[Hailies Dad]

Okay... now that everyone knows of Hailie's beauty, I have to tell you all the truth. She has a few issues...

One... she has been extremely difficult to housebreak... as I mentioned, she is doing better but still not 100%. She is now 10 months old and still has the occasional accident... especially if she gets excited... like if someone visits that she is very happy to see... she always experiences a little stress incontinence... is this common in female maltese puppies? Very curious to find out! She also seems to have "spiteful" accidents... for example if we do not pay attention to her or leave her alone for a few minutes to run upstairs or outside... we return to a "present".

Also, I did bring her to work with me daily... for a long time... then the "stress incontinence" became an issue... the facility didn't complain, but it became very stressful for me to have her here as an added responsibility every day, so I have started not bringing her to work with me. (Awwww... I know, what a terrible parent I am!! The guilt is present, trust me!) She gets so excited when I get ready for work and gets very disappointed when she can't come with me... I feel terrible!! So, she stays home in her crate for eight plus hours a day...

This seems to be causing her increased stress... she has started being extremely spastic upon my return home... it takes her several hours to settle down... also, she seems nervous... she bites her toenails and laps my pants, my shirt, the couch, whatever is within "tongue reach"!!

So, I am asking for suggestions... I know that I should start bringing her to work again... but it is an added stress for me... having to keep an eye on her all day... and having a job full of multiple responsibilities anyways!!

We have been talking about getting her a companion... a sister... is that a good idea?? I am not sure. We have considered another Maltese, but also possibly a Silky Terrier... anyone with any experience with integrating other breeds with the Maltese?

Any ideas on how to improve poor Hailie's nervous habits?

Talk to me!
Thanks!
Tim

 

[ButterCloudandNoriko]

Awww, you really can't take her to work with ya? Maybe set up a play pen area for her in your office(do you have an office) so if you cant keep up w/her, then she can stay in there?

I have 2 maltese and they dont do anything cute like cuddle with each other. Someone on here has pictures of their babies cuddling though. It just depends on their personality. Like humans, you really cant get along with everyone. My babies play fight all the time. They're both pretty rough too.

Are you the only parent? It's so hard to take care of 2 baby pups. It's double trouble. And if they don't get along, it's hard to give them both equal attention (at least for me it is). If they love to love each other, then it could be easier for her. I think a better option for me would have been to wait until cloud was alot older (and not a month after) to get Noriko. I was soooo tired having 2.

Also, your new pup may also pick up the bad traits of your Hailies. When I first trained my babies to potty on the pad, Noriko took no time using the pads because she saw Cloud. Could be a coincident.

Our reasons for getting Noriko was the same reason as yours though. It didnt go as plan :/.

As far as the accidents go...I'm sorry to hear! lol Sorta funny. Maybe you shouldn't let her alone unattended anymore. Before you decided to stop taking her to work with you, did she ever spend any home alone time? I dont think I helped much but good luck!

 

[LexiAndNikkisMom]

You could also try an exercise pen so that she has more room. You could either set this up at home or at work. I have one that I have Lexi's crate in.

 

[Toby's Mom]

 

[Airmid]

Hi Tim!
Maybe you can try "panties" (on her...lol) You put a mini pad in them and her little happy pee doesn't make itself an issue!
Silkies are awsome, but ALOT bigger than your average malt. And the whole "terrier" thing can also be difficult. My sister in law has a yorkie-man is that one tough little dog!! She wants to have a play date with Angel, and I'm not sure Angel needs her butt kicked by another little dog. The jury is still out!

About the house breaking-I'm thinking from what I see on the board, that since these guys are SO small, and SO quick-they tend to have the accident before anyone knows what's going on. (And they can get under things, too)

Good Luck!

 

[FannyMay]

I wouldn't take her to work with you. It's not the only answer and to be honest I don't think it's the best option. She got so used to going to work with you that she didn't know what to do with herself all day when she couldn't go with you anymore. My Fantasia gets excited if we leave for two seconds and come back. I don't think it's because we were gone for so long as much as she is happy we didn't leave lol. Anyway I think Jackie (JMM) told me this training trick but I can't remember. When you come home, ignore Hailie. Just until she calms down. Then when she is calm, give her lots of attention. Lavish her with treats, play time, and lots of "good girls". She will soon learn that if she is hyper she won't get your attention, but if she is calm then she gets all the attention that she wanted to begin with.
Now for the leaving her in her crate all day. I would never leave Fantasia in her crate for that long (but then again I don't have to because I am home all day with her). When my husband and I leave, we put her in the bedroom and shut the door. She has her crate with an open door and a pillow inside, her food, her water, her toys, and her puppy pad in there so she is all set for almost the entire day. She can roam around the room, sleep, play, eat, drink, and even potty whenever she needs to. When we come home she is excited but she calms down really fast and curlss up with us on the couch or under our feet at the computer. She doesn't have to be hyper for hours because she wasn't cooped up in a small crate all day.
So with that said, I would also like to suggest puppy pads. You can gate her in the kitchen, a bedroom, or any other smaller room (not a big livingroom) and this way she can move around and do what she wants to do but she is also contained so she doesn't destroy the house.
I hope these suggestions help.

 

[Quincymom]

Getting a second dog doesn't automatically mean your first dog won't be having the same separation issues, and you have to then socialize, train, and make arrangements for 2 dogs while you are gone every day. May I suggest doggie daycare, or a petsitter as an alternative to keeping her locked in a crate for over 8 hours while you are working? That is a long day, I would go stir crazy too! At least get her a playpen or gate her in a safe area while you are gone. I hope that you can get this worked out, these little puppies are so much like little kids, and so worth all the effort. Good luck,
Quincymom

 

[doctorcathy]

yeah, definitely resolve the issues with your first dog before you get a second. the second might learn those bad behaviors (like mine did

)

if i were in your situation, i would take her out to go potty every 2 hours. and when you get home from work (just like fannymay said) ignore her.

when people come over...have them ignore her. make sure that you take her to go out potty before you have company (like 5 min before)

also develop her confidence. i heard agility training helps in that. try even obedience training. teach her to roll over.

and dont be rough with her when you train her. try to be as gentle as possible...and if youre frustrated---YOU take a time out.

good luck!!

 

[kodie]

Originally posted by Nichole@Dec 15 2004, 04:14 PM
We have a two year old beagle, who keeps Toby company, so it does seem to help keep him a bit more settled when we leave.  I would imagine that another dog would do the same, however, you may want to hold off on getting another dog right now, because potty training two dogs at the same time could be difficult.  Just a thought. 

Good luck in whatever decisions you make.
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I used to have a beagle too... Kodie LOVED him so much.



Tim, Kodie has the same types of issues... he was with me 24/7 since I got him when he was 8weeks old... until he was about 7 or 8 months old. I took him to work with me and everywhere else i went. He learned to bark at around 8 months old so I couldnt take him to work anymore or to certain places that do not allow dogs. Anyway... my point is... Kodie is a nervous wreck now when he knows i'm leaving... I try to leave him a treat right before I leave to go to work. I would make his breakfast... (Kodie is in a pen while i'm at work. Hes trainned on a puppy pad too.) I would mix his favorite treat in his food ..and talk to him and pet him and say "be good boy... i'll be back"... basically you have to establish a routine. Always doing and saying the same things... I'm no expert but Kodie is now okay when i go to work in the mornings... its just hard when i come home from work and have to run out again without him... cause thats breaking the routine... so Kodie gets upset.

 

[Hailies Dad]

What wonderful replies! Thank you all so much for your ideas, suggestions and comments... there is so much to be said for experience!

Hailie has two dads... we both work Monday through Friday during the day... those are the times that we have to leave her at home... the weekends are fine and by Saturday morning she has calmed down and resumed "normality"...

I agree with the comment about resolving the issues with her before introducing another puppy... and I think we have pretty much decided that another puppy is not the answer... thanks for setting me straight with that thought!!

When I come home from work, I immediately take Hailie outside... she spends at least 10-15 minutes outside by herself... so, I really don't think that she gets the opportunity for us to "allow her to be over-excited" and I would think this would allow her to calm down a bit... maybe we should attach more "quiet time" when she comes in from outside... that was a great suggestion, by the way... and makes a lot of sense, especially seeing that she does seem to be incredibly intelligent and "human-like" in so many ways... not acknowledging her excitability just makes sense to me... kind of like dealing with a child...

I think that we will try leaving the crate door open and closing the bedroom door, as suggested. She has not used the pee pads in quite some time, so I am not so sure that putting one down will make a difference, but perhaps it will be used. I guess that once they use them, they must remember, right? She is past the "chewing" stage, so I feel the furniture may be safe... I am leary, but will try. I know, I feel TERRIBLE putting her in the crate and leaving... TERRIBLE!

Thanks once again... keep the ideas and suggestions coming... trust me, they are TRULY appreciated!!!

Tim

 

[ButterCloudandNoriko]

Are you going to stop taking her to work completely? Hailies won't be the only one mad if that's the case! hehe

I saw on Dr. Phil how they adopted a rescue pup. It seemed as though the pup could go running all over the office! It was cute. Maybe when she gets older, you wont have to worry about her as much when you do take her to work. But I think getting her use to being alone is very important too.

 

[FannyMay]

The puppy pad has a smell to it that draws them to it. It's like when you train a puppy to go outside you always take them to the same spot because that's where the scent is at. This scent on the pad draws the puppy to the pad and the rest is history. I would put two down though, one right next to the other touching, so she can pee on one and poop on the other. If you find it works then great, if not, well you will figure something out with trial and error.

Just curious what you do for a living that you can take her to work with you. And what does her other daddy do that he can’t take her to work with him. Not that her other daddy taking her to work would be the answer either, I was just asking out of my own curiosity.

 

[Hailies Dad]

Originally posted by FannyMay@Dec 16 2004, 03:59 PM
The puppy pad has a smell to it that draws them to it.  It's like when you train a puppy to go outside you always take them to the same spot because that's where the scent is at.  This scent on the pad draws the puppy to the pad and the rest is history.  I would put two down though, one right next to the other touching, so she can pee on one and poop on the other.  If you find it works then great, if not, well you will figure something out with trial and error.

Just curious what you do for a living that you can take her to work with you.  And what does her other daddy do that he can’t take her to work with him.  Not that her other daddy taking her to work would be the answer either, I was just asking out of my own curiosity.
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I have to tell you that I truly believe that those puppy pads were developed by Satan himself!! LOL... We used them initially... they worked okay, but I truly believe that we trained her that it was okay to pee in the house! I have a hard time disciplining her for peeing when, for the first few months of her life, were encouraging her to do so.

The "other" daddy works in an office, where pets are not so readily accepted into the workplace. I work in a 30 bed residential care Alzheimer's facility... I am the Director there, so can easily take her with me... but, like I said, it turns out to be more stress for me... I even went to the extent of developing a "Bring your Dog to Work" policy... just for Hailie...

But, I find it stressful... even though she does love to go.

So...

Thanks!
Tim

 

[Quincymom]

I could see where taking her to work would be too stressful. You have to watch her like a hawk around the patients. Not easy to do if you are working. I have taken Quincy in at visiting hours to visit with a few patients that I knew would be gentle, but it is still scary. You never know what a child or impaired adult might do. Quincy loved it though, and has such a sweet gentle personality, and was so patient while the little girls combed his hair and fussed over him. I would love to get him trained as far as a formal visiting pets program, but I am afraid that I would not have as much control over who he visits if he is part of it. I am so bad, but it is my furbaby first!
Have you looked into a doggy daycare program near you? I did that with my previous Maltese, Oliver, he had serious separation issues. I took him just twice a week and it really helped. It also helped to alleviate some of the boredom of being the only dog. Once he was around other dogs and could interact with them, it seemed to take some of the stress off of him. I guess being around humans is a tough job! But really, on the days he didn't go to daycare, he was much more mellow, and his anxiety with being alone was much better. If he missed a week or two, I noticed his issues became worse.
Quincymom

 

[Hailies Dad]

This is an update...

I think that Hailie is aware that I am sharing all of her imperfections with everyone here... because we have had a VERY good week and weekend. She has had no accidents in a week! Imagine that?

Today is Monday... never a good day for her... her first day back in the crate... my son was here all weekend, too... he is eight and loves Hailie... they keep each other entertained. He went home last night and she was exhausted!

We have considered "doggie daycare" but, honestly, there is not a lot offered in this area... maybe I will quit my job and start my own!

She is getting excited about Christmas and knows that there are presents under the tree for her... she has sniffed them out and has already made the attempt at opening them! She is just too darn cute!

So, that is my update for the day...

Tim