4 Year Old Yorkie - Potty Training

[TAKnopf]

Good Morning - I have a 4 year old yorkie, named Bacardi. During the day, while my husband and I are at work he is crated, which he has been all of his life. When we are home, we have no bathroom issues. When he has to go, he sits by the door and waits for us to let him out. However, on the weekends and when we won't be gone for long periods of time as we are during the work day, we leave him out of the crate. We've noticed in these situations that he tends to go to the bathroom in the house.

We will be getting another puppy at the end of May and will be following your puppy training and crate training instructions (I have found this website to be very helpful). We hope that this new puppy will get to the point where we can leave him out all of the time and not go to the bathroom in the house.

With that, at this point in Bacardi's life, is there a way that we can train him so that he doesn't have to be in the crate at all and not go in the house when we are not home?

Or, should we begin crating him whenever we are not home? Will he eventually understand that he can't go in the house?

Thank you for your help in advance!

[brendi]

Step1:
Buy a Dog crate. Make sure you purchase one which will leave room for growth. You will not need a large sized crate for a Yorkie!

Step2: Place bedding materials which will make the dog or puppy nice and cozy. Remember, we want this crate to be the dogs hideaway and place for relaxation.

Step3: To lure the dog into the crate, place a treat in the middle of the bedding and give your dog lots of love when he goes inside to get it. While the dog is still inside, say the word "crate" several times. Your friend will quickly learn when he hears the word "crate" to go inside.

Step4: Once the dog has eaten and drank some food and water, allow him to leave the crate and immediately take him outside. If he goes potty, immediately reward him with praise. (Make sure you take your dog to the same potty area. This will become a familiar smelling area to him in little time and they will know what they are supposed to do there.)

Step5: Be careful when the dog is in the crate during the night. You do not want to train your Yorkie that it is OK to awaken you at all times of the night.