Behavioural Problems with My Yorkie
 

i hope this is the right section and i apologise if it isn't but i hope someone can help me

i got my little badger just under four weeks ago. i went to see him at the breeder's house and she has an excellent reputation and he has an extremely good pedigree. i went to see him at eight weeks with his remaining brother and he was obviously the smallest of the litter but full of fun. he did come when i called to him and he seemed very lively and alert so i thought he was a great choice irrespective of his size. we picked him up the next week and brought him home but from the start he hasn't seemed very affectionate at all and i'm worried he doesn't like me :confused:

the reason i got a yorkie was because my girlfriend in boston had one (we moved back to the UK last summer) and i absolutely loved him to bits. he was really affectionate and followed me around everywhere and so on. it's hard not to draw comparisons but i don't want to put any pressure on badger at all and i know he's only a puppy but i'm starting to get really worried. he occasionally sits in my lap but then all he does is try and bite me (playfully) when i try and stroke him. he almost seems scared of me at times which i find upsetting and will sometimes run away. he gets really excited when he sees my husband (who is at work all day) but is not as excited when he sees me. generally, he's not a nervous dog. i have taken him out quite a bit but not to walk just to get him used to the sites and sounds of the city and recently he's started insisting on walking and he seems to be having a great time (i try not to let him overdo it though). he also seems great with other people but some reason we don't seem to be bonding at all. this probably seems ridiculous but i'm starting to regret getting him now. i don't want to commit to a dog for fifteen years that doesn't seem that interested in even sitting in my lap

gosh. this has been a really long post. please forgive me, i'm just really worried

How long have you had him? He may just still be trying to adjust to his new surroundings. Are you home with him durning the day? When he is napping do you try to pick him up and hold him and let him sleep on your lap with a nice warm cozy blanket? Do you give him yummy treats? Does he go on walks yet?

thanks for replying :) . i'll have had him four weeks on saturday. he was quite shy the first couple of weeks but i just put that down to him being young and i basically just let him wander around at his leisure and he seems fine now. he just tears around the place which is really cute. i am at home all day with him. we initially kept him in a pen in our room but he seems to have sorted out his toilet training so fast that we thought it was okay to put him in a basket by our bed. i paid a fortune for it and he seems to prefer sleeping on the floor! haha! i do pick him up when he's napping and try and put him on my lap but then he just wants to get down again and he wanders back off to the floor to sleep. i give him loads of treats, yes! i read up loads before i got him and took note of all the positive reinforcement. he does seem to play-bite an awful lot when he's sitting in my lap or he lunges at me when i play with him. i've started walking him in the last week or so and he seems to get on great with other people and loves to walk

I'm sure he will come around, who knows he may be the type that is just a loner, Normally this is what I have seen, Yorkies tend to find 1 person in the home that they prefere, and since your home with him all the time, I would think it would be you. I know I bonded with Kloey when we picked her up cause we had a 3 hour drive and I held her the whole time, now she hardly leaves my sight (except when I'm at work)
Just keep doing what your doing and I'm sure the little guy will come around :)

Don't give up!!!
 

Just to give you a little background -- I had a little female for 17 years. From day one, she was my little snuggler -- and was never happier than when I was holding her. Don't get me wrong, she was a very social dog, and went to other people, but I could always pick her up and just snuggle. After Sneaker was gone, I finally decided to get another yorkie. I got chosen by my Toby. Didn't really want a male, but everyone I'd talked to told me how loveable and snuggly they were. First night home -- Toby was curled up, sleeping on the bed and looking oh-so-cute, I just had to give him a little pet. That dog (8 weeks old) got up... stomped to the end of the bed... and plopped down -- letting me know, in no uncertain terms, that he didn't appreciate me at all. I was crushed. As he got older, he was still very independent -- and when I picked him up, he was constantly wanting to get down and run around, and the only real time that I got snuggles was when he was so tired that he would just fall asleep in my arms. Now, he was always giving me little kisses, and happy to see me when I'd been gone, but just didn't want to "snuggle." So, I learned to just give him his space, and he would come to me when he felt like it. And it really works. He still doesn't snuggle like Sneaker did, but he is definitely affectionate -- as long as it's on his terms. Now, all I have to do is ask him for a kiss -- and he will give me one. But the best one is, now I ask him for a hug and he will lay his head down on my shoulder for his version of a hug. Sorry to be so long-winded, but I just wanted to let you know what worked for me. Give your baby some space -- but give him lots of attention. Give him little treats, play with him, and enjoy the time he does give you. Eventually, it'll pay off and you will definitely get your "lovin time" from him. Just let him do it at his pace...

Good luck...

This could potentially be a blessing in disguise. There are so many puppes out there that CRY their heads off if they are not being held 24/7...your guy is a little more independent. I would love to see some pictures of your little guy! :)

thankyou. i guess i'm starting to understand now that he's just more independent but i feel upset about that because i definitely wanted an affectionate dog. he's got an extraordinary pedigree - his grandfather won best in show at crufts and his great grandfather was the greatest yorkie who ever lived apparently. or something. none of that means anything to me though because i wanted a true companion dog that would snuggle up and want to be with me all the time and i was very specific with the breeder about that and she assured me that he had a very affectionate blood line. when i first saw him, he seemed very sprightly but he was fine being held and cuddled. it's just been since we got him home and he got over his first couple of weeks getting used to us. i agree with you in terms of giving him space for his own needs but had my heart set on a lovely little snuggle muffin and now i've got what amounts to just a dog

here are some more pics of him for you. he's very cute!

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/532acb19.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/be8ddcdd.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/87d571c3.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/c243d788.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/1ab8759e.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/01651a39.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/b92396bf.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/ee1d4525.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c2...b/2aac119c.jpg

I am not trying to sound rude but maybe you should take him back to the breeder. Don't let him get to attached to your home if your not happy with him. If he is cuddleing your husband then he just hasn't bonded with you yet. He sounds very precious. I hope you make the right decision.
I just don't think you should keep him if he is just an ordinary dog to you. :confused:

DEPENDENT OR INDEPENDENT, I don't think that really has anything to do with petigree.

I may be wrong though and if so I hope someone here can correct me...

LOVED the pictures!! Hes so precious..best of luck to you!! :)

no, you don't sound rude at all. sorry. i know i'm coming across as really callous but i don't think i'd be doing him any favours by keeping him if he's not happy and i'm not. i've given it a lot of thought and i know a decision needs to be made soon for his sake. i know i must sound terribly selfish but i wanted a very specific kind of companion. again, it sounds terrible, but i'd be setting myself up for a fifteen year commitment to a dog i don't really want and who probably doesn't want me either. i don't know alot of yorkie people here (it's still a fairly uncommon dog in london) so i guess i wanted to find out if this sort of behaviour is normal. i guess he is just more 'independent' but that's not the dog i wanted. i don't know what would happen if i took him back though. i would be more than happy for her to keep the money but i don't know what would happen to him

She may trade you for another pup or she would resell him. You did say she was a good breeder, if so she will see to it that he finds a good home.

If I lived closer I would take him in a second. :D