Help With Older Yorkie
 

Hello,
I'm new to the forum. We have a 5 year old miniature yorkie. We have struggled with her and her potty habits. She is so finicky about so many things. For the last several years she seems to go in and out of phases of behaving like a real dog and going outside to potty to seemingly forgetting she is even a potty trained dog and peeing and pooping in the house ... mostly on our furniture! We are now having to throw away one of our couches because of it. At the end of my rope with not knowing what to do about this behavior problem. We have tried Bark Busters for other problems too. Any advice or comments? Others having similar problems? It seems this breed has many problems with potty habits.

Could her and Ellie be related???
Sometimes she goes on a streak where she mostly goes outside and sometimes she constantly goes inside. She rarely goes on the furniture though. One thing that does work for the peeing is using a diaper. Take it off and take her out. If she doesn't go it goes back on. Now if yours pees through the diaper, that's out too. That can be difficult.

We replaced most of our carpet with mopable flooring.:rolleyes:

Hi. The only thing that seems to work for her if she does not go outside (when she is in this forgetful phase) is to keep her leashed near her crate or in the kitchen on a ceramic tile floor until she does go when we take her. Still, she will go on the floor or furniture just an hour or two hours later after taking her! Basically, she can't be trusted when she is in this phase! She does not have a bladder infection. There are no health problems. This all has to be behaviorial problems. I just don't understand it. I'm wondering if anyone has found a vet or trained person who can explain this and what to do about it.

I tore out my carpet and put in laminint because I have bad dogs too. Yorkies have very small bladders and need to potty frequently, My dogs are pretty much litter trained.. it heps but I do wish they went outside too. One of my yorkies is about 8lbs and she is good at going outside, the others are 5lbs and under .. they aren't so good about doing duty outside.

Pee Pads
 

We decided from the beginning to use Pee Pads always and outdoors whenever possible. The disposables became too expensive with two furbutts, one who drinks constantly (tested numerous times, he's fine) and pees constantly. Use Pooch Pads now. Buy them directly from the site. When they have a sale, it's great-50% off. I stock up. I get the mature dog style. Site says each pad is good for 365 washings. I still have the originals that are 4 years old. No matter what flooring you have, use a remnant piece of vinyl sheet flooring under the pads to prevent leak through, especially if you are at work all day. I use two pads at a time. I change them 4 times a day. My house doesn't smell, but I confess that I do have to do a Pee Pad wash every night. I feel wonderful that my boys don't have to hold it, and that we don't have to get up to let them out. It's nice if you can give them an area in the laundry room or mud room or extra bathroom.

I am so sorry to say, but I think it is mental :(

My Roxy is 4.5 y/o ~ She "was" completely pee pad trained, and then she started to pee on throw rugs, then it would stop. And a few months later, she started to pee in random (but the same) spots on the title floor, then she would stop. Then she started to pee by TJ eating area and their water bowl, then stop. And then it happened, she began to pee on the couch and now on the spare room beds :mad: :mad: :mad:

When we go in the backyard she is obsessed with peeing ~ marking :mad: She has about 4 favorite spots outside, that she goes back and forth to mark, over and over and over again.

So, Roxy IS potty trained on pee pads, but she LOVES to mark, she also has high anxiety which causes some of the peeing as well.

As a matter of fact, I am on wash # 3 tonight (she pee on 2 of the spare room beds) either yesterday or today. :mad: :mad:

I can always tell "where" she pees. #1 I can either see it OR #2 Roxy or TJ will start to smell a spot and then I know they are smelling pee :mad:

IDK how to stop this....

I have already lined the couches with water proof pads, the beds have tons and tons of blankets hoping to protect the mattress. I can't put a diaper on her bc she is home alone too long...

I am thinking of treat reward for good potty on the pads ~ again ~ maybe she just needs a few months of being rewarded for pee on the pads...I hope :mad: :mad:

Sounds like my Pixie. Sometimes she runs to the back door to go out and other times she pees on the bath room rug (her pee pad according to her). My other 2 only use the pee pads. Pixie was 13 months when I got her and not trained so I think it has been harder. I wish I had a solution.

Make sure to use an enzymatic cleaner to clean the wee spots. Nothing else will remove the scent and they will continue to pee/mark the area.

young yorkie
 

5 isn't old for a yorkie. Mine is 19. What works for me is to put down some newspapers in my kitchen near the door and he goes there if he can't get outside. Is your dog an only? If so, might be very lonely and/or bored. Alone during the day? Again, lonely/bored if alone. If you scold for poop or pee after the fact, it is a useless act. You have to catch them in the act, then gently re-direct to the papers (or whatever). Keep being patient and it will work out. Praise works wonders.