HELP! How do I teach my Yorkshire Terrier obedience training?

Question

Does anyone know any good websites that teach you how to teach obedience to your Yorkie? Do you know any ways of doing this? She is 16 weeks old. The lady before me let her go outside with the older doggies, but after bringing her home, she was doing so well potty training to go outside, I decided not to crater train. Now, she has peed in a place where she is not being trained, and pooped right in front of the door she goes out.Why is she doing this? Should I continue to crate train her? She holds it all night already. Is it bad to give them table food sometimes? She has also started to bite some. What can I do?

Answer 1

i have 8 yorkies and they are harder to potty train being a small breed.....never leave food and water down at all times...nothing going in...nothing comming out...do it on a schedual and you will know that your dog has ate and drank and when to let out....if you don't know and your dog isn't trained to make you aware they want out then accedents happen...at only 4 months old they wont let you know they want out yet....crate training is a great way also....about the table foods....yorkies are known for bad teeth...so be causious of table foods...brush it's teeth at least 3 times aweek and it will really benifit in the long run...i give mine bites from the table...but i take care of there teeth very well.....i have a 13 yr. old yorkie and learned from my mistakes with him and he has no teeth now...but the other 7 have heathy teeth and i learned the do's and don'ts with the breed.....the bitting is normal....she's teething....tap its nose and say no bite...everytime and it will stop....give it a hard toy to chew on during the teething stage and that helps.....good luck...yorkies are my favorite breed and i know your going to love that little angel!!

Answer 2

Yes, you should continute to crate train her. Dogs should be crate trained until they are at least a year old. If your dog is 4 months, she can only hold her bowels and bladder for about 5 hours so a crate is going to help reinforce the potty training and if she does have an accident, confine it to one area and not all over your house.

You should never give your dog table scraps. This for several reasons. One, it teaches them to beg for food and that they are entitled to whatever you are eating. Second, not all human food is good for dogs. Onion, raisins, grapes, chocolate, and a vareity of other things aren't suitable for dogs to eat and are even toxic. Finally, dogs are pack animals and when they eat when and what you eat, they begin to look at you as their equivalent, and not their pack leader. That could explain the biting some, but my guess is the biting is due to teething. At four months, she is most likely getting some adult teeth in, which is extemely painful. Make sure she has a lot of chew toys to help with the chewing. To stop the biting, anytime she allows her teeth to meet your skin, it is "time out" time. Firmly say NO and stop playing immediately. You can also replace your hand or whatever she's bitten with a toy you want her to have. When she takes it, praise her like mad. She'll soon learn that biting is not OK when she's playing with people and that playing with toys gets her affection.

Finally, I would recommend taking her to a professional obedience class if you are not familiar with it enough on your own. It will be worth the money you spend in the long run and save you the headache of trying to do it on your own. Most dogs benefit from the social aspect of it as well, being in with other dogs and interacting with them. And as a plus for you, she will probably be so tired after she comes home, that she'll just konk out for a few hours, giving you some peace and quiet for a bit.

Answer 3

OK, first off, your dog will be much more enjoyable LATER if you sacrifice some of her luxuries NOW.

1) Crate train. Always. Never let here have a moment to herself inside without you being right there. Make it a rule, that if she's in the house, she's with you or in her crate. With you means you're playing or sitting with her, not just "keeping an eye on her."

2) Strip down her schedule to the bare bones and keep it constant. Always let her out in the morning, then feed her, then let her out again. Feedings should always be at the exact same time, and she should get the exact same amount of food.

3) She needs to know that she will be going outside at specific times during the day. A 16 week old can only hold her bladder for about 4 hours, so I'd let her out every 3 hours. She has to KNOW that every 3 hours or so, she'll be going outside. That way, she won't want to pee inside because she can depend on being outside before she HAS to go.

The biggest key is just to never give her the chance to pee indoors. If she never develops that habit, she won't want to pee inside.

Answer 4

She needs to go to obedience classes right away. Not only will she learn good manners, but she will be socialized with other dogs and people, which is very important for her to become a well mannered dog. Take her to dog parks and on walks, so she will become familiar with others.
She should be crated at night, she is not old enough yet to be completely reliable in the house, as you have found. My guys get a bit of table food, but not a lot.
Make it clear to her immediately that she is NOT allowed to bite! This is a very bad habit and needs to be stopped right away. The obedience classes will help teach you to teach your dog.

Answer 5

you should crate train her. you should never give your dog table scraps directly but after your finished eating you could put a little bit in her dish. this may be why shes biting, shes looking for food. shes also a puppy, and puppies teeth. get her lots of chew toys and when she tries to chew on you say no and/or ouch and give her the chew toy. its best to fix this problem when there young. you have to remember she is a puppy and so shes like a little kid. you need to teach her to go outside.is she new to your house?? maybe she is a little scared still and thats why she is leaving you presents.

this is a really good site that will get you started:
http://www.loveyourdog.com/training.html

you sound like a great owner
good luck!!!

Answer 6

I agree with the crate training suggestions. Your dog is not ready for unsupervised time around the house.
Here's an article about puppy biting. Ian Dunbar has a ton of info about puppies (all positive)
http://www.jersey.net/~mountaindog/berner1/bitestop.htm

Answer 7

If there is a Petsmart near by there is a book for Yorkshire Terriers. I know by the book it usually sinks but, the ones at pet smart are really easy to understand and dont take long at all for your puppie to understand. I know from experience.