New Puppy Parent Information
 

"Bringing home your new Yorkie"

Here are a few of the topics that I cover  for our new

moms and dads.  I feel it is important to consider
these issues when purchasing a Yorkie puppy.

The first few days 

 

When I get home: Do not allow your puppy to have run of the house. Your puppy should be placed in a small area or play yard etc. They will not be able to find their food and water if he goes out exploring a big room or house. Please remember these are very small puppies and even a small room to us is a huge place for them. Make sure your puppy is comfortable and feels safe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well Baby Check-up: The first thing you should do, if you know the day you are getting your puppy, is to make an appointment with your vet, your vet visit should be within 48 hours of getting home, this way it would be easier to return pup before getting attached to it, if there was something wrong with it, and you needed to take it back.When going to the vet, USE SOME COMMON SENSE. Keep your puppy in a crate or in your lap when visiting the vet's office. Do not let it romp on the floor or furniture and most certainly do not allow it to socialize with other animals that also may be in the office at the same time. Do not let others handle or pet your puppy. Their hands may carry germs that will cause your puppy to become sick. Where do all people take sick dogs? To the vet! Where is the best place to pick up germs or contract disease? Naturally, it's where everyone takes sick dogs. TO THE VET!! Your puppy will already have its first series of puppy shots when you receive it. Make sure that you complete the proper series of puppy shots as this could save your puppies life. However it is vital that you do not overload your little Yorkie's immune system, so no more than the standard vaccinations is required. Make sure that you do not do more than one treatment in a visit. If your puppy needs a worm treatment, give a couple of days after the vaccination was given. The puppy vaccinations that your vet will give puppy, will protect it from catching several different deadly viruses. NOTE: I ALWAYS take a baby blanket with me to put on the examining table to put my yorkie on. I know they suppose to clean the surface before another client comes in, BUT I don't want to rely on others cleaning the way I do and I don't want the chance of my little ones taking some kind of virus home.

 

Visitors: One of the biggest mistakes people make when they purchase a new puppy is they immediately have to take it visiting to show it off. NOT A GOOD IDEA!! Do not take your puppy out in public or to parks or to visit friends. Take your puppy straight home and try your very best to keep it there until it has adjusted to its new surroundings and it's new "parents" and she/he is completed on all of its vaccinations. Don't do anything that stresses the puppy out like going out shopping for new puppy clothes with puppy. New puppies should not be taken out with you and shown off to allyour friends for at least a month and until they are totally up to date on shots. Theyneed to get to know and trust their new parent and not be upset by strangers wantingto hold or play with him. After the puppy has adjusted to his new home it is time toinvite family and friends to visit, but please make sure no small children hold or left alone with puppy.

 

Public Places:  Make sure to NOT take your new puppy to a Public Park,  Petsmart or Petco on a shopping spree.   This is one of the worst places to take them when they are young.   Make sure your puppy is up to date on their shots before going to a public places such as this.   Theses areas are a breeding place for viruses. 

 

 

 

 Hypoglycemia (Low Blood Sugar)

 

Stress and Hypoglycemia: Hypoglycemia is a disorder of the central nervous system and is a direct response to the lack of adequate food. Dehydration comes from lack of water. Hypoglycemia can occur without warning when a puppy goes to a new home, misses a meal, or doesn't eat full meals, becomes chilled, overtired, or exhausted from too much handling or playing. It occurs mostly in toy breeds, but it can also occur in the larger breeds as well. Signs to look for are depression, weakness, being wobbly or jerky, the head appears to be tilted to either the left or right side, the neck appears stiff and in a locked position, the body may soon appear the same way, and the teeth may be clamped tightly together. This can lead to convulsions, seizures, or coma which can result in death! Remember, this is only a puppy. Compare it to an infant child, which requires extra care. You would not wake your baby up to show your friends or neighbors, so do not wake your puppy up, as it needs rest too. This is important to your puppy's health.

 

Treatment:  Once a puppy's sugar drops you must ACT FAST! The blood levels of glucose must be restored immediately! Do not hesitate, your puppy's life is at risk. Treatment by oral administration of certain glucose containing electrolyte fluids is very important. I use Nutri-Drops or Nutri-Cal, it gives quick results and gets into bloodstream within seconds. When given, the usual dose is about ¼ cc per ounce of body weight. If you don't have that on hand, you may mix white Karo syrup with water and place on the puppies tongue and in mouth with a dropper or just place some on your finger and rub on the puppies gums. Keep doing this every few minutes.  Do not put excessive amounts in the puppy's mouth, as the puppy can choke.If you don't have nutri-cal or karo in hand you can use pancake syrup, honey etc.  If the puppy does not improve within 10 minutes, contact your vet immediately! This is not something that can wait until the vet opens the following morning! I always recommend if you ever have any concerns, questions, or worries don't hesitate to call your vet even if the puppy is doing better. Once a puppy's sugar drops, it is much more likely for him/her to have another episode. It can take weeks to build back up afterwards. Make sure your baby is eating and drinking often. The first stages baby food beef, turkey or chicken can be fed.  

Prevention: Make sure your puppy eats at regular times to keep his/her sugar up. That is the best way to try to prevent this from happening. Make sure before going to bed at night or leaving them alone for a period of time, your little one has had a meal.   Always watch to see that they consume some of their food, just don't assume they did.

Treats and Toys  UPDATE:  DO NOT USE THESE unless you use a safety devise with them,  My precious little girl died from one of these.   However you can attach a vice grip or bully stick holder to the end so they can not eat the last part.

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Toys: Yorkies LOVE toys.   I start them off with the tiny McDonald Happy Meal stuff toys.   These little toys make the perfect 1st toy.   A lot of times you can find them at yard sales or thrift stores still in the original plastic bags.  Make sure to take off all the eyes and small parts that they may choke on.    Now for the teens and older ones, they love cat toys or baby toys that have the paper crinkle sound.    I buy the Lamaze brand.  We almost have all of them.  ;-)  Most of the Lamaze toys have a small hook at the top that you can attach them to their play yard or crate. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Potty Training

• What you need to know about your Yorkie: Yorkies can be VERY difficult to potty train.  The kidneys are not fully developed in a young puppy, so don't get too upset about accidents.  It really is going to depend on how consist you are as a parent.  I usually say not to expect to much from them until they are around 5-6 months of age. They can be trained prior, but it will take constant supervision.    However,  it is important NOT to let the new puppy have full range of the house at first. 

• Potty Training Inside:  I am a rewarder of space.  When  they start using their pads I give them more and more space.  I recommend that you get a play yard for them as a starter.   You can purchase a Superyard  at Walmart or make one yourself.  I put the bed and food at one end of the play yard and the puppy pad at the other.  When your puppy is 95% using the pads in the play yard you can reward them with more space such as your gated kitchen.  In whatever area you are keeping your puppy (make sure to take up the rugs) you should place several pee pee pads down so they have several to choose from and they have more chances of not missing. You can get puppy pads  at Walmart, Target etc.  I prefer to get the pads for humans located in the Health and Beauty area of the store.   I buy the larger ones that will fit at the end of their play area, these pads seemed to be thicker and hold more urine.   I also use reusable / washable puppy pads. I purchase my reusable pads at Breeder Pads located in Knoxville, Tn. After a week or so I start taking up 1 pad at the time until I am down to one pad in the location that I want it.  After your puppy is 95% using their puppy pads in the gated area you can reward with more space.    This is where the hard part comes in.   You must never take your eyes off your little one while they are in training to be released into the rest of your home.   When you let them out of the gated area you must watch them like a hawk.   NEVER take your eyes off them, because if they pee and you didn't see them do it they will think it is ok and continue doing it.   If you don't have time to watch them, just put them back in the gated area until you have time to watch and train them again.    This will take time but it is so worth it. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Poppy Training Outside:  Take them out often especially right after eating, don't wait five or ten minutes, take them outside as soon as they finish eating or drinking.  After they have relieved them self, reward them with a bite (one bite) of something they love and praise them.  

 

Diet and Feeding

• Feeding Puppy:  You should keep the puppy on the same food that was provided for you so that you don't stress the puppy any more than necessary. Don't ever change the puppy's diet or eating routine too abruptly. You can change to adult small bites as your puppy becomes an adult. The smaller a puppy is the more times a day it has to be fed. It is best to leave dry food out for tiny puppies at all times. You have to remember that because of their small stomachs they have to eat more often to sustain themselves. Never confine the puppy for any length of time with no food or water. This means during the night also. Small puppies have to eat and drink during the night time hours just to sustain themselves. Make sure to confine them in an area that has enough room for a bed, food, water and a puppy pad down so they can relieve themselves. Until they are older they will not be able to go very long without eating, drinking and going to the potty. They are babies.    It is very important to make sure the puppy is eating once you get it home. I have them on Royal Canin Mini Puppy food.  I make sure they have dry out at all times.  Breakfast consist of  1/4 cup of dry mixed with a 2 tsp full of canned food.    I also give a small amount of Cottage Cheese or Plain Yogurt everyday.   This is very important and makes for a healthy yorkie.  They look forward to YOGURT TIME, I let them eat it off the spoon and they are jumping around waiting for the next bite.   Dinner I do the same as for Breakfast.   I always make sure they eat before I go to bed or leave them  a lone for a few hours.    Just don't assume they ate make sure that you watch to see that they did eat.   This is very important due to Hypoglycemia can set in if a small puppy misses a meal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• What NOT to feed your Yorkie:  Please watch this short video of what NOT to feed your yorkie.  This 2 min video may just save your Yorkies life. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

Coat Care 

• Haircuts: The LONG or SHORT of grooming your yorkie. Some like it long and others like it short, both are correct so don't get all worked up over nothing.   To show a Yorkshire Terrier in competition the coat must be long but if you are not planning on showing you can go with all of the cute little haircuts I have listed.   Check out the pictures and choose the style you like, show your groomer and TaDaaaa you have your little yorkie custom made to your liking.

• Washing: Now off to what I use to keep our yorkies coat healthy and clean.     Yorkies haves such wonderful non-shedding coats that I love and my husband ADORES.   My husband is a clean fanatic and doesn't like shedding of any type so I know he was thrilled when he met me and I had a yorkie.   Our home stays hair free and that is one HIGHLIGHT to being a yorkie parent.  You can put on your suit, head off to work on Monday morning and you can look down and not have any hair that needs to be removed. Hey, it saves money on buying lint rollers. ;-) 

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