My yorkie loves jumping around too much.

[JuanRamos]

I'm really worried about her habit of jumping around the furniture. We got her stairs but all she does is jump on and off the sofas. I really wanna know if this is something that must be stopped at her current age and weright (4 months old and past 2 pounds) to avoid any future problems like Luxating Patella or Hip Displasia.

also, I have been told that she's too big for her age, so I was wondering what you people thought about her weight since I'm worried that she could develop any future problems if she's overweight as a puppy. She's already bigger than my aunt's 9 months old pug and as big as my sister's 1 yo maltese. My girlfriend and I have been following a feeding schedule given by our vet ever since we got her a week ago, and so far it doesn't seem like she wants to eat more than the 1/2 cup (spread throughout the day in 2 small meals of 1/4 cups) recommended by our vet. We are feeding her with Royal Canin's yorkie food for dogs younger than 10 months old, which I hope doesn't have a bad reputation around this forum since it's the first time I've bought dog food of that brand. I usually just cook food for my labradors and mix it with dog food. They are currently pretty active despite being 12 and 13 years old, so I'd like to think that I have been doing the right thing with their diet, but I'm worried that my yorkie's stomach wouldn't be as strong as my other dogs' back when they were puppies, so for now I wanna stick to what my vet says that its the best for her.


Thanks in advance for your help. I hope I can learn a lot from this community.

[Hrossen11]

Overweight is different for each dog. She just might be a bigger yorkie. As a puppy I wouldn't worry they are not overweight unless you are feeding it a bunch of table scrapes. Once they reach adult hood then you can ask your vet what the ideal weight for your dog would be. Here is a basic visual chart to look at. Again don't worry about puppy overweight until adulthood.

[Hrossen11]

Regards to jumping, that is something you want to try to train them to minimize. There is a higher chance of injury from jumping on and off furniture. It can lead to broken bones from falls, back injuries, and increased joint problems. Since you have stairs, try to reward your pup every time he uses them. Train him to go up and down them, so it becomes a habit for him. Constant treats and praise for using the stairs. Also train him to sit and wait to be picked up before joining you on the couch. Your pup will still jump around as it his nature (I call mine a goat because he loves jumping up and sitting on tall places) your goal is to minimize the jumping as much as you can.

[Hrossen11]

My labs are also 12-13, and I think my little guys were the best thing for them. One, my big dogs taught the little ones social manners. Two, the little guys gave my old boys back some of their youth.

[matese]

welcome to YT, yorkies are very energetic, hyper breed, running & jumping is just a "yorkie thing" at her weight I don't think it's advisable. I have always had bigger yorkies, 9 + lbs. Many on YT have wee lil babies and will be more then glad to advise you. Good luck with your new lil baby.

[nanahas3]

We have a little guy who is a jumper. I have tried stairs,ramps, you name it and haven't been able to correct this. He can clear a 3 ft high xpen standing flat footed and he weighs 5lbs. I am not a trainer and so I am sorry I cannot help you in how to teach him not to jump. If he is only eating 1/4 cup twice a day it doesn't sound like he is overeating, some are just on the bigger side. Welcome to YT and wishing you the very best.

[JuanRamos]

Thanks a lot for the answers and the warm welcome.


The fact she stayed with her parents until she was 4 months old really helped with her indoors behaviour, so teaching her that she has to ask people to give her a lift to get on furniture hasn't been hard. She still feels like jumping on our sofas while playing fetch with one of her toys, so I think I'll just stop playing fetch with her indoors to minimize the danger of her landing on her head or breaking a bone in case she ever fails to get on one of our sofas.

Apparently this habit of hers was due to her prior owners letting her watch TV with them. But they always tried to put the puppies down before they could jump off, which wasn't hard since the only reason they jumped on the sofa was to be with them.

[JuanRamos]

Originally Posted by Hrossen11

My labs are also 12-13, and I think my little guys were the best thing for them. One, my big dogs taught the little ones social manners. Two, the little guys gave my old boys back some of their youth.

Yeah, puppies do wonders for the older ones. My labs have always been like little kids, but my dad has a 9 year old Doberman who was brought back to his youth after getting him a new puppy pal.

[JuanRamos]

by the way, my puppy hasn't tried yet to jump on tables and chairs despite them being on her jumping range. I think she respects the fact that these are for our exclusive use, just like how her doggy couch is hers alone. But I'll still keep a close eye on her to scold any attempts of trying to do so, since the chances of her getting hurt by jumping off a table or chair would be much higher IMO.

Once again, thanks a lot of for the answers. I love dogs from the bottom of my heart so I really want to do everything I can to give her a great life.

[Sunnydayz]

2lbs at 4 months is not big :-) the standard is 4 to 7 pounds. If you look at the size chart although not 100% guaranteed, you double the size at 12 wks and that should be close to the full grown size which if your pup is already 4 months old it will put her probably around 4 lbs or less full grown, which would actually be on the smaller size. Royal canine yorkie puppy is a really good balanced diet for yorkie pups, so nothing to worry about, your doing great :-) welcome to yorkietalk, this place is amazing with so much info and wonderful people :-)