Housetraining An Adult Yorkie

Congrats on adding an adult Yorkshire Terrier to your life!

It's common for people to think that a full grown Yorkie who may have even been potty trained in the past can just as easily adjust to being in your home.

This is not the case. It takes time and commitment for a Yorkie to get used to the way your home is run and to learn your home's elimination schedule.

These types of high expectations for your new Yorkie are just unrealistic. A Yorkie needs to be able to make adjustments to its environment and understand that you will not tolerate peeing on the carpet. This is especially true if its previous owner did not seem to mind that sort of behavior.

Don't make the mistake of assuming that because he's an adult Yorkie that he'll just "know" what to do. Start with him as if he were a puppy and gradually teach him the routine of your home's Yorkie housetraining schedule.

A good place to start is by crate training or restricting the Yorkie to going in the bathroom only. Then you can make up a schedule for potty time. Once a Yorkie is grown it is very picky about where it uses the potty. Typically, they prefer not to use it where they eat, sleep or play.

When walking your Yorkie, be sure to help him find a spot in your yard and make sure to always go back to the same spot each subsequent time. Take careful watch of your Yorkie's elimination patterns for a few weeks to determine what's best for him.

You also have to set morning and evening feeding times. He may not have had such an organized life schedule, so this could take time for adjustment. Don't believe that old saying, 'you can't teach an old Yorkie new tricks." It's not the age of the Yorkie that matters - it's the consistency of the owner.

If your Yorkie came from an abusive home, even if is was just filled with shouting and hitting with paper for any accidents, then your training efforts may take longer. First you have to win the Yorkie's confidence and understand that he needs time to get comfortable in his new home.

There will be accidents, so be prepared to clean it up and move forward. Don't assume that an adult Yorkie will be any easier to train than a puppy. Both Yorkies would face the same adjustment issues. You have to train with consistency and affection so that you reinforce the responses that you want repeated.

For older male Yorkies, urinating is a way to express their territory. This behavior is completely natural for males and can not be fixed unless you have him neutered.

Be sure to check out the free videos on Yorkie housetraining, audio lessons and Yorkie health advice by the Yorkie training experts of UltimateYorkie.com.