Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm a first time dog owner and I just got a 9 week old male yorkie a week ago, and I've heard terriers are either very difficult or a breeze to train, but i'm not sure how or if i have had enough time to access my situation... i've decided to crate train him: putting him to sleep in his crate over night or crating him when he cant come along with me or no one is home to watch him. at night i've found that if i have a bit of "down time" with him allowing him to fall asleep in my lap before i put him to bed in his crate he doesnt whine and cry. but if i just plop him in there during the day he cries for about 20 mins. i hope this time is goin to decrease eventually to nothing! i know he would be fine sleeping with me in my bed but i dont wanna start a bad habbit early!

in combination with crate training i'm not sure how to use the puppy pad/newspaper method. ?? first thing in the morning i take him outside to potty, he usually does both, but sometimes i guess he doesnt fully empty his bladder and pees inside on a mat/carpet or in a corner. anything anyone suggests using to deter repeat offences in certain areas? i recall something about a sour apple sent spray?? the real question is that should i be using paper training meanwhile trying to get him to potty outside or am i just adding confusion? or should it just be used as a backup method for when he cant hold it to get outside?? the newspaper (i spay it with some stuff i picked up at petsmart to encourge him to pee there) is beside the back door where he goes outside.

i have a BIG problem with my cats litter box. my puppy LOVES to eat my cats "treasures"!!! it is a real nuisance considering he digs in there and gets litter all over the floor and hes dragging around poop! i'm not even sure how bad it really is for him either! maybe i should take advantage of his interest in the litter box and train him to potty there?? anyone with any experience with dog litter box training???

HELP! email me directly at lbalbirnie@hotmail.com if you have any useful information thanx!

That's so great! I'm getting ready to go look at my baby boy next week to make sure I like him...as if there's a chance I won't!!! He is only 2.5 weeks old, so it will be a while before I get to bring him home. I've never owned a Yorkie before. Acutally, I've never owned any kind of small dog. It's going to be quite an adustment from the boxers and labs that I was used to! I'm so excited I feel like a little kid.

Good luck with your potty training! That's the one thing I'm a little nervous about.

Cheryl

>>I'm a first time dog owner and I just got a 9 week old male yorkie a week ago, and I've heard terriers are either very difficult or a breeze to train, but i'm not sure how or if i have had enough time to access my situation... i've decided to crate train him:
>>in combination with crate training i'm not sure how to use the puppy pad/newspaper method. ?? first thing in the morning i take him outside to potty, he usually does both, but sometimes i guess he doesnt fully empty his bladder and pees inside on a mat/carpet or in a corner. anything anyone suggests using to deter repeat offences in certain areas? i recall something about a sour apple sent spray?? the real question is that should i be using paper training meanwhile trying to get him to potty outside or am i just adding confusion? or should it just be used as a backup method for when he cant hold it to get outside?? the newspaper (i spay it with some stuff i picked up at petsmart to encourge him to pee there) is beside the back door where he goes outside.
>>

Bitter Apple spray is to deter a dog from chewing, not helpful for housetraining. The clearest housetraining method to the dog is teach him from the start to do it all outside. You'll need to take him out quite often in order to do this. If he is alone too much, you might have to use papers in an exercise pen when you're gone. Undiluted white vinegar works well on accident spots to deter the dog from using them again. If the spot has dried before being treated, though, you need a bacterial enzyme odor eliminator such as Nature's Miracle.

>>i have a BIG problem with my cats litter box. my puppy LOVES to eat my cats "treasures"!!! it is a real nuisance considering he digs in there and gets litter all over the floor and hes dragging around poop! i'm not even sure how bad it really is for him either! maybe i should take advantage of his interest in the litter box and train him to potty there?? anyone with any experience with dog litter box training???
>>
>>HELP! email me directly at lbalbirnie@hotmail.com if you have any useful information thanx!

The cat litter box needs to be placed where the dog absolutely CANNOT get into it. Dogs will eat this stuff, and it's bad for them, especially for such a tiny dog. Since the dog is small, place the box where the cat can jump up to get to it, but higher than a Yorkie can jump. If you decide to use a litterbox for the dog, it will need to be a dog litter box with dog litter (Purina makes it) and placed someplace different than the cat's box. Outdoors is better, though, if you can do it.
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Kathy Diamond Davis, author, "Therapy Dogs: Training Your Dog to Reach Others," 2nd edition, and the free Canine Behavior Series at www.veterinaryforum.com

First of all congratulations on getting your new baby. I have 2 Word documents, Puppy Kindergarden and Beginner Obedience. If you e-mail me I'll send them to you. My e-mail is:

xoxjoaniexox@aol.com

It really doesn't cover housebreaking but you can teach him some commands. I do realize he's very young but you can do it like a game. lol

I also have a cat and for sure they'll get into the litter box if you let them. When I leave the house I raise it up so Tiffany can't reach it. Actually I have a big carpet square that I put at the end of my dresser (triple dresser) and put the litter box on top of it with enough carpet showing so my cat can step onto the carpet and not the dresser. When I come home I put it back on the floor but I always watch to make sure she doesn't decide to play in there. lol

I hope to be hearing from you.

XoX
Joanie, Tiffany and Shana (my cat)