[putza]

Last night my sister brought home a 6 week old yorkie puppy that she got from her father-in-law. I am not sure why the dog was separated from her mother so early, all I know is he got it from a friend of his. What kinds of problems can puppies who are separated from their mothers too early have?

I am worried about my dog, Sully, getting along with the new puppy. They met last night and Sully mostly stood there, she did have her hackles up but she seemed uneasy rather than aggressive. No barking, growling, etc. While she was at the MSPCA she was actually used to help train the puppies because she is very good at giving corrections (according to the staff there), so I am not super worried. I will keep a close eye on them and never leave them alone of course. I worry more about when the puppy becomes fully mature.

I sent my sister a bunch of links from this site, including NILIF, and I told her that it may seem extreme to her but she has to do it so that the dog doesn't turn into a little diva (my sister has a 5 month old baby at home, and a little diva dog could be dangerous to her). I think she was swayed by how cute the dog is, and didn't really think about taking care of her. I know I am going to end up walking this dog and caring for it, because I doubt she will walk her very often.

[StivRichardOff]

Lily was 6 weeks when she was found as a stray, so she was probably separated earlier than that. The main issue we had was bite inhibition. Puppy teeth are painful when they don't listen to your "eeps".
But we got through it. She's a happy healthy dog now, I don't see any ill effects of being separated early.
Good luck, and just remind your sister that yorkies are TERRIERS, and they need an energy outlet.

[Nzmoafzn]

Rita's mother was psycho and killed a few pups before they seperated the remaining litter from her. Rita was given to my brother at 3 weeks old. She lived with two other dogs and they never had a problem training her or teaching her bite inhibition. She just followed the other dogs and copied them. Shes perfect cept for her food stealin when I am not looking.

Ike came to me at 9 weeks old from a large litter of 12 and we had to spend a few days working real hard on teaching him not to treat our hands like his siblings and nipping them, but he got it pretty quick.

As long as the Yorkie is treated like a dog and is raised with a fair but firm hand she will do fine.

[WXQMQFIr]

Sasha and her sibling, they were in one of the shelters with the highest euth rate in the state, they were 5 weeks old when their mom was put to sleep. They were scheduled to be put down as well but a local rescue pulled the pups. The biggest problems we had were nipping, she would pee when she got excited, and she was a nervous puppy. With time and lots of love, the help of Trouble. He kind of helped with the nipping. Training with the help of Training classes which also helped with the nipping. And a lot of patience she quickly became a very well Trained and very well adjusted dog. We didnt get her until she was 10 or 11 weeks of age. But she was with her sister until then in a foster home.

Its possible for a dog that is separated that young to be well adjusted. But it takes work. I've seen dogs that have been well adjusted that left their mothers too early and I've seen dogs that just can't cope with life that have been with their mother and siblings until they were 10-12 weeks old. And vice versa. I think a lot has to do with the individual puppy.