Yorkshire Terrier Training

Yorkshire terriers are technically classified as toy dogs, but their history is far from the cute little dogs that are associated today with the Yorkshire terrier. In the past these dogs have been used by rural people as hunting dogs because of their agile and strongly built bodies, which allow them to chase small creatures with ease and speed. Seemingly forgetting their actual size, the Yorkshire terrier is also one of the most courageous of dog breeds available today, which is a trait that may have been derived from their background in hunting. If you want to bring your own Yorkshire terrier into your household, there are several things for you to consider.

Tenacious & Focused

The Yorkshire terrier is a tenacious dog that will pursue its goals with whole-hearted focus. This means that when you are beginning your training sessions with your pet Yorkshire terrier, one of the most important things to consider is that you are in a good location with nothing that can hold the dog’s attention. Once the dog’s attention moves from you to another, you may find that it is difficult to return the dog’s attention back to you.

One of the best dogs for the house. While the hunting background characterizes this dog, it is also one of the best dogs for the house. Because of its small built, it can fit into the space starved apartments that are becoming very common today. However, make sure that you train your dog with basic rules such as how to defecate and urinate in the right place early on. Otherwise, you may be surprised with the mess that an untrained Yorkshire terrier can leave on a place.

Uncertain origins

The Yorkshire terrier is one of those dogs that have uncertain origins. Although it is one of the first dog breeds to be formally approved by the dog associations in the United States, its origins in Yorkshire, Manchester, still remain foggy for many people. While there are many hypotheses presented as to where the Yorkshire terrier may have originated, no one knows for sure. However, one certain thing is that these dogs come from some ancestors that are already extinct, and were artificially bred in Manchester several centuries ago before being introduced in the United States.

Never use negative treatment and violence

Like many intelligent canines, the Yorkshire terrier should never be trained using negative treatment and violence. If you are beginning your training lessons with your Yorkshire terrier, one of the first things you should learn as the master of the dog is the proper ways to encourage your dog to learn. Some of the basic ways of doing this is through a good pat in the back, or maybe a nice and healthy dog treat which your pet loves.

Repetition works for the terrier

For some animals with short attention spans, the training sessions cannot be prolonged for much too long as this will only tire out and bore the animal leading to inefficient learning. However, the Yorkshire terrier is different and works best when trained using repetition. Just make sure that whatever repetitive lesson you are enforcing on your pet dog is fun so that the terrier will find reasons to put up with the repetitions.

Scolding your dog and using its name along the way is bad. Yorkshire terriers are very sensitive when it comes to the ways their names are used. Be sure that you name your dog something positive and that you never use it out of context, otherwise the dog will associate itself to bad actions and can lead to a hostile dog, especially if you are the cause of the bad association. Aside from this, scolding simply does not work with Yorkshire terriers because they do not understand the logic behind scolding the way people do. For instance, scolding a child works because the child understands the causal connection between his bad action and the reprimand. The Yorkshire terrier, like other dogs, however, will not so easily understand the link and hence will only end up more confused when you scold them with their names.

Obedience first

When training your Yorkshire trainer, go for obedience first. There are some people who try to inculcate other skills before obedience training, however, the Yorkshire is a dog with a small build and once accustomed to living indoors, needs very little activity. Thus the most important things you should focus your attention to teaching your Yorkshire terrier is the importance of obedience. Sometimes it may be necessary for you to send your dog to obedience school, if you cannot handle dog training yourself.

For a growing number of people, the Yorkshire is quickly becoming one of the best imports from Manchester. With a little training and a lot of doggy love, you will find out why many people are saying so.

More on Yorkshire Terriers:

The #1 Yorkshire Terrier Training Guide – If your Yorkshire Terrier is a training nightmare... then click to view our top rated Yorkshire Terrier dog training and obedience guide that is available for immediate download.