War Stories
 

We had our puppy out for a walk around town yesterday for the first time. We got the expected "Awwwww's" and "he's so cute" remarks as we walked (which he does very well on a leash). However, anyone who has or had a Yorkie, or knows someone with a Yorkie, felt obligated to tell us their war stories. You know, the dog who is two and still not housebroken, the one who destroys the house, and our worst fear, the one with ALL the chronic health problems, including one who needed surgery on her hip before reaching one. Yikes, scared the heck out of us. Now we are worried that we may not have what it takes to care for this pup. I want him to be able to spend evenings with us without constantly worrying if he is off doing his business behind the couch. Two years???? Please, tell me it's not true!! Is is quicker to housebreak or paper train? How do we avoid hypoglycemia? While training, I was told not to leave food and water available, is that what's best for him? Oh man......:aimeeyork :(
Thanks,
Liz

Don't let it upset you. Every dog no matter what the breed has a chance of getting sick, being hard to housebreak, etc. Yorkies are just head strong, and have small bladders. I always leave water down, but not food. I feed them once a day, and they do fine with their potty training. It may be a little while before he/she is potty trained, but with some patience and a lot of love you can get it done.

All dogs are different! Just let those stories pass right by you.

It's like when you're pregnant and EVERYONE has to tell you about their difficult delivery and how bad it was.

If all dogs and all pregnancies were that hard, there wouldn't be puppies or babies around for all of us to love:)

I agree with the other posters. Each furkid is different and present it's own challenges. But they are such a loving joyous breed. I wouldn't trade Tink for anything. Well, maybe $10 million, 'cuase then I'd have enought to buy her right back. LOL

Love your baby and don't worry about everyone else's experiences. Different breeds have different issues.

I would just make sure you have a plan for housebreaking. Whether its crate training or maybe training the pup to ring bells by the door to go out. You need to be in charge, not the pup. Read about different options & find what fits your lifestyle best & stick with that first, before introducing to many alternative plans to the pup.

I have an aunt who swears by crate training, and when I got my first puppies (Bichon Frises) I thought it was cruel - but later I wished I had done it, to stop the mistakes in the house.

As for feeding mine are feed once a day with water always available. (My vet believes free feeding keeps the digestive system going all day. And I can tell you my adult yorkies need to go out if there are treats in the evening - even a carrot revs them up.)

I adopted my yorkies when they were 1 1/2 & they came from a house where the water wasn't always down. I think that's a problem - water is important to them, just as it is to us. My vet thinks its really easy for dogs not to get enough water, & it seems like mine drink so little, I really think that that's because they learned not to drink much when they were younger - makes me concerned for their health.

Good rule: After the puppy drinks, find time to go outside.

Good luck and welcome to YT!

I have to agree with the other posters on this one. Not all Yorkies are the same just like not all babies are the same! I think that if you stick with a potty training method then it will work. When you find a training method to do you have to be consistent with it for the training to be a success. (at least that is what I have read as I have yet to get my puppy)

As for the stories, I know people like to alert others of their experiences. I was at a baby shower and one of my Husbands aunts insisted I tell of my 2 premies that I had! Why should I scare this poor girl that only had one month to go!

If you are concerned about health issues bring them up to your vet and see what they have to say. No need to worry unless something is wrong is how I feel about health issues, but it is good to be informed of some problems so that you know what to do if one does happen.