Whoops - I've *spoiled* my puppy

[jennifermcb]

How can I break this sweet, yet not-great habit??

For the past few days, I've let Sophie fall asleep in my arms and I"ve held her during her whole nap. (I use that time to catch up on my Tivo'd shows.) Anyway, now she's gotten accustomed to that and she won't let me put her down in her crate or on her puppy bed. She wants to sleep in my arms. It's sweet cuddle time, but I can't do this 4-5 times per day I need to use her nap time to get things done around the house.

I have a feeling that breaking this habit is gonna hurt me as much as it hurts her.

[aimee]

I had made this mistake when we first got Tia. I just didn't ever want to put her down and the result was her thinking that I was supposed to hold her all the time. My solution was to just do it. After a day she was fine and curled up with Sandy instead

[bettyeanne]

Welcome to "Yorkieholism"!!! If there's a lap in our house ... Toto's on it!! The only way she isn't laying all over us is if we are on our feet!! She would be extremely happy if we would carry her around in our arms when we aren't sitting but as a rule we don't do that!! When she was tiny I would tie the belt on my robe and tuck her inside and she would stay there as long as I let her ... she loved it ... napping or sticking her little face out and watching everything. We really love holding her but have turned her into a genuine "velcro" dog! So, after she learned the word "no" isn't necessarily a word just for scolding but to explain to her that no also means something that I will be doing and she can't, I simply explain to her that I have something to do and she will have to entertain herself! It works!! All in all, she has matured into quite a good girl and she is our absolute joy!!

[Passionfruition]

When we 1st brought Sully home....he wouldn't stay still long enough to eat. So I held him in my arms and fed him puppy food out of my hand.

BAD IDEA.

It took a couple days for him to learn to eat out of his own bowl, haha. It was hard to watch him not eat, or not eat much....but my husband and I knew he had to learn b/c there's no way I could hold him at meal time every day.

[jennifermcb]

I'm so glad to know I'm not the only one who made this mistake and had to rectify it. I'll have to get to work making her sleep in her space so I can have mine.

[Chelsie1978]

I think we´ve all made this mistake,especially with our first yorkie When we got Lady I used to carry her around in a baby pouch on my chest all day,she was really tiny and we had a female cat who was pregnant and aggresive back then,so I thought it was safer to hold her all the time than to leave her on the floor where the cat could get her (eventually the cat had to go).I also had a dolly crib which I used to keep her near me whilst I was ironing or cooking and at the time I didnt think I was doing anything wrong because dogs dont get used to being held..HA! lol.
Lady is now 17 months old and doesnt like being on the floor at all.She is always pawing at us to be held and cries alot when she has to be on the floor for a while..she thinks she should be held ALL the time.Im glad I didnt do the same with Jess..I had learned my lesson by then which is a good thing because at 7lb´s I wouldent be able to carry her everywhere..lol.

[wollfy]

I did the same problem with Baby Jane when she was a puppy. I used to hold her all the time and always paid attention to her. But when i had to things, she would whine if I don't pick her up. Until I decided to ignore her for a few days when I had to do things. Then she realized I had important things to do. So she just stopped. Now she is lazy and doesn't want to be bothered with.

[Milo]

We have 2 other dogs, so Milo is just as content to play with them as he is to sleep with me. I actually wish he was a little more "spoiled". It's hard to cuddle when he wants to rough house with the "Big Dogs"

[scrappysmom]

I did the same thing when I got scrappydoo i just couldnt put him down and i even took him to bed with me and let him cuddle with me , now that hes 16 months old hes always next to me .

[StewiesMom]

My advice is not to get a laptop. It's difficult to have Yorkie ear in your mouth when you're laying down trying to type. Stewie is my little scarf -- always around my neck.

[bettyeanne]

Originally Posted by Chelsie1978

I think we´ve all made this mistake,especially with our first yorkie When we got Lady I used to carry her around in a baby pouch on my chest all day,she was really tiny ..lol.

I did the same thing but the pouch was so bulky I had the bright idea of a sling [the kind you put an injured arm in] and it worked beautifully ... until ... I leaned over cleaning one of the toilets and Toto almost slid into the toilet!! Shoulda sewn the open end closed!!!