I agree with that, I would remove all of my carpet and replace it with tile before I would get rid of my yorkies.

On the other hand mys sister frequently makes comments about how she could not stand to have a dog that had accidents or even that required pee pads. she has Shi Tzus

:thumbup: :thumbup:

I will tell you that Millies was very high maintainence in the very begining. I wanted her 100% housebroken so I did the work required. I can tell you that it does get better, the older they get. However, Millie will still wake up in the middle of the night (about 2am) and want to go outside to potty. I usually have to get up myself anyway to go at least once in the night, so we both do our potties and go back to bed. (I think this may be a forever thing, but I can live with it and yes both my husband and I work all day, so my rest is important, but for me waking up once a night is no big deal.) On weekends, I wake up at 2am to do our potties and my husband wakes up at 5:30am (our usual waking up time for work-week) takes Millie to potty again, because she is just used to going at that time during the week) and back to bed until 7:30 -8:00am.

As far as potty training I would recommend the following:

Make their stay-at-home-by-themselves area smaller. The kitchen may be too big (for now) until you get them potty trained.
1. You can either x-pen them which allows just enough room for their bed, crate, food and water bowl (although, I would not recommend leaving water or food out when you are not there, if you can limit their intake you can limit the out-take, if you know what I mean) toys and peepads. I would peepad in any empty area in their confined area. That way, no matter where they potty, it will be on the peepad. At some point, when they begin to perfer a pee spot over another, you can start eliminating peepads until you have only one or two left and they are using them consistently. If they start going potty in "non-peepad" areas again, you have removed the pads too quickly and you will have to put them back and start again.
2. Or you can crate them during the day when you are not there. (I did this with Millie) Make the space in the crate only big enough to turn around and laydown. No more room than that. They should be able to hold their potty until you get home, if you are getting home between 8 and 9 hours later. I don't think they can hold it much longer than that. No food or water during the day, when you are not there. (however, if using this method, I would not crate them during the evening when you get home. If you need to contain them, because you are busy and cannot watch them, then you should confine them in the x-pen. Make sure there is just enought room in the xpen for their food and water bowls, toys, bed and crate (with door open). I would not put a peepad in there. They should hold their potty until you take them out. (so make sure, they have just gone potty before you put them in there and take them to go potty when you take them out)

Make sure the x-pen and crate are in an area of the house that gets a lot of traffic, so the puppies feel part of the family interaction, when you leave them in there when you are home.

I would also designate one area and one area only for the peepads. I would take them to this area every 1-2 hours while you are home. and make sure you give them the potty command and praise and treat when they go.

I would NOT give them free range of the house. Keep them contained in one room at a time and it should be the room you are in so that you can keep your eye on them. Someone, (husband or you) should never take your eyes off them while they are out of the xpen or the crate. If you are taking them to the potty area regularly, there should be few times they will need to go outside of their schedule, but if you keep your ever vigiliant eyes on them, when they start to squat you can pick them up immediately and take them to the potty area. The whole objective is to make more correct behaviors then incorrect ones. You are establishing a habit for them to potty on pads, not the rest of the house. But if you allow mistakes, then you are unconsciously establishing a habit for them to go where ever they want. So remember, you want almost 99.9% correct behavior and the only way to acheive this is to watch them at all times, or confine them when you cannot.

When you are home, you don't need to keep them in the crate or x-pen alot. Only when both you and your husband are unable to watch them. Since they have been confined all day, they do need the time with you and outside the crate/pen. They also need to practise good potty behavior. :)

It is a massive amount of work and requires ALL your attention when you are home. I know how tired you are when you come home and you just want to sit and relax, but until they are potty trained, you are not going to be able to. However, I can tell you that once they get reliably potty trained and you start introducing more rooms in your house and they can start being more independent, you are going to enjoy them more and more. Millie was really less work about about 8 months to 1 year old. She was reliably potty trained about 6 1/2 months old. It has only been recently (she will be 2 years old in April) that we have allowed her out of the crate at night and into our beds or her pillow bed on the floor next to our bed. She is doing great!

It's all about serious restrictions of what they are allowed to do with lifting of those restrictions (a little at a time) as the earn it with proper behavior.

LOL I can come take one off of your hands! LOL I live just down the road and Diesel would LOVE to have a playmate! LOL It isn't easy housebreaking them. Especially when you have to work and can't be home all the time. It may just take little longer for it to happen. Diesel was fairly easy.Then again I homeschool and I am home all the time too. When it comes to eating poop ... It is nasty I give you that. We had a dog that use to do it. My vet always says that it is becuase they are missing somehting in their diet. Maybe a change in dogfood would help. Good luck!

Another thing is that dogs thrive when on a schedule. It sounds like things are just a little hectic around your home when it comes to the dogs. You need to establish a regular schedule so your babies will know what to expect and they won't be so anxious to know what is going to happen next. And like someone else mentioned, maybe your yorkies just don't like going potty on the pee pads. Maybe training them to go potty outside or use a litter box would be better for them. It's definately something you can consider if you decide to keep them.

Ladylavender.......... I tried putting mine in a smaller area and what happened is, when they would see me coming, they would get excited and jump up and down in the poop and make an awful mess.

I found it easier to put the pads where they wanted to go and then gradually move them.

It was easier on me and on them.

But what ever works for your situation. there is NO SINGLE right way to do it.

In my opinion, in response to LadyLavendar's post, 8-9 hours is just too long to crate a yorkie. And I don't think they should go all day wtihout food and water either. Because of the risk of a hypoglocemic attack and bladder infections and/or crystal formation in the bladder, they should get food and water regularly throughout the day.

But I DO agree with LadyLavendar that since they are confined ALL DAY LONG, they should be confined as least as possible when you get home in the evenings. But do not let them have full run of the house. Even I keep my bedroom, laundry room, and bathroom doors shut when we are not in those rooms bc the yorkies would sneak in there to potty when we aren't looking.

[QUOTE=RLC12345678]In my opinion, in response to LadyLavendar's post, 8-9 hours is just too long to crate a yorkie. And I don't think they should go all day wtihout food and water either. Because of the risk of a hypoglocemic attack and bladder infections and/or crystal formation in the bladder, they should get food and water regularly throughout the day. QUOTE]

I understand this is a matter of controversial opinion. To clarify I can say that I was under the instructions of a dog behavioralist and questioned the abilty of any yorkie (no older than 14 wks) being able to handle crating for this long, and without water and food. But she told me to try it. And I did and it worked. Millie never messed in her crate the whole time we were gone. But we did make sure we were home immediately after work, no delays and no detours. There was not much for Millie to do in the crate because the area was so small, so I think she did sleep most of the day, no energy exerted and we never had a problem with her physically either.

We did work her up to an x-pen after a while (probably several months later) when we were fairly confident she understood she had to hold it all day and she did fine in the x-pen. We then worked up to leaving her in the house all day, unconfined and that has worked out well too.

take the time to train them to go potty outside. they cannot teach themselves. mine are both house trained and have been sense about 7/8 months they take longer they are a small breed and cannot hold it as long, mine sleep through the night and can hold it to go in the morning. you could use bellybands and diapers to minimize accidents inside but they can't help it if they aren't crated or put up for hours on end dogs need human interaction training and socilazition or they just don't know how to behave it's that simple.you get back what you put into your pets if you do not have time for them then find them new homes.something needs to be done soon it's harder to train them as they get older because they will be set in their ways. it can be done but will take more time & effort.

I feel for you. I also have 2 - TJ and Roxy. Both me and my husband work full time. I must say that everything you mentioned about their behavior is EXACTLY and THEN SOME what I have had to deal with too. It does get very frustrating and at times I am very tired. I no longer can take naps or just rest, always on the look out for whatever my 2 are up too!

It has gotten much, much better - but with certain things, I still have a way to go.

TJ and Roxy are both about 2 years old now. In May 2007 - We will have them for 2 years. The first year was definatley the hardest - puppies :)
But, with limited space for them, schdules, routines, positive praise and treats, and of course, TJ and Roxy growing up...Well, it is well worth it!

I still really can't take naps, b/c I still have occasional poop eaters - So, I always must be on poop watch - But, they both poop 1x in the AM and then in the evening, and I now know the signs of them having to go poop - And I bought this special Chicken Jerky Treat - that they both now know they only get when they go poop (and I get to flush it).

I wish I could spend more time with them. I do wish I could take them out for walks more often. I do plan on when it gets warmer here in NY to do that.
But, all in all - THEY ARE THE BEST PART OF ME AND MY HUSBANDS LIVES. They are our babies, we would do anything for them - because the love and joy that is in our household because of TJ and Roxy is priceless.

I have so much more that I could type, but I am at work right now and must log off. Please feel free to PM me. I would be more than happy to go into further detail of how I raised TJ and Roxy (working full time) maybe there is something I could tell you that might be of help! :)

Sorry, I know it's so frustrating-I felt the same way, like I was inadequate or doing something wrong, but then I remembered, this is a puppy-much like a baby.
We had luck with getting a wire-kennel-cage type crate for night and when we arent there.... we also controlled when they ate/drank and this helped w/the elimination-cut up hotdogs when they go in the right place, whether it be outside or inside really kicked my lucy into gear and we took her outside every half our and asked-do you need to go potty-and eventually she would bark back and now she will come and bark when she needs to go. This took an awful long time-we also had to learn taht she will not poo in a yard that is dirty (must be picked up once a week) and had trouble going outside in the rain or snow-which required extra tone/motivation from us.
My vet told me that if you feed your yorkie twice a day, they will usually eliminate on more of a schedule---we are trying this with our new puppy b/c if she is left all day, she will go and she will snack on it-yuck!
So I wld suggest taking a step back and try and think about blocking them off with you when you are hanging out doing dishes, watching tv-even if you have to leash them in the beginning to keep an eye on them-to try and eliminate the pottying in the floor-and try to give them as much "YOU" time as possible... playing catch-things that will tire them out so when they do go into the kennel, they arent whining and wanting you, they are snoozing !! :)
good luck and keep us posted -there are quite a few training books out there-i've watched a log of the dog whisperer on natl geographic channel and he has a lot of insight about a dog's needs-you might check it out.
additionally-you have to remember if they whine/cry it might also be for attention and you have to find ways to be sure you dont reward that behavior by ignoring them
:)

Okay, well, in a perfect world we would all love to be home with our furbabies all day. But I, like you Friley, work full time and would like to think that my baby has adjusted to my schedule. I disagree with YorkieRose, and think that you can have these two babies even though you work.

Now, I only have one girl, Cali. She can be a handful, so I can imagine what two puppies are like. Anyways, my husband and I are people who cherish our sleep. I have two (human) children who I never let sleep with us. If they needed diaper change or to be fed or soothed, I would get up, go in their rooms, and do what needed to be done. I would be BONE-TIRED. But I truly believed it would be better in the long run. They've been in their own beds and bedrooms since we brought them home from the hospital. Now at 7 and 5,they have absolutely no problem sleeping by themselves. And have been that way since the beginning. I treat Cali (my Yorkie) the exact same way. Since I got her (I've had her a month and a half), she sleeps by herself, in her crate, in the kitchen. I leave her crate door open, and I have the ex-pen closed around her, only big enough to have a pee pad and that's it. No extra play room or anything. The first three or so days, she cried. I didn't go in there no matter what. Believe me, I know it is stressful and will drive you crazy, but it's worth it. You have got to break them out of that. It may take longer than 3 days for you I realize, but eventually they'll get it. And, if the only reason they are crying is because they have to use it, the pee pad should help.

Now, when I get home from work, Cali is jumping like crazy wanting to get out of that ex-pen/crate set up. I ignore that. And I may have the amazing ability to ignore alot of noise (I do have a 7 and 5 year old!!). After a good ten minutes, she'll stop. Then I'll pick her up. But I definitely don't give her anymore room than the kitchen. No roaming the house at all. She can't be trusted to come back to the pee pad, and I she's probably too little to remember to do that anyway. Even in the kitchen, she has accidents. But it is better, easier, and way less frustrating to know where the mess is and take care of it. The pee and poop is there where you can see it. I still get mad, although I don't let Cali know. I clean it up, and we go from there. She is so little, though, she doesn't need more room. To a tiny 7 inch by 7 inch puppy, a nice sized kitchen is more than enough room. I don't know how big your babies are, and I don't know how big your apartment is, but I think they have too much freedom. If you must let them roam the house, your eyes should be on them like a hawk. Put them on a leash and stay in the same room with them.

The eating the poop-I can't help you there. But like someone else said, there is something you can sprinkle on the food.

Hope I don't sound like I'm preaching. I still have a long way to go with Cali, and what works for me might not work for everybody. But I do know that dogs do have the ability to manipulate us and it is important that they know who is leading who. Good luck with your babies, and be patient. Y'all will get there.:thumbup:

Friley,
Don't give up hope yet! I am a single furbaby mom! I work all day mon - friday. I leave the house at 730am and get home at 6pm. I know this is a long time to leave my boys alone but they do wonderfully together all day without me.
I do not give them weewee pads/peepee pads anymore at all as they were eating them too. I leave down newspaper... something about the smell of it or something but they don't eat it! During the day my boys are also gated into the kitchen (check your cabinet bottoms, mine are chewed up I just realized :mad:) What I do recommend is getting them an indoor/outdoor plastic type pen. It has 4 sides and will fit in your kitchen (that way they cannot eat your cabinets or walls either) but it still gives them enough room. For a couple days or a week maybe watch where they tend to potty the most. Once you think you got it, move the paper there. My boys tended to potty the most in the front of the kitchen, I mean it looked liek they pottied wherever but after awhile I noticed that it was mostly in the front, so I moved the paper there. For months I put down paper there. Soon, they were going on the paper at least 90% of the time. Then I moved the paper to a different area and they just go on the paper now for the most part, i'd say 98% of the time they go on the paper, and never tear it apart like they did the pads.

When I am home and they are not gated into the kitchen, I let them out every 1/2 hour. They are NOT housebroken yet though but I let them out and everytime I do I tell them to go pee or poop outside. I use the same word, same phrase and the minute they lift a leg outside I start to praise them! They are doing better now. At least in my house they are. I also notice that mabye 50% of 'accidents' in the house, they actually go to the paper in the kitchen and do it. So thats good.

Put down paper where yous ee them pee most often. They will begin to get that you want them to pee on the paper. Then you can move the paper a little bit each week and they will keep peeing on it.

As for crating them in your room at night... I did not let my boys out in the middle of the night, they did not mess their crate at all. They would sleep 8 hours straight through the night. The first 20 -30 mins I put them in there they would cry & whine really loudly! What i did was made their crate comfy for them, nice soft blanket, some favorite stuffed, soft toys and I put a clock in it under the blanket, a clock that ticked softly. Then I would put them in and pet them in their crate for a few mins, then shut the door and put a blanket OVER the crate! If they could nto see me or really hear me or really smell me they went to sleep and slept through the night. The blanket over the crate was key for me really, that is when they got good at sleeping all night, once I did that. Now they sleep with me and they sleep through the night with no middle of the night trips out or no 'accidents' in the bed!

I hope that helps a little bit!

I know its overwhelming with these guys at first, they ARE a handful, they do need a lot of attention, but they are so worth it if they are trained.

Maybe it would benefit you tremendously to take them to training classes? I know its pricey, but its a good way to get them trained quicker so that you can spend more time loving them than yelling at or punishing them!

Good Luck!!!!

I have one Yorkie, and both hubby and I work full-time. However, I do devote a big chunk of my day to Pepper, I work 12-7, hubby 9-5 so the pup's alone for 6-7 hours each day. I wake up by 7 and till 10 it's Pepper's time, the same at night, I get home usually by 8 and try to take the dog for a walk (as long as the weather isn't bad...), he's usually running and playing at least till 10 pm... 20, 30 or even an hours of playtime isn't enough for him, it's like a warm up, he can play, run and jump for hours... My married life suffers a little, as during the week we don't eat dinners together, but Pepper's 7 months and IS potty trained (on the pad but he hasn't had an accident in months and roams freely in the apartment all the time). What I did in the beginning, I left him in an xpen in the kitchen with pee pad, toys, bed and water. Whenever I was home, I let him out, but there was at least one pad in each room. Eventually he got the idea of pottying on the pad. Then I started working on leaving him gated in the kitchen and getting the number of pads down at the same time. When he was 6 moths old, I finally stopped gating him in the kitchen, I know I can trust him now, and he has the whole apartment for himself. He knows he's supposed to potty on the pad in the kitchen. He sleeps in the kitchen as his bed is there. It can be frustrating at the beginning, they demand your attention (when I sit at the computer too long, he lets me know it:rolleyes: ). It is a needy breed, but it does get easier with time, it's like with babies, we need to put some things on hold (I froze my gym membership as I don't want to leave Pepper alone for too long, I used to work out every day). I don't get to watch as much TV as I'd like (thanks for TiVo...). The house isn't as clean as I'd want it to be... It's if we're willing to make those commitments. I wish you the best, hang on there...

I think you just need to give it more time. My dogs really mellowed out about 1 year of age. I agree they need exercise every day. I also would not keep them in a crate all day. I would get an xpen or gate them in the kitchen or bathroom.