# My yorkie puppy is the devil!



## Stevenm122084 (Nov 29, 2008)

I'm pretty sure this isn't the first horor story you've heard on this forum, but I really am at my wits ends. I bought a yorkshire terrier about 4 months ago, he's about 6 months old now. He was a sick puppy when we got him, so we nersed him back to health with anti-biotics and force fed baby food as perscribed by the vet. It took awhile, but we finnally realized he wasn't eating enought and we wern't feeding him enough, so the doc said. We felt like horrable puppy parents, but eventually got the hang of feeding him enough, even put karo in his food, this gave him an extra boost of energy. Soon after he was up and running around, playing, having a good time. 

So, we started training, we took him out twice a day, I did once in the morning, and my g/f at night. We kept him on a leash and he seemed to do fine, some resistance, but was shortly forgoten once he found his own shadow(he chased his own shadow, we think because he missed his brothers and sisters and thought it was on of them.) We lived in an apartment complex at the time and the only unsupervised time he got was on the screened porch where he'd play with the cats and sleep. We had a hard time house breaking him(and still have). He eventally found out it was ok to go on tile floor and was bad to go on carpet. We tried to re-enforce this behavior often, and put puppy pads on tile floor. We didn't mind so much if he missed, but when he hit the pad we'd reward him and congatulate him. At night we'd put him in the bathroom with his dog bed and food and water. He was good night dog(still is, hardly ever whines). In the morning we'd have one or two messess to clean up and it was usually on the pad. 

A couple of months later we decided to move into a house for more space and a yard. We have a fence surrounding the back and side yard with a screened in patio. For the first few weeks we kept up the same ruitine, and he slept in the bathroom at night. Since we shared the house with a roomate we didn't let him roam freelly like he did in the other house, so if he wasn't in the bedroom, he was outside. However he started to misbehaive, he would poop and pee under the bed in our room, chew on phone chargers, my xbox 360 headsets(ive been through 3 now, and 2 phone chargers) We started smaking him on the butt when he would acted up, and we'd lock him in the bathroom for a few hours. One day we let him outside as usual. For most of the time we could leave him out for 15 mins unsupervised and he would be fine. I'd check on him often, he would just play with the cats and his toys, or sleep. But this day when I went to check on him, he wasn't there. I checked under the shed, no sign. I walked a mile around the neighborhood with a squeek toy looking like a jackass calling for sammy(I must have looked like a pedefile, lol!) Finally I came inside frusterated, and my g/f blamed it on me, which pushed me over the edge,(you have to remember this is a $850 dog, not something you just lose) Not only did I lose my dog, buy my g/f turned against me. I was so furriated at that moment I could have killed someone.

I went outside to cool of and low and behold i see a little black blob in the grass across the street. I chase him down, he runs away and cowers, I grab him. Pop him in the but, and put him in the bathroom. He snuck out one more time, and the second time I caught him in the act and I poped him a good one and he never did it again. However, since then he hasn't been unsupervised alone outside and I wistle the moment he gets an itchen for sneeking out. I'm sure he'd do it if I wasn't out there. I decided from this moment he needed a strict rutine, so daily I took him out in the morning, and at night. Every day I checked the mail, at first I let him run loose, and for the most part he kept to my side. But one day he ran away and went into someones house, from that day on I walked him on a leash, but failed miserably. He won't budge a bit. I end up draging him, and now he has resorted to frustrated tugging, and pulling his head back and forth side to side. When I pick him up he struggles to get out and today he bit me 3 times. He yelps extreammly loud, without the slitest touch he will yelp. Today I back handed him on the hind end about 7 times. I usually only do it once, but I was so frustrated and I wanted to get the point across that resistance and overcontroling will not be tolorated. But for some weird hitch, I don't think dogs work that way(at least not yorkies). 

I used to raise larger bread dogs, with one pop on the butt, and only about 2 or three times of it occuring would do the trick, and they got it. They were the dopiest, dumbest(but cute) kind of dogs too, and they got it. But this intelligent, smart yorkie who can do several tricks(Sit, lay, roll-over, beg on hind-end, jump, speak, and crawl) can't walk on a damn leash nor be house broken! He spends most of his day in a cage now (litterally 22 1/2 hours). We can't let him out without instantly crapping or peeing on the carpet. He runs away when called, he now even fails to do tricks. Today I told him to sit, at first he did, but with his little tail between his legs(well sorta, it just lays there, its not long enough.. lol). The second time I told him to sit, he ran away from him and hid. I don't know what to do anymore. He's a lost cause. I hate him so much its not even funny. I'm on the verge to giving him away. I've done just about every trick I can think of. Putting his collar on when he eats and plays. Putting his leash on when he eats and plays. I leave it on him and let him drag it around. It takes about an hour for him to get comfortable with the leash, even then he is resistant to even move, he hesitates and then stops and looks at me when i toss his toys. The moment I pick the leash up he pulls away. Sits and doesn't move. Its so frustrated and embarrasing to have to drag my dog, and the pick him up and have him yelp the entire way home(Never laying a finger on him and he yelps). I don't know what else to do. I want to give up.


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## Pepper (Jan 27, 2008)

First of all, DONT EVERE HIT A DOG! EVER! What you are doing is wrong! This dog is so much smaller then you are, and you have the nerve to HIT him!?! You may have done this with your big dogs(still wrong), but you need to change your habits, hitting your dog is only going to make him fear you, and that's exactly what's happening. 

Remember this, one day your going to try and smack around a big dog, and maybe that dog isn't going to be so forgiving, they have teeth and power, maybe not your yorkie, but a big dog could severely damage you.

Kennel train him.

Don't give him unsupervised time.

Show him the leash is a good thing, give treats around it, put it on, treat, take it off, put it on, treat, etc.. start by walking him with it in the house, no pressure with the leash, just walk around having him follow your hand holding a treat. You have made this poor pup afraid of everything by constantly smacking him, no wonder he wants to run away!

You have created an insecure dog, and it's your job to make HIM like you, not you like him. He hasn't done anything wrong.

It may take time to reverse all of his behaviors but if you want him you have to work with him. Give him a few hours play time with you watching, when you put him in the kennel, give him something yummy to chew on. 
If he messes, it's your fault, you weren't paying attention, next time pay attention and let him out when he shows you he needs to go.

Start setting aside time for 5 to 10 minute training sessions, don't get angry, don't get upset, don't get excited. Have a treat in hand, tell him to do something, if he doesn't, SHOW HIM HOW. If he doesn't sit, raise your treated hand above his head, and he'll probably sit, say sit, then treat him.

Don't talk to him angrily, the reason his tail is between his legs is because he's afraid of you, and doesn't know if your going to hit him for doing something that he doesn't even know is wrong.

Few things to remember:

Dog's don't know it's not okay to mess on the floor if you havn't trained them.

If you don't see him mess, and scold him 2 hours later, he has no idea what your screaming about, it only makes you look like less of a leader.

The more you smack him for things he doesn't understand, the more he acts out because he has no idea what to do.

If you smacked a child everyday, your child would be taken away from you, that's ABUSE, and the child will most like have some sort of trauma later in there life, so why do it to a tiny dog who probably cannot defend themselves??


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## Stevenm122084 (Nov 29, 2008)

Ok, first off I appreciate your advice, but your an ass... and I don't kindly to you making me out to be a bad person. Learn some respect. Beside I am not HITTING him, I am mearly popping him on the hind end with the tip of my hand, this done with not enough force to kill a fly. It is my understanding that dogs need a balance of both positive and negative renforcement, other wise you get a shy insecure dog as you stated with all negative actions, or you get a spoiled, treat hungry dog that won't do anything unless rewarded. I also understand the power of destraction, which in most cases works, but in the case of my dog, who it seems is deliberatly acting up for attention, any kind of distraction will only get the opposite effect. The act of poping him is not to hurt him, but rather to get his attention. As I said, its hardly a tap. This would be equivlant to nudging a larger dog with the side of your leg while standing close to him. This is a technique used on larger dogs to gain attention and assert control. But my dog is hardly a foot long, and only about 5 to 6in tall. Nudging him would be kicking him, would you rather me kick my dog? 

Now I admit I have been losing my cool with the dog and have been yelling at him lately, which would cause more insecurity than my little taps. Dogs seem to have a sence for human emotions and act accordingly, however, my dog has a bit of insecurity with me one on one, but is fine when in play mode. Its kind of strange. I'm sure its just me, because he is fine with my g/f and my roommate, unfortunatly I can't get any cooperation with them in the efforts of training, so anything I do with the dog is played out as not fair, because he doesn't have to do those things with them, and then with me he does, I'm sure thats alot of his sorce of defience. You think I have it bad training my dog, try to train my g/f. She is more stubburn. I'm to the point I'm leaving both of them and I'm getting my own place. LOL. 

PS, my dog is not insecure, nervious, shaky, he is just disobedient. Also, I have spent hours and hours house traning him. I've always been there to catch him in the act and never scolled him if not caught. I've spent alot of time with the leash, playing, doing all sorts of techniques. He just is flat out disobedient. Also, please don't jump to conclutions, ask questions first, its disrespectful to assume.

Wow, reading through this again pisses me off even more. You say its my fault he craps on the floor, that I should have watched for some signal? Whats that signal? Is it the one when he looks up at me while squating with crap instantly comming out his little puppy ass? Thats a good signal I guess, but a little late if you ask me. THERE IS NO MESSAGE, SO SIGNAL, THIS ISN'T YOUR DOG, DIFFERENT SITUATION DO OCCUR! Trust me, when that dog is out, My eyes are on him all the time. When he goes to crap, I pick him up and place him outside. By now he has smashed his poop againt his hind end and I have to hose him of, which he likes.. lol!


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

Welcome to dogforums.

Try to remember you asked for advice. The fact that you didn't like the advice doesn't make the respondent an ass. You can accept or ignore any advice offered here, but you cannot insult other members.


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## Pepper (Jan 27, 2008)

Excuse me, but I think you need to calm down, this is a public forum and the language you are using is inappropriate. Public forum means you are going to get a lot of different opinions, mine being one of them..and you clearly stated many times..



> We started smaking him on the butt when he would acted up, and we'd lock him in the bathroom for a few hours.





> I chase him down, he runs away and cowers, I grab him. Pop him in the but, and put him in the bathroom. He snuck out one more time, and the second time I caught him in the act and I poped him a good one





> Today I back handed him on the hind end about 7 times. I usually only do it once


That is hitting, popping, smacking, whatever you call it, it's still hitting.



> When I pick him up he struggles to get out and today he bit me 3 times. He yelps extreammly loud, without the slitest touch he will yelp.


That's because he's afraid.



> Today I told him to sit, at first he did, but with his little tail between his legs


Also, because he is afraid, and no pup should be afraid when you tell him to do a simple command.

Signs when he needs to go to the bathroom, stopping playing, smelling, and circling. You just have to watch him like a hawk.
I'm trying to be helpful, not put you down, just simply telling you to help your dog by no popping him or any of those things.
If he doesn't show any signs, start taking him out every hour, if he doesn't go, every hour and 30 min, no bathroom outside, then lengthen the time until you know his schedule.

The first things you said in your first post show that he is insecure and frightened. I didn't jump to conclusions, I simply showed you what his behavior meant.

First, you need to build a bond with your dog, and get him to trust you, what it sounds like now is he doesn't, just by the way he acts.

Then when he trusts you, he will be more inclined to follow you outside and walk on a leash, in places he's never been before.

Have you tried leading him maybe with a squeeky toy instead of treats? If he's not budging try not to drag him, just move in front of him and act excited and squeek the toy and act like you want to play so he'll keep moving forward.


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## pamperedpups (Dec 7, 2006)

Take a deep breath and relax. There are workable solutions to the problems you are having with your puppy, but changes will take time and you may not believe it, but they won't involve popping your pup on the butt, yelling at him, or locking him up for hours as punishment. You can see that his unwanted behaviors aren't really improving, so those techniques really aren't working very well, are they? For all your frustration he's still not housetrained, would still run away from you if he had the chance, still doesn't walk on the leash well and still chews things up. That's okay, we can fix this, but first you have to change your mindset to one that is positive and forward thinking, letting go of what has happened and what has worked in the past with other dogs because that's obviously not been working for you with this dog or you wouldn't be here now hating your dog and wanting to get rid of him.

A few really excellent books to help you understand what's going on here and what you can do about it are:

"The Complete Idiot's Guide to Positive Dog Training" by Pamela S Dennison 
"Culture Clash" by Jean Donaldson
"Don't Shoot the Dog!" by Karen Pryor
I bet you'll also enjoy Patricia McConnell's "The Other End of the Leash"

Karen Pryor also has an awesome website at http://www.clickertraining.com

Susan Garrett (http://www.clickerdogs.com - who trains extremely successful Agility dogs of all sorts without popping them on the butt, yelling at them, or locking them up for hours as punishment) has an awesome booklet available called "Ruff Love" that I recommend you purchase. It's very much like the Nothing In Life Is Free program you can find as a sticky in this forum, but more detailed and you can keep the booklet with you as you work on it. With this program you will be setting your dog up for success, but even when he fails there will be no butt pops, yelling, or locking him up for hours as punishment. There will be management to prevent accidents and unwanted behaviors, but there will also be plenty of supervised free time, exercise and mental stimulation. There will be lots and lots and lots of rewards because dogs do what works and behaviors that are rewarded get repeated over those that aren't. And lastly, there will need to be a routine, and consistency.

If you think you can handle that and are sincere about wanting to keep your puppy and work with him, I think the first thing you should do is get him out of that crate and take him to someplace where he can run around outside safely off leash for a while. Remember, if he goes potty while you're out there: reward him! If he's jumping up at you for the treats you can wait until he has four on the floor and give it to him (check out the Impulse Control video sticky). Bring some bits of cheese or chicken out with you just for that. 

You don't want to work for free, do you? I bet not, but I'll bet you are still respectful about taking your paycheck, and with patience and good timing on your part you can teach your dog to work politely for his rewards, too. Don't worry about not wanting to "treat train" your dog. As you build your relationship eventually your pup's rewards won't all be food, but may also be play, petting or kind words. For now there will be lots of favorite "people food" bits to give (take the nutritional amount of these out of his daily kibble rations so he doesn't get too stuffed) for every right move, because what we want to do is reverse the tide to having your dog want to do all the right things instead of all the wrong ones. If you really think he needs physical punishment for doing wrong, keep in mind that knowing what he did wrong won't teach him what to do right. You can still do short (not hours, or even minutes long) time outs and remove desirable things from the dog's environment as punishment for some behaviors, but this should be done only where it makes sense and without force or anger.

When you get back inside you can crate your pup if you can't keep an eye on his every move, but give him something to do in there like a favorite toy or stuffed Kong, then sit down and make a list of his favorite things, then go back and put them in order from most cherished to just cherished. You are going to control these things so they can be used as rewards for good behavior. Don't be put off if you can honestly say being around you generally isn't one of your pup's favorite things, that's okay, and really not uncommon. Another extremely successful trainer, Jane Killion, has another book I'll highly recommend called "When Pigs Fly" that will be helpful if you end up looking at a list of favorite things you're going to find hard to control, such as chasing squirrels, or sniffing. Sooner than you think your pup is going to want to do what you and your girlfriend ask him to do because you two are going to become the most wonderful hoomans he knows.


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## Westhighlander (Sep 28, 2007)

Your dog is untrained and you beat him. I'm looking for a yorkie if you are giving him away. I'll have him trained in 2 months time. You can too if you followed all the stickies. It's not hard to train a dog but you have to put in the time. I'm very serious - if you don't want him, I'll take him.

The main reason why why dog doesn't listen to you is because you yell at it and you beat it. Dogs can not be trained this way. If you were my employee and I hit you and yelled at you randomly without telling you why you would probably quit. And no, your dog does not know why you are hitting or yelling at him. Your dog has quit for now.


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## GroovyGroomer777 (Aug 21, 2008)

This is a horror story like you said, but not for the reasons you think, Steven. You are the villian here, not your puppy.

You take out a puppy 2x a day and expect him to be potty trained?


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

Let's see if we can avoid piling on and telling the OP a dozen different ways that he's wrong.


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## Billycourty (Sep 16, 2008)

I just wanted to edit my post so i started with something nice to the OP:

You write very well and are obviously not a hick, please just relax and let us help you, if you are a dog lover you can understand where everyone's concerns lie.

so to commence:

It was really sad for me to read your post, and when i got to the part where you say you "hate him so much its not funny" I felt very sorry for your pup and even sadder.

What you dont seem to realize is everyones dogs/puppies do these kinds of things.

A puppy is like a baby and you have to love it unconditionally.

My Puppy is 4 months old and he does everything that your dog does.

I dread at puppy class when we have to call our dogs to us, because i know my dog will not come.

I think to myself, why doesnt my dog love me? But i know that he is just a baby and he is not trained and its up to me to keep working on his training.

With my real children, they hurt me and i get angry but when i see them get hurt I cant help but take them into my arms and love them.

I know what unconditional love is.

Its to do your very best even if you feel stupid and to do something that you dont want to do for something/one else.

remember that you love your puppy and thats why you have written here.

Your puppy is very forgiving so you can start a new relationship.

But you have to be willing to learn from your mistakes and admit them.

kindest thoughts to you and your puppy
Jaymee


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## GroovyGroomer777 (Aug 21, 2008)

Good post, Jaymee. I think sometimes people think that dogs are born knowing the basics....and you put it nicely that it requires work, and patience. 

A few years ago my husband and I rescued our first puppy. We had no idea what we were getting into. She was nuts. THere were times when we both talked about re-homing her.

We ended up going on vacation and leaving the pup with my parents (My father is very experienced with animals) 

When we picked her up, she was a new dog. I asked what the heck happened. He told me he had been exercising the bejeezus out of her, bringing her to the park, and patiently working on her house training.

After that day I realized it was my husband and I that had the problem, not the puppy. She is now a calm, affectionate, beautiful mature dog, the best dog I could ever want.


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## Tolak (Sep 11, 2008)

Those sound like some really "old school" methods of training, there are newer, proven methods that work better.

All you have done is made a few mistakes, no problem. As long as you realize those mistakes & learn from them you have gained something.

If anyone posting on here tells you they have never made a training mistake they are a liar, straight up. We all do. The better owners learn from those mistakes.

My two guys are 7 months & 19 months. These are my first dogs since all the information from the internet was commonly available, it is a godsend. My last pup, a Cairn, was born in 1991, before internet info was available. Many of the training methods used back then were still oriented towards the old Kohler method. While most of ol' Bills techniques work, and some are still usable, many work better.

The single most important, most effective and useful thing I have learned in the past few years concerning dog training is NILIF. Combine this with a crate & clicker training, plus consistency, and you have the beginnings of an easily manageable situation.

Don't be turned off by a few members blowing a gasket about your training techniques. They are more concerned about your dog's well being than your feelings. Personally I would rather have a little hurt feeling & learn something than have sugar coated nonsense fed to me while my dog suffers from my lack of knowledge.


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## GroovyGroomer777 (Aug 21, 2008)

Good post, Jaymee. I think sometimes people think that dogs are born knowing the basics....and you put it nicely that it requires work, and patience. 

A few years ago my husband and I rescued our first puppy. We had no idea what we were getting into. She was nuts. THere were times when we both talked about re-homing her.

We ended up going on vacation and leaving the pup with my parents (My father is very experienced with animals) 

When we picked her up, she was a new dog. I asked what the heck happened. He told me he had been exercising the bejeezus out of her, bringing her to the park, and patiently working on her house training.

After that day I realized it was my husband and I that had the problem, not the puppy. She is now a calm, affectionate, beautiful mature dog, the best dog I could ever want.


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## Debbie13 (Oct 30, 2013)

to my Yorkie puppy is the devil. I do not think anyone is making you out to be a villain. But YOU never hit a dog, period. Hitting a dog on the bottom of that size can damage his anal glands, his liver, and many other organs. They are one of the most fragile of breeds and their number one cause of death is by being dropped. I have a 4 month old and MAN I FEEL YOUR PAIN. I tell my husband weekly I am doing it wrong and want to sell him. He is half way crate trained and has a kennel outside to go to the bathroom. You should never take a Yorkie out without a leash. They are shark-bait. Do so research and see how many get killed per year by hawks and owls. I like in the country where we have both so he DOES NOT get to go outside except his huge kennel. A Majority of Yorkie owners train with puppy pads because they are so fragile and have such a high risk of attacks from many things including other dogs. to leas train, we are using a leash leader, it helps. we did what you did with the harness and leash. slowly got him used to it and rewarded him. He is so used to it. one time after a long day then his puppy class we were so tired we left his harness on when we put him in his crate and he slept in it! I do not know if this is correct, but I was always told if you need to put some force onto a dog you lightly smack their nose (Don't know if this is true) Just know you never hit them on the bottom for a number of health reasons I don't remember...lol... we have tried that with our Yorkie but one, uh, he barely has a nose to smack with two fingers. and two. when we did it did not phase him. Which told us it would only make him meaner. I hope you don't give your dog away. I think that guy is just trying to help in his own way. So, take the advice he gave that you like, and leave the rest. I have had to swallow my pride with my puppy often and try things a new way. He is nearly potty trained, but he bits and barks so loud the neighbors hear. Also, they are higly wanted expensive dogs NEVER leave them unsupervised. They get stolen more than they get attacked. with a Yorkie, even in the back yard someone must be with him. Good luck! I'm on here looking for some help myself. Debbie


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## HollowHeaven (Feb 5, 2012)

This thread is from 2008 but..



> I do not know if this is correct, but I was always told if you need to put some force onto a dog you lightly smack their nose


No, you don't smack their nose. you don't smack them at all. You smack yourself.


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