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aggressive 8 year old yorkies

20 11:34:57

Question
My boyfriend and I own 2 8 year old male yorkies who seem to be getting more aggressive as they get older. When someone gets up to leave or walks around the house they will go after them and sometimes even nip at their legs. We have a friend who has known them most of their lives and they have been getting very aggressive towards her. What can we do to stop this behavior from progressing any further?

Answer
This is a behavior problem, not really a breed problem, so I'd suggest going over to 'canine behavior' or 'training' and ask an expert there........ I can tell you what I'd do if they were my own dogs.    Number one, I'd have them obedience trained.
    They would know sit /stay/ down at the very least. Obedience training is a MAJOR step to a well-behaved pet. Yorkies are very smart little dogs and can learn basic obedience in no time flat.
In the meantime while you are looking for an obedience class to join, I would have those two fellas on leash whenever friends were over. They would be told to 'sit' and 'stay' when anyone got up to walk around. I wouldn't take 'no' for an answer from my dog, either. While on lead they can't go after someone, and with you giving a sharp tug on the lead and a FIRM "NO!", it won't take these 2 little terrors to find out that the game they are playing just isn't fun anymore......keep them on-leash while company is present, even if you just step on the leash while they are sitting beside you it stops them from this aggression. Yorkies are little enough to firmly place your hand on them, when they are showing this rotten behavior and a loud, firm "NO!" should get their attention. If you never LET them go after people again, they won't be doing it. The point here is to stop this behavior immediately, correct them, and don't let it happen. Even if you have to physically pick them up and hold them when people are walking in your house, don't tell them "it's OK" (it's NOT OK to nip!), or "poor baby', don't try to comfort them with words, this reinforces the bad behavior. Tell them "NO, this is BAD!" and  show them an unpleasant voice, let them know this is displeasing to YOU, the pack leader.

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