want to switch later but it is enticing to dogs

She only ate a few kibbles last night that were soaked in milk. But she will eat the canned puppy food I bought her. I have been feeding her every 4 hours or so. I sit in the floor by her bowls and tap the bowl to get her to eat. Then do the same every more often with her water bowl. She didnt like the crate at all last night. Which I didn't expect her to. She slept in her bed right in the middle of my wife and I. I also ordered some Nutri Cal last night and it should be here Monday.

A few questions based on the replies so far.

1. How will I know if her blood sugar drops? Will it be just like in humans she seems lazy and just wants to sleep? Right now she seems really happy and playful. Will her blood sugar only drop if she's not eating or can stress cause this?

2. How much canned food should she eat a day or at each sitting? Right now I am I ly giving her 4-5 small spoon fulls. I cut it up real small and she eats it all. I just didnt want to give to much and it mess her stomach up.


How should I handle the potty training and sleeping with her now. I am taking her outside around every 45 min to an hr and after she eats and plays. And I know that the crate will be hard since she is young. But if she sleeps in the bed with us, is that going to hurt her for down the road?

Low blood sugar in dogs is very similar to low blood sugar in humans. Lethargy, confusion /altered mental status, and if very low, seizures and possibly death. This can be caused by poor intake or stress, as you mentioned. Illness can also affect glucose. I have gone by the puppy formula of 1ounce of kibble per lb of dog daily, divided into 3 or 4 meals. (I got this from one of my yorkie books...can't remember which one) For example, a 4 lb puppy gets around 1/2 cup a day, divided between all meals. (1 oz 4 times a day, 2 ounces 2 x day, etc-2 oz =1/4 cup) From personal experience-not a book- I have determined that as they get older and growing slows/stops, that amount will stabilize at approx. 0.6-0.75oz/kibble per lb of dog to maintain without gaining. For example, my dog weighs 8lbs and he gets a light 1/4 cup twice daily plus (too many) snacks.
My little one came home at 7.5 weeks and he has slept in the bed with us from the start. That makes him happy and makes us happy. He has never had a accident in the bed. He will stand on our faces and lick our eyeballs until we wake up and let him out, or if we won't get up for whatever reason, he has stairs to get off the bed and pee on the pad or the furniture or wherever we deserve for not getting up.:eek:
As for potty training, be consistant. This is where we failed. With you being teachers and home for the summer, you have a much better situation for consistancy than we did, and hopefully you will have a much better potty trained dog than we do!:doh34:

1. How will I know if her blood sugar drops? Will it be just like in humans she seems lazy and just wants to sleep? Right now she seems really happy and playful. Will her blood sugar only drop if she's not eating or can stress cause this?

I can tell you what mine does. She started skipping meals after her 1st round of puppy shots. She seemed lazy, walking off balance- like she was drunk, and started to shiver like she was cold. I almost lost her during her 1st episode. I was a 1st time yorkie owner with a 9 week pup. And from what I've read here, I'm sure the breeder is a BYB. She shouldn't have been with me at that age, but hind site is always 20/20, isn't it? :)

My vet told me to use clear karo syrup if she gets like this, then feed her and make sure she gets plenty of water after this. If she has an episode, make sure you tell the vet about it. We tried nutria-cal, mine didn't like it- she pushed it back out of her mouth when I put it in. I have an extermly picky eater. Nutri-cal is very good to have on hand though. It has more nutrients in it than karo syrup. I didn't have any at the time, so I had to make do.

I hope your pup continues to eat small meals for you. It sounds like your doing everything right for her.

WELCOME to YT! If you have any questions, ask! This site has a lot of good info and wonderful people!

Thanks cindersellie! This reminded me. If you give puppy pure glucose like karo or nutrical, be sure and follow it with a protein. Glucose will increase blood sugar, which increases insulin production, which causes a rebound drop in blood sugar unless there is a protein on board to prevent this.Also, when blood sugar drops, so does core temperature, causing shivering and a further drop in blood sugar. If you suspect that the sugar is dropping, make sure puppy is warm/wrapped up.

Note: most of my knowledge is from being a people nurse, not an experienced yorkie person, but the knowledge base still applies, and my little one has made it to 4 years old without any major mishaps, despite being from a byb and coming to me way too young.:D

Just want to welcome you to YT! Bless you and the best of luck with your new puppy! :)

Just my opinion....I would feed it small amounts every 2-3 hours....their tummies are really tiny! You might even half to feed it during the night to prevent low blood sugar.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Welcome to YT

Bet we'd all love to see some pictures!! She'll be growing fast so take some now! What's her name?

I would get Royal Canin Starter Mousse for babies....it is very easy for them to eat as it is like whipped....at 6 weeks old, you baby would only benefit from a puppy formula like Just Born, to drink on the side, as she SHOULD still be nursing on momma at this age. You can take a can of Just Born, cut it with 4 oz sterile distilled water or unflavored Pedialyte, 1 beaten egg yolk, 4 tablespoons of Karo Syrup, 1 tablespoon of Vi-Daylin pediatric drops....mix that all together and you can serve that, warmed, in a separate saucer....she will do better eating it out of a saucer than trying to lap it up out of a bowl....she doesnt know how to lap up milk yet, so you will have to work with her to teach her....you can also add a little of that to Royal Canin Baby Dog Kibble, which is the first stage of Kibble for toothless babies......then at about 10 weeks, you can go up to RoyalCanin Puppy Kibble....again, softened with the formula.....by 12-14 weeks, she can be weaned off the formula completely, and be on the Puppy Kibble......and I would at least call the person you got that baby from and tell her you know she lied to you abut that babys age.....I am praying your NEXT battle isnt parvo.....

I was just about to say what YorkieMom1 said, Royal Canin has a Starter Kibble and a Mousse for puppies just weaned from their mom.

Welcome to YT, you will find much valuable information here....what is your puppys' name? We would love to see some pictures.
I can't offer any advice as I have no experience with a very young puppy....Yorkiemom1 is a wonderful breeder...she is a world of information and advice....
Judy thank you for your help with this baby and for all you do.
OP again welcome to YT! You will love it here!

Thanks everyone for the advice. She is still happy as can be. She is eating the canned dog food really good. But we are struggling getting her to drink water. I have to sit at the bowl and splash with my finger to get her to drink a little. That's the only thing that is worrying me right now. I thought about buying her a bottle or a dropper and putting some milk replacement in it to get her to drink.

Also what is the best way to crate train her? We put her in the crate during the day and she will sleep just fine. We can put her in at night and she will sleep until around 12 to 1 when she has to go use the bathroom and she will start whining. Once we get her out and take her outside and try to put her back in crate she goes crazy. But we can put her inour bed in her bed in the middle of us and she will lay down and go to sleep. Until the next time she has to go out. I know that she is only whining to get attention but I didnt want her to get stressed out since she is so young.

Welcome to Yorkietalk! I'm sorry your breeder lied to you, but that's what bybs do. I'm glad you came here to get help.

I think the milk supplement would be a good idea. However, you don't want to feed her cows milk, it could make her sick. Also, wet foot has a lot of moisture, so that would be good for her too. I would skip the kibble until she gets more teeth. I would also research on here for a better kibble for when she can eat it. Iams is not the best and I personally would not feed it to my pups.

Try putting her crate next to your bed where she can see you. Also you might try putting a piece of your clothing in with her so she can smell you. Glad she is eating well. You might have to syringe her water until you can get her to start drinking on her own.

I got her to drink some milk replacement today. She drank that and just a little water. She has been eating canned dog food really good. About 10 minutes ago my wife called me and she went to the bathroom and it was caked in her hair on her bottom. My wife said it looked as if she was struggling. Could she be constipated? If she is what can I do to help her? It seems as everything I post something is wrong or I'm worrying about something.

I'm not sure what to do about the struggling/ constipation, but... Trimming the hair around her rectum might help. I have to do that sometimes between groomings to prevent the poo from getting stuck in the hair.

I'm sure you'll get an answer to the constipation problem. Keep offering drinks. I'm glad you found a food she likes!

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Lol that is part of being a first time yorkie parent here and we don't mind at all. If you think she is constipated you can add a teaspoon of pure canned pumpkin to her food once a day to get her regulated. Also at that age moms still clean their little bums so a damp warm washrag will help her to go after the area is cleaned.

Definitely call the breeder. It won't fix anything, but at least let them know that you're aware you were lied to. That's so irresponsible of them...

If you have a stubborn animal who won't drink, you can moisten your fingertips and put it right on their lips. They'll feel the water droplets on their lips and the natural response will be to lick. Sometimes you can even "trick" them into licking water off your fingers. Do it near the water bowl, and eventually they'll just start drinking from the bowl on their own.

nanahas3 is totally correct... at that age the mama is still licking and grooming the babies, so you may need to give her a little help. John Paul Pet (Paul Mitchell) makes these great wipes what work well on Yorkie bottoms. I love that the products are tested on HUMANS, and a portion of the profits goes to animal organizations.

Good luck, and keep us posted!!!! It sounds like it might be a tricky couple of weeks, but you'll have all summer to bond with her and work on potty training.

Thanks. I will get a can of pumpkin today. So I need to wipe her bottom every time I take her out with a warm cloth?

Ok. I'll get a can of pumpkin today and start her on it. Do I need to wipe her bottom with a warm rag everyte I take her out?

Welcome to Yorkie Talk, and congratulations on being a new Yorkie owner.

You do have a bit of a challenge in getting your little one so young, but keeping her safe and fed over the next few weeks she will catch up.

Since you are new to YT you might not have seen some of the great information in the Yorkie Talk Library section. Here is a link to the section with lots of good new puppy information. Puppy Care and Puppy Info Library - YorkieTalk.com Forums - Yorkshire Terrier Community

Frequent feedings are so important. Her stomach is so tiny, she won't be able to hold much at a time. The moist food and milk replacement is giving her some hydration in addition to water. It sounds like you are doing ok in the feeding, so I won't go into all the extra hints & tricks that I did with my 8 week old pup (unless you ask).

Their bladders are also very tiny, and I'm not sure she is ready for crate training (just my opinion). It is however important to have them in a restricted area until they are house trained. Many people set up an Ex-pen and put the crate inside but leave the crate door open, then there is room outside the crate to walk around, eat, and potty (on training pads).

I would be very concerned about taking her outside to potty at this age, without being fully vaccinated (which could be around 16-20 weeks). You have to be especially careful not to put her down anywhere other dogs may have been; she could get Parvo which is deadly. That also goes to other places you might think of taking her like Pet Stores, and even the vets office. Keep her in a carrier in those places.

Wiping her bottom won't be necessary every time, once she has normal formed stools, and the fur on her bottom is trimmed. A washcloth or cotton ball with warm water is helpful to stimulate a bowel movement if she seems to be struggling.

Good luck, and keep asking questions and updating. We all care about your little one, and want to help you get off to a good start.

I know that she is constipated. I just took her out I wiped her bottom with a warm rag and she tried to go with 5 minutes. You could tell she was pushing and pushing but just a very tiny piece came out. Look like a little ball. So I will be starting the pumpkin today. Do I still need to feed her canned dog food like normal since she is constipated? Don't want to stop her up any worse

Taking her out worries me to. Where we live we put top soil on top of what we had and planted grass. But our neighbors have dogs that pass through our yard. What else can I do besides taking her out? We have her a puppy pad in the living room. I have showed it to her but even outside she doesn't sniff a lot till she finds her spot. She just walks and goes when she stops.


We really don't want to crate her at night. We are just worried about letting her sleep in the bed. We put her in her bed in the middle of us and this morning she crawled out and went under the covers until she fell out and hit the floor. I almost had an heart attack when I heard her hit. Then I thought about locking her in our guest bathroom but with her teething she would chew the vanity and everything up. I think I'm over worrying about her. She was suppose to be my wife's baby but I have taken to her real quick and fell in love with her and the breed.

Sounds like she is doing good on the canned puppy food, its important they eat little and often, we also would mash the food with a little water just for added hydration also with Molly's pups at this age we were giving them goats milk warmed up and over a few weeks started to dilute with more and more water each time, all 5 pups did good without the need of sugar gels and such, they now are thriving 6 month old

When she's so young and small the pens are a really good idea, you know they are safe and have an area for feeding, toilet, play and sleep