The exciting day has arrived, your new Yorkie pup is joining the family. It can be a daunting day too, as Yorkie puppies are very small and vulnerable.
It is important to realise that one of the most common deaths in Yorkie puppies is trauma — people accidentally stepping on them, dropping them, lying on them, etc.
Some are often no bigger than your hand when you bring them home and your first priority must be to protect them and provide them with a secure environment.
A few tips that worked in our home:
- I built a small rectangular, wooden pen in my lounge before bringing my new puppies home. I lay a plastic groundsheet at the bottom with a section of newspapers on top.
- I placed their bed on the one end and their food bowls in the middle, but off to the side, and I had the thicker layer of newspapers at the bottom end, which served as their bathroom.
- I placed the pen at the French doors so that they could have a view of the garden.
- When we first arrived home, I let them explore the ground floor (I lived in a duplex townhouse, which was perfect, as they were contained on the bottom floor initially).
- I first allowed them to wander around the lounge, kitchen, and patio/garden area, whereafter I placed them into their wooden pen and added some puppy kibble and water to their bowls and observed how they explored their new territory.
- When I was home, they were free to wander around the ground floor and garden, but when I went out I would place them into their pen.
- I never went out for more than a few hours at a time for the first two years, and I went home daily at lunchtime during the week to check in on them. This system worked well in mitigating separation anxiety. Happy pups and happy mom!
- They also slept in their pen for the first seven months of their lives, whereafter I integrated them upstairs and into my bed.
- Once they’d acclimatised to the stairs and their entire new environment after the seven-month period, I took the pen down and they had free access to the whole house.
I believe this integrative approach worked well and provided a safe, secure, and routine way of living during their puppy years. I am well aware that not everyone has the opportunity to apply these methods or to pop out of work to check up on their puppies, but I was fortunate in that I worked only three kilometres from home, which allowed for mid-day visits, and it worked perfectly for us.
For more tips on raising a new puppy visit: https://tevavetclinic.co.za/2020/05/18/tevas-tips-for-your-new-puppy/